AN: Wow you would not believe how long it feels like it took to write this chapter, and as I was writing I felt like I could cry myself at a few points because the episodes this took place during are just so sad at some points.

Ironhide: Huh, what a wuss.

AN: Oh so just cause I'm a little sentimental I'm suddenly a wuss? Yeah sure, don't think I didn't see how you were bawling at the end of Toy Story 3, Hide.

Ironhide: Sh-shut up! Th-that was Bumblebee and Arcee, and besides it's a real touching moment and...

AN: Mmmhmmmm. Sure Ironhide.

Ironhide: Tch, whatever. Don't you have some reviews to answer? Like this one from "Czar Joseph"?

AN: I was getting to that. Anyways, to answer your question from last chapter about who that Bot who helped save Kira was, well you'll find out very soon so, sorry but no spoilers.

Ironhide: Alright, how about this one from "AXL999"?

AN: Ah the one about the Junk Guild guy. I'm sorry to say that no he will not be appearing in this. As I've stated before, I only know of the events as they happened in the anime, granted I have read some of the things on the wikipedia, but when it comes to this story, I'm going with the Gundam SEED anime as my main source. Sorry if that disappoints you though.

Ironhide: And finally one from Lone Gundam who elaborated on his last question.

AN: Well I can honestly say that having the Freedom and the Justice made from Cybertronian alloys was not something I thought of, but thanks for the idea, and as for anything beyond that, we'll that'll be a surprise for when the Freedom finally appears on the battlefield, but just so we're clear, Shockwave will have had nothing to do with either one. He is not in this story, and more than likely will not appear until we get to the SEED Destiny arc in the sequel. Is there anything else Ironhide?

Ironhide: Uh, nope I think that covers it.

AN: Alright then, showtime. I do not own anything from any of the Gundam or Transformers franchises or any other franchise that is mentioned in this story.

Chapter 21: Grieving and Suspicions

They had all heard the explosion, and they all understood what the loss of contact with the Strike and Sky Grasper Two meant, but despite that fact, no one on the Archangel's bridge could help but hope that Miriallia's cries into the communicator for Kira and Tolle would be answered. Though after she had called so many times with no response, they found that those hopes were beginning to dwindle. It did not help that Ramius had to tell La Flaga of the fact that contact had been lost with those two, which only drove them all to further doubt that there was any hope the two boys were alright.

Finally, after seeing that Miriallia was now just calling out in desperation, Natarle walked over to Miriallia's console and shut off the communication line and sadly told her, "There's no point."

"Optimus to Archangel," the Autobot commander then called, getting everyone's attention. "What is your status?"

Murrue quickly snapped out of her temporary trance as she checked with Murdoch and then relayed to Optimus, "Chief Murdoch says that we should be able to fly once he and his crew are done with force blanket repairs. Any other damage we received was not too severe. Also, we have captured the pilots of the Buster and the Blitz as well, and some of the crew is escorting them to the brig." Ramius then paused for a moment to gather herself before continuing, "You should also know that we've lost contact with both the Strike and Sky Grasper Two. Are you able to reach either of them?"

No one could ignore the silence that came with the brief pause in the two commanders' conversation before Optimus finally replied, "I am sorry Captain Ramius, but the Omega II is not having any better luck reaching them than you are."

"Optimus, Archangel, this is Hound on the Omega II! Our sensors just detected approaching enemy signals. Three DINNs and a small squadron of Decepticon vehicons all approaching fast," Hound called out, cutting into the conversation.

"Prepare to intercept," Ramius ordered.

"Not possible," Natarle reported. "Over half of our weapons are out of commission. We won't last ten minutes against those DINNs like this!"

"The same can be said for the Omega II when in reference to that fleet of flyers," Elita reported. "She'll be able to get us out of here, but I'm not sure whether or not it'll be able to handle another fight so soon."

Miriallia then started trying to reach Kira once again, only to have Natarle shut off the line once more, starting to get annoyed with the girl, as she told her, "Will you stop that?! It's obvious that Ensign Yamato and Crewman Koenig are both MIA. Understand?"

Miriallia went into total shock, as everything seemed to blur around her. She knew that Lieutenant Badgiruel was right, but the fact did not register with her as her shock and quickly rising despair began to cloud her mind. No one even bothered to stop her as she ran from the bridge. The minute that Miriallia had ran out the door, Newmann reported that their power had been restored.

"We're taking off at once. Maximum thrust," Ramius ordered. The minute she gave the order, the Archangel was lifting off of the ground into the air, with the Omega II close behind them. The latter with a very sad and depressed scout on its upper deck continuing to sadly gaze in the direction that the explosion that may or may not have claimed the life of his friend had come from.

"Tell me the last known location of Sky Grasper Two and the Strike," Murrue then asked.

"A small island at seven o' clock Captain," a crewman reported.

"We can't possibly go back there in this condition," Natarle protested.

"Commander, the Sky Grasper," Murrue then asked Mu.

"Negative," Mu replied. "It still needs work."

"Captain, they'll destroy us if we don't leave at once," Natarle warned.

"But what if…what if Tolle and Kira did somehow manage to escape," Sai asked. Natarle had to admit that she did not have an answer for that, and she understood that everyone wanted to know if there was a chance the two were still alive, but the risks to the ship and crew were just too great even with the Autobots' help, a fact that Elita One herself had stated just moments ago.

"Keep trying to reach Alaska, and send out an S.O.S. signal along with the coordinates of this island to Orb," Ramius then ordered as she clenched her fist.

"To Orb," Natarle asked, unsure why her captain would request that they call the neutral nation for help.

"Orb will accept. We're asking them to save lives," Ramius stated.

Before Natarle could protest or Ramius could say that she would take full responsibility, Optimus's voice cut in saying, "There is no need for any of that Archangel. I have already asked Jazz to contact Ratchet in Orb to request that he relay the S.O.S. himself."

Murrue and Natarle both gave a nod of gratitude and consent at that, and then decided to push the ship onward to Alaska. Throughout the two ships, anyone who was not busy doing something was silently grieving in their own way. Bumblebee had wanted to go over to the Archangel so he could try and at least help Miriallia through her pain, but found himself unable to know what to say, not that it would have really mattered anyways, as the only person on the Archangel that would've been able to understand him was now gone. As for Miriallia herself, she eventually collapsed onto the floor sobbing next to the flight simulator that Tolle had spent so much time in recently with Mu right there unable to say or do anything more than curse out loud as he slammed a fist into a nearby wall.

A few hours after the Archangel and Omega II had left, an Orb rescue unit lead by Kisaka and Cagalli had arrived on the island that the two ships had specified, with Ratchet joining them a moment later to try and do what he could to help. Once everyone was ashore though, it was obvious that no one would need to do any kind of scan to tell what had happened, not even Ratchet. The beach was littered with parts of the Aegis scattered about, showing that any hopes of repairing the red machine was not possible, and lying on its back just a short ways away, was the damaged, grey remains of the Strike.

"Oh no," Cagalli whispered as soon as she saw the wreckage of the two machines. Despite the fact that the Strike was in better shape than the Aegis, it was still obvious that it was hit extremely hard. Ratchet had commenced with as many scans as he could in hopes of finding anything that would indicate that Kira was still alive somewhere nearby, but he was not able to ignore the foreboding feeling that welling up in his chest.

Cagalli was walking in a daze at first, and then a short run as she climbed up to the Strike's cockpit, only to gasp in shock at the damaged state it was in. "Kira," Cagalli whispered. Then she realized there was one thing that was wrong. "He's not here."

"What," Kisaka and Ratchet both asked.

"The cockpit's empty. He must've been thrown somewhere…no maybe he ejected in time." Cagalli began to glance around desperately as she stated these facts, not registering the fact that Ratchet had increased his scans quickly as soon as he heard her say that there was no one in the Strike.

A shocked gasp from the medical Autobot drew Cagalli and Kisaka's attention at once as Ratchet exclaimed, "I'm getting a faint human life sign from close by."

"Colonel Kisaka, over here," someone then called out. Thinking it might be Kira, Cagalli raced over and pushed through the crowd that had gathered, only to find the familiar visage of the boy that she had met on an island a short time ago. Athrun Zala.

Seeing the young man, Ratchet immediately kneeled down and ran a scan of him before reporting, "He's alive, but he is seriously injured. We need to get him medical attention at once."

Cagalli looked at Ratchet in surprise at how quickly the medic was to ignore the fact that this person was a Z.A.F.T. soldier, one of the guys who had been helping the Decepticons, before Ratchet snapped everyone back to their senses saying, "What are you people doing? Help me here! I've only done work with human technology not medicine and biology, so there's nothing I can do for him other than transport him to a hospital if necessary."

That got everyone moving, and soon enough Athrun was being brought aboard the rescue ship that Cagalli and the rest of the Orb rescue team had come in.

A light amount of small from the setting sun coming through a nearby window was what had awakened Athrun a few hours later. As he glanced around, he noticed that there was a small amount of pain in his left arm, which led him to see that it was wrapped in a bandage with a sling. After struggling to sit up, Athrun paused when he heard a familiar, female voice state in a neutral, yet still angry tone, "I see you're awake."

Athrun looked up to see Cagalli approach him with a scowl on her face, and a gun pointed at him. "At the moment your aboard an Orb aircraft," Cagalli informed him, continuing from where she left off. "We decided to take you in after we found you lying on a beach."

"Orb," Athrun wondered aloud. "What does a neutral nation like Orb want with me? Or am I in the hands of the Earth Forces now?"

Cagalli just glared at him as she leveled her gun in response. After letting Athrun remove the IV in his arm, Cagalli asked the question that she needed answered. "There's something I have to know. Are you the one who destroyed the Strike?"

That was when Athrun's smirk vanished from his face, as he quickly recalled everything that happened before he lost consciousness. "It was me," Athrun confirmed.

"What happened to the pilot? Did he escape like you did, eject, or…," Cagalli demanded, finding herself unable to say what the other explanation might be. "We couldn't find Kira anywhere," she then elaborated after Athrun did not respond. After more silence, Cagalli grew more and more anxious and demanded, "Say something!"

Athrun then hung his head so that his bangs hid his eyes and replied with a small, yet sad smile, "He's dead…because I killed him."

Cagalli's eyes went wide with shock at this, and before she could move or say anything Athrun continued, almost as if he was in a trance saying, "It's true. I did it. I had trapped the Strike with my Aegis and blew up. I don't see how he could've escaped."

Cagalli's hand shook as she rushed up and grabbed Athrun by the front of his shirt and pointed her gun at his head, but still Athrun continued, "That was the only option I had left to finish him."

Then Cagalli got a good look at Athrun's eyes, and saw that tears were starting to form. Unable to comprehend why Athrun was crying and deal with the sudden realization that Kira was dead, Cagalli just slammed Athrun down on his bed again and aimed her gun again, only to find herself unable to shoot for some reason. Finally, Cagalli got up and slammed her fist into the wall as she began to let her own tears fall.

As Cagalli cried, Athrun sat up again and moaned, "But why…am I still alive?" He then glanced at his bandaged arm as he continued, "I guess it's because I got out in time." He then turned to see Cagalli had spun around to level her gun at him once more, and he gave a grim smile as he stated, "Or maybe, you're destined to finish me."

Cagalli could hardly believe the crap this guy was saying, and suddenly found herself ranting for apparent reason, "Kira took too many risks, didn't always know what he was doing, and always cried, but he was kind. He was a nice guy!"

Athrun then looked away and gave a small smile with a statement that shocked Cagalli to her core. "Yeah I know. Sounds like Kira really hasn't changed a bit. I had a feeling after I met him in that cave a while back, but I didn't figure it would be this accurate an assumption. He was always like that."

"Did you…," Cagalli asked tentatively as she lowered the gun.

"He was a sentimental cry baby, and he was smart but he never thought things through."

"Did you really know Kira?"

Athrun felt his sad smile getting more and more sad by the minute as he revealed the truth to Cagalli. "Yes we were close. Ever since the days when we were kids. We were the best of friends."

"But then…," Cagalli stuttered, and suddenly she found herself getting angry with Athrun all over again. She then marched over and grabbed Athrun by the front of his shirt again as she shouted, "That's crazy! If you were such a good friend then why the hell would you kill him?!"

Athrun was silent for a moment, before he turned away as best he could in sadness and shame while crying out, "I don't know. I don't know why either okay?! We separated as friends, and the next time I saw him we were enemies. I asked him to come with us over and over, because he was a Coordinator! Can't you see, he was one of us that's where he belonged! It wasn't right for him to be on the side of the Earth Forces!"

Cagalli just stared in shock, unable to comprehend whatever logic Athrun felt he had as he ranted and cried, unable to say anything at all as he continued, "But whenever we talked he wouldn't listen! He fought against us, even hurting friends of mine, and then he killed Jaylen!"

"And so…that's why you killed Kira," Cagalli finally asked. "You're friend?"

"He was an enemy! He wasn't on my side anymore! I had no other choice but to kill him," Athrun argued.

"You idiot," Cagalli shouted. "How could you ever come up with something so stupid? How could you end up doing something so terrible?!"

"He killed Jaylen right in front of both mine and Nicol's eyes! Jaylen was fifteen, she would always talk about how honored she was to be assigned to our team, she was easy to talk to and get along with, and she had a brother she loved so much! She only fought to protect the PLANTs and Kira killed her along with those damn Autobot friends of his!"

Cagalli had heard enough and immediately retorted, "The reason Kira fought was to protect other people to, and the same goes for Bumblebee, Arcee, Optimus, and all the other Autobots as well, but that doesn't explain why Kira had to be killed, and at the hands of his best friend of all people, while his newest best friends had to watch as it happened!"

That was the nail that hit the final mark for Athrun, and the young, injured Z.A.F.T. pilot could do nothing more than start sobbing uncontrollably. Cagalli was not about to let him off with that though, and asked him, "Someone's killed for killing another, and then that guy is killed for killing him. How is that kind of twisted thinking ever going to bring any of us peace? Well?!"

At that point, neither one of them could hold back their tears anymore, and they both just sat there sobbing at the loss of their shared friend, and at everything that had happened. Neither one of them knew that a certain old, Autobot field medic had been listening in from the outside as he watched the Orb crews load the damaged Strike onto the plane, and Ratchet found that he too, did not have an answer for Cagalli's question. Ratchet then found himself wondering what that meant for how the war between the Autobots and Decepticons would finally end.

It was early sunrise, by the time that Athrun found himself getting a check-up from none other than Ratchet himself. Though it had to be done in the hangar bay, the fact that an Autobot was looking after his well being was far more surprising to Athrun than anything else. After such an extended amount of silence though, Ratchet finally spoke up saying, "Be thankful that I'm doing this for you boy. If I were any of the other Autobots there's little doubt in my mind that they would rather flatten you like a bug for what you have done."

Athrun nodded in consent at that, knowing that Ratchet was probably right, and then found himself asking, "Um…do you know if any of the other Autobots were…close to Kira?"

Ratchet paused in his work for a moment to look at the man he was examining, as best he could, before he sighed and stated, "Yes, and before you ask, I'd say that the Autobots that were closest to Kira were Bumblebee, Optimus, and Jazz. Though the fact that Jazz was close to him comes as no surprise."

Athrun then gave Ratchet a questioning glance that Ratchet understood to mean that he wanted to know a bit more about at least two of the Autobots the medic had mentioned. "You probably remember Bumblebee since he was the one you encountered when your race first found themselves in the midst of a battle between Autobot and Decepticon. He is the one that fought Dreadwing, and by far our bravest soldier. I should know, I was the one who had to save his life when we rescued him from Megatron's clutches after the Decepticon leader had left him for scrap and destroyed his voice box."

Athrun gasped in shock at this. Granted, he knew that Megatron was ruthless and seemed like the kind of person who would do such a thing, but he never would have imagined that the Decepticon leader had actually done such a horrible thing. "I still find it amazing to this day that Bumblebee is still so hopeful and willing to fight," Ratchet continued. "And then there's Optimus Prime, leader of all the Autobots. I believe he was able to establish a connection with your friend Kira because he could understand the struggles he was going through." At Athrun's questioning glance, Ratchet raised an eyebrow and asked, "You didn't know that Optimus and Megatron were once close?"

"No I didn't," Athrun replied in surprise. "I mean I knew that they have been enemies for a long time now, but were they really friends once?"

"Yes. It was many cycles ago, back before the war began, and long before Optimus was named the last Prime. He and Megatron were like brothers in those days, but soon Megatron's true ideals were changed, and when Optimus showed that he did not share those ideals, Megatron felt that he had been betrayed, and the two have been enemies since. I suspect that Optimus saw that similar circumstances surrounded you and Kira, and had hoped things would have turned out differently."

Athrun nodded in consent at that, and did his best to hold back his tears that threatened to come forth once more. He could not deny that he too, wished things between him and Kira had gone differently, and Cagalli's words seemed to echo in his mind constantly now. A small glance showed him that said blonde, who had been acting as his guard since he woke up, was hanging her head in sadness as well, and he instantly looked away.

"Ratchet, Cagalli," Kisaka then called getting the attention of the three. "His escort has arrived."

Cagalli then walked over and gave Athrun a small pat on the shoulder as she told him, "Come on Athrun. They're here for you."

At Athrun's questioning glance, Cagalli elaborated, "We're not allowed to bring any Z.A.F.T. soldiers into Orb territory." She then helped him to his feet as she asked, "Are you going to be alright?"

Athrun gave a small grateful smile as he told her, "Probably. You're one strange person you know that?" At Cagalli's silence and sad look, Athrun added, "I guess you deserve a thank you at least, but right now I don't know."

Athrun then moved to leave when he was suddenly stopped by a shout of, "Nyah-ah-ah-ah! You just make sure you don't strain yourself too much. I don't care how much more quickly Coordinators heal than Naturals, you don't want to cause yourself more pain by pushing your body to do something it isn't ready for too soon."

"I'll keep that in mind, and thank you…Ratchet," Athrun told the medic. He then turned to leave once more, but then was stopped when Cagalli called out to him. As soon as he had turned back, Cagalli placed a small necklace with a jewel around his neck.

"It's a Haumea amulet," Cagalli explained at Athrun's confused look. "You have a thing for getting into trouble, so it'll protect you."

"Even after what I did to Kira," Athrun asked.

Cagalli felt herself start to tear up again as she softly said, "I just don't want anyone else to die."

Athrun nodded in acceptance and then left to meet up with his escort, which Yzak turned out to be a part of. As Cagalli and Ratchet watched him go, they both wondered what fate would await him in the future when Athrun returned to Z.A.F.T.

Later that same day with the Archangel and Omega II, the two ships had arrived at the JOSH-A base in Alaska, though the reception that they received was not what one would call welcoming, especially in the case of the Autobots. Jazz insisted that he saw a few of the guys who welcomed them snarl and outright glare at them more than once, but all the same Optimus was willing to overlook any sort of rude behavior from their hosts for the moment, seemingly optimistic about how their attitude towards the Cybertronians might change for the better eventually.

During that time, Dearka and Nicol had been brought to the Archangel's infirmary when it was realized that the both of them were injured, and along the way, the spotted Sai guiding Miriallia to the Mess Hall to get something to eat. Dearka and Miriallia both instantly recognized each other, but neither one of them said anything, leaving their respective friends thoroughly confused. Needless to say though, Miriallia had not been getting any better after the news of Tolle's possible demise, and she was not showing any signs of improvement anytime soon, which led Sai to bring her to the infirmary to get her something to at least help the poor girl get some sleep.

Unfortunately, Sai had to leave Miriallia there while he went to find the doctor, and it was at the same time that Dearka and Nicol were still there. Upon laying eyes and Dearka, Miriallia immediately freaked out and jumped away from both him and Nicol who was lying in the bed opposite of him. "Sheesh, you're a lot more jumpy than you were back then," Dearka remarked. When he received no reply, he just raised an eyebrow and asked, "Why are you staring at us like that? I get Nicol, but why me? You've got nothing to be afraid of in either one of our cases after all."

Miriallia just continued to stare at Dearka in shock and fear, and Dearka could tell he was not making things any better, so he managed the best comforting smile he could as he stated, "Relax will you? Neither one of us could be anymore tied up." To prove his point, he sat up and showed his tied hands to her before he continued, "But what I seriously want to know is why are you crying like that? I'm actually kinda surprised that a ship like this has such a crybaby on board."

"Uh Dearka," Nicol warned, seeing that last comment did not seem to help him at all.

"I knew you didn't have any business being a soldier back when we met down in that cave, and this just proves my point," Dearka continued, oblivious to Nicol's warning.

"Seriously Dearka," Nicol warned when he saw Miriallia glance to the side.

"Or…maybe your little Natural boyfriend went and died on you or some-," Dearka tried to continue.

"DEARKA WATCH OUT," Nicol suddenly shouted. Dearka did not ignore Nicol that time and immediately moved, just narrowly avoiding the knife that stabbed the pillow where his head just was, which was held by a completely enraged Miriallia.

"Hey what's wrong with you now? Seriously," Dearka asked. Miriallia just glared at him as she panted heavily and then lunged at Dearka again with the knife. Dearka was able to avoid it again as the two both fell off of the medical bed as Nicol started calling for help while Dearka shouted, "Hey calm down will ya?! Seriously Miriallia chill out!"

Nicol's cries for help were answered a minute later by Sai, as the glasses wearing boy ran in and grabbed Miriallia to hold her back from attacking Dearka again. Miriallia struggled as hard as she could against Sai's grasp as he tried to calm her down, all the while shouting, "Let go of me! Tolle's gone and he's never coming back, and yet these creeps…what are these scum bags doing here?!"

Dearka stared in shock, as he suddenly realized he made a mistake and hit the nail right on the head when he asked if Miriallia's boyfriend had died. Dearka could do nothing more than continue to stare as he hung his head in shame for saying such things to the sobbing girl who continued to ask why Tolle was gone, while Nicol just looked away in sadness. The click of a loading gun quickly drew everyone's attention to the doorway.

Upon looking there, they all saw a distraught and enraged Flay Allster holding a loaded gun right at Nicol, and Sai and Miriallia knew that she was not going to hesitate to shoot. As she stood there, her arms trembling as she held the gun pointed at the green haired boy, Flay's mind was flashing through both the memory of her father's death, and to her shock as much as anyone else's if they knew, of Kira and all the times she had spent with him, comforting him and being comforted by him, and of how she would never be able to apologize for how she had hurt him, leading her to declaring, "All of you Coordinators…DESERVE TO BE KILLED!"

Flay then shut her eyes as she started to pull the trigger, leading Dearka to panic and jump up, breaking the ropes that held him to the medical bed, and shout out, "Nicol move!"

Nicol tried, but found himself unable to move when he saw Dearka jump in front of him, intending to take the shot himself. Both Coordinators shut their eyes, bracing themselves for what was to come, when they heard the gun shot go off, and found it immediately followed by the sound of shattering glass. Dearka opened his eyes a bit to see that Miriallia had pushed Flay down and caused the shot to be redirected towards one of the lights in the ceiling, saving both his and Nicol's lives.

"Why'd you do that," Flay demanded as she and Miriallia sat up. "You were trying to kill them yourself! You despise these guys too, don't you?! You are exactly the same as I am!"

"Flay stop it," Sai shouted, effectively shutting the anti-Coordinator girl up.

"I'm not," Miriallia whispered, getting everyone's attention. As she continued, Miriallia found her voice getting louder as she let her tears fall. "I'm not…like you. I'm not!"

Dearka found himself hanging his head down in shame, knowing he was partly to blame for this whole mess, and thought to himself, You got that right Miriallia. You're nothing like this bitch.

A moment later, a pair of the Archangel's crew came in to see what had resulted from the whole fiasco. Sai explained the situation to them as best he could, and was informed that the captain would have to be told. Sai nodded in consent at that, and said that he would take Miriallia and Flay back to their rooms after Miriallia had gotten something that would help her to sleep for a bit, while a pair of crewman escorted Dearka and Nicol back to the brig.

A few hours after the incident aboard the Archangel, Murrue, Mu, Natarle, and the rest of the Archangel command crew were seated before Captain Sutherland of the General Staff for a formal inquiry on the Archangel's efforts. Before they began though, Sutherland brought something to everyone's attention. "If you don't mind Captain Ramius, I would appreciate it if you would establish whatever way you intend to allow us to speak with the Autobots as requested." It escaped no one's notice how Sutherland seemed to spit the word Autobots as though the word were something that left a bad taste in his mouth.

"That will not be necessary," a deep voice stated. Everyone turned to the entrance to see that three individuals had entered the room and were moving to sit with the Archangel's crew. The lead figure appeared to be a man in his early to mid-thirties, with grayish-brown hair and beard, and electric blue eyes, and wore a red Earth Forces uniform jacket with blue pants. The second individual was a man who appeared to be slightly younger than the first, with black hair and wore a pair of light blue sunglasses, and an all white Earth Forces uniform. The third and final person, and sole female member of the group, had silver hair and blue eyes, and wore the same uniform as the first two in a dark pink color.

"What is the meaning of this intrusion? Who are you people," Sutherland demanded.

"Greetings Captain Sutherland," the man in the red and blue uniform replied. "I am Optimus Prime, leader of the Autobots. With me are my first lieutenant, Jazz, and the Omega II's acting first medical officer and my sparkmate, Elita One."

Sutherland just scoffed at this proclamation. "You seriously expect us to believe that? I was told that you three were supposed to be massive, intelligent robots who were able to bring down an entire army of Z.A.F.T. mobile suits alone."

"I understand your confusion Captain. My colleagues and I are merely using a technology we call Holo-forms to allow us to attend this meeting in person without having to inconvenience you in anyway. Though you may think that these holographic representations of us are nothing more than illusions, I assure you that we are fully aware of what is happening here despite the fact that our true forms are not present," Optimus explained. He did not notice that Elita was sending Sutherland a death glare from behind him that was just daring the captain to try and argue any of what her sparkmate was saying.

"Very well then," Sutherland then coughed, regaining his bearings. "Let us begin with this inquiry." With that, Optimus and his three comrades took a seat in the chairs that were then offered to them in the front of the room by Ramius and the others.

Well into the hearing, it was very clear that Sutherland was all but accusing Kira for everything that had happened after the destruction of Heliopolis, and Jazz and Elita both had the same thought about the man. He was like a worse, older, male version of Flay Allster. The whole time he did nothing but ridicule and put down the Archangel crew while insinuating that everything that had happened to them or anyone that they made contact with was their fault, all the while making it clear that he intended to shift the blame of all the events after Heliopolis, including the destruction of "the all-important Strike" onto Kira who had now officially been labeled as MIA. Also, whenever he stated with as much emphasis as humanly possible how their enemies were the Coordinators, it escaped none of the Autobots notice how much hatred was present in his voice as they all did their best to stop themselves from pointing out the fact that their enemy was Z.A.F.T. not necessarily the Coordinators. The way he spoke was enough to get under even Optimus's plating, as he could not believe someone like this man was actually supposed to be fighting for the Earth.

Sutherland then went in for an even lower blow as he stated, "And then there's matter of you, Optimus Prime." At Optimus's questioning, yet hard glance, Sutherland elaborated, "After that initial appearance of the Decepticon during the destruction of the advance fleet, which one of your Autobots had become a part of, you and your Autobots have been clinging to the Archangel like a child to its mother. You've claimed it was so that our world would be protected from your enemies the Decepticons, but we have seen much evidence that says that their forces have been sighted aiding Z.A.F.T. in multiple operations. If would seem to me that you are failing in your claimed mission, which leads me to wonder if you truly are trying to protect us from them."

"Why you…" Jazz started, only for Optimus to raise a hand to signal Jazz to not say anything.

"I understand that you have doubts about us Captain Sutherland. However, I must point out that we Autobots are few in numbers, while Megatron and his forces are not. We cannot be expected to handle every Decepticon related incident at once, and even when we are able to do so, there is still the fact that they have allied with Z.A.F.T., making it more difficult to combat their efforts."

"But of course," Sutherland remarked with all-too obvious sarcasm. "There's no reason at all to believe that the mighty alien warriors are not assisting the Coordinators while claiming that they are divided into two groups in order to hide the fact they are crippling our efforts from within."

"Are you completely fragged," Jazz shouted. "And what is your problem with us anyways? Ever since we got here, we've done nothing to warrant this kind of suspicion and finger pointing from you, and yet you keep acting like we're as much of problem as you think that Coordinators are."

"I suggest you teach your…people to know better than to speak out against foreign matters Prime," Sutherland half-shouted in retort, barely making any acknowledgement that Jazz had spoken. "We are not here to discuss ethics of our world."

Elita put a hand on Jazz's shoulder to calm him down as Optimus stated, "While I do agree that we are not here to discuss such matters, I must also agree with my first lieutenant that your views seem to indicate that you seem to believe that all Coordinators are a scourge upon your world and are not something that should be given any kind of voice or freedom, and I have always believed, and will continue to believe, that freedom is the right of all sentient beings."

"A beautiful sentiment, but a naïve one as well," Sutherland stated. "Now if there are no further interruptions or methods to bring us off track, shall we continue?" At Optimus's hesitant nod, Sutherland continued with his tirade on the Archangel and the Autobots, all the while making everyone from both groups more and more angered or suspicious of this treatment.

Finally the hearing concluded, much to everyone's relief, and Sutherland stood up as he stated, "We'll be in touch concerning the Archangel's next assignment. Except for Commander Mu La Flaga, Lieutenant Commander Natarle Badgiruel, and Crewman Flay Allster all crew members will continue to standby aboard the ship. As for what you and your Autobots do Optimus, we'll leave that up to you so long as you do not interfere with any major work in the base and at least consider remaining here with the Archangel."

The fact that the previously mentioned three were excluded from the standby orders drove everyone for a loop and prompted Mu to ask why that was. "Orders are to have you three transferred," Sutherland replied. "Report to the personnel office tomorrow morning at o' eight hundred sharp."

"Sir, why is Crewman Allster being transferred as well," Natarle asked.

"You heard her words when she volunteered to join the military right?" At Natarle's confirmation, Sutherland continued, "Seeing as she's a member of the Allster family I'm sure those words will touch the hearts of many people, along with her motives for joining the military. Her contributions don't necessarily have to be on the front lines."

With that said, Sutherland left the room, not knowing that all three Autobots were glaring at him through their Holo-forms. As they watched him go, Optimus and the others could tell that there was something else going on, and so could the other Autobots, who had been secretly listening in through Optimus and Jazz's comm. links the entire time.

While the hearing was going on, Miriallia had made her way down to the brig to see Dearka again. She was not sure why she went down there, but something just drove her to go and see the blonde boy at least once more. Miriallia paused for a moment when she had reached Dearka's cell, and took a moment to catch her breath when she realized how hard she was panting for some strange reason. She then slowly breathed in and turned to look into the cell to see Dearka lying on the bed.

When Dearka noticed this, immediately sat up, surprised that Miriallia had appeared before him again so soon, startling the poor girl. Miriallia started run off when Dearka called for her to wait, prompting her to look back at him from over her shoulder. Dearka glanced to the side for a moment before he finally stuttered out, "So where was…your boyfriend when he…?"

Miriallia turned away once more as she answered, "He was in a Sky Grasper at the island when you guys made that last attack on us."

"A Sky Grasper," Dearka asked in confusion.

"A fighter plane. A blue and white one," Miriallia elaborated.

Dearka then looked down before he softly told her, "It wasn't me, and it wasn't Nicol either. I know cause he was with me the entire time before we got shot down."

Miriallia gave him a small grateful glance as she hummed in understanding. Dearka moved to lye back down as he said, "What's the matter? Might as well get to it if you came to kill me. Just do me one favor though before you do." Miriallia raised an eyebrow at that. "Leave Nicol out of it? He's about the farthest thing from a killer you can get. The only reason he joined Z.A.F.T. was so he could protect the PLANTs. He's a good guy, loves the piano, and he's almost always way too nice for his own good."

Miriallia was surprised to hear all this coming from Dearka and spared a glance towards Nicol, who appeared to be sleeping in the cell just next to Dearka's. At the sound of a small chuckle from the blonde, Miriallia turned to look back at him as he stated, "I once made fun of him by saying that the Blitz was the perfect machine for him because it was a machine meant for a coward, but the truth is I think Nicol is actually the bravest out of all of us. Don't even think about arguing with me Nicol, it won't change my mind any more than it will make me believe that your actually asleep over there."

A moment later, Nicol simply sighed and sat up on his bed and said, "Thanks for that Dearka. It really means a lot."

Miriallia just smiled at how close the two friends seemed to be and turned to leave when Dearka stopped her again. "Uh…can I at least introduce you two properly?"

Miriallia nodded after a slight amount of hesitation, which prompted Dearka to say, "Nicol, this is Miriallia, a friend of the Strike pilot, Kira Yamato. Miriallia, this is Nicol Amalfi, pilot of X207-Blitz Gundam."

Nicol raised an eyebrow at the word Gundam, but simply shrugged it off, before he smiled and said, "It's nice to meet you Miss Miriallia."

Miriallia smiled and said, "Nice to meet you too Nicol, but please don't call me Miss. Just Miriallia is fine."

Nicol nodded in acceptance of that, and then Miriallia left the two alone so that they could finally get some sleep.

A few hours after Optimus, Jazz, and Elita had returned from the hearing, it gave the Autobots the all clear to start ranting about how messed up the whole thing was. "I can't believe those slaggin' idiots," Jazz ranted as he slammed his fist into the wall. "I mean what is their problem? Are they so caught up in their little war and prejudices that they can't tell the difference between friend and foe anymore?!"

"Not to mention the fact that they don't seem all that bothered by the fact that Kira's dead or that they're essentially blaming him for everything that's happened since he first boarded the Strike," Bumblebee whirred in anger. It was clear to everyone that when it came to what was said in there, the only thing that really drove Bumblebee up the wall more than anything else was anything that was in relation to Kira. Not that anyone could blame him.

At that point, Bulkhead decided to vent his own frustration, and one of Elita's tools became an unfortunate victim of said venting. "Bulkhead! I…," Elita began.

"What? You needed that," Bulkhead snapped. "The only thing I need is even some indication that our boy Kira is okay, or one good reason to bug out of this place and leave this planet to those idiots that think like Sutherland!"

"I agree with Bulkhead," Wheeljack stated, adding his own two cents. "I mean aside from the 'Cons, why are we even sticking around anymore? It's not like humanity really cares whether or not we're here."

"While that may or may not be true Wheeljack, we cannot allow the Decepticons to ravage this world as they did Cybertron. Though I agree that these people are not the best example of what humanity has to offer, Kira Yamato gave his life to ensure the safety of those precious to him, and they were fighting to protect the world they care for and all those who live in it," Optimus reasoned. "If we were to abandon the Archangel or Earth for any reason now, then we may as well be insulting Kira's very memory. While it saddens me that such a kind, caring, and gentle soul was lost, I do believe that Kira's spirit lives on in the hearts of those who were close to him, who fought beside him, and who came to call him a friend just as we have. Which is why I intend to see to it that whatever its next assignment may be, the Archangel does not fail in its mission to defend the Earth."

The Autobots were all silenced and awe-struck by Optimus's words, and found themselves thinking along the same lines as their leader. None of them intended to dishonor Kira and what he stood for, and they were all more determined than ever now to ensure the safety of those that Kira fought so hard to protect. After such a long period of silence, Arcee finally spoke up, "That still leaves a few questions unanswered though."

"What do you mean by that Arcee," Optimus asked.

"A couple hours after that so-called hearing, I went to do a little digging and found out what those reassignments were, and the only one that made even a lick of sense was the one for Badgiruel. She was to be sent to another base to await her next command assignment, while Mu was to be sent off to work as an instructor of all things."

"Whoa that can't be right," Hound stated and he pulled a Cybertronian cigar out of his mouth. "Mu's a majorly skilled pilot that's won many battles for the Earth Forces. The guy's practically built for being on the battlefield in the middle of a war."

"My thoughts exactly, but it gets weirder," Arcee went on. "Remember how they said they were still processing the requests the Archangel made for shore leave, crew assignments, discharges, or whatever, and the fact that they were going over the details of the fact that they have prisoners aboard the ship?" At everyone's nod in reply Arcee continued saying, "There wasn't anything about any of it in there at all. It's almost like they just took all those requests and threw them out the window as if they were completely unimportant. It's like they don't even care or think that there's no need to bother with any of that for the Archangel, and that's just the tip of the iceberg."

Optimus paused for a moment as he thought about what Arcee had told them, and then he thought back to the hearing. He could not help but note that Sutherland was a bit more hostile towards the Autobots then he probably should have expected him to be, almost like he was planning on doing whatever he could to get rid of them the first chance he had, and then there was the fact that it seemed to ignore that Cybertronians were also known as Transformers for a reason beyond how they armed their default weapons. With all of this in mind, Optimus turned to his Autobots and stated, "Jazz, lead a team consisting of yourself, Arcee, Bumblebee, and Bulkhead to investigate this further. It would appear that there is more going on here than we have been led to believe. As you investigate though, remain in vehicular mode at all times unless absolutely necessary to drop cover."

"Understood Prime," Jazz said as he lead the three Optimus specified to the Ground Bridge deck, which Elita One was already preparing for action. As Optimus watched them go through the green vortex that led into JOSH-A base, he could not help but feel that dark times were ahead for the Autobots and the Archangel.

While the Archangel was going through the grief they felt at the apparent loss of two of their crewmates, and the Autobots were beginning to investigate what the Earth Forces Command may or may not be hiding, up in the PLANTs, the sun was shining brightly and providing the residents of the Clyne family's home with a wonderful day. As the shining sun shone down the light from the sun caused a familiar, brown haired young man to stir and begin to wake up from where he was sleeping, opening his eyes to reveal the dark purple eyes of one Kira Yamato. As Kira slowly glanced around his surroundings, a familiar, cheerful voice spoke getting his attention. "Good morning sleepy head."

Kira turned to the person who spoke, but could not tell who it was at first, as his vision was a bit cloudy at the moment, and the bright sun light was not making it any easier for his eyes to adjust. "Where am I," Kira finally asked.

"There'll be time for that later," the same person told him. Finally, Kira's eyes were able to fully adjust to the light and he saw the same person he had met the same day that he had first found Bumblebee in the Debris Belt.

"You're Miss Lacus," Kira realized.

"Oh my! Just plain Lacus is fine, okay Kira," Lacus reassured him as her little friend the pink Haro hopped up onto Kira's bed. "But I'm so pleased to hear that you remembered my name."

"So has our sleeper awakened yet," a new voice asked. Kira looked towards the source and saw a man with dark hair, in an aqua green coat, and carrying walking stick had come in.

"Yes Reverend Malchio," Lacus replied.

"You must be surprised waking up out here," the new identified Reverend Malchio told Kira. "Miss Lacus was insistent that we bring your bed outside."

"Perhaps because it feels better to be outside than inside, don't you think," Lacus asked Kira.

Kira was not sure what to say to that and elected to simply ask one of the all important questions. "How did I get here?"

"I found you lying unconscious in my prayer garden," Malchio explained. "You were injured and in need of assistance, so I brought you here with a little help from someone who is well acquainted with your large metal friends."

Kira raised an eyebrow at that wondering what Malchio meant by that last part when it all started coming back to him. The battle with Athrun, how the Autobots were pinned down by the Decepticons, Tolle's death, it all started flashing through his mind as he started to hyperventilate a little. "But why…why am I…," Kira tried to ask.

"Because you possess the SEED. That's why," Malchio explained, gaining a questioning look from Lacus when he had stated that. Suddenly Kira bolted upright, gasping in shock and feeling tears running down as his face, getting Lacus concerned.

"I…fought against Athrun," Kira gasped. "I couldn't…have survived."

Lacus simply held Kira in a tight embrace as he let it all out. A short while later, Kira had calmed down a bit, and Lacus had offered to pour some tea for them, letting Kira tell her what had happened. "It was inevitable I guess," Kira stated. "Because I was the one who killed his friend, and then Athrun killed my friend, and that's why…"

Lacus looked down sadly as she stated, "So you tried with all your might to kill Athrun, and he tried to do the same to you." Kira simply nodded in reply, not sure what he could say, and Lacus continued by saying, "But none of that could be helped could it, because that's war and you both were fighting against the enemy. Am I mistaken?"

Kira looked at her in shock for a moment before glancing up at the sky in wonder for a moment as he pondered her words. Seeing Kira seemed to have much to think about, Lacus decided to give him time to think while she went in to get something for them to eat. As she did so, Lacus could not help but feel sad for Kira and all he had clearly gone through, but even so she was glad that he was alive now and felt that despite all the sad things that had happened to him, so many good things had happened to Kira as well.

When Lacus came back out, she found Kira had gotten up to look out at the horizon in thought. Lacus walked over to Kira and saw that he had a distant, sad look on his face. "Oh Kira, you look like you've had such sad dreams," Lacus told him.

Kira thought for a moment before replying, "I am sad. Many people have died, and I've killed many people. Even though it was not as many as it probably could have been, I still feel that even one death on my hands is worth many. Someone once told me that I could train to fight without killing people both in and outside of a mobile suit, but even so I still…"

Lacus placed her hand on the side of his face as she soothingly reassured him, "You had to fight as hard as you could though, and you protected many things. I'm positive of that, and even if you did kill, I'm certain that it was never intentionally after this person began to teach you right?"

Kira looked at Lacus in surprise at how much she had right about what she had said, and simply nodded in reply, already feeling somewhat better at that. Lacus smiled at him, seeing that Kira seemed to be cheering up a little, and then said, "Let's have something to eat shall we? I'll go reheat up the food."

"But…," Kira tried to protest, but Lacus was not going to hear any of it and simply started dragging Kira back into his bed saying he still needed to rest.

"Besides it'll be okay. This is still a place of peace," Lacus reassured Kira. With that, Kira simply sighed in defeat and let Lacus guide him back to the bed that had been set up for him. As soon as he was sitting comfortably back in his bed again, Lacus then turned a happy smile to Kira and asked, "By the way, I was wondering if you could tell me how Mister Bumblebee is doing Kira. Has he been alright?"

Kira was surprised that Lacus would want to hear about how Bumblebee was, but all the same he found it comforting to talk about the young Autobot scout and told her, "Yeah he's been doing really well. He's on Earth now, and was traveling with us along with his friends the other Autobots."

"Oh really," Lacus asked excitedly. "So you've met all the Autobots on Earth?"

"Well yeah for the most part. A few of them are still in stasis actually. Actually I met the leader of the Autobots after he saved my life in a battle we ended up in almost immediately after we landed on Earth."

"And what is he like?"

Kira smiled as he thought about that fateful meeting with the last Prime as he gave Lacus his reply. "He is amazing. His name's Optimus Prime, and he's actually the last of the Primes, the true leaders of Cybertron, and there's just something about him that inspires hope in others. Maybe it's the fact that he's such a powerful warrior who would give his life to defend others and the freedom of others, or maybe it's just something in the way he talks, whether in casual conversation or in the speeches he gives. All I know is, Optimus is by far one of the bravest, noblest, and most selfless Autobots I know."

Lacus smiled at this, because up until now, the only things she had heard about any of the Autobots were things she heard from either Dreadwing or other Decepticons, and none of that was anything really good a majority of the time. It was nice to hear such good things about the freedom fighters of Cybertron, which led her to ask, "Can you tell me about the other Autobots Kira? I'd really like to know about them."

Kira smiled and sat up as he began to tell Lacus a bit more about his new friends from another world. "Sure I don't mind. Now, where do I begin? I guess a good place to start would be with Bumblebee's girlfriend, Arcee, but they both always deny that there's anything between them other than friendship."

AN: Sorry this chapter did not have any action in it, unless of course you count that whole thing Miriallia trying to stab Dearka in her grief, and yes I kept that in there. Even though they had already met that doesn't mean Dearka's big fat mouth isn't going to get him into trouble with the girl.

Ironhide: Sheesh, and I thought Sideswipe and Blaster were bad with the ladies.

AN: Ooookay. Anyhow, uh-oh someone's not being completely honest, and Optimus and his boys are on to them. I'd hate to be Sutherland and his stooges when Optimus finds out the truth, assuming they find out in time. And just how much are Jazz and his team going to learn?

Ironhide: Uh shouldn't these be things that are said in the preview?

AN: No that would be the stuff that is said now. Onto the Preview!...

The fears that Optimus and the Autobots held of the Earth Forces Command are realized, as they uncover a plot that Command had come up with in response to Operation Spitbreak. Realizing the danger, Jazz and his team race to try and alert the others before it's too late, but before they can the Z.A.F.T. Operation begins. As the team of Autobots and Mu La Flaga race to reach the Archangel and Omega II to alert them, word of Operation Spitbreak's true target reaches Kira, and leads him to a decision on what he must do. Accompanied by an Autobot that was supposedly being held prisoner by the Decepticons, Kira descends onto the battlefield once more, this time with a better idea on what he should be fighting against. Next time on Mobile Suit Gundam SEED Prime…Chapter 22: Return of Two Heroes. Fly into action as your sword descends upon the battlefield Gundam!

Please read and review, and I'll see you next time!