Chapter 26

Space was colder than she had imagined. Despite the hustle around the battleship, the precise lack of noise was what she noticed. Katarina stared out of one of the large windows on the bridge. Stars dotted the inky black void that lay just beyond the ten inches of reinforced safety glass. This would all be over in a matter of hours. This war that had been going on for months now would finally be over. Cassandra, Camui, and Wufei would all be safe and Duo wouldn't have to pilot Deathscythe for a while.

"Kat, are you alright?" Sally's voice rattled her concentration.

"Not really, but I can't complain." The blonde answered. "I can't help but be scared and nervous and worried all at the same time."

The older woman chuckled in response. "I know how you feel. I have no idea where Wufei is right now and I can only hope that he's safe where ever he is. I'm only fooling myself when I think that, because I know that what he does isn't safe. He could die trying to get Cassandra and Camui out of there."

Kat gave Sally a sympathetic look. "I know how you feel. Duo's not going to stop doing what he does best any time soon. The universe can't survive without the God of Death."

The other sandy-haired woman gazed out the window as well. "Do you think they'll ever stop fighting?"

"That's the same as asking if the sun will ever stop rising. I don't think they'll ever truly be finished with their fight, Sally. They've been bred for it since they were children. It's what they live to do. I hate to say it, but I'm not sure they would know what to do if their true purpose was taken away."

"You're right." Sally sighed. "You grew up with Quatre, so you know a bit of what they went through. Did you ever regret falling in love with Duo because of what he is?"

The blonde shook her head, finally looking at the other woman. "No. When it comes to Duo, I have no regrets. I only wish we'd have been together years ago when we were kids. I'm here to stand beside him. I support him even if I can't do much more than that. I'm sure you feel the same way about Wufei."

A soft look came across the woman's face. "I do and I have the same regret as you. If only the two of us hadn't been so stubborn. I wish I could've told him before he pulled his disappearing act."

"You'll get your chance." Kat told her. "He may be in a hospital bed because you broke his legs, but you'll still have your chance."

Sally smiled and shook her head. "I'd better get back to sickbay and make sure that everything's in order. Have you got your mechanics ready for antigravity repairs?"

"As prepared as I'll ever have them. I just hope that we don't have to be out there too much. I would hate to have those lasers whipping past my head. I wouldn't want Heavyarms' bullets whizzing past me, either."

"Take care, Kat. I'm praying that everyone comes back safe and sound."

"Me too, Sally. Me too."

...

"My scanners are reading nothing. I've got nothing on infrared either."

"Maintain your position, Duo. We keep this formation until we spot the enemy." Heero's voice came over the communicator.

"They'll know we're coming." Quatre broke in. "Anubis isn't that blind. They'll be waiting for us."

"We anticipated that." Trowa commented. "We also anticipated that the upgraded Cerberus system will allow less freedom for Camui."

Duo shook his head. "I don't think we'll have to worry about the Diabolos right away. We'll have the other mobile suits to worry about."

Heero grunted to confirm Duo's theory. "Affirmative. Anubis will most likely keep his most powerful weapon hidden until the end. If he thinks that he can take away our advantage with the Diabolos, he'll wait."

"Things are getting ugly." Quatre commented in a sing-song tone. "Has anyone heard from Wufei? I'm starting to worry."

"Wufei's a hard ass, Q-man. He'll be fine." The braided brunette couldn't be sure if his words were designed to comfort his friend or himself. "Besides, Kat's on the battleship that's carrying the Altron. She'll be able to get to him faster than anyone else."

"I hope you're right." The Arabian sighed. "I hope Cassie and Camui are okay."

"They'll be fine, too." Trowa interrupted. "They're both strong people. They'll make it out of this alive."

It was about that time that Katarina's voice broke the conversation. "Greetings from the Battleship Octavia! We're about a hundred kilometers behind you and closing. Infrared sensors are clear back here, boys. The motion scanners aren't picking up anything either."

"We're not picking up anything either, babe. Things are going to get rough. I have a feeling." Duo responded.

"Try not to get too rough." Kat told them firmly. "There are people back here that care about all of you, you know."

"We know, Kat. There are a lot of people back there that we care about too that we're trying to keep safe." Quatre told her. "We can't let anything happen to our friends and the ones we love."

The blonde on the other side of the communications line was silent for a few moments. "I love every one of you. I want every single one of you to come back alive, you hear me?" Her voice was shaking. "I don't want to lose any one of my friends."

Duo swallowed the lump in his throat. "We can't promise that we'll all come back, Kat. We'll try our damnedest, but we can't promise. I love you, Kat. Always remember that."

No sooner had the words left his lips than the laser fire began. It was getting heavier by the second, but no mobile suits had come into view. Duo grabbed the controls of his Gundam and gritted his teeth, steering to avoid the oncoming fire. The explosions rattled his mobile suit because of their close proximity. The rest of the mobile suit army was behind them. The Aries and Serpents were breaking formation to meet their opponents, which had just come into sight. The crossfire was becoming intense as the Deathscythe veered to the right.

"I've got at least fifty enemy mobile suits at twenty degrees south." Heero stated, the Wing Zero shooting ahead of the other Gundams, his buster rifle blazing.

"We can take fifty." Quatre replied rationally. "It's the ones behind them that I'm worried about."

"They're nothing." Trowa commented, his gattling gun rattling off rounds.

"We'll take care of them, boys. Don't you worry. Just keep your eyes peeled for Diabolos. That's our main priority."

The four Gundams and the rest of the mobile suit battalions flew into the fire that was intended to injure, maim, and otherwise destroy them.

...

It was almost instantly that the explosions started. Both Katarina and Sally watched as the bright flashes started, reminding the women of fireflies suffering some strange temperament. The shockwaves of the explosions rocked the battleship. The blonde braced herself against the wall as she and her companion were headed toward the bridge.

As the doors slid open, the bridge was in utter chaos. As they neared the enemy lines, the captain was nowhere to be found. A red light was blinking on the console, indicating an incoming transmission. Katarina rushed over to the pilot's seat and hit the button.

"What the hell are you doing?" Came an aggravated shout. That was definitely Duo. "Hold your position!"

"It's me! The captain is nowhere in sight!"

"Kat? What are you doing? You have to get them to stop the battleships or you're going to head directly into enemy fire."

The blonde nodded even though no one could see her. "HEY!" she shouted over the din of the panicked flight crew. "I know for most of you this is your first battle. It's scary, I know, but you've got to pull yourselves together! If we get any closer to the front line, we'll be in danger of taking fire. Now, return to your stations! We've got a battleship to run!"

It was surprising how well the crew listened to her as they resumed their activities like nothing had ever happened. Katarina's chest swelled with pride as Sally came dragging the captain back to the bridge with an angry look on her face.

"Now act like you've got some balls and do your job!" The head of medical staff shouted. "There are hundreds of men and women out there risking their lives to do jobs a hundred times more dangerous than yours! Get to it!"

Kat was just about to leave with Sally when a crackling came over her headset. Rattling entered her ear as well as the sounds of grating and thumping. Someone was trying to get a hold of her. She tapped the headphone to stop the static, but to no avail.

"Get the mechanics out here! We've got mobile suit damage! Sandrock is coming in for some quick repairs in five minutes! We need the mechanics now!"

"Well, looks like I get to go to work." She changed the frequency of the headset so that it was connected with her other mechanics. "We just got the call! Get your asses in gear and suit up! We leave the airlock in five!"

The blonde raced down the corridors to the loading deck of the battleship. Her mechanics were scattered around pulling on their space suits, which looked surprisingly similar to the thin material and helmets that the pilots wore. Kat had thought herself very smart for wearing her space suit under her Preventers uniform. She started gathering the blowtorch and the clamps and anything else they could possibly need to start the repairs. The blonde head mechanic positioned herself before the door as her other mechanics began to gather around her.

"Alright. I know all of you are probably nervous, but this is what you do. This is what we all do. This door behind me will be lowering in about two minutes and we'll begin our repairs. Be careful out there. There'll be laser fire and explosions all over the place."

The cargo door lowered slowly behind her as she turned to meet the dark void before her. The stars gave the pretense of serenity in inky blanket of space. Pushing off with the balls of her feet, Kat launched herself into the void. She was amazed by the fact that she could see the explosions before her, but they made no noise.

The members of her team began breaking off to take care of the various Aries and Serpents that required repairs. It didn't take Kat long to locate the Sandrock. Quatre had brought the Gundam as close as possible to the Octavia. The blonde took a deep breath as she turned her thruster pack on. She was propelled closer to the Gundam when she heard her brother through the headset.

"I didn't think the damage was that bad until the T-system took me out of battle"

"What's your damage, Q?"

"There seems to be some scorching to the main wiring panel. I'm guessing that the wires to the main and backup thrusters are melted. I think there's also some damage to the right arm." The other blonde reported.

The younger of the two siblings floated to the main panel located between what would've been the shoulder blades. Prying it open, Kat was met with sparks and a puff of acrid smoke. She could see that the now-black insulation meant that her brother was right. She set to work quickly, clamping the wires off at the points where they could be salvaged. Her sigh was amplified by her helmet as she began to cut the charred wires. Her welding torch was floating behind her so that she could be ready to fix the rest damage as she got to it.

...

The attacking mobile suits just seemed to keep coming. There was no end to their numbers and they seemed to keep coming. Laser fire that had started out moderate had increased to heavy quite quickly. Preventers mobile suits and Orion mobile suits clashed against one another as they met in close-range combat, locked together, and broke apart only to engage in the same lethal dance. The Gundams were darting back and forth among the separate battles in an attempt to keep the battlefield from becoming congested.

Deathscythe was the closest to the battleships behind them. The laser fire was coming closer and closer to them. Sandrock had already gone in for repairs and it would seem that Heavyarms would be next. From what Duo had heard, Kat and her team of mechanics had already gone out into space. The repairs had begun and it would only be a matter of time before Quatre was back on the battlefield. The explosions shook the cockpit as the brunette cursed under his breath.

"How much longer, Q-man? It's getting hot and heavy out here!" he shouted, grinding his teeth.

"Give me five minutes. The repairs will be completed by then. Kat's doing her best with never being in space before."

"Try to hurry. The enemy mobile suits are getting closer to the battleships. If they get any closer, the cruisers will get hit for sure."

There was a moment of silence. "We're working as fast as we can. Keep them away for a few more minutes. I'm sorry, Duo. We're trying."

"Understood. Will do, Q-man. Keep it moving."

The communications were severed as the Deathscythe took a laser blow to the left side. Duo cursed as he maneuvered to the rear. Tallgeese III came into view as the smoke began to thin out. Zechs had had very little communication with any of them prior to or during the battle. The white mobile suit slowed and came to a stop in front of the Deathscythe.

"Are you still functional? I got a notice that you'd been hit."

"Yeah, I'm fine. I think it just grazed the plating. The smoke is mostly just for show. How are you holding up, Zechs?"

The Lightning Count seemed to answer in a guarded fashion. "I'm fine. These mobile suits are getting thicker. If it were possible, I'd say that Anubis had a cloning machine of some kind."

"Do you think he'd go to those lengths?" Duo asked, biting his lower lip.

"I don't think he'd try that. Creating the Cerberus System and the Diabolos was one thing," Zechs said, pecking his fingers on the consol, "The materials needed for that type of technology would be noticed."

Any further conversation was impossible as another round of laser fire began. The Deathscythe and the Tallgeese III separated as they shot toward their opponents. Explosions filled every possible space as the Gundams were darting in and out of enemy fire. As Duo made another round by the battle cruisers, he barely spotted a small figure floating away from the Sandrock. That had to be Kat. The Sandrock's thrusters flared to life as he started to move away from the support ships. Before the brunette could turn his gaze from his friend's mobile suit, a bright flash filled his vision. The fire had gotten too close. The Sandrock was propelled toward him as he heard Quatre's voice screaming over the communication link.

"KAT!"

...

"I've got most of the burned wires out of here, Q. It should be a few more minutes and I'll have you up and running again."

"Sounds good, Kat. Things sound like they're getting worse out there."

Kat tried not to pay attention to the statement. "The explosions are getting closer, Q. We're going to have to hurry up. I just need to reconnect the power supply to the main thrusters."

Connecting a few more wires together, Kat exclaimed happily as the thrusters began to vibrate. "Sounds like you've got them working again. Great! Thank you, Kat. I've got to get back out there."

"Please, please be careful, Q. I can't lose the only blood relative that I have left."

A chuckle came over her headset. "I will. You know that. Trowa will be coming in for repairs on his gattling gun. The constant use has caused them to overheat and the chamber has frozen up."

"That's not too hard to fix. Send him in."

The blonde smiled as she watched her brother drift away from her. The thrusters flared to life and that was about the time that she caught the lasers out of the corner of her eye. The two collided in the thin space between Sandrock and herself. Flame shot toward her silently. Feeling that there was nothing for her to do, Kat closed her eyes, not bothering to fight the grimace on her face. She vaguely thought she heard her brother calling out to her.

"KAT!"

...

End Chapter.