I don't own anything except Kevin Walker, the Destroyers, Max, Frank Castile, and Meryl Steiglitz
Leona Colde also does not belong to me; she is the creation of arekuruu-inabikari-no-She
Warning: this chapter may contain spoilers; those who have not seen the entirety of Destiny, proceed at your own risk
"It's interesting how two people can have several of the same personality traits, yet be diametrically opposite in attitude. My origins are those of a soldier, born and bred for a war whose purpose I do not yet fathom; despite my father's wishes, though, I long ago swore my allegiance to Cagalli Yula Athha, my best friend, my girlfriend, and my liege. According to the code of honor I follow, I am sworn in her service until death, following the oath I made as a child. To me, nothing is more important than my family, and those I have sworn to protect.
"The same, I believe, is true of Shinn Asuka. He shows traits of a protector, in his fierce devotion to those close to him… but his unresolved hate leads to destruction, his lingering anger a weakness that spurs him to recklessness on the field of battle. He could be a formidable presence on the battlefield, but he is empty; everything about him traces back to that one day in his past, when his family vanished. He cannot put it out of his mind, and so it dominates his every action, leading him to be reckless and foolhardy.
"We both protect and serve, and we both have grief-filled pasts… but where he uses that anger as a burning-hot weapon against his foes, I use my cold fury to fuel my actions, not control them; he takes vengeance against any target he can find, even for deaths that are not the result of deliberate acts. I exercise my wrath only against those who have done me or my family deliberate harm.
"There's no doubt that the boy has potential; I'll freely admit that, were it not for my cybernetic advantages, he might well equal my skill… but as he is now, he could never exceed it. Bound to his past, unwilling –or unable- to control his anger, he is easily provoked, and that leads him to mistakes… mistakes that could be fatal.
"For he also has a pathological hatred of Orb, which seems focused on me… for now. His outbursts on Minerva, directed at Cagalli, show a dangerous trend… one which he ought to know could easily lead to his own destruction.
"If he attacks her, not even my friendship with Athrun will hold me back. The moment Shinn Asuka becomes a serious threat to her, he will die by my hand…
"For that is my desire, and my duty, to the one to whom I swore my oath, the one whom I love…"
-Excerpt from The Tragic Spiral of War, by Force Operation X Colonel Kevin Walker
"Isn't it a little early for you to be writing your memoirs, Kevin?" Cagalli Yula Athha asked, amused, as she stepped into the cabin.
Shutting down his terminal, Kevin Walker flexed his fingers, working out the mild stiffness in his human hand. He could've done it by neural receptor, of course, but he'd never felt comfortable typing by thought command…
"I usually find it best to get my thoughts down while they're still fresh," he said, in response to her question. "I've actually been working on the book for a year or so now. I don't know how much interest there'll be in it once it's actually published, but if nothing else I suppose it'll be a good family heirloom. You know, a bit of family history written by someone who was actually involved in it, instead of some egghead history major analyzing events from a distance of a few decades."
Cagalli shook her head, chuckling. "I'm not sure if you really mean that, or it it's just an excuse for you to organize your own thoughts." Meeting his glowing eyes, she raised an eyebrow. "Judging from that glimpse I caught, I see you're still giving Asuka grief, if only from a few hundred kilometers away."
"He rubs me the wrong way," Kevin said honestly. "I also firmly believe he's a menace, as much to his friends as to his enemies. That temper of his could easily get him killed, probably taking several of his friends along for the ride." He reached into a jacket pocket, pulled out a cigarette, and lit up. "The thing about him," he said thoughtfully, "is that he's tied to his past to the exclusion of almost everything else. Now, I'll admit a lot of my actions are tied to my past… but that's because my past is currently trying to kill me."
"That would be a good reason to worry about it," she agreed… and then her expression sobered. "So, still no word?"
He glanced away. "Not exactly," he admitted quietly. "You know, of course, that Invictus is also afflicted with Snake Eater now, as is Carter… well, now we also have some information about where the bastard responsible for it is."
"You've heard from Tolle, then?" By now, Cagalli knew the former college student had been Kevin's primary intelligence asset in space for the last several months, so he was the logical source of any new information.
"Yeah," Kevin confirmed. "The poor guy's been bouncing from place to place ever since Meer Campbell turned up, trying to be everywhere at once, but his hard work is starting to pay off. First off, I finally know where my father is."
Cagalli stiffened. "He's been located? Where?"
"Currently in transit from wherever Carter's base is right now to Orb," he answered, pulling out the cigarette and taking a deep breath of smoke. "He's taking a shuttle down as we speak, which means he must be finally ready to openly declare himself in Orb, though I rather doubt he intends to try and take over just yet." He grimaced. "Regrettably, I don't dare try and liquidate him just now. There's no guarantee even Nemesis could reach his shuttle before he gets down, and attacking him in Orb would be… difficult, to say the least. My credibility would be effectively zero from then on, and I'd be a wanted man even in Orb."
"Because we're the only ones who could corroborate your story, and we're all fugitives right now, too," Cagalli mused. "And then there's the fact that he'll soon have access to the Avalon defenses, too, right?"
"Unfortunately, yes," Kevin said with a sigh. "I expunged as many of the old command codes as I could, but some of it was hardwired into the original computer mainframe, during the Reconstruction War; not even I ever had those codes, but I know for a fact that Father does. Which means he has full access to, among other things, sixteen MIRV ICMBs, all equipped with nuclear warheads… and," he added grudgingly, "N-jammer cancelers, thanks to my idiocy. Not to mention that lovely cache of VX, which I never managed to destroy, and a whole lot of antique weapons that'll kill me just as dead as modern ones."
She winced. "No wonder you always thought that place was impregnable… Okay, so your father is back in power, or will be soon, and there's nothing we can do about it right now. What about ABADDON? Anything new on that front?"
"More bad news," he admitted, suddenly looking his age (which wasn't saying much, since he was only three years older than he appeared, but still unusual for him). "Tolle had a chance to swing around the dark side of the Moon… and he confirmed what I'd feared: the ABADDON laboratory is still largely intact."
"But… how?" Cagalli wondered. "You set off a nuclear bomb; there shouldn't have been anything left. Unless…" Her eyes narrowed. "Low-yield, high-radiation weapon? Enough bang to toast you and your immediate surroundings, but mostly a radiological weapon?"
"That was Tolle's guess, from what he saw," Kevin agreed. "He didn't stick around long, but his opinion is that the blast chamber was reinforced with a thin layer of DiaSteel; enough that, combined with a new type of micro-yield nuke, the actual blast effects were confined to the north pole of the station. All non-augmented personnel in the south pole would've been killed, too, but by the massive amounts of gamma rays, not the actual explosion."
"And if the physical structures and machinery were hardened against radiation, much of the facility is probably still functional," she mused. "Just… too hot for any non-augmented salvagers to get too." Her gaze sharpened. "You think ZAFT knows about this?"
"They built the place; I'm guessing they've got a good idea of how to find it," he responded obliquely. "Yeah, I'm pretty sure they know, tovarisch. And as soon as they can spare the manpower, they'll almost certainly try to reoccupy the place." A shadow came into his eyes. "And that means… I can't ignore it, either."
Cagalli reached out, and gripped his human arm. "You're going to go back there, aren't you?" she murmured.
"I have no choice," Kevin said heavily. "It's something I've avoid for over five years now… but I can't avoid it forever. Everything leads back to that place, and we cannot allow ZAFT to wrest control of the facility. The Destroyers they've managed to create from Delta's systems are bad enough; what they could do if they continued Oracle's research is more frightening than I care to contemplate."
"You could just destroy it," she suggested quietly. "Use a nuke of your own to finish the job you started, six years ago…"
He shook his head. "I can't do that," he said, voice sinking to a whisper. "Leaving aside the fact that the data there might be needed to find the cure for Snake Eater, I can't do that to my comrades. Bad enough that I killed them; I won't just obliterate what remains of them. They… they at least deserve a proper burial, after everything." He closed his eyes. "And I could never forgive myself if I didn't at least go back to where it all began. My people… my friends deserve that much."
Cagalli sighed, knowing there was no way to dissuade him now. She could order him not to go, and expect him to obey… but she couldn't. There were dark places in Kevin Walker's soul even yet, and it seemed likely he would never truly find absolution within himself without going back there.
He no longer thinks he's a monster, she mused, but he still can't put it out of his mind… but then if he could, he wouldn't be Kevin, would he?
"Well," she said at last, "if you think you have to do it, I won't stop you, Kevin. But," she went on, smiling suddenly, "it's not like you'll even have time to go there for a while yet, so why don't we go get some lunch?"
Kevin managed a chuckle. "Not a bad idea, tovarisch. Need to keep up my strength and all…"
Laughing, the pair departed, heading for Archangel's cafeteria.
Standing on the roof of the government building where he'd stayed the night, Athrun Zala was quietly fuming. That girl doesn't understand what she's doing, he thought darkly, reflecting on the events of the morning. I really hope the Chairman knows what he's doing, because she obviously doesn't…
His morning had started off quite badly enough, right from the moment he'd awoken. Certainly the last thing he'd expected was to find Meer Campbell in his bed… and things had gone downhill from there. Before he'd even had the chance to sort that out, Lunamaria had arrived at his door, asking if he wanted to join her for breakfast.
And Meer had, apparently, taken that as a threat to the façade she was maintaining, answered the door herself, and informed Luna that Athrun would be going to down to breakfast with her, "Lacus Clyne"… and then, just to make her point perfectly understood, she'd shut the door in Luna's face.
Athrun had not been the least amused, to put it mildly.
"Just what do you think you're doing?" Athrun demanded. "You realize the impression you just gave her? And what were you doing in my bed in the first place?"
Meer shrugged, unabashed. "I'm supposed to be your fiancé, right? That's what a fiancé would do; and a fiancé wouldn't have any problem letting other people know how things stand."
"Except that the real Lacus Clyne would never do such a thing," he retorted, pulling on his uniform. "She's not like that; and I don't remember Chairman Durandal saying anything about acting like Lacus and I were still engaged anyway."
"I am supposed to be Lacus Clyne," she pointed out. "It was never made public that the engagement between you two was broken off, so of course we have to maintain the appearance, right? Otherwise…"
"Just because it wasn't made public then doesn't mean it couldn't be now," Athrun told her irritably, fastening his collar. "It's known I was in Orb for two years; a lot of things can happen in that time… and 'maintaining the appearance' is already making my working relationships on the Minerva more difficult."
Meer sighed. "Perhaps that is so, Athrun, but it really is better this way. I'm sure you can work around it, and it does provide more evidence that I really am Lacus, doesn't it? I'm sure the Chairman knew these issues were going to come up, so you could always talk to him, if you need help…"
Athrun took a deep breath, and chose another approach. I need to get through to her somehow,he told himself. I don't want this happening again… "Look, Meer, you're playing a very dangerous game here. Do you have any idea the risks you're taking with all this?"
She looked at him blankly. "Risks? What risks? The only people who are the wiser about this are you, Chairman Durandal, and the Archangel; and since Lacus herself hasn't come forward to protest, I don't think-"
"I'm not talking about Lacus," he interrupted. "I'm talking about Kevin. Look, you've never met him, so maybe you don't understand this, but Kevin is very protective of his family, and he's already angry about what you're doing. He told me himself that the only reason he hasn't exposed you is because he thinks of you as bait."
Meer blinked. "Bait?"
Athrun sighed. And people think the real Lacus is naïve, he though wearily. "Meer, Kevin is one of my best friends, but I'm not blind to his faults, or his ruthlessness. He tolerates you only because your act distracts any who would mean Lacus harm from the real one; if it weren't for that, he would've gone public from Day One. As it is, he wouldn't hesitate to assassinate you if you stepped a centimeter over the line."
"You're joking," she said dismissively. "I know Colonel Walker's reputation. He's ruthless against his enemies, but he wouldn't go after someone like me. Not even he would dare cross that line."
"He would if he thought you were going too far," he replied bluntly. "Like I said, he's very protective of his family. If he thought your actions were putting his sister at risk, he would either hunt you down himself or send one of his very loyal subordinates after you. And let me warn you," he added, nodding significantly at the bed, "the actions you're starting to take are right in the direction he would consider most threatening."
Meer had, at last, apparently understood that Athrun was being quite serious about Kevin's likely reaction, but it had given him a headache anyway. "Doesn't help that I had to bring up Kevin like that," he muttered to himself. "First time I was actually glad of how he is…"
"Rough morning, Commander?"
Athrun nearly jumped out of his skin at the sound of the voice, which came from less than two meters to his right. Alec King had seemingly materialized out of thin air, and was now leaning against the railing, looking out over Diocuia. "You're just like Kevin," he remarked, when his heartbeat had returned to normal. "And you don't have to call me Commander right now, Alexander; we're off-duty, and out of earshot."
"True," Alec conceded. "In that case, I'm Alec." He smiled faintly. "I'm assuming whatever happened with your morning was also responsible for Luna's bad mood at breakfast?"
The blue-haired pilot grimaced. "Yeah, you could say that… How much do you know about what's going on, by the way?"
"If you mean, do I know that the 'Lacus Clyne' you've been walking around with is a fake," the Destroyer said calmly, "then the answer is yes. I'm well aware that the real Lacus Clyne is neither a hyper-active tart nor anywhere near Diocuia."
"Somehow I'm not surprised," Athrun murmured. "Did Kevin tell you?"
"Not directly… but I have my sources." Alec glanced sidelong at the pilot. "Suffice it to say, Athrun, that we few who survive like to keep in touch." He raised an eyebrow. "Am I to assume, then, that this imposter was responsible for your rotten morning?"
"You could say that," Athrun said again. "You ever wake up with someone else in the bed? Someone who spends the first few minutes of the day making your working relationships harder to maintain, without realizing she's making things worse?"
"Can't say that I have," Basilisk admitted. "But, unfortunately, your news doesn't surprise me. I knew just from watching that concert yesterday that she has no idea how the real Lacus actually acts." He shook his head. "Does that girl have any idea that she's playing with fire? I don't like to think of how a certain mutual acquaintance of ours would react if he heard about it."
"Very badly," Athrun said with a sigh. "I tried to warn her that she's literally endangering her own life the more steps she takes in that direction, but I'm not sure if I got through to her… and even if I did, it didn't really help me with the others."
"Probably inevitable," Alec opined. "You're a close friend of a man Luna and Shinn both despise; that's going to make it all the harder to fix any damage that imposter causes."
"Tell me about it," the pilot agreed, remembering what had happened after he and Meer had finally joined the others.
"You must be feeling pretty good," Luna remarked to Shinn, her mood having recovered somewhat from the deliberate insult she'd received earlier. "I mean, being complimented by Chairman Durandal himself, and then getting the day off…"
Shinn shrugged uncomfortably. "Yeah, kinda," he conceded. "I admit, though, that I was kind of nervous, meeting with the Chairman in such a private setting. Not many pilots have that chance, you know?"
"Yeah, I guess so," she agreed. "Quite the honor, huh?"
The two of them were in the building's dining room, waiting for –among others- Athrun and "Lacus" to arrive. Had Shinn not been there, of course, Luna would still have been fuming, but for once they were having a mutual calming influence on each other.
They both turned at the sound of footsteps, but rather than Athrun and his companion, it was Heine Westenfluss entering the room. "Good morning," he greeted cheerfully. "Good to see both of you."
"Good morning, Mister Westenfluss," Luna said in return, starting to salute.
Heine laughed, and waved a hand. "Please, no need to be so formal. Just Heine will do; we're all shipmates, right?" Smiling, he glanced around the room. "Say, do either of you happen to know where Athrun is?"
Luna's expression clouded, remembering her reception earlier, but the sound of more approaching feet interrupted her before she could even open her mouth. This time, it was Athrun… with "Lacus" on his arm. Although, Luna noted, he did seem somewhat uncomfortable with the arrangement…
"Right here," Athrun said, in reply to Heine's question. "Good morning, all of you."
"Good morning, Athrun; or do you prefer Commander Zala?" Heine asked politely.
"Athrun will do," the other pilot replied.
"Ah. In that case…" The blonde pilot turned his attention to Athrun's companion. "Good morning, Miss Lacus," he greeted. "It's an honor to meet you."
Meer smiled brightly. "Why, thank you, Mister Westenfluss. A pleasure it is to meet you, as well; I understand you've worked as hard as anyone in defending the PLANTs."
"I'm just one man, trying to do my part," Heine said modestly. "I should be thanking you, Miss Lacus, for your performance yesterday. It was inspiring for us all, I think."
As Meer accepted the other FAITH member's compliments, Athrun gritted his teeth. If Kevin could hear the praise being lavished on Meer, he thought to himself, by people who think she's the real Lacus, he'd probably kill everyone in the room through sheer anger…
His was given a reprieve from his irritation soon enough, though, as one of Meer's aides entered. "Excuse me, Miss Lacus," he said politely, "but it's just about time for your meeting…"
She nodded, still smiling. "Thank you, I'll be right there." Turning back to Heine, she essayed a curtsey. "I'm afraid I have a bit of business to attend to, Mister Westenfluss. It's been a pleasure meeting you; perhaps we'll see each other later, as well."
"I would be honored, Miss Lacus."
As the imposter stepped out, Athrun allowed himself an inward sigh of relief. Maybe now I can manage a bit of damage control…
"Well," Heine remarked, "she's quite the personable sort, isn't she?" Not waiting for any sort of reply, he turned to Shinn. "So, you'd be the pilot of the Impulse, right? How does it perform in battle? I've heard that it's made the difference in several of Minerva's battles already."
"So far, it's performed even better in battle than in training," Shinn replied, quickly warming to the affable FAITH member. "The new power transmission system helped out when we escaping from Orb, and the modular nature of the unit's been a lifesaver."
Heine nodded thoughtfully. "I'd heard there were some structural integrity issues with it, but it sounds like the advantages have so far outweighed the risks…" He looked over at Luna. "And you're flying a ZAKU Warrior, eh? I flew a Phantom myself, during the abortive offensive against the PLANTs that kicked off the war. The ZAKU series is still an excellent design, even with the new GOUFs coming online; I understand you've used it to great effect in defending Minerva."
"I'm okay with it," Luna acknowledged with a shrug. "It's not as good in atmosphere, since it can't fly, but I like to think my fire support has been helpful."
"I'm sure it has," he assured her, and turned his attention back to Athrun. "So, you've got the last Second-Stage unit, right? The Savior?"
"That's right," Athrun confirmed. "I haven't had much of a chance to test it in battle yet –my abortive attempt to rendezvous with Minerva in Orb was mostly just dodging enemy fire- but it worked out well during the Lohengrin Gate battle. Kind of reminds me of my old Aegis, really, except more maneuverable in atmosphere."
Heine nodded. "Well, it sounds like Minerva is in good hands already, with you three –and that Za Burrel fellow- flying off her. Not to mention, of course, the weapons of the ship herself; I daresay only an Archangel-class could rival her." He smiled, shaking his head. "Frankly, I'm not quite sure why three FAITH members would even be needed on that ship, since you people already have things well in hand."
"We could always use more pilots," Athrun pointed out, echoing his words from the previous day. "I may have good pilots working with me, but we can only be in so many places at once. Quality sometimes isn't enough to make up for a lack of quantity."
"True enough," the other pilot conceded. "Well, regardless of the Chairman's exact plans for assigning me to your ship, I know he has high expectations for us all. I hope to be able to fulfill them…"
"I'll say this for Heine Westenfluss," Alec mused, after Athrun had related the morning's events. "You don't want to be on the wrong side of his beam rifle, but if you're on his side, he's just about the nicest guy you'll ever meet. Doesn't have a malicious bone in his body, as far as I can tell."
Athrun raised an eyebrow. "You've worked with him before?"
"Yeah," the Destroyer confirmed. "I was crew chief on the Experimental Firearms GuAIZ he flew at Second Jachin, so I got to know him fairly well back then… though, of course, he had no idea about my true identity."
"Well, that about matches my impression of him," Athrun admitted. "Meer's been causing me problems working with Luna, and Shinn just plain doesn't like me, but I don't think I'll have any trouble dealing with Heine. Kind of a nice change, really."
"Yeah," Alec agreed, "it's always nice to work with people you can get along with." A shadow crossed his expression, as memories flitted through his mind. "That's how things were when my old unit was together… except that none of us really cared for the science types."
"So I understand," the blue-haired pilot remarked. "Kevin once told me that you guys would only take orders through him, and his exec…" He trailed off. "Sorry."
Basilisk waved a hand. "It's an old wound, Athrun," he said quietly. "I can't help thinking about it when I'm around Kevin, but I've learned to live with it otherwise. At any rate," he went on more naturally, "you're right about that. Even as a brainwashed puppet Kevin had a fair amount of backbone, so we all knew that if orders came through that were brilliantly idiotic, he'd fight them off before they ever got to us; any orders he passed on were ones that made sense. Fortunately," he continued, with a slight grimace, "none of us had much contact with Medical Section. Even before I found out what they'd done to Kevin, I found Oracle's medical types creepy. Actually, they made my flesh crawl; it always felt like I was dealing with clones of Doctor Frankenstein or something."
"Probably not too far from the truth," Athrun murmured, "judging from what little Kevin's said about the whole affair… Well, I can't say the rest of the morning was much better, but at least it didn't get any worse after Heine arrived… I think."
After taking their leave of Heine –who still had business of his own before reporting to the Minerva- the other three pilots made their way toward the elevator, intending to return to the building's lobby.
"Hmm…" Luna mused, almost to herself. "A day off, but I'm not really sure what to do…" She glanced over at her companions. "Actually, going into town for the day sounds kind of nice, but I don't really feel like going alone…"
She was looking straight at Athrun as she spoke, and he sighed inwardly. What did I do to deserve this? he wondered, resigned. All I want to do is help defend the PLANTs again; I didn't sign up again for this.
Deciding not to take the hint, Athrun simply shrugged. "If you'd rather not be alone, why not go with Shinn?"
Shinn, not at all certain he wanted to get into the discussion at all, kept his peace as they reached and entered the elevator, but Luna's eyes flashed at her commander's words. He's perfectly willing to put up with that tart, but he brushes me off without a second thought?
Noticing her obvious anger, Athrun closed his eyes for a moment. "Maybe I should just go back to the ship," he offered, trying –and mostly succeeding- to keep his own irritation out of his voice. "It looks like I might just be in the way out here…"
"You probably don't need the time off anyway," Luna said sarcastically. "I'm sure you're nice and 'relaxed' after your night with Miss Lacus."
I think I'll just stay out of this one completely, Shinn thought to himself, seeing genuine anger flare in Athrun's eyes. No sense looking for trouble…
The elevator ride was mercifully short, and Shinn slipped out unobtrusively at his first opportunity. In this issue, he wasn't really sure whose side he was on, and did not want to be caught in the middle. He'd rather be facing Nemesis just then…
After Shinn departed, Athrun caught Luna's eye, and gestured curtly for her to follow him to a corner of the lobby. He'd understood exactly what she was implying with her last remark, and he wasn't sure if he was more irritated with her or with Meer.
"So," Luna said coldly, when they were out of earshot of others, "do you slap women, too?" At Athrun's brief blank look, she gestured off toward where Shinn had disappeared. "Shinn told me about what you did after that battle in the Indian Ocean, Commander."
Athrun's eyes were hard and unflinching. "Shinn was totally out of line," he said flatly. "He disobeyed direct orders twice, and exhibited an intolerable level of insubordination prejudicial to discipline and the success of the mission. I'm not a 'By the Book' commander, Luna, but what he did was completely unacceptable."
"Which resulted in you asking Walker for help," she said with a snort. "He's not even an ally, you know. Technically, there are shoot on sight orders out for him."
"Orders that will never be carried out under the current conditions," he countered. "I brought Kevin into the matter because I had no other choice. Shinn was refusing to return despite my direct orders, and none of our own units were in a position to intervene. Nor, for that matter, is it certain they could've done anything anyway. Kevin could and did, end of story."
"And promptly finished the work Shinn started," Luna pointed out. "You might as well have just let him-"
"Kevin is a free agent, not bound by ZAFT authority," Athrun said levelly. "What he does is his business, not mine. Shinn, on the other hand, had been ordered by his direct superior to break off his attack and return to base. That is the difference between their actions." He lowered his voice. "And as for this morning, you completely misunderstood what was going on."
She snorted. "Did I? Seemed clear enough to me, Commander." She turned to leave… but Athrun caught her arm before she could.
"Your attitude isn't helping," he said quietly. "And for your information, Lacus Clyne is a close relative of Kevin Walker. Do you really think someone that close to him would act in the manner you're suggesting?"
Luna blinked, taken aback by the suggestion… but her eyes quickly narrowed again. "Maybe not," she conceded. "But then, Walker isn't around to keep an eye on her, now is he?" Glowering a moment longer, she abruptly spun on her heel, and left.
"Temperamental girl," Alec mused, gazing up at the sky. "Not quite what I expected, I'll admit; Erica was a bit more laidback than that… and I seem to remember her saying her sisters were much the same." He shrugged. "Of course, that was six years ago. Even Luna would've been only about eleven back then; people change a lot in that stage of life. And… losing Erica probably didn't help any."
Athrun nodded somberly. "I know what losing your sister did to Kevin," he said quietly. "I didn't run into him until years after the fact, but even as of the war he was still pretty messed up. He hated ZAFT badly enough he tried very hard to kill me on several occasions." He winced. "He very nearly succeeded once; only Cagalli's direct intervention stopped him."
"That doesn't surprise me," Basilisk informed him, turning around to lean back against the railing. "It's a part of us all: the utter inability to give up… and the utter unwillingness to set aside an objective without direct orders. The former quality was inherent in anyone chosen to be augmented; the latter seems to have been conditioned into us." He shook his head. "Even now, I don't really know all the details of what Medical Section and Delta 'programmed' into us."
"Somehow I'm not surprised… Too bad I can't get Luna to understand that." Athrun sighed. "She just doesn't understand what really went on six years ago… and she won't listen to me when I try to tell her what's going on with Meer."
"Under orders not to say a word about it, hm?" Alec said, raising an eyebrow.
"Unfortunately," the pilot confirmed. "I don't agree with the Chairman's methods, and I don't like having to deal with the girl… but revealing it now would just serve to undermine Chairman Durandal during a time when the last thing we need is a popular distrust of the government. If we don't stand united, we'll fall to the Earth Forces' numbers."
The Destroyer's expression darkened. "Chairman Durandal is making a serious mistake by using Campbell," he opined quietly. "He ought to know that if the truth gets out, it'll cause more problems than the deception prevented in the first place. And what happens then? Delta's people will stand behind him, I'm sure, but they can't win a war all by themselves; and while the exposure of that deception might not actually bring down the government, it would shake trust in the Supreme Council's leadership."
"I'm fairly sure Arkanian already knows," Athrun agreed, "given her, ah, 'discussions' with Kevin; so you're probably right about her supporting him to the end. But-"
Alec interrupted him with an abruptly raised hand. "Someone's coming," he muttered, eyes closed as he concentrated on the data from his implant systems. "No implant signature, fortunately; the last thing I need is for Delta to come here and meet me…" He frowned. "Meyrin…?"
Both turned their attention to the door leading back into the building, and so were in a position to see it open moments later, revealing Meyrin Hawke. "Uh, hi," she greeted uncertainly, surprised to see the man she knew as "Kyle Alexander" on the roof. "Sorry if I'm interrupting anything, but I ran into Luna a few minutes ago, and she seemed to be in kind of a bad mood…"
Athrun sighed. "Tell me about it."
"Your fearless mobile suit commander has had a rough morning," Alec explained, clapping the pilot on the shoulder with carefully measured strength. "Seems Miss Lacus Clyne managed to embarrass him rather badly in front of your sister."
Meyrin's eyes widened. "Miss Lacus? But… why? What would she have done that could make Luna that mad…?"
Athrun hesitated for a moment, on the verge of explaining what was really going on… and finally made an internal decision. Fine, then. She's been more sympathetic than her sister lately… and I somehow think she knows how to keep a secret.
"She did something that angered Luna… because she isn't Lacus Clyne at all, Meyrin," he said quietly. "It's… kind of a long story…"
"…so that's how it is," Athrun concluded. "It's not a good idea for you to tell anyone else, though, under the circumstances."
Meyrin nodded slowly, eyes wide. "A fake Lacus to calm down the people… I never would've suspected she wasn't the real thing." She tilted her head. "But… why tell me, Commander? If it's so secret… I mean, even if you disagree with the Chairman in the first place, should you be saying anything about this?"
"Probably not," he admitted. "But… well, to be honest, it felt good to tell someone what really went on this morning. Your sister… misinterpreted things, and isn't exactly happy with me right now." He grimaced. "I wish I could tell her what really happened, but after all the grief she's given me about Kevin, it doesn't seem like a real good idea."
"Yeah," she murmured. "Well, I guess I shouldn't say anything to her, either." She shook her head. "This is just… well, weird, really. I can understand why Chairman Durandal is doing this, but at the same time… I'm not really sure what to think of it."
Alec, heretofore having remained mostly silent, snorted quietly. "You make up your own mind, Meyrin. I won't tell you what to think; that would be far too much like what was done to the twelve of us, six years ago."
Meyrin's gaze snapped over to the Destroyer. "Six years ago?" she repeated. "Mister Alexander, what are you…?"
He pushed away from the railing. "This is something that can never be spoken of aboard Minerva," he warned, "if only because of one Natalya Ivanova Arkanian. However, I believe that you, at least –not sure about Luna, given her… issues- deserve to know a certain fact. My name is not Kyle Alexander. My name is Alec King… codename Basilisk." Alec met the young woman's eyes, a serious look in his own gaze.
"Your elder sister was a very good friend of mine, once upon a time."
She gasped. "You're… you're a survivor of the ABADDON project? But… why have you been hiding all this time…?"
"For the same reason most of the other old members are, I think," Alec replied. "Fear of discovery. It's unlikely any of us would've been greeted warmly by the rest of ZAFT until recently… and I doubt any of us would be inclined to have anything to do with Delta's new unit." He shrugged. "In my case… well, I was still loyal to ZAFT, and I still wanted to help out, but I wanted to put the specter of ABADDON behind me, so I reenlisted under a new name several years ago."
"That explains some things," Meyrin said softly, almost to herself. "But why… are you telling me?"
Basilisk shrugged again. "Because I think you can keep a secret… and because I thought you should know that, if you ever need assistance, you can call on your sister's old comrade." With a courteous nod, he turned, strode past her, and slipped back into the building.
Meyrin watched him go, a perplexed expression on her face. "Lacus Clyne an imposter, and one of Erica's friends turning up alive," she murmured. "Everything keeps getting stranger every day…"
"Nothing is as it seems right now," Athrun agreed quietly. "These days, it's starting to seem almost like every loose end from the last twenty years is approaching resolution… I mean, the ABADDON Project, Kevin's father…" He shook his head. "Combine that with the war that's going on, and the Chairman's use of a fake Lacus to keep the people calm, and I really don't know where everything will go from here."
"I know what you mean," Meyrin concurred. "But I guess… all we can is all we can do, right? We just have to keep going, no matter what."
He sighed. "Yeah, you're probably right about that…" I just hope that the path we're traveling on… doesn't lead to the kind of battles I fear it might.
Enjoying the afternoon breeze, Shinn Asuka raced down a road on the outskirts of Diocuia, riding a motorcycle toward the sea. After the strange and tense events of the morning, he'd chosen to spend his day off as far away from Minerva's crew as he could. Most especially, he didn't want to be anywhere near in the event of Athrun and Luna running into each other again.
I'm not a big fan of the commander, he thought, easing around a bend in the road, but I'm not getting in the middle of that on either side. It's not my business, and I really don't want anything to do with it…
Ordinarily, he very likely would've simply sided with Luna. Under the circumstances, though, he figured it was a topic he had no business getting anywhere near.
So it was that Shinn found himself heading for the sea, where he thought he might find some calm. Even now, his few memories unclouded by the deaths of his parents and sister reminded him that he'd once found solace in the ocean, during his childhood in Orb. In this place, so far from the shores where his family had perished, perhaps he could find that peace again…
It's weird, he thought, guiding the sleek vehicle toward the sea. So many things have happened since that day… I haven't found vengeance yet, but so much else… And if Chairman Durandal's right, then the people who brought that conflict to Orb in the first place are still around. So there's a danger that what happened then…might happen again…
That Durandal was placing trust in one Shinn Asuka to help stop that from happening filled the young pilot with pride; it also, however, made him acutely aware of how much was riding on him and his fellow pilots. Minerva was at the forefront of the new conflict, that was clear. Durandal had chosen the ship and her pilots to be the vanguard, the sword and shield of ZAFT as they fought to stop the new war before it could escalate to the terrible heights of the old.
But one day, Shinn thought to himself, it won't just be the Earth Forces we're fighting, will it? After what happened to us when we were leaving Orb… we're going to have go back there, aren't we? They're collaborating with the Earth Alliance and Logos now, after all…
The thought didn't bother him as much as it once might've. His ties to Orb had been effectively severed the day he chose to enlist in ZAFT… and he was beginning to shed his doubts about his own skill in the cockpit. He'd performed well in his first few battles, won the day in the escape from Orb –despite heavy damage to his own machine- and fought admirably since then… despite the meddling of the Nemesis in one encounter.
No, Shinn no longer doubted he could succeed against Orb units if he had to… and the thought of engaging Nemesis in the process was one he savored, as he made his way toward the sea.
Hours after leaving Minerva and Diocuia behind, Shinn finally pulled over near a cliff, overlooking the Black Sea. Swinging himself off the motorcycle, he turned his gaze seaward… and then froze, seeing someone already standing on the cliff.
Or, more precisely, the blonde-haired young woman was dancing near the cliff's edge, wearing a white and blue dress. She was twirling this way and that, eyes closed, seemingly without a care in the world… and Shinn found himself captivated.
Have I seen her before? he wondered, watching the young woman dance, oblivious to the world. She looks… familiar. And that dance…
He was quickly too caught up in the girl's dance to think very clearly, and soon lost all sense of time. How long he stood there, Shinn himself would never know. He only knew something about the young woman had his attention, to the exclusion of all else, and he was no more aware of the outside world than she.
Until the moment a dance step took her too far, and the girl tumbled almost gracefully off the cliff.
Shocked by the sudden event, Shinn could only stand there for a moment, staring blankly at the space the girl had just occupied. Then his brain kicked in again, and he broke into a run toward the edge of the cliff. I have to do something!
The pilot didn't really pause to think about what he was doing. Acting on pure instinct, he tore off his jacket, yanked his shoes off, and then took a flying leap off the cliff, heedless of the very drop that might've already killed the person he was trying to save.
It was fortunate there were no rocks at the base of the cliff; if there had been, Shinn's impulsive leap would've cost him his life. As it was, he plunged easily into the water, in a landing that would've made any professional swimmer proud, under other circumstances.
Glancing around wildly, trying to find the girl, Shinn pumped his arms and legs as hard as he could, swimming deeper beneath the surface. I have to find her, he thought, lungs already straining under the abuse. She could drown if I don't hurry!
Then he caught sight of her, mere meters away… and unlike him, she clearly wasn't prepared for the situation. She was panicking, struggling in an attempt to both reach the surface and try to get some air into her lungs… and succeeding at neither.
With renewed determination, Shinn swam over to her, getting within arm's reach of the girl in moments. When he grabbed her shoulders, though, her wide, panicked eyes focused him, and she started to struggle against his grip.
Gritting his teeth –and trying to ignore his near-bursting lungs- Shinn held on despite her struggles, kicking toward the surface. Doesn't she realize I'm trying to help? We'll both drown if she keeps this up!
Despite the girl's struggles, he managed to haul them both to the surface in moments, breaking free of the water with a profound sense of relief. Maintaining his grip on the girl's shoulders, Shinn gasped for breath, replenishing the oxygen expended in the brief but draining underwater struggle… and then recall the hard way that the girl was struggling. Now freed to breathe herself, her struggles increased, her hands flailing to scratch at him.
"Hey!" he protested. "Calm down! I'm trying to help, okay?" He winced, trying to hold her in place, as her fingernails opened a shallow cut on his face. "Calm down!"
"I… I…!" The girl stared at him wildly for several seconds… and then, finally, her struggles slowed, and then stopped entirely. "I…"
Allowing himself an inward sigh of relief, Shinn smiled reassuringly at the girl, then began pulling her along to the nearest accessible shore. Their dive into the water had occurred at an inconvenient spot; the cliff was sheer all the way to the water, with no place to come ashore in sight, save only for a small beach leading directly into a cave.
It was with no small relief that Shinn got himself and his companion onto something resembling dry land. That's not something I'd like to do again, he thought. We both could've drowned out there…
Standing now on the sand, Shinn turned to the girl, and voiced the obvious question. "Just what were you doing out there, anyway?" he asked. "Falling off the cliff was bad enough, but struggling when I tried to save you… Did you want to die after all that?"
Her reaction startled him. At the mention of the word "die", the girl's eyes went wide, her face paled, and her breathing caught. "Die…?" she whispered, starting to tremble. "No… No! I don't want to die!" With a look of utter panic, she turned away, and ran back into the water.
Shinn blinked, confused. "Hey, wait!" What's she doing now? She'll just start drowning again if she does that! Unnerved by the girl's reaction, he quickly followed after her, catching her by the shoulder before she could get far. "Wait a second! What are you-?"
"I don't want to die!" she repeated, almost sobbing. "I can't die, I don't want to die…!" She started struggling again, much as she had when Shinn first pulled her out of the water.
This time, though, he was better prepared for it, holding her shoulders tightly in spite of her efforts to get away. "Calm down," he said, voice soothing instead of commanding this time. "It's all right. You're not going to die, okay? You're going to be just fine." He paused for a moment, recalling his first sight of her on the cliff. "You're not going to die… because I'm going to protect you."
Her struggles continued unabated for several moments… but then Shinn's words penetrated the panic in the girl's mind. I'm… not going to die? she thought, hesitating. Everything's okay… because he'll be there?
Slowly, her tense muscles began to relax, and she looked up at the pilot's face. "I'm… not going to die?" she whispered.
Shinn smiled. "No, you're not. I'll protect you." And the strange thing is… I really mean that. I haven't felt this way since… His mind shied away from the memory. "Are you okay now?"
The girl slowly nodded, trembling a little in the aftermath of the emotional outburst. "Yes… thank you…"
"That's good." Carefully releasing her shoulders, Shinn turned, glancing about the area they'd found themselves in. "Huh…" he said, almost to himself. "A cave… well, at least there's shelter."
Daring to step back from the girl, now that her hysterics had ceased, he walked back to the cave entrance, and then moved down one end of the small beach, frowning to himself. Hm… Pacing first to one end, then to the other, he finally went back to the cave, and took a look inside.
Observing the pilot's actions with a certain amount of confusion, the girl tilted her head. "Is… something wrong?" she asked hesitantly.
Shinn stepped back out of the cave. "Not really," he said, sighing. "It's just… there doesn't seem to be any way out of this place. Not without a long swim, anyway, and I don't think either of us is up to that right now."
The girl blinked. "Then… we're stranded here?"
"Not necessarily," he said slowly, and reached into his right hip pocket. "This thing should be waterproof, so I can at least send a signal…" Withdrawing a small locator beacon –which he'd brought with him mostly out of habit, rather than any expectation of needing it- he examined it for a moment, making sure that the trip through the water hadn't fried it, then triggered it. "There. It might be a few hours, but my friends will be able to find us now."
"So everything will be okay, then?" the girl questioned.
Shinn smiled again. "Of course it will be. I said I'd protect you, didn't I?" Glancing back into the cave again, he nodded to himself. "And in the meantime, there seems to be enough wood around for me to build a fire and at least dry us off."
After all, it just wouldn't be right to survive that crazy jump, and the near-drowning, only to die of hypothermia while waiting for a ride…
A few minutes later, the two of them huddled in front of a fire, warming up and drying off through the aid of its warmth. The plunge into the water had left them both cold and soaked, making the fire very welcome indeed.
Once the fire was lit, Shinn had time to take stock of the situation, as well as carefully tend a small cut the girl had received during the struggle, binding it gently with a handkerchief that had survived the plunge relatively dry.
It also gave Shinn time to voice some of the questions that had been going through his mind ever since they took the plunge off the cliff. They'd been too busy trying to stay alive before, but now there was little to do but talk, until rescue finally arrived.
"So…" he began hesitantly, "can I ask your name? I'm Shinn."
"Stellar," the girl replied readily, gazing into the fire. "I'm Stellar."
Shinn nodded. At least now I know what to call her. "That's a nice name." He tilted his head. "Where are you from, Stellar?"
"I don't remember," Stellar admitted; she didn't seem very perturbed by the fact. "I haven't been there in a long time…"
"I haven't been 'home' much, either," Shinn mused. "So many things happened… but that doesn't really matter right now." He scratched his head. "So, if you don't remember where you're from, who do you usually spend your time with?"
She brightened. "Usually with Neo, Sting, and Auel," she answered, with a small smile. "They've taken care of me as long as I can remember…"
Shinn nodded to himself. It must be nice, to have friends you can rely on like that… but that's why I joined ZAFT, isn't it? So that I could be one of those that other people can rely on…
"Shinn?" Stellar said, speaking up tentatively.
He looked up. "Yeah, Stellar?"
"You said… you were going to protect me." Her wide, vulnerable eyes met his own, seeming to gaze into his very soul. "Do you mean that?"
"Of course I do," Shinn assured her. "No matter what, I'll protect you, Stellar."
Stellar smiled then, and stood. "Um… here," she said, holding out a small seashell. "I… want you to have this."
Blinking, Shinn took the shell, blushing a little. "Uh… thank you," he managed, turning his gaze to the small shell. There's something about this girl…
Noticing the redness in Shinn's face, Stellar tilted her head. "Is something wrong?"
He quickly shook his head. "No, not at all," he assured her. "There's nothing wrong at all." And for the first time in a long while… that's actually true…
Hours later, Athrun Zala approached the rocky shore in a small boat. After Minerva received the signal from Shinn's beacon, he'd gone out to retrieve the pilot, and now he shook his head in bemusement. How did he get into this predicament? he wondered. And why does this remind me of when I first met Cagalli?
To his surprise, it wasn't just Shinn waiting for him when he drew up beside the beach, and he frowned in puzzlement. I wonder who she is? And does she have something to do with him being here in the first place? …I knew this reminded me of that time in the Indian Ocean…
"I'm glad you finally got here," Shinn remarked, mildly surprised that he actually meant it. "Mind giving us a lift, Commander?"
"That is why I'm here," Athrun replied dryly, gesturing for the pilot and his companion to come aboard. "I have to wonder, though: how on earth can you possibly have an emergency on your day off? Don't you have enough trouble on duty without going looking for it in your off hours?"
Helping Stellar into the boat, Shinn sighed. "It wasn't exactly my idea, Commander," he explained, and lowered his voice. "She fell off the cliff when I was passing by, I jumped in after her, and that's pretty much it. It isn't my fault we ended up stranded." He glanced briefly at Stellar. "She… seems confused about a lot of things. I'm not really surprised she fell in, really."
"Hm…" Athrun nodded thoughtfully, guiding the boat back to open water. In other words, she got confused –or distracted- and fell in because she wasn't paying close enough attention, he thought. And then you decided to play the hero by jumping in after her… Well, at least I can't fault your courage, or your altruism.
He snorted mentally. This time, anyway.
Hours after Shinn Asuka had taken the seaside route, a car drove along the same course he'd used… one carrying the other two Extendeds, Sting Oakley and Auel Neider.
"I wonder what happened to her this time," Sting muttered, steering the car along the cliffside road. "Man, that girl… she's always getting herself lost. Does she have to walk around in a daze all the time, you think?"
"At least she doesn't do it in battle," Auel replied, keeping his eyes on their surroundings. "She might go a little nuts in combat, but she keeps her mind on the mission. If that means she daydreams off-duty, I can live with it."
Sting sighed. "I guess… but I still wish we didn't have to be out here looking for her like this."
"No argument there… Wait a second." Auel frowned, catching sight of a vehicle coming toward them. A ZAFT jeep, it looked like… and in one of the seats… "That's Stellar!"
At the same moment, Stellar caught sight of them, and seconds later both vehicles slowed to a stop. "Auel!" Stellar called, starting to climb out of the ZAFT jeep. "Sting!"
"About time you turned up," Sting told her, waving her over. He then turned his attention to the two men with her. "What happened, anyway?"
"She fell off a cliff," Shinn explained, motioning at the precipice to one side of the road. "I had to pull her out of the sea; we only just managed to get back."
Stellar nodded in confirmation. "He saved me," she said simply.
"Huh." The green-haired youth looked the ZAFT pilot over, and then nodded grudgingly. "Thanks."
Behind Shinn, Athrun cleared his throat. "Shinn, we need to get going," he pointed out. "It's getting late."
Shinn nodded reluctantly. "…Right." And he is right… but I don't have to like it.
Stellar turned back to him, a trace of sadness in her eyes. "You're leaving, then?" she said quietly.
He smiled at her. "I have to go, yes… but we'll meet again sometime. I promise we'll see each other again, okay?"
She nodded back. "Okay!"
The two rejoined their respective comrades, and headed off in two different directions… but Shinn vowed to himself that he would fulfill his promise. Something about Stellar captivated him, and he would keep his promise to her.
No matter what, Stellar, I'll see you again… and I'll protect you, like I promised.
The two parted with optimism in their hearts… completely unaware that they were mortal enemies.
Author's note:
With Minerva safe in Diocuia, her crew has had time to recover, in preparation for their next mission… but as they rest, new tensions begin to rise between members of the crew, while long-held secrets begin to come to light…
Meanwhile, on Earth, Shinn Asuka develops a connection with someone who is also one of his deadliest enemies…
Okay, I am well aware that this chapter is almost certainly below my usual standard, and for that I apologize. Unfortunately, I happened to loathe just about everything going on, which makes it somewhat difficult to pull it off with my customary skill. I will note, however, that this is the only episode in the entire series that is likely to have that effect, so this shouldn't be happening again.
On a minor note, I may be posting another little project in the near future, related to another of my stories in this section; I can't make any promises, since I've no idea yet whether it will actually get anywhere, but if it does, you may find it interesting.
In the meantime, however, please let me know just how bad this chapter was. –Solid Shark