What if Lacus Clyne chose to become the Empress of all Coordinators?
Empress of Zaft
United under her golden emblem, embraced in her pink regalia. Zaft will rise!
(thoughts)
"speech"
[speakers]
Chapter One/Part Two
-January 25-
-Cosmic Era 71-
-Heliopolis-
Inside the Colony, life was quiet. Children played in the park, young couples sat on benches. All was going on as it had every other day in the peaceful Colony known as Heliopolis. There was a sweet scent in the air, and a new video from Lacus Clyne was shown on nearly every screen in the Colony. Sound systems played the song in many of the shops, and even in some of the recreational areas. One could almost say that you could see and hear Lacus Clyne everywhere in Heliopolis. Life was quiet, and peaceful.
As the gas poured into the ventilation systems around the colony, and the Colony's net was filled with Lacus' content. There were very few places that did not receive this beautiful combination from ZAFT, one such place was Morgenroete.
Natarle started to look at the three young girls walking past fashion boutiques, and blushed (What is wrong with me, they are teenagers and I am on a mission.) so she tried to focus on some other people, and started looking at the three boys on the other side of the street (This is not helping one bit, they are just too cute. Damned Coordinators! Seducing an innocent maiden like this, but maybe I could steal a glance or two.) Natarle was breathing harder now, and blushing as she passed the three girls. The three girls walked over to the side where the three boys were waiting for the automated taxi, Natarle followed them without thinking.
Kira saw Flay and her two friends arrive just as Kuzzey had made a joke about the letter Sai had sent to her, a lady with two bodyguards followed them. Kira thought that they were just going to grab the taxi, but something felt a bit odd about the furiously blushing lady. Flay noticed the lovely woman following her, she had caught her eye as well and was probably thinking about some indicent things.
Flay turned around as the woman stumbled, Flay moved forward and caught her just in time. Natarle almost fainted when the teenage girl caught her, and blushed even more when the girl told her "It is all right, I caught you just in time". Flay blushed as well, the woman was just too lovely. "Thank you my knight" said Natarle, and Flay helped her back to her feet. "I can walk you home, just to be safe" said Flay, and Natarle kissed her. Kira and the boys watched with open mouths at what was happening, the girls hugged each other and said "For real?".
The two girls had been focused on talks about fancy accessories, especially those worn by Lacus Clyne. Both were huge fans of Lacus, and loved to wear all that Lacus advertised. Now they wanted to wear only what Lacus advertised, eat what she advertised and even live only the way she advertised. When they saw Flay being kissed by the lady behind them, they remembered how Lacus had advertised about innocent love between maidens. But was this 'Innocent Love'?
Kuzzey and Tolle were so focused on teasing Sai that they barely saw the trio of pretty girls, it was only when Flay was being kissed by another girl that they started to notice. That kiss made them remember Lacus and a video of her kissing another version of herself, a song about accepting yourself no matter how different you felt at times. Kuzzey understood that it meant to accept girls being in love with girls, Tolle understood that a female student and a female teacher could have an affair and it was ok.
Miralia blushed, and thought of Flay as being more than a friend to her. What was this woman doing to her best friend?
(Wait, was Flay her best friend? She rarely spent time with her, and Flay was always with those 'other' two.) Emotions ran rampant inside Miralia, jealousy and yearning. Yet the song of Lacus preaching about acceptance seemed to play inside her head at the same time, or was it playing from every outlet in the vicinity?
Kira watched Sai, and rose up. He knew that the moron would go and do something stupid, and he would not let the wings of pain hurt the souls of those he cared about. Somehow this was also the theme of a song by Lacus Clyne, funny how all seemed to revolve around Lacus Clyne.
Sai walked toward the woman kissing his fiancée, clenching his fists. Kira intercepted him before Natarle's he had managed to run into Natarle's subordinates.
-Morgenroete-
Athrun and Rusty took point, while the rest of team 1 came behind them. Rusty threw a flashbang into the MS hangar, and Athrun threw a smoke grenade just moments after Rusty. Dearka ran through the opened door and covered the left side, while Yzak did the same and covered the right side. Athrun took point and Rusty followed, Nicol followed and took a position that gave him a good sniping nest. Morgenroete would not fall that easily, and Team 1 knew that.
Two security guards were all that had not been blinded or deafened by the flashbang, they were too slow to react to the Zaft Team. Athrun shot a small controlled burst into the first, then lifted his left hand to inform one tango down. Rusty followed suite with downing the other guard and mimicking the same signal with his left hand. Dearka shot a burst into a trio of engineers, killing two and wounding the third. Yzak threw a hand grenade behind a container,
killing the two scientists hiding there. As an engineer took a gun from her belt, Nicol shot her in the head. The only two living non Zaft people inside the hangar were: Cagalli and Murrue. Cagalli was hiding in the restroom, while Murrue was the 'wounded scientist' hiding behind the containers.
-Morgenroete #2-
The Astray Research Facility was empty, and the team that entered it had nobody opposing their intrusion. The Astrays were far from ready to be launched, only three seemed to have been completed. Red Frame, Blue Frame and Golden Frame.
-Shipyard-
The shifting between Teams 1 and 2 was caused by the crowd being between them as they were inserting themselved into the ventilation shafts leading to the two MS Hangars. Heine was supposed to be at either Morgeroete or Morgenroete #2, but as the Zaft Red motif was 'Adapt and Overcome' they had done just that. At least the Shipyard should have some valuable things beside the Ship itself. As they blew up the charges, things happened pretty much in the same fashion as in the Anime Timeline. The only exception being that Team 2 was taking over the Archangel, and they shot the five surviving crewmembers of the ship while doing that.
-On the opposite side of the colony, from the Shipyard-
The EA Marseilles III launched, with two Moebiuses and one Moebius Zero. The CGUE Heavyarms took out the Moebiuses, and the Zero managed to survive the barrage of bullets from the two CGUE Assaults. Aisha led the Assaults while Shiho led the Heavyarms, Aisha would have chosen to go with her husband and conquer Earth but her Queen had other planes for her. And her Queen was always correct, for she was Lacus Clyne. Shiho smiled as some moron tried to fight her with a Zero, so she declared [I choose single combat against that Zero].
Mwu heard that, and thought that once again a Zaft 'Elite' looked down on his MA. None had survived his Zero, so this time it should not be any different. Except that there were 11 more MS to deal with unless his victory somehow would be acknowledged. All thoughts of fair fights disappeared when the Laurasia blew up the Marseilles III with its Linear Cannons. Mwu had lost two of his four pods to the initial barrage, but he was confident that he could defeat that strange Ginn that had two cannons as extra arms. Then Shiho fired her beam cannons and ended the flight of the Eagle of Endymion with a bang.
-Morgenroete-
Cagalli tried to hit the Zaft soldiers with her fists when they entered the ladies room, but was gut punched by Yzak. Things were a bit more troubling for Murrue, as she was bleeding from her left arm and leg. But seeing a sniper pointing a rifle at her and two soldiers doing the same near her made her drop her gun and surrender. "I thought Zaft took no prisoners" she said to the soldiers "You are not a prisoner, but a guest" said Athrun, still pointing his carbine at the scientist.
-Inside Heliopolis-
There was a bang and all stopped what they were doing, and looked toward the shipyard end of the colony. Then they saw and heard that the media feed changed from normal Lacus themed stuff to Live News. The news had the symbol of Lacus's hair accessory, but within a golden circle. It then showed Zaft soldiers wearing a left arm band carrying the same symbol, with Lacus behind them in a pink dress. The place shown was the Administration Office of Heliopolis, meaning that Lacus Clyne was here!
Lacus calmly started singing 'Tears of Hope' showing images of the construction of space colonies, PLANTs, children being born in space, school students in colonies and the anti-coordinator protests and riots on Earth. Then the concentration camps for Coordinators, and the systematic extermination of Coordinators by Blue Cosmos. It then showed the Peace Negotiations on the Lunar City, and the explosion that followed. The EA fleet going toward the PLANTs and the battle, ending footage of the people living normal lives in Junius 7 when the nuclear blast occured. The battle on the orbit of Earth, and the battle of Endymion. The final part of the video showed Heliopolis civilians living their normal lives all while Morgenroete making the G Project MS, the Astrays and the Arch Angel for Blue Cosmos.
The eerie quiet that now filled the colony was due to the shock most felt when seeing how Orb had betrayed them, and broken their treaty with Zaft. They were in shock because they knew that Lacus had no mercy on those that helped Blue Cosmos. Some started crying, while others fell on the ground saying "This can't be happening". Yet none blamed Lacus, for some reason.
"I am not here to harm anyone that simply happens to live on this Colony" She started "But those affiliated with the terrorists known as Blue Cosmos will be killed on sight" continued Lacus "We control this Colony, and you are all under the protection of my pink umbrella" As she said she opened a pink umbrella "But as Orb betrayed you to Blue Cosmos, I had no other option than to come and save you from those terrible people" She then smiled and said "You are all welcome to join my new group, which is called 'The Lacus Clyne Fan Club'" Those that were already in it understood that it was a ticket to a better life, while those that were not part of the fan club knew that they had to get their membership as if their very lives depended on it. The naturals in the colony knew that their lives literally depended on that membership.
All members of Lacus Fan Club were given almost total freedom to go where they wanted within the colony, those that were not however were forbidden to leave certain zones. only 2% refused to join the Lacus Clyne Fan Club, those still remained within the single remaining zone left for them. Natarle joined since Flay was a member, the Zaft soldiers did not even blink an eye when the daughter of the Atlantic Alliance Foreign Minister was a member of the club, nor when a Lieutenant of OMNI Enforcer wanted to join. This was exactly what Lacus had planned, and the soldiers knew that they served a veritable genius that would lead them to new heights impossible for mere naturals to even imagine.
Natarle was asked if she wanted to enlist into the Military arm of the Fan Club, and she joined with Flay. Sai was one of those that refused to join the Club, while the rest of Kira's and Flay's friends accepted to join.
-5 days later, PLANTs-
Tensions rose between the Lacus Faction and the Zala Faction within the PLANTs Supreme Council. It was not an easy situation as over 80% of ZAFT supported Lacus, while nearly 96% of the PLANTs population revered her as their one true Leader. Patrick and his 'hardliners' were seen as obsolete and out of touch with the current affairs in the universe. His own son was an ardent supporter of Lacus, and her fiancée, but even Lacus's father disagreed with her policies. Would this mean that older Coordinators like him were being phased out in favor of the new generation?
The Council consisted of 12 members, of which Siegel Clyne was the Supreme Chancellor. Patric Zala was the Supreme Commander of ZAFT, and the rest all were ministers. The remaining ten were mostly aligned with Patrick, with two exeptions: Ezalia Joule and Eileen Canaver being totally in support of Lacus. The Moderate two which would shift sides as they chose were: Yuri Amalfi and Ted Elsman. This left Patrick with only Louise Leitner, Jeremy Maxwell, Orson White, Herman Gould and Parnel Jesek to support his faction within the Supreme Council. Leitner and Gould were very private people, so he knew next to nothing about their lives outside what they did in politics. And when it came to the vote about what to do do with Lacus, Patrick was not sure if he had all the cards he needed to play his hand.
Lacus had opted to create an autonomous zone spanning from Heliopolis to Armory One, including Boaz and the two Bases on Earth: Carpentaria and Gibraltar. She had chosen to call this new zone 'Queendom of Lacus', which was a bold move.
Would they accept this 'Queendom of Lacus' or risk a civil war? As the votes were being cast among the members of the Council, Patrick was scared of the future for the second time in his life.
It was a tie: 6 for, and 6 against. Leitner and Gould had voted for, as had Amalfi and Elsman. And not no surprise so did Joule and Canaver, how could he have not foreseen this? Patrick knew that a tie was a curse as much as it was a blessing, Lacus would use this to force the Council to give her more than mere autonomy, maybe that had been her plan all along?
-Outside Heliopolis-
The Izumo approached 'The Queendom of Lacus Colony, Heliopolis' and saw a Nazca guarding the Colony. There were also some 20+ CGUEs flying around the shipyard, and then a ship appeared from within the shipyard: A pink ship with black secondary color and golden edges, it was the Archangel. The new ship launched three Astrays and the five Gundams, it showed that Lacus would protect this colony with all she had.
Mina Zahaku knew that she would find no Orb politician nor Morgenroete C/O's here, but a Queen of the Stars that had just laid her own claim for power in what was once a three side affair between the Earth Alliance, the Orb Union and the PLANTs. The Queendom of Lacus was the fourth power in these times, and it was a growing power that based its focus on younger generation instead of the elderly that held office in most of the other Nations of Humanity.
[This is the Queendom of Lacus Royal Guards, state your intent and know that we are prepared to defend our Homeland]
That was what Mina heard coming from the Nazca, but no alarms went off as nobody seemed to target her Izumo. (So they wish to show us that they mean us no harm, unless we provoke them) She thought, and ordered "Open a channel".
-Approaching Heliopolis-
Home, the refurbished Marseilles III was on its way to Heliopolis. While technically, the Junk Guild was part of Orb.
It was also part of Terminal, and was seen as an independent group of space junkers. The messages that had come from the Colony were still about Lacus doing this or Lacus doing that. But the closer they came to the Colony, the newer the content of the feed they received. They had seen the declaration of the takeover by Lacus, with the video that came with it. And now they were seeing the Declaration of a new Nation: The Queendom of Lacus. The Crew of the ship did not know what to make of it, let alone what to do about it when they would arrive to Heliopolis.
-Also approaching Heliopolis-
The Serpent, Serpent Tail's Laurasia was on its way to Heliopolis. The PMC had been hired by Orb to investigate the situation at the Colony, and retrieve the Astrays and whatever Morgenroete had made for the EA if they could. But the intel was the real mission, all else was just a bonus. The PMC had watched all the feeds from the Colony, and knew that they now dealt with Lacus Clyne and not ZAFT or the PLANTs. Would this change anything? Only when they would arrive, they would know what changes would occur to their mission.
And so, all the three ships are about to meet each other at Heliopolis. Will the nascent new Nation survive the outcome? You will have to wait until the next chapter to see what happens next in: Empress of Zaft
Please comment on what you liked in this chapter of the story you might or might not have been waiting.