What's up, everyone! This is GKC here bringing you the next chapter in the reiteration of Stardust Angels. Hope you've enjoyed the last chapter. And a big thanks to my co-writers, Knightwolf1875, Titanic X, and 117Jorn for assisting me with the previous chapters.
OC requests are officially dropped so don't bother sending me anymore. They will return back in the sequel. Before you start making any rants, I have not forgotten your requests. They are simply on hold for the sequel.
Now for the disclaimer: I do not own, except my OCs and MS, any of the Gundam series. All rights belong to their respective owners.
Now let's get this party started… BEGIN!
Gundam SEED: Stardust Angels Reborn
Phase 23: Clashing Blades! Pariah Cometh
(Begin INSANITY by Masami Okui)
(Electric Guitar and Bass) The screen opens to a cutaway of the Angel's face then shifts to the Stardust wielding its GN Katana and finally to the Cosmic looking off to the side. The scene cuts away to reveal the title
(Heavy Rock Instrumental) Cuts to the Archangel with Stardust shouldering its Buster Cleaver then the camera passes over the Cosmic kneeling with its Beam Magnum Custom held in its hand and finally zooms into the cockpit of the Angel as Tsubasa looks up with a small grin. The camera zooms out as the three Gundams launch into the sky until the Angel comes down slashing the camera with its GN Blade Bit
(Kuroi niji ga~) Cuts to a scene with Tsubasa, Kyo, and Haruto separately looking at their GP Bases before appearing in their pilot suits
(Brightness ugomeita~) Kira looks up at the sky while Cagalli looks at him dressed as a freedom fighter before she turns wearing a green dress with Athrun in the background, looking at a pendant with a sorrowful expression
(Fukaku nemuru~) Cuts to Mu La Flaga with the Skygrasper, Makoto Nanaya with the Impact Gundam, Noel Vermillion with the Bolverk Gundam, and Catherine Hoffman with the Crossbolt Saber
(Sei wo tsuki ugokasu) The Comet Gundam lands on a metal surface, grinding its feet across while its single eye glows as it brings up its Twin Buster Rifle and fires
(Electronica Instruments) Images of the Azazel, Xuanzang, Genoace Blazer, and Ars Goetia appear
(Honoo ni ukabu shinjitsu ima) Cuts to Yzak, Dearka, and Nicol standing in front of the camera with the Duel, Buster, and Blitz behind them resting in their berths
(Kono mi ezuki hai ni natte mo) A figure cloaked in black with a lone visible red eye swings their arm out as Bio-Drones and several robotic beasts advance through a burning city
(Isshun no mirai erabe yo [Go or back?]) The scene reveals cutaways of the combined Gundams: the Starwing firing its Wing Rifle, the Meteor blasting its Twin GN Hyper Burst Cannons, the Seraph spreading its arms to release a storm of GN particles, and the Valkyrie slashing at the camera with its Valkyrie Blade
(Chorus) Cuts to the Angel on one knee in a burning forest, holding both of its beam sabers in both hands as it boosts towards the camera, zooming toward its eyes
(Togatta knife tsukitsuke rareru) The scene cuts to a beam being blocked by the Comet as it burst out of the smoke and fired its Buster Rifle at a transformed Cosmic, the Gundam returning fire with its Beam Magnum as the two energies collided with each other
(Torawareta kokoro ga) The Stardust and Ars Goetia engage in a sword duel as the battle mask of the black-gold Gundam opens to reveal the 'heat vent' while the six eyes of the demonic Gundam turn blood red
(Sakenda koe wo kiki nogasa nai nara) Cuts to Hera praying before a bright light strikes her in the center of her chest then cuts to an image of several Bio-Drones firing tracer energy rounds at the Angel as it weaves past them, wielding a beam saber. Inside the cockpit, Tsubasa's eyes melded into the X-shaped pupils of an Xccelerator
(Maiyo iwa nai~) Lacus Clyne plays with her Haros before noticing a brown-haired figure in the distance smiling at her
(Kurai yami demo…) Cuts to Tsubasa, Kyo, Haruto, and Kira standing back-to-back as they look into the starry night sky
(Hard Rock Instrumental) Shifts to the Aile Strike, Angel, Stardust, and Cosmic launching from the Archangel as they avoid several missiles and beams fired at them. A large mobile suit fires a bluish-green beam at the four Gundams, forcing them to raise their shields in defense. Out of the smoke, the Aile Strike and a larger shadowed Gundam with glowing blue eyes charges at the massive mobile suit
(Fading Instruments) Cuts to a freeze frame of the bridge crew, the Heliopolis gang, the Gundam pilots, and the Gundams in front of the Archangel
(End of Opening)
Present...
There was an eerie silence as all those present looked upon the transformed Gundam that stood upon the earth with nary a sound or reaction, save for the blue glow erupting from its yellow optics.
The mobile suit teams of ZAFT, the Morningstar Corp, and the Archangel stared almost in awe at the larger machine.
Even those on the bridge of the Legged Ship could only look upon the combined Gundam with both surprise and a bit of fear.
"What… in God's name is that?" Natarle questioned, looking upon the silent mechanical titan in shock.
"They combined. The Angel, Stardust, and Cosmic have all combined!" Tonomura muttered.
Murrue furrowed her brows. "But into what?"
Inside the Skygraspers, Mu and Tolle were equally surprised.
"Holy shit!" The young fighter pilot from Orb gasped. "That's new!"
"Keep it together, kid. I've got a feeling the battle's just begun." The Hawk of Endymion warned his wingman.
Tolle gulped in mild terror.
Miriallia got on the radio to speak to either of the Gundam pilots inside of the new mobile suit. "Haruto? Tsubasa? Kyo? Does anyone copy?"
She received no response.
Kat could only look upon the Voyager with worry. "There's something immensely wrong with that mobile suit…" She said to herself.
Jaden considered himself a rather calm individual - it was something of a requirement in order to lead the Morningstar Corps in battle - both back when they were Gunpla battles, to current day when they were in real live-fire combat. He needed to act calmly to keep the rest of his companions, both new and old, relaxed so they would follow his orders and complete the mission.
Of course, he's had his emotional outbursts… namely when fighting opponents who seemingly lost all sense of rationality, reason and act like complete idiots. But overall he does not randomly lash out against any particular individual unless they've really fucked up.
...Yzak Joule had completely fucked up in a way that surpasses all prior expectations.
He didn't want to kill anyone from the Archangel, in fact, his plan was to keep as many of them alive for as long as humanly possible. And this battle was going to be critical to that, as he wanted to avoid the death of Nicol, which would in turn help prevent the death of Tolle in the subsequent battle of the Marshall Islands. But of course, Yzak-fucking-Joule single-handedly ruined that plan. Sure Nicol was alive, but now one of the pilots, one of the friends of the Archangel crew was now dead, and now they've gone and transformed into the monstrosity they now had to face.
"...I swear to fucking god, I am going to kill Yzak if he survives this bullshit!"
As if hearing his complaint, the Voyager turned its burning amber gaze upon the Baron.
Jaden groaned before looking at the Duel. "This is on you." He muttered before he actually moved his Gundam's arm and pointed a finger at the Duel. "He did it! Fuck him up!"
"Wait, what!?" Yzak exclaimed.
Before the silver-haired teen could retort the Red Comet, a klaxon blared on his console. When he looked at the main camera, he recoiled back in shock when the yellow optics of the Voyager appeared in front of his mobile suit. He tried to bring up his beam saber to cut the larger Gundam down, but it stopped the Duel's arm with one hand… and crushed the metal to the point the limb snapped off.
"W-What the hell?!" He shouted before suddenly the Duel was kicked down from the sky, crashing into the sandbar below them. "GAH!"
"Yzak!" Athrun shouted as he flew up to aide his teammate - along with the other ZAFT mobile suits… though the Baron, Devastator and Viral Gundams did not.
"...should we… help them?" Nena asked, sounding uncertain.
"I don't help stupid." Jaden growled, "If that silver-haired idiot isn't gonna learn from his own mistakes, I won't help him."
"...you're just gonna let them die?" Canard asked.
"No, but I want them to get their asses kicked, and get humbled," Jaden said as he rubbed his forehead. "I did not want today to go like this… damnit… "
The Aegis picked up the fallen Blitz's needle and charged at the Voyager. However, just before the spear could strike, the mask of the Gundam opened, revealing a set of fanged teeth that it bit down, stopping the attack short.
"What the hell!?" Athrun cried out in shock. A grunt escapes his lips as his Aegis is brought closer then kicked hard in the chest with enough force to send it crashing in the water.
"Bastard!" Dearka sneered, combining the Buster's weapons to form the high-powered sniper rifle. He fired a blast at the Voyager hoping to destroy it in one blow.
The combined Gundam brought up its hand in front of it. Suddenly, green particles began to seep from the cracks of its servo as the particles formed into the shape of a shield. The moment the blast made contact with the shield, it reflected off the surface and collided with the ground.
"T-that's impossible!" The blonde Coordinator gasped in shock.
Due to his stupefied expression, Dearka left himself wide open as the Voyager lunged at the Buster with a beam saber in hand. The beam emitter growing wider and bigger than any known weapon in the Cosmic Era. The large Gundam slashed down with its weapon, cutting off the Buster's head and right arm.
"Okay, I can't just sit around anymore." Canard stated. The Devastator started to move and prepare to fire at the Voyager.
"You stay back," Jaden ordered, grabbing his machine by the shoulder. "If they can't stand a chance against it, you sure as hell can't even with the Devastator."
"But if we don't-"
"I'll go in and save the idiots," Jaden sighed, glancing at Nena. "Nena, get your ECM systems online - see if you can figure out what's going on and if there's a way we can shut that thing down before it kills all of us because if I can't stop that thing, we're all fucked."
"You got i-" Nena tried to say before the Voyager appeared behind it, seemingly as if it were there.
"Nena!" Canard yelled to warn the girl.
"Huh?" Before she knew it, the combined Gundam grabbed the Viral by the head then slammed it down face-first into the stone.
"SON ON A BITCH!" Jaden shouted as he responded immediately firing off his GN Verniers forward, slamming into the Voyager in a tackle, pushing it away from Nena. "Oi! Leave her alone ya big piece of tin! Pick on someone your own size!"
The Gundam looked down at the Baron. Yellow optics glowing a raging blue. "I will kill you. I'll kill all of you." A female voice echoed from the vocalizer with enough bloodlust and hatred to send shivers down a human's spine.
"Well, that's not creepy or disturbing at all," Jaden sighed, before leaping off the Voyager just before it brought its arms down to try and crush him. "That's right, follow the big red comet!" He began to maneuver the Baron around the Voyager, as it also used its speed to chase after the Gundam, easily managing to keep up with its movements.
"Huh, fast boy ain't ya..." Jaden growled before he flipped a switch. "Then it's a good thing I'm fast too! TRANS-AM!"
The already red Gundam began to burn an even brighter red, as a glowing afterimage flew from its form as it began moving far faster than before, and the Voyager followed firing a newly-constructed beam rifle at the Baron, and trying to get closer and closer to the red machine as it was lured further and further from the battle.
"Athrun, if you can hear me, get you and your people out of here," Jaden shouted in warning, as he continued to dance away from the Voyager.
"But what about you?! You can't handle that monster on your own!" The blue-haired teen cried out.
"No, but I can distract it, and you idiots will just get yourselves killed trying to fight this thing!" He called back, "And tell Yzak that if I survive this, his ass is MINE."
The young commander quickly agreed as he moved the Aegis to collect the Blitz while the Buster recovered the Duel. The Zala Team quickly fled from the battle.
"You cannot escape. I'll make you pay. I'll make you animals pay!" The voice screamed as the Voyager's eyes burned violet instead of yellow.
"The only one acting like an animal right now is you, lady!" Jaden shouted, as the Voyager once again tried to grapple him, only for him to dive the Baron under the water, quickly submerging beneath the waves.
The Voyager turned around, as it aimed its main weapon into the water where the Baron once was, unleashing a barrage of beam fire down into the ocean, resulting in a large explosion of water and steam. "Come out and fight!" The voice shrieked. "Come out and die!"
"If you insist," Jaden retorted, as the Baron flew out of the water, and grappled to the back of the Voyager, holding it in a suplex grip. "You need to sit down and chill, lady!"
"I WILL KILL THEM!" The voice cried out, "THEY KILLED HER, I'M GONNA KILL ALL OF THEM!"
The Voyager's eyes flared as the wings on its back opened similar to the Burning Gundam's Hyper Mode as electricity sparked in its right palm. It grabbed the Baron's leg and sent a million volts worth of electricity into the mobile suit.
"Goddamnit, I just got this thing!" Jaden cursed, hitting the emergency modular release switch, as the left leg jettisoned from the main machine - before the Voyager could respond, he hit the throttle forcing it back down to the Earth. "You need! To calm! Down!"
He didn't get much of a response, as the Voyager simply got back up, and flipped around slamming the Baron on its back, smashing it into the ground, causing Jaden to grunt.
"Fuck that hurt..." He muttered, before activating the comms again - but instead of contacting his team… he contacted someone else. "Oi! Archangel! You better be fucking hearing me right now!"
"Oh, we hear you," Kat interjected coldly. "It's hard not to with all your cursing."
"Excuse me for my language, but your friends are kinda going off the deep end right about now!" Jaden retorted as the Voyager slammed back into the ground. "Going on about how they want to kill everyone in a voice that'd make Satan shit himself!"
"That's not our friends. We've been listening to the spat between you two and I've deduced that this sudden madness is related to something on the ship." Kat remarked as the Crossbolt Saber flew towards the Legged Ship. "If I'm right then I'll be able to stop it before that Gundam causes any more damage. I recommend you don't die before that happens."
"You just hurry up, I'm not sure what it'll do if it does kill me!" Jaden shouted back, as the Baron slammed into the earth again, as a warning alarm sounded. "I don't know if whatever this thing is if it can determine friend from foe anymore! Hurry up so we can save your friends!"
"Hmph! You're lucky I'm helping you out. Otherwise, I'd be tempted to let that thing tear you apart." The redhead coldly remarked.
Jaden groaned "For the love of all that is holy, what have I done to piss these people off so much?" He groaned, "I've helped them more times than I've stopped them…"
"Hey, boss!" Canard's voice echoed in the Baron's communication system. "You look like you're having some trouble there."
"Canard, get the hell away!" Jaden shouted as the Voyager was about to slam into the earth again, but he raised his right leg stopping it, slamming its leg into the ground. "You don't stand a chance against this thing!"
"No way! I'm not letting you fight that thing alone." The dark-haired Coordinator retorted just as the Devastator came into view and aimed all of its armaments at the Voyager's back. "Let's see it survive this much firepower!"
"SHIT!" Jaden shouted as he let go, getting off the Voyager's back just before Canard opened fire. A barrage of missiles, beam particles, and anti-armor bullets rained down onto the large mobile suit. Explosions and smoke covered the entirety of the area around it to the point it was no longer visible.
The Devastator finally let up on its attack as the barrels of its weapons released faint traces of heat.
"...did I get it?" Canard asked.
"Nope," Jaden said plainly.
"What? I hit it with enough firepower to down a battleship, how would it-" he began to reply before suddenly a beam shot from the cloud of dust, narrowly missing the Devastator. "WHAT THE FUCK?!"
"Because I know for a fact that it's never that easy," Jaden groaned, pulling out his anti-ship GN swords. "Fuck it. Nena? You still there?"
"Yeah… hit my head but… still here..." Nena muttered.
"Good, stay out of the fight - just keep your eyes on the ECM for anything out of the ordinary," Jaden ordered, swinging its swords at the Voyager, but doing little damage to it. "This might be connected to what happened in space before!"
"Uh, right!"
"Tsubasa!" Jaden shouted, "If you're in there, wake up! You and your friends might be in trouble! Tsubasa! "
The mech marched out of the smoke as it rolled its neck, seemingly unaffected. "My turn." The female voice hissed. "Trans-Am..." The frame of the Voyager glowed bright red as the particles generating from its wings grew to the point they looked like feathers. "Infinity."
"That… does not look good." Canard began to sweat a bit at the sight.
"No, it doesn't..." Jaden cupped his forehead. "I really should've pulled out the big boy today… "
"...the big-" Canard began to ask, before the Voyager moved in a flash, as the Devastator was kicked away.
"Canard! FUCK!" Jaden shouted, just as the Voyager punched his own Baron Gundam away, sending him flying back.
"I'll tear you and your pitiful machine piece by piece."
"Yes, we get it! You're pissed off!" Jaden shouted, righting up his machine from the impact "Now take a chill pill and COOL IT!" He fired his GN Buster rifle - but not at the Voyager, but at the water resulting in a large geyser of water and steam to burst up before the Voyager. The machine flew through the water immediately… only the Baron and Devastator were gone.
"Where? WHERE DID YOU GO?!" It shouted as it searched the area. "Come out! You can't hide!"
Meanwhile, the Devastator and Baron were underwater, beneath the Voyager. "So, on a scale of 1-10, how fucked are we?" Canard asked.
"I'd say… twenty?" Jaden retorted.
"Oh, so we're fucked sideways."
"Pretty much unless we can immobilize it, or calm it down," Jaden said.
"...can it not see us underwater?" Canard asked.
"It's probably using the same type of sensors as our machines, even if they've improved from the merging..." Jaden mused, "Sensors and Sonar aren't the same things… after all, you can't detect submarines using Radar, or airplanes with Sonar… nothing stopping it from coming down after us and trying to find us with the Mark-I eyeball though… "
"So… gameplan?" Canard asked.
"Survive as long as possible, that's what." Jaden pointed upwards. "FIre off another salvo of missiles from down here - distract it, then I'll try getting behind it again. We need to keep it guessing where we are."
"I better get a pay raise for this..." Canard muttered, as his missile tubes opened up.
"If we survive this, you're getting a triple raise," Jaden groaned as he moved away. "And… now!"
From the surface, a wave of missiles burst through the ocean, and the Voyager turned around - intercepting them with its own beam rifle - but as it turned, the Baron shot out of the water and took a potshot at its back. The Voyager turned back around, only to witness as the Baron began to dive under the waves again - followed by another shot to its back. The Devastator and Baron popping in and out of the water like the board of a Whack-a-mole game, keeping the Voyager guessing where they'll pop up from next.
"STOP IT!" The Voyager roared out. "STOP IT AND FIGHT ME!"
'This won't work forever...' Jaden thought, 'That girl better hurry up and figure out what's going on!'
Meanwhile...
Aboard the Archangel, the Crossbolt Saber made an emergency landing inside of the hangar. Kat immediately jumped out of the cockpit and bypassed other engineers and even Murdoch.
"Hey, where's the fire!" The older man shouted.
Kat ignored him. Her mind racing with dreaded thoughts as she sprinted past repeating doorways until she stopped at one that only two people have been known to sleep in.
Haruto's and Hera's room...
"Hera?" She knocked on the door. "Sweetie, are you okay?"
She received no response.
Kat narrowed her eyes as she inputted the access code for the door and forced it open. "Hera!" She yelled.
What she found, utterly confused and shocked her. Floating mid-air, lavender hair waving around like tendrils of snakes, eyes glowing a malicious purple, and teeth bared with hatred.
"Hera, what are you doing!?" Kat demanded.
"I have to make them pay. They killed Makoto! I'll kill them all! I'll kill every last one of them!" Hera screamed with undying hatred as she released a dark aura that worked in tandem with the Voyager's own.
"Hera, you have to stop! You're forcing Tsubasa, Kyo, and Haruto into doing something terrible!" Kat tried to reason with the girl.
"NO! I will not stop! I want vengeance! They will pay!" The young girl screamed.
The redhead clicked her tongue as she rushed forward and wrapped her arms around the girl. "Hera, please calm down. You can't do this to the others. You're only using your friends as tools for vengeance."
The girl said nothing as the words sank in.
"Hera, please… just stop this," Kat whispered, hugging Hera close as she patted her long lavender hair.
Hera sniffled as the rage and hatred that was bottled up had begun to simmer. Within seconds, the girl broke down in tears as she hugged Kat for dear life, crying over the death of Makoto.
Voyager...
The glow of Trans-Am Infinity diminished as the Voyager slowly began to power down. In a brief second, the Gundam glowed white then separated back into three separate mobile suits.
The Baron Gundam's head poked out of the water again. "Fuck… that was… way too close..." Jaden panted. "Canard? You still alive?"
The Devastator's head poked out of the water as well. "Yeah… kinda… out of ammo though..." He retorted. "Nena?"
"Here… still in stealth mode..." Nena replied, somewhere under the cloak of mirage colloid. "...Jaden, if I haven't said it before, I'm saying it now… thank you for the stealth feature on the Viral..."
"You're welcome." Jaden sighed, as the Baron fully emerged from the water. "You two, RTB… I'll be with you guys shortly."
"... you sure that's a good idea?" Canard asked.
"Just… go you two." Jaden shook his head, as he moved to where the Impact laid. "I just… need to take care of something… "
"...just don't get yourself killed, boss man..." Canard said, before the Devastator took off, and headed away from the scene.
The Baron meanwhile approached the small bit of land where the Impact was left - landing on its hands and one remaining knee. He disembarked his machine as he approached the machine, but halfway there he spotted the body of a young woman, covered in blood.
"...Dammit..." He muttered, shaking his head as he approached the body, kneeling down next to the woman, closing her lifeless eyes, and folded her arms over her chest. For a long moment, he just knelt there before her, a downcast expression on his face.
"...I never wanted to be your enemy..." he finally spoke up after a minute, "For over a year I thought… I thought me and my friends were the only ones here… the only ones who could… make a difference in the Cosmic Era… it's… it's a terrible feeling, to be surrounded by people, but… to feel so alone at the same time… knowing what we know, but… unable to tell anyone… "
"Then… that white-masked bastard called and told me about your friends at Artemis… " He continued, "I… never felt so relieved… to not be alone anymore… so were my old teammates… well, the ones that were still alive… "
His head bowed a bit more. "...losing friends hurts..." he muttered, "believe me, I know… being here, I've already lost too many comrades, allies… friends… enough to know it's the most painful thing in the world… and your friends are probably hurting right now too…" He shook his head a bit. "I wanted to meet you… all of you, alive and well after JOSH-A…"
He raised his head up slightly. "But… let me make you a promise, ma'am..." he said, "Don't care what it takes… but I'll do everything in my power to keep your friends safe… and make it to the finish line of this godforsaken war… and then, maybe… we all find a way back home."
Jaden reached into his pocket, as he pulled out a red flower, it wasn't a rose, its petals were too wide and open for that. "When men and women under my command die, I give them one of these…" he said, "They're called Morning Glories… the closest thing I could find to a flower to represent Morningstar… " He let out a bitter chuckle. "Some of my friends called it a corny thing to do, but… it's better than doing nothing… " He lifted up one of her hands, placing the flower within her grasp. "From what I've seen… you and your friends would've made a hell of an addition to Morningstar… I wish I could've met you in person… "
He then stood upright, as he gave her a salute. "I hope you rest in peace… " he whispered.
"So that's what you really look like." A familiar voice spoke behind the Red Comet.
Jaden allowed a small smile to form, glancing behind him as he saw three figures standing behind him, each wearing normal suits - and he could tell who they were judging from the three Gundams that now stood next to the Baron.
"And that's what you look like it seems..." Jaden chuckled bitterly. "Nice to meet you face-to-face… Tsubasa… I wish it were under… better circumstances…"
The pilot of the Angel Gundam stood at the center of the trio with Kyo to his right and Haruto to his left. "And you're the Red Comet. I thought you'd be taller and more like Char or Full Frontal."
"Nothing I can do about the height I was born with," Jaden shrugged, "And while I respect the hell out of Char, even I could never perfectly mimic him… so I settle with my own thing… I do have a mask though, I just rarely wear it."
Kyo narrowed his eyes at Jaden. "You've got a lot of fucking nerve." He spat.
"Kyo, this is not the time." Haruto reasoned with the Stardust pilot.
"The hell it isn't! This bastard has been a pain in our ass ever since the whole Artemis incident!" Kyo spat.
"Shut up!" Tsubasa yelled. "Both of you. This is not the time or place for arguments."
The younger Gundam pilots stopped their argument and allowed their de facto leader to speak.
The white-haired teen looked at Jaden. "What are you really after, Jaden Takeo? Why are you helping ZAFT?" He questioned.
Jaden was silent for a moment, as he looked up at the sky. "Me and my friends… we arrived in this universe just before the war began..." he spoke up, "We realized what was going on, and we knew we had the power to change the future of the Cosmic Era… we founded Morningstar as a private military company, and we wanted to start our changes by stopping Junius Seven from being destroyed, preventing Zala from getting radicalized, maybe even stop the whole war… " he frowned. "But we failed… and ever since then, we've been trying to make up for that one, big fucking failure… "
"At first, we wanted to help both the EA and ZAFT, find some middle ground… but as the war continued on, we found it harder and harder to justify working with the EA… infested with Blue Cosmos ideals, anti-Coordinator bias… its a complete and ripe mess… so we started working more with ZAFT, trying our best to minimize casualties inflicted." He shook his head. "One of our earlier plans was to convince ZAFT to not even bother invading Earth, commit to space, force the EA out of space, and back down to Earth."
"But that didn't work out the way you wanted, huh?" Tsubasa pointed out. "ZAFT persisted in its invasion and many innocent people on Earth were either driven from their homes or forced to commit under ZAFT's rule in conquered territories."
"Chairman Clyne can only do so much," Jaden shook his head, "Especially given how recent the attack was… people wanted blood for blood, and it got us stuck in this stupid, unwinnable war." He then looked up at Tsubasa. "But don't blame ZAFT for most of that - I won't defend the April Fool's Crisis, but ZAFT helps protect the people in Oceania, who otherwise would have crumbled to the will of the EA."
"And Africa?"
"Africa was already a shitshow when the African Union was running things," he explained. "ZAFT only occupied it because the invasion of Victoria failed. Even then ZAFT tried to be hospitable with the locals, but… well, you all know how well Iraq and Afghanistan went with America back home. They try to help, but people in power just don't want it, and it leads to more stupid violence."
"That's the problem with humans," Tsubasa stated. "We're rather complex creatures. We hate that which we don't understand, but we try and justify it by demonizing the enemy. It's the same with Naturals and Coordinators. They're no different than any other foolish human being."
"Heh, story of my life." Jaden nodded, "Been working with the Chairman trying to fix that problem ever since Morningstar was founded… it's difficult to weed out nearly a century's worth of lies and bigotry."
"But what is your plan now?" Haruto asked.
"Still the same - help ZAFT survive the war, but not at the expense of the Earth or Naturals." Jaden said, "And stomp that white masked Char-wannabe's plan into the dust… of course, now there is a bigger problem… "
"Yes, the strange mobile suits. The unexpected mental control." Tsubasa pointed out.
"Yeah," Jaden nodded. "First your machines go berserk, then they attacked you in space, then at Africa - and they are using machines mirrored perfectly after other Gundams from other series. So that means someone else with our knowledge of Gundam is here… and they've got their own twisted little goals in mind, and going about it in a very weird way with those Bio-suits."
"Bio-suit?" Haruto asked.
"It's what we've coined the unknowns," Jaden explained, "We were able to capture some of the wrecks in space… whatever they are they are biomechanical in nature - they look like machines on the surface, but their insides are very… fleshy."
"One of those mobile suits bled when I stabbed it in Africa," Tsubasa stated. "That wasn't just any biological weapon. That thing was alive. It was like some sort of… Bioroid."
"Exactly, hence Bio-suit, short for Biomechanical Mobile Suit." Jaden nodded, "Its inner workings are very similar to that of a human or other organic creature. It's technology that is well beyond anything from any of the Gundam series that I know of, the only thing remotely comparable is the ELS from the 00 movie, and even they were more machine than organic."
"So whoever is doing this… they've got access to tech that not even we know of and they seem to be playing with us." Kyo folded his arms with a scowl.
"Yes, and we don't know what their end goal is yet, or if they have any weaknesses other than chopping and blasting them to bits." Jaden confirmed, "Me and my boys have been trying to learn what we can from the wrecks we salvage - we send them back to Artemis for further study and dissection."
"Artemis?" Tsubasa asked, "But that's a-"
"Formerly Eurasian," Jaden said with a smirk. "Now it's ours. They were barely using it as is."
"You captured it? Impressive." Haruto praised.
"Not really, it was absurdly easy." He shrugged. "Most of the ships were understaffed, the base commander was a racist idiot, and all they really had to throw at us were a bunch of Moebius units. Once you guys left it was pretty easy to salvage the rest of the base. We sent the surviving Eurasians home, the ones that didn't join us at least who weren't equally as big of assholes as Garcia."
"What happened to him?" Kyo asked.
"Shot him in the head myself." He shrugged. "Kind of a wasted bullet really, I should've just stabbed him let him bleed out, especially after reading his personal logs… guy wasn't just a racist, he was a rapist too."
Tsubasa huffed. "Saved me the trouble in finding him and killing him myself. Though the death of that scum is little more than a waste of time."
"You and me both," Jaden smiled, "And to add salt to injury, his 'precious' lightwave barrier tech is now being used by ZAFT to keep the colonies defended if another nuclear-armed task force tries to hit them."
Haruto narrowed his eyes. "You realize that giving ZAFT that technology is only going to lead to problems."
"It's not like they wouldn't have gotten it anyways without our help," Jaden said, "Remember, in the series ZAFT got the shield tech regardless. Me and Siegel Clyne are just making sure it's used only to defend the colonies."
"But now they could use that to produce mobile suits other than the Freedom and Justice to counter our Gundams." Kyo spat.
"Not exactly," Jaden smirked slightly, "I said Siegel Clyne, we never officially told the ZAFT Supreme Council about the technology. Morningstar installed the lightwave barriers, not ZAFT. Hell, even Rau doesn't know since he wasn't around during the mission."
"We're getting off topic. The question of the matter is… where do we stand now?" Tsubasa interjected.
"Where we stand, is this." Jaden said, "We'll still keep tailing you guys up until JOSH-A… hopefully with Nicol alive and well we can avoid the whole Kira and Athrun nearly killing each other thing, but I'd say you should expect one last attack from them before hitting JOSH-A… of course, this also complicates something else… "
"The Freedom?" Haruto asked, and Jaden nodded.
"Yeah, if that fight doesn't happen, Kira doesn't get the Freedom as easily… I have a plan to fix that though, but it'll take time."
"Even if Athrun doesn't have a reason to kill Kira anymore, it will most likely end with either the Aegis or the Strike being damaged. If destiny is to be ordained… Tolle will have to die… by Athrun's hands." Tsubasa stated.
"Not if I have anything to say about it," Jaden narrowed his eyes. "If there is one thing I hate, it's fucking destiny."
"You can't protect us," Haruto interjected.
"I can sure as hell try!" Jaden snapped.
"Then where the fuck were you when Makoto got skewered by that little rat, Yzak!" Kyo snarled, grabbing the collar of Jaden's suit. "Don't spout pretty words if you can't back them up!"
"I was fighting Tsubasa to make sure ZAFT thought I was still solely on their side," Jaden growled, "I had hoped that you and your friends would have kept Nicol safe… but then that fucking, stupid, arrogant. RACIST PIECE OF SHIT fucked it all up!"
Jaden then looked at Kyo right in his eyes, his crimson eyes meeting his own. "You're not the only person to lose people precious to them…" he stated. "I've lost too many friends already… if there was a way I could've saved your friend, Makoto's life, I would have done it… I'm sorry… "
Golden eyes narrowed in frustration as he glared at the Red Comet. "No, you're not. You didn't know her and you will never get the chance. She's dead and sorry won't bring her back." Kyo pushed Jaden away from him. "I don't care if you act as our ally or our enemy. I won't forgive ZAFT for this. I'll let the little silver-haired shit live, but those other ZAFT pilots? I'll kill them and if you get in my way, I'll kill you too."
Jaden's eyes narrowed. "You need to calm down." He stated. "Don't blame ZAFT for the actions of just one hot-headed idiot."
"Enough." Tsubasa stood in between the two. "You can kill each other another time. Our current problem isn't ZAFT or the Earth Forces. It's this new player that's been hounding us ever since this mess started."
"I agree." Jaden nodded, as he pulled out what looked like a radio from his pocket. "Here," he tossed it to Tsubasa, who caught it. "If you ever need extra firepower, call. And I'll let you know if we discover anything new about the Bio-Suits."
The Angel pilot nodded. "Right," He glanced at the other mobile suits that were returning back to the Archangel. "You should return to your friends."
"Yeah, need to fix up Baron..." Jaden muttered, glancing up at the machine. "That Super Gundam your machines made was a real beast, did a number on her… "
"Super Gundam?" Haruto blinked in confusion.
"Yeah, that… thing your machines all merged into?" Jaden informed, raising his brow. "What, you… you don't remember what happened?"
"All we remember is waking up in our cockpits with our eyes burning like they were on fire," Tsubasa replied.
"Well… I'm sure your friends on the Archangel recorded it, but… your machines all combined into a single super Gundam started curb-stomping everyone around you." He said, "I mean… hell, the speed you were going was absurd, I'd almost call it Quantum Teleportation like Setsuna did in 00. And the raw firepower that thing had made Canard's Devastator Gundam look pitiful."
"Huh, wish we had that on tape," Kyo remarked.
"If it'll make you feel better I can send you my recording… And the recordings from the other's machines," Jaden offered. "Terrifying it may be for me and my team… it was hilarious watching Yzak, Nicol, Dearka and Athrun getting their asses handed to them by you guys… "
The three Gundam pilots looked at the Red Comet dryly.
Jaden turned away from them and marched back to the Baron. "Let's meet again… over coffee and donuts - I'll buy." He gave the trio a wave as he left.
Once the Baron took off, Kyo turned to Makoto's body. "We should bury her…" He said softly.
The others nodded in agreement.
Tsubasa returned to the Angel and used a finger to make a six-foot deep hole with the right measurements for a human. Haruto took a piece of the Impact's armor and fashioned a makeshift tombstone for Makoto. Kyo approached the grave with the body of his lover in his arms. He dropped into the hole and slowly lowered her down.
"Makoto…" The Stardust pilot spoke softly, running a hand against her cold, pale cheek and brushing a few strands of her brown hair. "Forgive me. I should've fought harder. I should've done everything in my power to keep you safe… Don't worry, my love. I will not let your death be in vain. I won't die… until I've ended this war."
He placed one last kiss upon the girl's cold lips.
"Sleep well, Makoto." He whispered with a trembling hand.
After climbing out of the grave, the three Gundam pilots used pieces of the Impact's wreckage as makeshift shovels to fill the grave until it was topped with dirt.
Haruto took the tombstone and placed it at the head of the grave.
Tsubasa, Haruto, and Kyo bowed their heads in silence.
"Tsubasa, do you read me?" Miriallia's voice intervened. "If you can hear me then please answer."
"Roger, we read you loud and clear." The white-haired teen replied.
"Is… is Makoto-" She tried asking, but Tsubasa finished for her. "Dead."
There was silence over the com, but the pilots knew that many of the crew were mourning the death of a friend and comrade.
"Impact is unsalvageable. We're leaving it behind." Tsubasa informed the crew.
"And Makoto's body?" This time the captain herself spoke.
"We buried her here. This seemed to be as better as any for a grave." The Angel pilot replied.
"Understood." Murrue's tone was neutral, but there was an underlining of sorrow. "We'll await your return."
"Affirmative," Tsubasa stated. He glanced at Haruto then gestured with his head, getting a nod from the dark grey-haired boy.
The only one who remained was Kyo, who continued to stare at the headstone of his girlfriend. He wanted to leave, but the boy felt that if he did, he would forever lose a part of his heart.
"Kyo, it's time to go," Tsubasa spoke gently. "We have to go back."
Kyo used his arm to rub his face then released a sniff. "Yeah," His voice on the verge of breaking. "Yeah, I'm on my way."
He walked back to the black and gold titan that he called his partner. Kyo mounted the Gundam as he, Tsubasa, and Haruto took off into the air and flew back towards the Archangel.
Written on the tombstone of the Coordinator girl, it read:
Here lies…
Makoto Nanaya
Friend, Comrade, Sister, and…
Gundam Pilot
Archangel
The atmosphere of the ship was solemn and mournful.
None of the crew spoke or even felt the need to speak. The pilots didn't fare better.
Noel was in her quarters sobbing while Kat held her in her arms trying her best to comfort the girl after she lost her best friend. Tsubasa was tuning his Gundam quietly. Haruto had gone to Hera after learning she had an indirect hand in creating the Voyager. Kira, Mu, and Tolle expressed their sorrow in their own way by either fixing their machines or seeking the comfort of friends. Kyo… he took it the hardest.
The Stardust pilot barricaded himself in his room while holding the helmet that once belonged to Makoto. Not once did he release his grip upon it.
In the captain's office, Murrue rested her head in her hands. Natarle was with her to conduct a report on the loss of the Impact and its pilot along with the incident with Hera and the subsequent transformation of the Voyager.
"Captain, I need you to sign off on this." The dark-haired woman handed a datapad over to the buxom brunette.
"What is it?" She received the datapad and looked over its contents.
"Makoto Nanaya's profile and arrangements to have her things transported back to Orb," Natarle replied.
Murrue frowned when she noticed the status of the brown-haired girl: KIA. She hated seeing that acronym even after she had seen it so many times before.
"Even though she wasn't classified as a soldier for the Earth Forces, I feel we should at least give her a proper send-off." Natarle reasoned.
"Thank you, lieutenant. I'll see to it that this gets signed." The brunette replied. "What about the rest of the crew?"
"The loss was recent. It may take some time before everyone is mentally able to do their jobs." Natarle replied.
"I see…" The captain said to herself while furrowing her brow.
There were dark days ahead for the Legged Ship's maiden voyage...
Meanwhile, ZAFT Submarine
*SLAM*
Athrun, Nicol, and Dearka all winced as Yzak was sent sprawling to the ground, battered, bruised and with a broken nose. All of which was inflicted by the one Natural onboard at the time… Jaden Takeo. While Athrun had seen him angry a handful of times… he had never seen this man look so livid before.
"How you became a goddamned redcoat astounds me, Joule!" Jaden shouted, "You're not an elite fighter, you're a child with a goddamned temper tantrum!"
"But that's our job… to destroy the Legged Ship… and the mobile suits…" Yzak groaned. "Why are you so mad?"
"He's not wrong. You've been acting weird ever since we came to Earth." Dearka added.
"Because I know killing any of those pilots or that ship is a bad idea!" Jaden growled, "You all saw it yourselves! You killed one of their friends, and they retaliate with that monster that knocked your machines around like playthings! There is not a goddamned thing in ZAFT's Arsenal that could even dream to take that kind of force off, and you Joule just went and pissed them off."
"How… the fuck… was I supposed to know that?" The Duel pilot growled.
"Did you not even bother to review your past battles?!" Jaden snapped, "Those machines are capable of feats that, for all intents and purposes, defy the laws of physics! You do NOT engage an enemy without knowing their full capabilities!"
Athrun narrowed his eyes suspiciously at the Red Comet. "From what I was seeing, you seem to want that ship and those pilots alive. For what reason?"
Jaden gave Athrun a cold, and very knowing glance. "Because there was a chance, no matter how small, that the Archangel and its crew may be swayed to leave the Earth Alliance." He stated, "Lacus said it herself - the crew on that ship are not the 'elite' of O.M.N.I Enforcer, they're low-ranking grunts and former civilians, and as we learned before, one - if not more - of their pilots are Coordinators. This shows that the officers aboard are more tolerant of Coordinators than the rest of the EA's high command."
"That sounds like the words of an optimistic traitor," Dearka remarked.
"You never wanted to help us stop the Legged Ship," Athrun stated. "You only wanted to turn them over."
"Oh don't you fucking start Athrun," Jaden growled, "You are one to talk, given how hard you've tried to get the pilot of the Strike to side with ZAFT!"
"Oh, I will fucking start! You so-called Red Comet!" The Aegis pilot snarled. "You have no idea how difficult it is… fighting someone that could be either a friend or a brother, but knowing you have to kill them."
"Wait… you know the pilot of the Strike?" Nicol asked, looking at Athrun in surprise - as did Dearka and Yzak.
The blue-haired teen frowned… and nodded. "Yes, I do."
"Kira Yamato," Jaden said, "An Orb citizen, and attendee of the Copernicus tech college before the war began… attending the same classes as Athrun Zala here. He's been forced to fight someone he's considered his best friend before Junius Seven... And now Joule here just killed one of his friends."
"Why the hell was he working with the EA?" Dearka asked.
"From what Lacus told me, he was just an Orb civilian at the wrong place at the wrong time." Jaden continued, "When ZAFT attacked Heliopolis, he hopped into the Strike in order to protect the colony, and afterward he remained the pilot to protect the Orb civilians who were gathered onboard - many of whom were his friends. He's not working for the EA, he's only working with them to keep his friends safe. This goes for the pilots of the other Gundam-type machines as well."
"Yeah? Well, too bad for him, but this is war. Death is natural for soldiers." Yzak argued.
"Oh, so would you so casually kill someone you've known as a friend?" Jaden shot back, "To kill someone you considered a brother as if they were just another nameless, faceless soldier?"
"Hey! They chose their side. It's not my fault, it's their own!"
"And that's the fucking problem!" Jaden snapped, "There shouldn't be any sides! This whole shitstorm with Naturals and Coordinators is just an overblown temper tantrum, and people like Athrun's father and your mother keep promoting this war, all the while you justify Blue Cosmos's own crusade against the PLANT's!"
Yzak's eyes blazed with fury as he ignored the pain and threw a punch at the Red Comet. "Shut your fucking mouth!"
Jaden caught the punch with his grasp, holding it tightly. "When people can't justify their own arguments, they always resort to senseless violence." He growled, "It's happened far too many times in the past you know..."
"That's enough," Athrun interjected, pushing the two away from each other. He glared at Yzak. "Go cool off. We'll talk about this later."
With a final glare at the Red Comet, Yzak left the room with Dearka helping him.
Jaden looked like he wanted to say something, but Athrun's fist across his cheek sent him crashing to the ground. The Aegis pilot leveled an icy glare down at the man. "Take your crew and get off this ship. As commander of this mission, I'm officially deeming you unfit to continue with your duty to assist us. Make no mistake, I won't hold your actions against Yzak accountable, but I will be informing the Chairman of your radical ideals."
Jaden simply frowned as he stood back up "The Chairman is the one who gave me permission to do this, Zala." He stated.
"Well, now I'm revoking that permission. You're just a mercenary anyway." Athrun spat. "You never had any real command in the first place. All it took to sway you… was money."
"...you really think I'm doing this for money?" Jaden asked, "Do you really think me or any of my crew are doing this just because we want a nice, big paycheck?"
"You didn't really accept the job out of the goodness of your heart."
"No, I did it because I want to prevent the extinction of the human race," Jaden growled. "Natural and Coordinator… here's a little tip, Zala… next time you see your father… ask him about G.E.N.E.S.I.S. And once you do… call me."
Athrun raised a brow and decided to file that piece of information away for later. For now… "Have you said your piece?"
"For now," Jaden nodded as he turned to the door. "All I can say now is… I hope you and your friend find peace before you both do something you'll live to regret."
"I'll take that into consideration… now get off this ship. You're fired." Athrun remarked.
Jaden simply gave Athrun a small smirk. "Yes, sir." He acknowledged before he left the door, closing it behind him, leaving Athrun and Nicol alone.
"Athrun, if what he says is true…" Nicol spoke.
"I know. But we have our orders." Athrun replied.
The Blitz pilot frowned but nodded. "If you think that's best then I'll follow you, Athrun. Even if it's down the path of Hell."
"Thanks, Nicol," The blue-haired Coordinator grinned. "But until the Blitz is fully repaired, you're off the mission. Get some rest, that's an order."
Nicol chuckled then saluted. "Yes, sir, Commander Zala." He said playfully.
Athrun rolled his eyes. "Just go before I have to put you on bedrest too."
Meanwhile - Morningstar Vosgulov-class Submarine
"Well… there goes our contract with ZAFT..." Canard muttered.
"No, just our contract with the Zala Team," Jaden informed, "We still work with the Chairman and the Clyne faction."
"With the election coming up, that may change… " Nena mused.
"I know, but until that day comes up, Morningstar will continue its mission with ZAFT," Jaden informed, glancing at the Commander of the Sub. "Move us away from the ZAFT Submarine, but keep us on a course that follows the Archangel."
"Aye, sir."
"We're… still following it, sir?" Canard asked, raising his brow.
"Yes, only now our own mission changes for now..." Jaden said, smirking. "Prep your Hyperion, Canard. Time for the Lucifer Team to make its debut again… only with a few nifty upgrades now."
Canard smiled a bit, happy at the idea of piloting the Hyperion again. He likes the Devastator for sure, but he just has a… connection with the Hyperion. However, he frowned a bit as he realized this means he won't be able to fight Kira Yamato… but he took a deep breath, burying that thought for the moment. He will always have a chance to fight him in the future.
Nena, however, frowned slightly, as she continued to try and figure out just what was going on in Jaden's head. Why was he so committed to the Archangel pursuit? She trusted him, of course - he gave her a new life, a new goal, and above all else - freedom to choose. But she still wondered how he seemed to act as if he knew things would happen before they happened. And how was he able to know about her own universe, despite no one else seems to know.
He was a mystery to be sure, one she wanted to learn more about… but that was a subject to tackle another day. Mission first, then ask Jaden about the subject. If he didn't explain, well… she still had Haro.
Archangel
"What the hell do you mean that two of your AI escaped?" Tsubasa frowned from within the Angel as he tuned up the controls.
"I mean, that when I was checking the storage, two of my AIs were gone. Poof! Vanished! Sayonara!" Kat shouted.
"And what exactly were they?" The white-haired teen inquired, typing on a keyboard.
"Um, Berserker and Archer…"
"...What?"
"Well, I was experimenting and that led to their creation. One thing led to another and I had to put them on ice." The older girl chuckled nervously.
"You mean to tell me… that two potentially dangerous pieces of artificial intelligence are out there in the world!?" He yelled.
"Um, yeah?"
"For a smart girl, you're pretty goddamn stupid!" Tsubasa exclaimed.
Kat deflated. "I know…"
Sighing, the young man rubbed his neck. "Sorry. I shouldn't be angry with you. I'm just…" He frowned as he suddenly slammed his fist into the cockpit wall. "I'm just so… angry! I should've seen it. I should've seen it coming. I could've prevented her death… but I couldn't see it."
Tsubasa felt a hand on his shoulder. Glancing back, he realized it was his lover who was comforting him. "Tsubasa, you can't blame yourself. We didn't know what was going to happen." Kat assured her boyfriend.
"But I was the one leading the team. I should've… I could've…" The Angel pilot bit his lower lip. "I should've stopped holding back. I should've gone straight for the head of the snake and cut it off, but I didn't want to change anything. I just wanted to satisfy my own ego in saving people."
Kat wrapped her arms around the young man, laying her cheek against his. "Tsubasa, you didn't know. None of us could've known. We knew eventually that this whole task might kill us in the end, but… we're still just kids. We're not soldiers, we are civilians."
The white-haired teen nodded in his lover's embrace. "You're right. We didn't mean to come to this world, but it just happened. We're stuck here until we can find a way to go home."
"That's right. So stay strong. For everyone." Kat smiled, rubbing the boy's snow white hair.
"Come on, Kat. I'm not a little kid." Tsubasa groaned in annoyance.
The redhead giggled. "That's right. You're a big, strong man now." She teased.
"That's not funny!" The Angel pilot puffed his cheeks.
"Now, you're acting like a kid." Kat laughed loudly, much to the teen's embarrassment.
Meanwhile - with Morningstar
"...those mobile suits don't look like ZAFT or Morningstar standard-issue..." Canard mused as he looked at their backup units.
Jaden smirked slightly as he glanced at their support machines - while the three of them were in their respective modified Hyperions, they were not going to be alone as they were joined by a number of RGM-79C GM Type-C's, along with a few Powered GM mobile suits, and GM Cannon IIs. "We usually use these models for training purposes," he explained, "Since they fit the profile of what the Alliance plans their future M.S. forces to look like. If we helped the Archangel using our regular machines, ZAFT would notice. This way the illusion of us being an E.A. Black Ops unit will still hold up."
"What's the plan?" Nena asked.
"Keep the Archangel flying, and make sure no one else dies today." Jaden informed, "Athrun and his team will strike them one more time before they reach JOSH-A, this is their last chance to do any damage to them so they'll try to make it count. Set up sniping positions, and wait for their arrival."
"This whole double agent thing is pretty neat. Twice the pay and twice the fun." Canard remarked.
"While we are getting paid - thanks to our friend we saved up in orbit - that is not what is important here," Jaden informed. "What's important is making sure the Archangel makes it home… preferably without anyone else getting killed."
"You're asking the impossible from us, boss." Canard said. "This is war."
"That's why I said preferably." Jaden sighed, "Just do your best - that's all I could ever ask from you."
"Roger that, bossman." Canard acknowledged.
(BREAK)
Cuts to an image of the Strike and Aegis clashing beam sabers with each other while Athrun and Kira stand across from each other with expressions of rage.
Cuts to an image of a shadowed Gundam with wings of purple-red light while a black-cloaked figure stood in front of it with glowing red eyes.
(BREAK)
ZAFT Submarine
Aboard the submarine, the Zala Team were gearing up for another shot at the Legged Ship and its mobile suits.
"This is it. We're finally gonna sink that damn ship." Yzak smirked.
"And we don't have to worry about that jackass Red Comet getting in the way," Dearka added with a smirk of his own.
"Focus on the mission." Athrun reprimanded his team. "We managed to bleed their forces. Now we have a chance to take them down. So let's get this done."
"Mobile Suit team, you are cleared for launch." The communications officer replied over the redcoats' com-link.
"Roger," They replied in unison as the ship surfaced and opened the launch tubes. In seconds flat, the Aegis, Duel, and Buster launched out of the tubes and hovered in the air long enough for flight platforms to come up and support their weight.
As the three G-Weapons flew towards their target, Athrun had one thought running through his head, 'No more holding back. This time… I'll finish Kira off.'
All the while, Nicol watched from the sidelines. "Good luck, you guys..." He muttered.
Archangel
Klaxons blared loudly as the crew mobilized to defend their ship. Kira, who had sat in front of the Strike for hours after the battle, looked up with an expression of distress.
Tsubasa, who had been eating a silent lunch with Haruto, Kat, and Noel, stood up along with his teammates as they sprinted out of the mess hall and to the lockers to suit up in their normal suits.
Kyo looked up with his eyes shadowed by his hair. His grip on the bloodied helmet that once belonged to Makoto tightened to the point that the metal creaked. He sets the helmet down and looked into the surface… and found a pair of golden eyes glaring back at him.
Meanwhile, Kira had already suited up in his normal suit along with Mu. The two entered their machines as Skygrasper 01 is loaded with the Launcher Pack and the Strike with the Aile Pack.
The rest of the pilots were finishing up with their own preparations and boarding their respective Gundams.
"Commander La Flaga, Skygrasper 01, taking off. Strike to proceed to the rear deck," Miriallia informed over the intercom.
"Kira," Mu spoke to the Coordinator.
"Yes?"
"You gonna be okay?" The Hawk of Endymion asked his young friend.
"Yes," Kira replied stoically.
Mu frowned but reluctantly respected the boy's behavior. Everyone dealt with guilt in their own way. "Tsubasa, I leave the team in your hands."
"Roger," The Angel pilot confirmed the order.
The countdown for the catapult ran green, giving the Skygrasper ample means to launch out into the skies just as the three ZAFT G-Weapons started firing upon the Archangel with their respective beam weaponry.
The Aile Strike fired back at the other G-Weapons as the Legged Ship fired its Valiant cannons at the enemy units.
In seconds flat, Mu's Skygrasper joined the fray along with the Angel, Stardust, Cosmic, Bolverk, and Crossbolt Saber.
The fighting between both sides was fierce and brutal. However, the Zala Team managed to deal significant damage to the Archangel, destroying a few of its weapons and damaging a few sections of the ship.
"Dammit!" Kyo shouted.
"Keep them away from the ship! Blast those platforms!" Tsubasa ordered, firing his beam rifle at the approaching Aegis and Buster while the Strike fought the Duel.
"Understood!" The Stardust pilot replied using his Gundam's GN Vulcans to keep the enemy away.
Kyo's eyes were intensely hard as he kept up the attack. "This one is for Makoto!" he growled.
Meanwhile, the Duel struck at the Strike ferociously, landing blow after blow on the white mobile suit with nothing but its pilot's rage. "This is where you die!" Yzak roared, kicking the G-Weapon away as Kira cried out.
However, the brunette recovered and fired a shot with the Strike's beam rifle, hitting the Duel's right leg as it exploded, destroying the flight platform it used as well as it fell.
"No!" Yzak screamed as he fired the railgun on his Gundam's shoulder to at least destroy his hated enemy but only succeeded in destroying the Strike's beam rifle.
"Kira!" Athrun roared as the Aegis attacked its sibling. He even used his own flight platform as a makeshift explosive to at least damage the Strike. However, Kira managed to defend himself by using his shield.
As the two former friends fought to the death, Mu engaged the Buster in brutal aerial combat with Noel assisting him by using her Bolverk's MA Form.
"I'll take you bastards out for killing Makoto!" The normally shy blonde girl exclaimed with nothing but raging fury.
The Angel, Cosmic, Stardust, and Crossbolt Saber landed on the island to assist Kira and stop Athrun.
"Tsubasa, are you sure about this?" Kat asked her boyfriend.
"Honestly, no," The white-haired teen replied. "We prevented Nicol's death, but Makoto paid the price for that…"
"Then we should make sure she didn't die in vain…" Kyo growled.
Haruto gave the Stardust pilot a wary look, "Kyo, you have to calm down."
"Calm down!? Those bastards killed her! I'll tear them to shreds!" The golden-eyed teen snarled.
"My, oh my, so these are the Xccelerators that she has chosen?" A velvety, rich male voice spoke in their com-link.
"Huh? Who the hell-" Kat questioned but was cut off when a violet energy blast struck the Crossbolt Saber from above, melting the entire right side of its body off as it fell to the ground in a heap.
"Kat!" Tsubasa exclaimed with worry.
"I'm okay… But Saber can't move anymore. She's out of the fight." Kat groaned.
"Tsubasa, above us!" Haruto called out.
The three Gundams stood firm and looked up at their unknown aggressor. Descending from the skies was a mobile suit that looked like it was based on the Extreme Gundam Mk-II AXE except it had a hybrid set of wings that looked like a cross between the Strike Freedom's and the Destiny's wings. It had had a black color scheme with purple and silver accents, a glowing crimson frame, purple eyes, and a golden V-fin crest. Its present armaments seemed to consist of the Multi-Purpose Shield Sabers, a rifle that looked like an advanced version of the Buster Rifle or Twin Buster Rifle, and a Buster Sword similar in appearance to the Arche Gundam's own.
"Who are you?!" Kyo demanded with a growl.
"Me? I'm the choreographer of this story and the main act. But you may refer to me… as Echo." The pilot of the new mobile suit said with a mocking bow. "And I am here to kill you."
"Are you the one that created those Bio-suits?" Tsubasa demanded.
"Bio-suits? Ah, you mean my bio-droids. Honestly, I knew I should've gotten rid of that bothersome fool pretending to be the Red Comet but he's just so entertaining to play with." Echo remarked with a chuckle.
"Why are you doing this?" Haruto inquired as the Cosmic aimed its beam magnum at the other Gundam.
"Why? Because I can. Humans are only meant for my entertainment. That's all you've ever been but the outcome of this Bloody Valentine War was utterly boring… so I decided to spice things up." The black Gundam's pilot answered without a hint of guilt. "In fact, watching you fools kill each other was even better than watching a play of Romeo & Juliet."
"So you're behind all of this!?" Kyo growled, his grip on his controls tightening to the point his knuckles popped.
Echo laughed. "Hardly. I didn't even need to lift a finger. These Naturals and Coordinators have long hated each other. I merely… brought in some guides to further the conflict."
It took Haruto a split-second to realize what the man meant as his eyes widened in horror, "The other pilots from our world… you brought us all here… to create chaos."
"Say what?" Kyo exclaimed in surprise.
"Haruto, what are you saying?" Tsubasa questioned.
Haruto gritted his teeth. "Our presence… Yours, mine, Kyo's, Kat's, Jaden's, and all the other pilots we've met and fought… We were nothing but tools used to sow more chaos. We only furthered the war with our interference."
"That's right. With the introduction of technology more advanced than either of these two human subspecies had ever seen, they were desperate to get their hands on it." Echo added. "Some of you became mercenaries to keep to yourselves while others joined either the Naturals or the Coordinators. It's really quite amusing to watch you all scurry about like insects and snap at each other like a pack of rabid dogs."
"You bastard!" Kyo roared as he pushed his controls forward, sending his Gundam into the air as the Stardust flew at the black mobile suit with its GN Katana raised to cut it down.
However, just before the blade was inches from cutting into the Gundam's face… it moved and dodged the attack with incalculable ease.
"The hell?!" Kyo blurted in surprise.
"Too slow," Echo mocked the boy. "Pariah will not fall so easily."
Before the Stardust could react, the Pariah grabbed the black-gold Gundam by its left arm and kicked it down to the earth, ripping off the Stardust's arm in the process.
As the Stardust crashed into the air, the Cosmic fired its beam magnum at the Pariah. However, the black Gundam blocked it with its shield sabers.
"Fools. My Gundam is the strongest mobile suit ever built." Echo said with a smirk.
"We'll see about that!" Tsubasa retorted. The Angel unsheathed one of its beam sabers and charged at the Pariah which retaliated by activating its Multi-Purpose Shield Sabers and swung both energy blades down onto the Angel's own azure blue blade.
"Die, you bastard!" Kyo exclaimed as the Stardust descended from above the Pariah with its GN Katana poised to pierce the machine through the chest.
"I told you, my Gundam is the strongest," Echo remarked as the wings on the Pariah shifted as the Wings of the Sky event from its thrusts morphed into a set of blades that skewered the Stardust, barely missing the cockpit but taking off its remaining arm and legs while destroying a chunk of its head.
Kyo coughed a bit of saliva into his helmet from the inertia that hit his body due to the amount of force his mobile suit took. "I won't… let this stop me!" He snarled as his pupils dilated to resemble an 'X'.
The Stardust's mask opened to reveal its heat vent mouth, allowing it to quickly scoop up its GN Katana and slashed at the Pariah with every fiber of its being while its pilot roared with unrestrained anger.
Echo scoffed in disappointment. "Hopeless fool…" He muttered, kicking the Angel away then grasping the handle of the Pariah's X-Cleaver and reversed his Gundam's grip… with the blade pointed at the approaching Stardust.
"Kyo, no!" Tsubasa shouted to his comrade and friend.
But his cries were too late… as the blade of the sword pierced through the Stardust's chest, destroying the cockpit.
The black-gold Gundam twitched for a second before its dying power source ceased, letting the broken machine to dangle on the Pariah's blade like a skewered beast.
Tsubasa and Haruto watched in silent horror as red liquid dripped down the blade...
Then they snapped.
Haruto screamed as his anger and rage filled his machine, forcing the Cosmic to enter its Destroy Mode. The dark grey Unicorn-type tossed its beam magnum aside and pulled out its Hyper Beam Lance, igniting the beam emitters and lunging at the Pariah with righteous fury.
The Angel joined the Cosmic by entering its Burst Mode. The glowing cyan frame shone brighter than ever before, boosting its performance as it slashed and stabbed at Echo's machine.
As the three Gundams battled, thunder and lightning cracked overhead. Rain poured down like a raging typhoon.
The Stardust's remains laid upon the earth as the drops of water washed the bloody smear in its chest and drenching the ground with the red fluid.
"You two cannot beat me on your own. You do not have the power." Echo mocked the remaining two Gundam pilots.
"I'll tear you to pieces, you fucker!" Tsubasa roared, slashing down with his Angel's beam saber as the blade clashed against the Pariah's shield saber.
The Cosmic fired its Vulcan Guns at its enemy but it only served to annoy the pilot. Echo grappled the Angel and threw it at the transformed Cosmic, sending both mobile suits crashing into the ground.
"Now do you see? Even if all three of you came at me at once, I would be victorious." Echo remarked coldly. "Your attacks cannot even touch or harm me. I am invincible."
"Oh yeah? How about this then!" Kat exclaimed as the Crossbolt Saber wrapped an arm around the Pariah's neck and used its remaining leg to secure itself on the evil Gundam.
"What!?" Echo exclaimed with surprise.
"Catherine, escape now. I'm activating the self-destruct system." Saber informed her pilot.
The redhead grimaced but nodded in acceptance, "It's been an honor, Altria."
"The honor was all mine, Kat. Now go!" The AI commanded as the cockpit of the Crossbolt opened, giving Kat enough room to escape her doomed mobile suit and hide behind cover. "Let's go to Hell together, you evil monster!"
The Crossbolt Saber began to glow bright red while the Pariah tried to shake its passenger off. Within seconds, the Gundam exploded, consuming the black mobile suit in the fire.
The Angel and Cosmic managed to get to one knee and stare at the smoke that had once been two mobile suits.
"Guess the bastard won't be coming back from that," Tsubasa remarked.
"So we won?" Haruto asked.
The white-haired pilot grimaced. "But at what cost?" He glanced at the remains of the Stardust. "We've lost Makoto… and now Kyo as well."
The Cosmic pilot frowned. "Tsubasa, we stopped the monster that put us through this hell. We should be happy that we-"
"That little stunt you pulled… has irritated me." The dreaded voice of Echo stopped the Gundam pilots' conversation.
"No way…" Haruto said in shock.
"There's no way that thing should've survived…" Tsubasa breathed with wide eyes.
Walking out of the smoke, without a scratch on its armor, was the Pariah with its eyes flaring brightly as it glared at the two kneeling Gundams.
"Now I'm going to crush you… slowly and painfully," Echo said with a hint of annoyance.
Tsubasa gritted his teeth. "Haruto, we have to take this guy out. If we don't, a lot of people could die."
"I'm with you till the end, Tsubasa." Haruto nodded with a firm look on his boyish face.
"Then let's take this guy down!" The Gundam pilot roared as the Angel took out its other beam saber and charged at the Pariah. The Cosmic activated its beam tonfas and boosted towards the black Gundam to assist its ally.
Tsubasa slashed with his beam saber to aim for the Pariah's head. However, his attack was parried by the black Gundam as it kicked the Angel to the side, sending it to the ground.
The Cosmic attacked with a flurry of slashes and kicks, but each of his blows only met the shield surface of Echo's weapons. Haruto growled in annoyance as he fired the Vulcans but all he heard was a clicking sound. "Damn, out of ammo!" He shouted until a grunt escaped his lips when the Pariah kicked him directly in the chest.
The two Gundams slowly pushed themselves up to stand against their foe, who seemed more than a little pleased with himself.
"If you think you can beat me, you-" Echo began to shout, before suddenly a beam of energy blasted from a nearby island, barreling straight towards him. "GAH!" He shouted as he ducked down, narrowly avoiding being shot.
"What the-?!" The Gundam pilots shouted, turning around towards the source of the blast, which became very obvious as the familiar form of the Baron Gundam emerged from the island, its Twin GN Buster Rifle smoking from its recent discharge.
"Alright fuck-for-brains," Jaden's voice came through the comms. "I have NOT been having a good week, what with one of their friends dying and..." The Gundam looked down to where the Stardust laid in a heap of scrap. "...oh no you fucking didn't… "
"Ah… the pretender." Echo retorted, staring down at the Red Comet. "So good of you to join us."
"Okay, I just got to this party, so I'm gonna make a few 'wild' guesses," Jaden said, flying up into the air. "I'm guessing you're somehow the reason we're all in this world, and just making everything so fucking difficult for us all, huh?"
"You'd be right..." Tsubasa growled, "And he killed Kyo!"
"He was annoying me," Echo shrugged his mobile suit. "I don't like annoyance-" Suddenly a GN beam blast hit the Pariah in the chest, doing little damage. "HEY!"
"Oops, sorry, finger slipped." Jaden retorted, "Go on, don't let me stop your monologue."
"...you've always been an annoyance, Takeo..." Echo growled, "Acting so cocky, so- GAH SON OF A-" Another GN particle beam hit the Pariah in the shoulder.
"Shit, sorry, inverted controls." Jaden apologized, "Quick question, would you say you were vulnerable to about, say, a frequency of point one seven Gigareds, or point one six?"
There was a long pause as the Pariah just glared at the Baron Gundam. "No?" Jaden asked, "Oh well, I'll just try them both." He aimed his GN Cannons and fired at the Pariah - both impacting and forcing the machine down to earth.
"Here's my reply, you bothersome human." Echo snarled, aiming his rifle at the Baron and pulled the trigger… releasing a beam larger than even a high mega particle cannon at the three Gundams.
"Scatter!" Tsubasa shouted as he and Haruto moved their Gundams to move, but Jaden seemed to remain in place.
"Jaden, move out of the way!" Haruto shouted.
"Oh? Are you going to stand there and die?" Echo mocked.
"Nope!" Jaden shouted, flooring the controls as the Baron flew up to the side, avoiding the impact of the blast. "Well, nice gun you got there, ya big dumb robot."
"Oh, Jaden, you really think I'll fall for that little trick? I've been watching all of you. I know your tactics. I know your combat style. I even know what makes you tick." The Pariah pilot mocked the Red Comet.
Jaden shrugged. "Worth a shot," He said, as he continued firing at the Pariah. However, the black Gundam continued to use its shields to block the beams.
As he continued his attacks, Jaden activated the comms. "Okay you two, if you got suggestions, I am all fucking ears right now."
"Suggestions? We're trying to survive! Our Gundams aren't at full-strength because we lost nearly all of our armaments!" Tsubasa exclaimed. "I don't have my funnels, my beam rifle, my blade bits, or even Trans-Am!"
"My own Gundam's weapons are practically gone. All I have left are my beam sabers and my beam javelin." Haruto added.
"That damn thing even survived a full-face explosion. Without a scratch, I might add." The Angel pilot pointed out. "So, our only suggestion is that we fight as hard as we can or we die."
Jaden sighed "Well, this is gonna be a hell of a day, I can already tell..." he muttered, "Just keep moving, don't freeze, and don't fucking die."
"Have you finished praying to your insignificant God? Because it's time to die." Echo said with a grin in his tone. The Pariah's optics flared as it spread its wings and activated the beam emitters of his Multi-Purpose Shield Sabers.
Haruto narrowed his eyes as he glanced at his allies. "You guys stand back. I'll try and hold him off."
"Haruto, what are you talking about?" Tsubasa demanded.
The magenta-eyed boy didn't hear the Angel pilot as he focused his senses onto his own machine. "Cosmic… grant me your power!" He said to his faithful mobile suit.
The Gundam's optics flared as its Psychoframe started to shift from a bright magenta to a calm, yet fierce green. Even the optics began to glow a bright green. The Cosmic activated its beam tonfas and attacked the Pariah at three times its original speed.
The two dark-colored mobile suits clashed repeatedly.
From a human's point of view, it would seem like two streams of light locking together, one bright green and the other scarlet red.
"Hyaaaah!" Haruto exclaimed, driving his Gundam's beam tonfas down as the Pariah parried the blow away.
"Stupid boy," Echo taunted the young teen. "Even with the power of a Newtype, it will not save you from your fate."
"I won't know until I try!" The Cosmic pilot roared as he and his Gundam slashed down at the black mobile suit and managed to hit the armor. Unfortunately, even the beam tonfa had no effect on the metallic surface as the armor gleamed in the fading sunlight. "What!?"
Echo smirked. "I told you…" The Pariah brought up its Hyper Buster Rifle then pulled the trigger when the barrel was aligned point-blank with the chassis of the Cosmic.
Haruto could only watch in utter shock and horror as the last thing he ever saw was a great golden light as his Gundam is consumed in the utterly powerful beam.
"HARUTO!" Tsubasa yelled, watching the last of his friends be vaporized without much effort.
The only part that seemed to remain of the Cosmic was the dark grey machine's battle-scarred head as it laid on the earth with its optics lifeless and dead to the world.
Without any remorse, the Pariah stomped on the head as if it were an insect. Its foot slowly crushing Cosmic's head into the ground. "Heh, how pathetic. The brat awakened to his Newtype abilities but even those powers couldn't save him from my Gundam's wrath." Echo remarked with a cold snicker. "Do you understand now? There is no mobile suit in this whole universe that can ever stand up to the power of Pariah. You were all doomed from the very beginning!"
Tsubasa's grip on his control orbs nearly shattered the holograms as he bared his canines and glared hatefully at the one who so callously defeated his comrades. "I will… KILL YOU!" He roared, his pupils dilating and morphing to resemble the letter X once more as his irises shined brighter than ever before.
Echo seemed to sense this and narrowed his eyes from behind the helm of his own pilot suit. 'Impossible… he's already awakening to his full potential?' He thought as he watched the Angel stand tall… and begin a new transformation.
The glowing frame the armor covered began to expand and shift, forming a sort of crystalline exterior that radiated with energy that normal instruments could hardly detect. The wings on the Gundam's back expanded and morphed, becoming more bird-like with razor-sharp feather edges. Crystal talons and claws formed around the hands and feet. The V-fin antenna horns on its forehead morphed to form a more blade-like set of horns. The optics flared brightly, shining like twin suns.
'...that better be enough to take him down...' Jaden thought, as he trained his guns back onto the Pariah, preparing to begin the battle anew.
"So you've awakened as a true Xccelerator now? I will rectify that." Echo snarled. The Pariah's own optics flared as it holstered its buster rifle and brought out the X-Cleaver then entered a two-handed sword stance. "Prepare to join your friends in death."
"Oi, Jaden, stay out of this fight. This bastard… is mine!" Tsubasa commanded, his transformed Gundam flexed its claws as it entered a combat stance.
"Uh, I do not think that's a good idea..." Jaden muttered, still aiming at Echo's machine.
"DO WHAT I SAY!" Tsubasa yelled, his voice tinged with rage and anger… before he lowered it down. "You're the only one that can protect the Archangel… if I fail."
"...as much as I want to disagree with that, I hate it when you're right..." Jaden sighed, lowering his weapons, before backing off. "Do us all a favor and don't fucking die… "
"No promises," The snow-haired pilot replied.
Both the Angel and the Pariah glared at one another… then they launched at each other in a vicious clash. The two Gundams locking their weapons with claw and blade.
"For Kyo… For Haruto… I will see you burn!" Tsubasa roared.
"Give it your best shot!" Echo retorted with a mad cackle.
The Gundams reengaged each other. Their movements mere blurs as they struck one another like rabid wolves. The Angel blocked an overhead sword strike then lashed out with a kick, but the Pariah used the flat side of its X-Cleaver to parry the blow away.
"What's wrong? I thought you said you wanted to see me burn." Echo mocked the Gundam pilot.
Tsubasa snarled then pushed the verniers to their limit. His Gundam took off towards the black mobile suit and slammed right into its chassis. "I will defeat you… even if I have to self-destruct and take you with me!"
Echo laughed. "You humans are just so predictable. Even when you awaken to the power of an Xccelerator, you've yet to unlock your full capabilities!"
"Xccelerator?" Tsubasa repeated in confusion.
"Hehe, allow me to show you… exactly what I mean," Echo closed his eyes then opened them to reveal glowing red irises and X-shaped pupils. "Xcceleration!"
In the blink of an eye, the Pariah escaped the Angel's hold then moved with reflexes that even Mikazuki Argus would be jealous of. "What the-!?" Tsubasa exclaimed before he gagged when the black Gundam drove its heel into the cockpit area of his mobile suit, sending a backlash of vertigo to his stomach.
"Not done yet," Echo cooed, grabbing the Angel by the legs then slamming the white Gundam to the ground. The metal strained but it held despite the punishment it took.
Tsubasa removed his helmet as he emptied the contents of his stomach onto the floor of his cockpit. Despite throwing up, he wiped away the leftover pile then forced his Gundam to perform a handstand and kick the Pariah square in the face.
Unfortunately, the black mobile suit moved its head at the last second while the talons on the Angel's feet scraped against the surface of the Pariah's neck.
"Too slow!" Echo declared as he moved his Gundam to slash upward with its X-Cleaver. The blade carved right through the left joint that held the Angel's leg together, separating it into two pieces.
"Damn," Tsubasa growled as he ignited his thrusters to launch his Gundam into the air. "Take this!" The Angel aimed its claws at the Pariah as an orb of pure destructive energy began to form from the palms then fired it at the black mobile suit.
Echo scoffed as he brought up the Pariah's X-Cleaver and used the flat side of his weapon to block the powerful beam. However, he misinterpreted that the beam slowly began to heat up his weapon to the point it began to slightly melt. 'Such amazing power…' the Xccelerator thought.
"You're wide open!" Tsubasa shouted, descending from the air with a beam saber in hand.
"Not quite!" Echo retorted, boosting his Pariah into the air as he swung his X-Cleaver at the Angel, clashing with the glowing blue beam of its saber.
The two Gundams continued their clash into the air. Both mobile suits slashed, stabbed, and cleaved at each other. However, whereas the Angel received critical damage that would destroy a normal MS, the Pariah barely had a scratch on it save for the scuffed paint job and the light bruisings on the armor.
From down below, Jaden watched from within the Baron Gundam.
"Take a good look at yourself. Even with that transformation, your mobile suit can hardly keep up with the strength of my Pariah." Echo remarked.
As the Xccelerator said, the Angel floated in the air with its left leg gone, its armor scratched and damaged beyond recognition, the right servo had been sliced off, the wings on its back were broken to the point they looked like pinions, the V-fin antenna had the right horn snapped off, and its left optic eye had been destroyed. Overall, the Gundam was a pitiful mockery of its original glory.
"I don't care. As long as you're dead… I don't care even if my Gundam is scrap metal!" Tsubasa roared as he charged at the Pariah. "MAX POWER!" At his command, the remaining beam saber the Angel held in its left hand grew longer and larger, pushing the emitters to their limit.
The Pariah made no move to retaliate as the pilot smirked.
"DIE!" The Gundam pilot cried out as he slashed down with his max-powered beam saber. The beam directed at the cockpit of the Pariah to eliminate the menace that plagued the Cosmic Era and made their lives a living hell since their arrival.
"Fool… Xcceleration," Echo said calmly. Just when the beam saber was about to pierce the Pariah's chassis, the black mobile suit swiftly dodged it without any trouble at all.
Tsubasa's eyes went wide with shock, "Impossible…!?"
"Sayonara," Echo remarked as the face mask of the Pariah Gundam opened, revealing a mouth-like cannon as it charged up… then fired.
The last thing Tsubasa saw was a bright light followed by agonizing pain...
All he could think about was his girlfriend's beautiful smile for the final time… 'Kat… I'm sorry…'
In the blink of an eye, the Angel was blasted in half before exploding in a brilliant blaze that spreads pieces of its frame all over the sands, joining with the remains of the Stardust and the Cosmic.
With his foes defeated, Echo released a loud, obnoxious cackle as he watched the remains of the would-be Xccelerators' mobile suits burn.
"Beautiful! This is such a beautiful end to such a splendid trio of fools!" The Gundam pilot said.
The Pariah turned its blood red gaze over to the stationary Baron Gundam.
"Oh? Nothing to say, Red Comet? Come now, surely it must be something after you witnessed the tragic fall of these worthless children?"
Jaden watched the Angel fall, with a dead stare at the wreckage, glanced up at the Pariah once… before simply turning away.
"You may live now, but know that you can't-" Echo's voice died out as Jaden killed the Comms of his mobile suit.
"Obnoxious prick..." He growled as he made his way back to the Archangel… and not looking forward to the talk he was about to have with them.
Suddenly, an open broadcast from the Archangel echoed in the Baron's communication system. "Attention all mobile suits! Return to the ship at once. I repeat: Return to the ship at once."
From the distance, he could pick out the Bolverk and the Skygrasper flown by the Hawk of Endymion, which signified that the Strike and Tolle's Skygrasper had been...
Echo smirks. "Enjoy your relative peace until the time of your death, foolish Red Comet. No matter what you do, or what events you try to change… there will always be death wherever you go. Farewell." With that final taunt, the Pariah vanished into thin air.
"Boss, you good?" Canard messaged.
Jaden let out a tired sigh, "Is the Archangel secured?" he asked.
"Uh, yeah, we're escorting her out of the islands now." Canard replied, "But what happened? You just traded your Hyperion for the Baron and left us… what's going on?"
"I'll see you and Nena at the Archangel," Jaden muttered "Just wait there… it's time we had a very important discussion together..."
"Uh, roger. We'll stand by as ordered." The Coordinator replied.
With the comm-link off, Jaden prepared himself for the conversation of a lifetime.
Archangel - CIC
"...could someone explain to me who these guys are?" Mu asked, watching as they came under renewed protection at the hands of several mobile suits that looked vaguely familiar to the Strike in general design, but lacking the same V-fin the Gundams possessed.
When Kira went off to fight the Aegis, ZAFT's assault increased with a number of DINN units, but before they could be overwhelmed, suddenly two unknown Gundam-types arrived, accompanied by a dozen of these smaller, seemingly mass-produced mobile suits that helped turn the tide of the fight, allowing the Archangel to fight on as its enemies were destroyed. Now they stood atop the assault battleship, keeping their eyes to the skies, while the two Gundam-types stood on the main deck.
"I don't know… but I won't look a gift horse in the mouth," Murrue muttered, shaking her head. "Any word from the others?"
"Negative, we've lost contact with Tsubasa, Haruto, and Kyo when they left our sensor range," Natarle informed. "We have yet-"
"Contact!" Sai shouted, "One mobile suit incoming… oh damn, it's the one the Red Comet used!"
"Red Alert!" Murrue shouted, "Tell those pilots to-"
"Uh, Ma'am?" Mirallia spoke up, "The Red Comet… he's contacting us… says it's urgent we hear this."
"It must be a trick..." Natarle muttered, but Murrue's eyes narrowed slightly.
"Put him through..." she said, "Let's hear what he has to say..."
Natarle looked at the Captain in surprise but obeyed as he keyed it in on the speakers. "This is Commander Jaden Takeo, addressing the warship Archangel." Came a commanding yet… somber voice on the comms. "This is a white flag signal… I wish to board your ship, I have something that I believe you, your key crewmen and the Gundam pilots deserve to know."
Murrue pursed her lips in thought. She had never met the man himself, but all the stories and the battles with him were undeniable that this could be a chance for the EA to learn about this powerful mercenary commander. "This is Captain Murrue Ramius. We will allow you to board our ship, but you will not receive a warm welcome. Your mobile suit must disarm at once if what you say is true." She replied back.
"Hate to break it to you ma'am, but you're kinda surrounded anyways." Jaden added, "All those GM's work for me after all, so disarming myself won't make much difference. I'm just here to give you some information."
The buxom brunette narrowed her eyes. "I knew it was too good to be true for a bunch of mercenaries. So if we were to refuse, you would order your men to attack, is that it? Or are you going to try and take over our vessel?"
"Who cares about all that!" Kat exclaimed as she barged her way onto the bridge. "I wanna know what happened to Tsubasa and the others! You were there, weren't you?" She directed her question to the Red Comet. "Tell me now!"
There was a long, uncomfortable pause on the comms before Jaden let out a tired, mournful sigh. "They're… dead." He finally revealed.
The crew looked equally shocked and horrified. Three of their strongest pilots… were gone forever.
Though none took the deaths of their friends harder than Kat herself. Eyes wide and filled with tears, the former Gundam pilot dropped on her knees and sobbed loudly. Her heart shattered as the thought of her lover and her two young friends dying filled her soul with grief.
A dark day was met as the Archangel had lost six of its pilots in the span of two days. Warriors, comrades, friends, and loved ones that would not return to them… such is the tragedy of war.
(Begin Boogie Back by Miyu Inoue)
(Boogie Back) The screen opens to reveal Cagalli and Lacus pass by each other
(Instrumental) Cuts to Cagalli sitting in the backseat of a car as she watches the city go by in the land of Orb
(Tobidashita timing) Cuts to Tsubasa on a beach chair reading a book
(nari hibiku korekushon) Kat, Kyo, and Haruto are busy swimming in a pool while playing with a beach ball
(Nigawarai no showtime tada enjite) Cuts to Kira and Cagalli on the shoulder of the Strike, watching the sunrise with amazed expressions
(Kuruidashiteku yoru Dancing Dancing heart) Cuts to Lacus singing the lyrics of the song into a microphone
(Nando demo Falling Falling down) Cuts to the Angel, Stardust, and Cosmic flying towards a battle before a set of missiles explode in front of them. When the smoke clears, a pair of blue eyes glow from a shadowy MS
((Boogie back) Kimi wo oikakete) Cuts to the Impact throwing a punch with the Bolverk holding its beam handguns
(Mune no kodou hayaku naru) The Duel, Buster, and Blitz appear side-by-side wielding their given weapons
((Boogie back) Setsuna ni koishita) The Crossbolt Saber releases its funnels and fires its Chest Buster Cannons
(Yume wo mou ichido) The Perfect Strike appears wielding all of its Striker Packs
(Boogie back Boogie back) The Stardust, wielding its GN Katana, stands back-to-back with the Cosmic which wields its Beam Magnum Custom
(Instruments) Cuts to the Angel looking off to the side while a shadowy MS appears in front of it
(Boogie back Boogie back) Cuts to Cagalli looking up with a smile then cuts to two photos: One with Tsubasa, Kyo, and Haruto together and the other with all of the Gundam pilots in it
(End of Ending)
Preview:
With the loss of its pilots, the Archangel is left in a vulnerable position. Shows most of the bridge crew glaring hatefully at Jaden, Canard, and Nena.
However, the time for mourning is passed as revelations and secrets are revealed. Shows Jaden revealing to the Cosmic Era humans the opening of the Gundam SEED anime and the first episode.
Emotions fly and questions burn, but who has the answers? Shows Noel looking furious then Canard and Nena looking equally shocked while Jaden looked stern.
But what effect will this have on the future? Shows Echo sitting at his throne as he looked upon a screen to call Blue Cosmos.
Next Time: Revelations
Can you handle the truth, Gundam? Shows a pair of blue eyes slowly opening inside of a hospital room.
A/N: That's it for this chapter. It took only two months, but it is now finished. The next one will be shorter and a little easier to upload afterward.
Big thanks to 117Jorn, Titanic X, and Knightwolf1875 for their assistance.
Titanic X: Yep. And next episode is gonna be a doozy for the SEED crew. :3
Also, please follow Firem78910's prequel story to this one. It is called "Before the Stardust". And don't forget SignalHunter's own variant that follows the story of his own character, "Gundam SEED: Hunter's Tale".
Oh, and would it be interesting to try out a crossover between Gundam and League of Legends? Ah, I'm thinking too far ahead. I'll save that tidbit for the future.
Titanic X: Anyway, see you around, peeps~! :D
Peace out, everyone!