Disclaimer: I do not own Gundam SEED/Gundam Seed Destiny.
The episode opens up with an overhead view of Diocula. The city itself is completely unharmed. The camera then moves over to port and we can see the Minerva docked with repair crews working feverously at replacing the Isolde after it was destroyed in the last episode.
The camera then shifts to what appears to be the base's command center, and then inside this building we see a well decorated office with a large television screen hanging on the wall. There are four people currently occupying this room: Talia Gladys, Athrun Zala, Heine Westenfluss, and Kendan Westenfluss. We see the television screen itself and it shows that Gilbert Durandal is talking to them.
"So what you're saying is that you fought against the Alliance fleet until ORB's new carrier decided to reveal itself. You fought against this carrier and took damage, but then tried to destroy it with the Minerva's positron cannon. However the Archangel appeared and the Princess took command of the ORB fleet with the Federation forces backing away back to Suez? Oh, and the ORB forces now hold the Gaia?" Gilbert asked.
"That is correct. We have no idea how the Gaia came to belong to the Archangel however we can confirm that the ZGMF-X88S Gaia is no longer in the Atlantic Federation's hands." Kendan Westenfluss said. Talia looked a little angry, and Chairman Durandal took note of this, shifting his vision to focus on her.
"Captain Gladys, is everything all right?" Gilbert asked. Talia looked at him for a second before she decided to speak out loud.
"Yes, Chairman. There is something that happened during the battle which we have not told you about." She admitted. Kendan turned and looked at her with an angry glare. Athrun and Heine were a bit dumbfounded by this.
"Wait, so something else happened and you didn't bother to tell me? What is it?" Gilbert asked. Talia cleared her throat before she explained.
"After the Archangel intervened in the battle it was clear that the Federation forces were leaving, fearing for their lives, and that the ORB fleet had no harmful intentions, and intended to back off to... wherever. However, before they did, Admiral Westenfluss gave the order for most of our vessels to open fire on the Archangel. As a result of this, we lost more of our vessels and mobile suits. At the time of the intervention we had already lost at least half of our forces, and the ORB fleet had taken little damage at all. The point is we were outnumbered and outgunned and provoked a larger force than ours to attack us." Talia reported, maintaining a calm composure.
'Damn that Gladys. I already told her who was in charge and now that she's mad about it she's complaining to the Chairman herself!' Kendan thought as he looked at the screen and tried to maintain a neutral face, although it was clear that he was angry about being exposed, and didn't know what the Chairman would think of this. Gilbert Durandal was silent for a second and then decided to speak.
"I see. This is a valid concern of yours Captain Gladys." He said. Talia looked a little happy and Kendan clenched his fists. "However, at the same time, I can't help feel that Commander Westenfluss made a wise decision." He added. Talia was now shocked, and Kendan had an evil grin on his face. "Despite the fact that they had no intention of firing on us you have to realize that as much as the Princess of ORB would like to maintain her ideals and neutrality, her nation is now a part of the Earth Forces and is therefore a threat to the PLANTs and a threat to every coordinator who considers themselves free. Imagine what would happen if that carrier was destroyed? It would have been a mighty blow to the Alliance, and one that would make them think twice about sending another force to attempt to take back Diocula, which in turn would mean that our men stationed here would not have to go into another large battle like that, and as such lives would have been saved. This is war. Even friends and family may fight amongst one another if they are on opposing sides." Gilbert finished. Talia had a very surprised look on her face and Kendan was looking like he was going to break out into laughter, but wasn't quite there. Athrun and Heine nodded at this in a positive manner.
"I see..." Talia said in a low tone. Durandal now turned to Athrun and Heine.
"What is the status of your mobile suits?" He asked. Athrun looked at him and explained.
"The Saviour was damaged in the attack, losing it's arms and legs. However the mechanics say that it will be ready to fly again in a couple of days." Athrun replied, clearing a little shaken after the incident.
"Damaged? Lost it's arms and legs? Who... did this, Athrun Zala? I wonder who was capable of defeating one of our aces? One of our FAITH pilots?" Durandal asked, looking inquisitive. Athrun was a little bit shocked but then replied.
"It was... Kira Yamato and his Strike Noir." Athrun answered. Gilbert looked serious when he heard that. 'Damn you, Kira.' Athrun thought as Durandal was quite for a second, clearly locked in thought.
"I understand. Heine, how about you?" Gilbert asked, looking at the orange haired pilot.
"I was... also defeated in combat. However it was not by this 'Kira Yamato'. It was Princess Cagalli Yula Attha of ORB and her Strike Rouge." Heine answered. This time Durandal looked surprised.
'What? Heine was defeated by her? I expected that Athrun would be defeated by Kira Yamato if he engaged him in combat; after all, Kira Yamato has yet to ever be decisively beaten in combat. But... the Princess defeating a FAITH pilot? Clearly she is not to be underestimated. Perhaps she's not a barking dog on the outside and a damsel in distress on the inside, but a fierce warrior in and out. Dealing with her will be interesting...' Durandal thought. "Okay. That's all I needed to here. I want you all to head back and check up on repairs before taking a long rest. Despite what happened we still hold control over this region, and I thank you for that. The people of Diocula thank you for that. I will speak to you again later." Durandal said, looking as if he was going to disconnect the line when Kendan raised his hand.
"Uh, sir. What about the scheduled drop operation on Suez? When will that happen?" He asked. Durandal looked at him with a smile.
"It'll be at least a week before the earliest time that we'll attempt to perform that operation. Don't concern yourselves with it but don't forget about it." Durandal finished as he hung up. Kendan then walked out of the room, seeming to 'accidently' come very close to nudging Talia's shoulder as he did a proud smirk on his face as Heine and Athrun followed him. Talia left last, an angry look adorning her face.
A couple hours earlier, when Kira and Stella boarded the Archangel:
The Strike Noir practically dragged the Gaia into the ship's hanger bay. The Gaia, although turned on, was doing nothing. In one corner of the Archangel's hanger you could see the Strike Rouge, except it didn't have the I.W.S.P. pack on. Murdock's crew was already working to repair the right arm and left leg of the machine and the beam Gatling gun on the I.W.S.P. pack, which was being worked on somewhere else. When the Noir dragged the Gaia fully into the hanger the airtight shutter that led to the catapult closed and Murdock ran at the Noir as Kira hopped out of the suit and lowered himself.
"Hey, kid. What's with her? Why is she doing nothing? Is something the matter with the Gaia?" Murdock asked.
"It's not the Gaia, Chief. It's her. Something's wrong with her. Give me a second to get her out and then I'll dock the Noir and then the Gaia." Kira said as he got off the wire and ran towards the Gaia's cockpit. Kira took off his helmet and pressed the button that would open the cockpit, and when he did, all he heard was Stella.
"Die? No... not die... Stella... want to live..." She said, clearly panting and freaking out. Kira jumped into the cockpit and sat next to Stella, pulling off her helmet. When the Ultimate Coordinator looked into the pilot's of the Gaia's eyes, he was stunned.
"What... so it is true... and it has revealed itself at last..." The camera closes in on Stella's weird looking eyes. "... SEED mode." Kira gasped as he hugged the still panicking Stella Loussier. "Shhh... Stella... stop it..." Kira said.
"Die... Stella... not want..." She said. Kira hugged her some more. "To die... Dying is... bad..." Stella whimpered. Kira looked into her eyes and tried to get her attention.
"Stella! It's Kira!" He hit the button that would close the Gaia's cockpit door. "You're going to be okay! You're going to live! Stella... please!" A tear came out of Kira's eyes. Stella continued to whimper and slowly talk of dying and how she didn't want to die. Kira huffed to himself. 'What do I do? She's not snapping out of it.'
"Die... die... die..." She said again, her eyes still locked in SEED mode.
"I guess... I could try that. Might earn me a slap though..." Kira said as he redied himself. The Ultimate Coordinator then closed the distance between his head and Stella's head and locked lips with her. 'This had better work...' He thought as Stella's muscles began to relax. Kira tightened the grip on her body as she seemed to open her mouth subconsciously and allow him entry. 'Well if she lets me...' Kira stuck his tongue in and began to taste her mouth. In the eyes of Stella you could see her eyes were still in SEED mode but after about five seconds they seemed to slowly lose their look and turn normal.
'What... happened? Where am I?' Stella thought as she realized something. 'I'm in the cockpit of a gundam.' She then put her left hand on Kira's head. 'And someone's hair is here... it's soft.' And then finally she realized that a certain someone was kissing her. 'And... Stella is being kissed by someone? Is it, Kira? Stella will surprise Kira!' She then wiggled her own tongue around and had it fight with Kira's.
'Whoa... what... I guess... She's back now?' Kira thought as he broke the kiss and then breathed for air. "Stella..." He said, looking at her. Stella seemed to look into his eyes with a look... not one of sadness... but one of wonder and happiness. "You're back to normal." He blushed. 'And now she's going to ask me about the kiss...'
"Where am I? What happened? Why was... Kira kissing Stella?" She asked, a confused look on her face. Kira's face then turned as red as the Saviour gundam that he just defeated.
"You are... in the Gaia. You were fighting the Impulse gundam and losing, but I saved you. At the same time the pilot of that gundam said something to you... and you freaked out." Kira explained. Stella then thought for a second.
"Okay... then why did Kira do this to Stella?!" Kira blushed some more.
"Perhaps Kira doesn't know what he did to Stella." She leaned her head to one side before she practically jumped on Kira and kissed him fiercely for a second before she pulled away. Kira's face now made the Archangel's red paint look more like green than red. "That's what Kira did to Stella... and Stella liked it... a little..." She said. Anything that wasn't the same shade of red as Kira's face could no longer be considered red. "Why is Kira's face red?" She asked.
"Oh... ugh... nothing... Stella. I did that because... you were not being Stella... and I thought doing that would fix it!" He said. 'Did I really do that because I thought it would fix her and bring her back to normal... or do I... have feelings for Stella?' Kira thought.
"Well thank you, Kira." She smiled.
"You're welcome. I want you to go and get changed and get some rest. I'll take care of the Gaia, alright?" Kira said. Stella nodded and got out of the cockpit before running out of the hanger. Kira then got a little comfortable in the pilot's seat and turned on the mobile suit. The Gaia's eyes turned on, and the damaged suit got onto its feet and then walked towards the docking mechanism and turned off. Kira then got out and went down the line before looking at Chief Murdock. "She's all yours, Chief Murdock." Kira said as he walked away. Murdock looked at the Gaia for a second and then shook his head.
"Alright guys get to work on this thing, pronto!" He commanded. The mechanics of the Archangel then got to work on the Gaia.
Athrun Zala walked into his room to see his roommate laying down and relaxing. It was early the next morning after Battle for the Black Sea and the intervention by the Archangel. The FAITH pilot then walked over to the computer and began using it, an aura of anger and confusion surrounding him.
"Hey Athrun, what's up with you?" Shinn turned his head and asked. Athrun turned around and looked at him.
"It just... doesn't seem right, what they did, doing that." Athrun said.
"I guess I can kind of agree to that. I mean, it is ORB after all..." Shinn said.
"Why is it about ORB?" Athrun asked. Shinn put on his anger face.
"I know I've said that I talked with Cagalli earlier... and even though I understand her, and kind of forgive HER, I still cannot do the same for ORB itself." He clenched his fists a little and remembered his family's death. How he felt when they died. "I mean... why are they being such hypocrites? She tells them to vote for the treaty and they vote it in, despite the nation they are in striving for NEUTRALITY. What a bunch of hypocrites..." Shinn raged. Athrun looked at him.
"I kinda..."
"I mean, after all. I remember being told one day in school that you could live in ORB if you prescribed to their ideals." Shinn began ranting.
"Shinn..." Athrun tried to say.
"I MEAN COME ONE! YOU TAKE THE STANCE OF 'LET'S BE NEUTRAL AND NOT GET INVOLVED', YET WHEN THE CHANCE COMES AROUND TO KILL ALL COORDINATORS OR STRIP COORDINATORS OF THEIR RIGHTS THEY GO FOR IT! WITH VIGOR! JUST LOOK AT THE FORCE THEY SENT OUR WAY! THEY WEREN'T JOKING!" Shinn yelled. Athrun sighed.
"Shinn you're forgetting what happened a couple of days before the vote was made." He walked over to his draw and pulled something out. "Remember when we got these?" Athrun showed Shinn his medal. "Remember the video that was shown around the world with the photo shopped images? That's what made them want to join the Alliance." Athrun explained. Shinn shook his head in a disapproving way.
"Oh bullshit. You could tell that that video was complete and total fake! I mean look at ORB right now how they're rounding up any coordinator that isn't in the army and putting them to work! They were just waiting for a chance to do that... and now they have it! I mean even by the wording of the anchormen reporting about that you could tell that it was made up!" Shinn yelled. "So what are you so angry about anyway?" Shinn asked.
"It has to do with something Admiral Westenfluss told me. Although I do still recognize Kira as my friend... even after what happened that night in ORB... you have to realize that despite the fact that ORB wants to be a neutral nation, they are part of the Alliance, and they are our enemy because of it. Therefore... I don't think that Kira had any right to interfere in that event, as it goes against a legal and binding treaty and could get ORB into trouble." Athrun explained.
"Says the guy who defected from Zaft to ORB, and then changed sides again. Clearly you don't care about things that legally bind people! So how dare you say they don't have the right to do that when you blatantly have never given a damn what side you're on and from what I can tell are only on any side just to further your own agenda!" Shinn yelled. Athrun looked rather mad and got up and walked towards the bed. Shinn, who was now sitting up narrowed his eyes.
"That's enough out of you!" Athrun said as he tried to smack Shinn in the face. He took his right hand and swung at the boy's face, but only hit air. Shinn moved his head back, dodging the hit before he shifted forward and raised his right hand, clenched it, and punched Athrun in the stomach, causing the bluenette to fall back and eventually land on his own bed. "What the hell! You child! How dare you!"
"You tried to fucking hit me!" Shinn yelled.
"I'm your goddamn superior!" Athrun yelled back, trying to get back and physically go at Shinn again.
"I don't give a flying fuck! I'm not going to let you fucking slap me in the face!" Shinn yelled back, noticing what Athrun was doing. "Oh look, for a guy who wants to end war forever you sure don't have a problem with trying to start another one in the pocket!" Shinn yelled as Athrun realized his words, and although he disagreed with them, stepped down, but decided it was time to warn Shinn.
"Alright, I get your point! However once we're done this conversation you're in the brig! Got it? And if you disobey me there will be far worse consequences!" Athrun threatened as Shinn gave him an angry look.
"Fine then, explain why what I said was wrong!" Shinn said.
"It's wrong because I have changed. Yes... I switched sides... twice. Notice how the second time I switched sides I went back to Zaft? I've made up my mind, Shinn. My place is with the PLANTs, protecting them and trying to give coordinators a good name. Why do you somewhat respect Cagalli and Kira yet STILL hate ORB?" Athrun asked with tone of condescension. Shinn made a snorting noise before responding.
"Because I realize why Cagalli has her ideals... she gave me a perspective, although I don't necessarily agree with it. She asked me that if I had the choice between being with the side that has guns and an insane leader, or the other side that has guns and an insane leader, and being on the side that wanted to stay neutral, which would I want to be on." He said.
"And why do you disagree with it?" Athrun asked.
"Because what would happen if your INSANE FATHER actually managed to fire his GIANT DEATH RAY at Earth and killed everyone? What would happen then? The side that decided to be neutral would outright be killed off without even the chance to fight back or use their own power!" Shinn said.
"So is that why you joined Zaft? Because you didn't like being able to not use your own power? I knew that Cagalli would try to prevent ORB from becoming an ally with the Alliance at all costs and that because of that she would turn a blind eye to what would be happening around the world while I would be sitting still doing nothing when I would want to do something. I fight... so we don't have to fight anymore. I know it's weird but that's me. Is that why you have joined Zaft? Do you realize that this is the motive of Zaft at this point?" Athrun asked.
"No, I did not join Zaft for that crappy idealist 'end war forever nonsense'. I joined Zaft because after my family died I realized that I would need to protect myself and not relay on some government to do it for me! Cagalli even admitted that ORB failed me in the past. That's why I joined Zaft, so that if I die it's because of my own failure, not someone else's, for I am a soldier. That's why I'm such a good pilot. That's why I was chosen to pilot the Impulse, or why I got one of the highest final academy exam scores in Zaft history, because I refuse to fail and just allow myself to be killed off running like my family was in ORB. I also want to protect my own freedom in this life, and not a slave, like what could kinda say what's happening to the people in ORB right now who are coordinators. Discrimination based on genes..." Shinn raged. 'This has been part of my own goal... ever since I heard her words about how I had a life to live... Cagalli...'
"But if you try to hard in your ambition to not fail you may end up becoming the destroyer of others in the process. A destroyer for no good reason sometimes."
"Hey, I'm not the one who decided to fire on a force that was far more powerful than ours when they were clearly going to leave." Shinn said.
"I'll have you know I talked to the Chairman about that and even he said it was the correct decision, considering the effect ORB has had on this war thus far. So anyway tell me your own thoughts on them showing up." Athrun responded, the room still filled with anger. The Red Knight hoped to talk things out with Shinn in order to avoid another terrible fiasco with him, and that's just what he was doing.
"I will honestly say right now I'm on the fence about that right now. Although I would have like to see the ORB forces completely and utterly destroyed I still think that we may have had to fight some more of their forces that would have survived the blast. Hey... wait a second... you don't want people do die, right? Even though you're a soldier and you're fighting to stop fighting. Wouldn't have letting them go ensure that less people died?" Shinn asked. Athrun leaned back in a bit of shock.
"It would have. But at the same time THEY ARE AN ENEMY! Defeating them would help secure our hold over the region and keep them from attacking." Athrun said.
"ARE YOU... WHAT?" Shinn raged.
"BRIG!" Athrun ordered. Shinn got up and grumbled to himself as he walked out of the room and down the hallway. Athrun picked up a nearby phone and pressed a couple of buttons. "Executive Officer Trine? Yes. It's Athrun..."
Onboard the bridge of the Takemikazuchi:
Chief Representative Attha, Captain Ramius, Captain Todaka, Commander Waltfeld, Lieutenant Commander Yamato and Lieutenant Amagi were standing next to the Takemikazuchi's map table looking at their current location. The map showed their fleet to be somewhere in the southern portion of the Mediterranean Sea, southwest of the Island of Crete. Cagalli looked at the map and then asked a question. Outside you could see the Archangel floating on the water next to the Takemikazuchi and all the rest of the ORB vessels floating nearby surrounding the two ships.
"Captain Todaka, how many ships and mobile suits did you come with, and how many are remaining?" She asked the grey haired ORB officer. Todaka looked as if he was thinking, trying to find an answer.
"We left ORB with fifteen Aegis Mk.2-class ships, twelve Seldamis-class submarines, the Takemikazuchi, and one hundred and ninety one mobile suits. The entire fleet was completely stocked on supplies in case we were called to do an operation on Gibraltar or a defensive operation for Suez after the Dardanelles. We didn't suffer a huge lose in the last battle due to the Minerva focusing on the Federation fleet for the most part, but that doesn't mean we came out completely fine. We lost one submarine, two cruisers, and forty six mobile suits, leaving us at one hundred and forty five remaining." Todaka reported. Murrue turned to the older Captain.
"I guess the rumors of your ability to conserve your forces and advance slowly with minimal loses really is true then. You're an excellent tactician, Todaka." Murrue said.
"Yes, Captain Ramius is right. I thank you for your efforts in keeping the loses low before we arrived." Cagalli said. Todaka nodded.
"Thank you Princess." Todaka said. Andrew Waltfeld who was listening but hadn't said anything decided that now he had to step in.
"Yes... however... what are we going to do now? Cagalli, you're our leader? What happens next?" Andrew looked at the blonde and asked. Cagalli closed her eyes and began to think.
"Well... what happened to Yuna? Wasn't he the one who had this fleet come all the way here?" Cagalli asked. Todaka gave out a little chuckle and Amagi turned to the Princess of ORB.
"You see... Princess. After you arrived, the Earth Alliance... how can I say this... didn't take too kindly to your orders and tried to make us attack the Archangel in addition to attacking the Zaft forces. Captain Todaka didn't take to kindly to that and now Yuna Roma Seiran is probably onboard an Alliance carrier sleeping with a black eye." Amagi explained. Cagalli gasped.
"What... you didn't!" Cagalli said, almost screaming. Kira also gave out a light chuckle. She turned to him and growled. Todaka looked Cagalli right in the eye.
"I am sorry, your Highness. I did what was necessary to ensure that our forces follow their rightful leader; I made sure that we would follow you." Todaka said in a serious tone with a serious look on his face.
"Well then... I thank you. It's just; I didn't expect you to do that to Yuna." Cagalli said.
"Mmm... mmm..." Kira got everyone's attention. "Like what Mr. Waltfeld said what are we going to do now?" He asked.
"Kira and Andrew are right. We can't just sit here doing nothing..." Murrue said in a low tone.
"Can we go back to ORB? We may have been out here for long but we're not uniformed. I hear the people... have been having second thoughts on the treaty thus far." Cagalli said.
"I guess we could go back to ORB and let you settle things..." Andrew said, drinking some coffee from a cup that he had in his hand.
"I agree. We left to keep Cagalli safe but that was only because the treaty made her make the decision between marrying Yuna and letting the Alliance have our forces." Kira said. Todaka had a look on his face as Kira spoke. "Let's go..."
"We couldn't go back even if we wanted to. We're stuck here." The oldest officer stated. All eyes turned to him. He then pointed at the map. "We are here." His finger moved over to where Suez was. "Suez is here, and it is a fortified Alliance base. After what happened there's no way we're getting our ships through there." He then pointed to Gibraltar. "And here is Gibraltar. It is also a fortified base, except under Zaft. I'm guessing by the fact that they fired on us that we wouldn't be allowed to go past them easily. In either case we're stuck here, or at least, ever ship but the Archangel is." Todaka said.'
"Dammit. I completely forgot about the fact that there are only two entrances to this area that a ship can take..." Waltfeld said.
"You're right. We got caught up in the heat of the moment for a second. We'll have to think of a new plan." Murrue added, looking a little pissed off and angry.
"What do you suggest, Captain Todaka." Kira asked the older man, who mulled it over for a second.
"We could... let the Archangel leave, and take a land route back to ORB to settle things. We would stay here..." Todaka suggested but was cut off by a certain blonde.
"No. I'm not going to let that happen." Cagalli had drawn everyone's attention to herself. Murrue looked surprised, Andrew looked puzzled, Todaka looked like he was listening, as was Amagi, and Kira was intrigued. "It's my fault that you were allowed to go out here, by failing to uphold our values. I can say now without a doubt that Zaft may try to go after us as will the Alliance... however; I will not leave you here to die. You should have never been out here in the first place. It's not happening. We'll find a way out and when we do our entire fleet will head back to ORB and I will take back control from the corrupt Seirans." Cagalli said. Todaka crossed his arms.
"I thank you for your bravery, Princess. However you must be aware of something." He said, turning to Amagi. "Put up a map of the Lawful Wall." He ordered.
"Sir!" Amagi said as he pressed some buttons on the map controls and the screen shifted to show a circle around the central islands of the ORB union with a radius of 1010km. A thick line of dark blue surrounded the edges of the circles.
"What is that?" Murrue asked.
"A map of ORB..." Kira said with confusion.
"It's more than that... that blue line represents Atlantic Federation and Eurasian forces if I'm correct." Andrew added. Todaka nodded at the Desert Tiger.
"But... why are they... aren't we allies with them technically? Why would they want to keep stuff in ORB?" Cagalli asked. Todaka turned to the Princess.
"It's not to keep stuff in ORB; it's to keep you and you alone OUT of ORB, my Princess. After the Archangel left ORB the President of the Atlantic Federation and the Eurasian Councillor met with Minister Yanata Seiran and set up a perimeter surrounding our nation, one thousand and ten kilometers in diameter." Todaka explained.
"The 'Her Royal Guard Act' only applies to forces within one thousand kilometers of me..." Cagalli said, now frightened.
"Precisely. They plan on keeping you out of our government... to keep you from regaining control of ORB and severing our treaty bonds. Even if we could make it out of the Mediterranean Sea and back to ORB, we would be fired upon and surely destroyed before we could make it back to ORB." Everyone gasped.
"Make no mistake; the forces around there are heavily armed. This fleet... as mighty as it is would not stand a chance." Amagi warned.
"So what exactly are we to do?" Kira asked, crossing his arms.
"There's nothing we can do right now. Nothing but sit and wait." Murrue responded.
"And considering what happened... Zaft and the Alliance..." Andrew began but could not finish.
"They are too busy dealing with each other to come after us, that is assuming we do nothing and remain a non-threat." Todaka said. Once again, everyone turned to him. "You see, before we left, we heard news of something. Ever since the Minerva destroyed the Alliance's base at the Gulnahan power station, Suez has become weaker and weaker. The word is that Zaft is preparing to perform a large drop operation on that area and destroy that base." Todaka informed.
"So considering the lose both sides just suffered you think that they will wait until that is over and done with before they attack us?" Andrew asked.
"You are correct, Commander Waltfeld. If we do nothing, we are safe, until then." Todaka replied. "I do not know of anything that we could do right now to leave this area but I'm sure in time something will come up."
"Understood. Okay... this is all over and done then. We've had enough planning, considering we're stuck here. Now... I want to be shown a tour of this Takemikazuchi. Although it was a ship that I never thought would be created, I know that it is supposed to be top of the line in all aspects. If you would then, Captain Todaka." Cagalli said.
"Yes, follow me. Lieutenant Amagi, you have the bridge. Stay on the lookout for anything." Todaka ordered as everyone but Amagi left the bridge.
Talia Gladys was sitting in her office relaxing and sitting back in her chair when the door rang.
"Who is it?" She turned and looked at the entrance. The voice belonging to the person responsible for buzzing the door answered.
"It's Executive Officer Trine. We've got an assignment." Arthur replied.
'Already? The repairs to the ship aren't even complete yet!' She thought. "Come in." She ordered. The door opened and the man in the black uniform stepped in, holding some papers on one hand. "What's with headquarters giving us assignments when we aren't even fully repaired yet?" She asked in a serious tone. Arthur sat in a chair on the other side of her desk and began to explain.
"No... perhaps I worded it improperly. We've heard news of an abandoned Earth Alliance research lab somewhere to the west. Headquarters is assigning our ship to send out some pilots to go and check it out." Arthur explained. Talia's face turned from 'you serious?' to 'Oh!' as she heard that.
"Okay, alright. I see. Since the Saviour and Heine's GOUF still need repairs and the DOM has been fixed I want you to get Rey and Shinn on it right away. I'll leave the briefing to you." She responded. Arthur scratched the back of his head as if he had to say something but didn't want to. Talia raised an eyebrow. "What is it?"
"Uhh... Shinn was sent to the brig..." Arthur replied.
"By who? And for what? Why am I just being informed of this right now?" Talia asked Arthur, who gulped.
"Athrun sent him to the brig for back talking him and some other stuff that he told me I didn't need to know. Shinn is sitting in the brig right now. Athrun said he's to be in there until the end of the day." Arthur replied.
"I see..." Talia responded, rubbing her right hand on her chin.
"So... should I see if Athrun or Heine would like to pilot the Impulse on this mission?" Arthur asked. Talia looked at him with facial expression that indicated she heard something she didn't want to.
"No. Get Shinn out of the brig, now. His punishment is over as of right now." She made a waving motion with her left hand. "Brief him and Rey on this mission and get them on their way as soon as possible. Have them report back at the first sign of anything unusual." Talia ordered. The Minerva's Executive Officer got up, stood straight, and saluted Captain Gladys.
"Yes ma'am! Right away ma'am!" He said as he walked out of the room to carry out his orders, the door shutting behind him.
"So Athrun Zala finally had the nerve to send Shinn to the brig? Must have been something serious..." Talia said as she went back to what she was doing before.
Arthur Trine walked into the Minerva's brig. The place was completely grey and white, and one could hear nothing at all. There was no one here except for him and the supposed Shinn. The Executive Officer of the Minerva walked forward down the row of cells, the keys to them in one of his hands and the mission papers in the other. The only sound being made was the thud from his footsteps as he continued down the way until he found the fourth cell on his right side. Sitting alone with his legs tucked into his body and his head looking down to the ground was Shinn, who looked to be sleeping.
"Shinn? Are you awake?" Arthur asked the Impulse's pilot, who then gave out a response in a low voice as he awoke.
"Yes. What do you want? Here to tell me that I'm in here for longer than just the day?" He asked.
"No. You're being assigned to a mission. You and Rey." Arthur explained.
"Didn't Athrun lock me up here for the day? Why am I being called on a mission? That guy will have a fit if he finds out I'm out of here." Shinn responded.
"Yes, he did. But that doesn't matter. The Captain wants you to do this, and she says that your punishment is over." Arthur responded. Shinn then got up onto his two feet.
"Fine then. If the Captain says I have to do it then I will. Hopefully this isn't a waste of time." Shinn said as Arthur unlocked the door and the two of them left the brig.
Lunamaria Hawke standing on the deck in the middle of the Minerva between the central catapult and the Isolde's location, which was currently being occupied by workers trying to fix the triple beam cannon. She turned her head around and looked at the bridge tower when the door opened up and two individuals came out. One of them with blue hair, one of them with orange hair, and both of them with red Zaft uniforms with a FAITH pin on their chest. They were chatting as they walked through the door, but all Lunamaria could hear was mumbling until Athrun noticed her.
"Oh, hey Lunamaria!" Athrun said in a higher voice in order to have his words reach her. The Elder Hawke sister waved at him as he and Heine approached her as she got up and saluted them. Heine Westenfluss chuckled.
"Haha... Luna there's no need for formalities when we're not doing anything and are just talking amongst ourselves on deck. Anyway, how are you doing?" The eldest pilot of the Minerva asked.
"I'm doing fine. Just... looking out to the sea and watching the repair crews fix the ship." She said as she pointed to the workers.
"Where's Rey? What's he doing? You're usually with either him or your sister. I guess Meyrin is on the bridge right now though." Athrun said. Luna nodded.
"Ya... although being a pilot can sometimes be frustrating and difficult... being the communications officer is definitely for one asking for longer hours. Poor Meyrin... whatever. Anyway Rey was called by Executive Office Trine to the pilot's room for briefing. Apparently he's going on a mission to search for an abandoned lab or something." Luna informed.
"A mission? Huh. Well that's what you get for having a machine that isn't broken right now..." Heine said in a joking tone, but in reality a hint of anger could be felt from his presence.
"Anyway I wonder if Rey's going alone?" She tilted her head up and put her first finger of the left hand on her chin. "Or is Shinn going with him?" Lunamaria asked. Athrun was quick to answer.
"Shinn's not going with him. He's in the brig right now." Athrun replied. Luna tilted her head down and looked at Athrun before crossing her arms.
"The brig? By order of who? And what did he do this time, anyway? Gah... it's probably really stupid anyway! Shinn can be so immature at times!" Lunamaria said.
"By order of me, actually. Shinn decided to... how can I say this... have an ideological dispute with me." Athrun said. The three of them walked over to the rails and leaned over them.
"Meh, that's Shinn for you. Hotheaded, hates being contained and restrictive, protective of those he loves, mourning them when they die and he is a fighter at heart who would rather stand his ground then run most of the time but at the same time will make smart decisions in battle." Lunamaria responded. Heine grinned.
"I see. I'm guessing you learned that from him when he was in the academy. You, him, and Rey have all been together for a long time." Heine said.
"Sorta. Sometimes it's more of me and Rey and sometimes Shinn. He's always turned his nose up at the idea of ending war forever, calling it idealist and then going back to how his family died in ORB due to their ideals every. Single. Time." Lunamaria informed.
"Understood. I guess that's kind of interesting, since the Chairman himself wants to try to find the root cause of war and kill it off." Heine said, but Luna interrupted him.
"Only for convince I think. Look at the Earth Alliance. They hate coordinators. Look at ORB. He hates them. That leaves Zaft." Lunamaria informed. Athrun clenched his fists a little and Heine looked a little surprised but then responded.
"Huh... Well that's interesting. What about yourself and Rey, what do you think the Chairman's plans? After all, you were there that day." Heine asked. 'I know Za Burrel's position... but what about her?' Heine asked. Luna mulled this over for a second.
"Rey hasn't really been that vocal about it, but he's never agreed with Shinn over it being 'idealistic'. He says that it's worth a try. As for me... I kinda like it... and I think it makes sense. I mean, I feel for you Athrun as I do for Shinn and Rey." Luna said.
"Huh?" Athrun turned to Luna with a surprised look on his face.
"I mean, after all. Your parents both died in the war. Rey was more or less adopted from what I can here, and Shinn's entire close family was wiped out. Now for you and Shinn you two should obviously hate fighting because of that... me and Meyrin. Our parents are safe and sound in the PLANTs... but any time the Earth Forces launch an assault... I brace myself. I worry. To me eliminating that worry; eliminating war and those who would start it for selfish reasons, would be a good idea, a justified idea... something that is right and cannot be wrong!." Luna responded as Heine nodded and Athrun did the same, although not to the same extent.
"Hmmph... well then, that's nice to hear. Anyway... how's your ZAKU doing after you fought against the Gaia? I can't believe that those people had it. Now that's interesting..." Heine changed the subject after he heard what he wanted to hear.
Minerva's briefing room:
"So this recon mission... that's what you want us to do?" Shinn asked the Executive Officer, Rey sitting next to him being observant.
"That's right. It's a formal order straight from Zaft Headquarters. Our ship has been assigned to send out pilots to go check this place out and you two are the only ones with functioning machines." Arthur informed, pointing at a map of the area. "We've received some information from a local resident. Apparently there's some sort of research center to the west of our location, and it's supposedly connected to the Earth Alliance in the back woods of the area. There's not much happening there now but it is of significant size, and in the past the locals have noticed a lot of vehicles including mobile suits coming and going from that location. You two are to head out immediately and check on it."
"You want to use us for this lame job? What a waste of talent!" Shinn raged. Rey turned to him.
"Alright, that's enough Shinn. Be grateful you got pulled out of the brig to do this." Rey informed. Shinn made a pouting noise.
"This job is certainly not 'lame'. What if, for example, you find out it's an armory filled with weapons... and prototype mobile suit technology." Arthur informed.
"Oh ya... alright then..." Shinn said.
"Good. It's an extremely important mission! Gentlemen, do your best! The Captain has high hopes for you Shinn. Remember she could have easily told another pilot to take the Impulse while you sit in the brig." Arthur said. Shinn was a little shocked by this before he and Rey got up and saluted Arthur.
"Yes sir!" They both said as they walked out.
Back on the deck:
"So then one day... our instructor gave us a test with fifty incredibly difficult multiple choice questions and two hours to do it... however there was a catch." Luna said as she was talking with Athrun Zala and Heine Westenfluss.
"Oh, and what was that?" Athrun asked.
"For all of the questions, except for the last question on the test itself had 'C' as the right answer." Luna explained.
"Oh, that must have been fun once you figured it out." Heine chuckled.
"Oh yes, we had all talked to each other about the test over the lunch break. Apparently once everyone figured out that the correct answer was 'C' we all just blindly put 'C' as our answers and all got 98% except for Shinn, Rey and some other student who figured out the last trick question all three of them were sitting next to each other so there might have been some... cheating!" Luna joked.
"Ah, and what was the last question about?" Athrun asked. "I guess it was probably difficult and you all decided not to take a crack at it." Athrun guessed.
"It was actually something along the lines of 'What date did the GINN first roll off of production lines.'"
"A question about the history of the Zaft military." Athrun responded.
"So what was 'C' and what was the correct answer?" Heine asked. Luna giggled.
"Answer 'C' stated 'The ZGMF-1016 GINN was first seen being mass produced on November 3rd of 69 CE.' The correct answer stated 'The ZGMF-1017 GINN was first seen being mass produced on November 3rd of 69 CE.' It was such a stupid question."
"Haha... so it's one about the Serial Number. It's 1017, not 1016. Tricky." Heine said. As he did the three of them heard the central catapult as well as the starboard side catapult open up.
"What the?" Athrun said as he looked up. The Impulse began to launch from the Minerva. First the Core Splendor, then the two flyers, and then the Force Silhouette. "Is that Shinn? Isn't he supposed to be in the brig?" Athrun asked.
"Ya, I guess so." Heine said as Rey's DOM flew out of the Minerva and then a Guul flew out and the DOM boarded it, flying with the Impulse. "Rey too." Heine said.
"I need to talk to Gladys about this..." Athrun said as he walked towards the door.
Rey and Shinn arrived at their destination, the Impulse and DOM had landed and both pilots stood close to each other, armed, as they proceeded onward. The area was exactly as it was described to be. A large complex in the middle of the woods. There was not a soul in sight, not a bird in the air, not a bug on the ground. Truly this area was deserted of live besides Shinn and Rey. The two continued onwards. Finding the area safe on the outside the two pilots of the Minerva found the entrance to the largest building in the complex. The entrance was wide and had no door, but led down a large set of stairs into the very Earth itself.
"Typical. Giant deserted area. Creepy as hell. Something off about it. Staircase that you go down as the area swallows you whole." Shinn said. Rey turned to his partner.
"I know. Still... keep your guard up. Things aren't always as they seem." Rey said as the two of them descended further down. When they reached the bottom of the staircase their footsteps echoed throughout the area as they pressed forward. Eventually the light outside could not penetrate the area, and so everything turned dark on them. Rey pulled out a flashlight and turned it on, using it for guidance, as did Shinn Asuka. Now the two of them had reached the interior of the main building. Doors on either side of the hallway were visible, and each of them went to investigate. Rey took the first left door, and Shinn took the right. The black haired boy opened the door and shone the light inside. There was nothing to the area... it looked like an office. Filling cabinet, desk, computer, papers, everywhere. Yep, this was an office, but it looked as if the place had been abandoned in a hurry. Slowly finding his way through the room he looked at the computer. It was busted, completely busted. The hardrive on the main tower was torn out and it looked as if someone took an axe to it.
"Huh... guess they didn't want someone to see this stuff..." Shinn said, but suddenly, all the hairs on his body stood on end and his eyes grew very large as he heard something.
"AHHH! SHINN! HERE!" Rey yelled. The red eyed boy quickly turned around on a dime and ran towards the exit of the office and sprinted across the hall towards where Rey was.
"Rey what is it?" Shinn asked as he looked at his friend, who had his finger pointed out and was shaking. Suddenly Shinn put his hand over his noise as he smelled something incredibly bad, as if something had died. Looking into the room he gasped at what he saw. All across the room there were these... large pod like containers, each having a mess of wires connected to them, and some of them looking to have been broken. The fluid that was in these containers was spilt across the floor, and that was what had been causing the smell.
"Ughh... ahhg..." Rey squirmed.
"What... is... this... place...?" Shinn said as he looked into the room, horrified.