Disclaimer: Sunrise

Chapter 2: We talk too much about our dream, and our souls seemed to become too brittle

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"So, that is what you are considering, huh?"

"Well, at the moment, it is. Besides, Ame-no-Mihashira was supposedly built for that reason."

"As expected of Representative Athha, you think nothing but the benefit for our country. I actually respect that trait of yours." Rondo Mina Sahaku smiled through the screen as she discussed the plan proposed by the current Representative Athha, which was reconsidering the plan of building an orbital elevator, which was the real reason why Ame-no-Mihashira was built by the former Head of State, the late Representative Athha.

After a while, she replied again, "Fine by me," Mina said "The military resource in Ame-no-Mihashira will be part of the defense force after it's done. Though I never thought you would even consider the idea again, given that Orb doesn't have any space colony after Heliopolis. What are you planning to do with it?"

"I want to improve more energy resources other than the earth heat power plant. Looking back at my father's former plan for Ame-no-Mihashira, I think this is the right time to resurrect said plan. The orbital elevator can be used to transfer the material from outer space, and we can use them for a lot of things such as improving the public facilities that require structures with strength, resource for the defense force, or we can do a trade with other countries for material they needed with lower cost, given that the orbital elevator will reduce the cost of transfer from earth to space. The earth is finally in fairly peaceful condition, so I want to use this opportunity to build a more stable earth. We can build better communication with the Moon base, and also with PLANTs. We are in the middle of establishing the embassy of Orb Union in Aprilius city, and there is also a bilateral agreement regarding the agricultural support between Orb and PLANTs, and also after rebuilding the December and Januarius city, Chairwoman Clyne is proposing for exchange between earth and PLANTs."

"Exchange?"

"After the failed attack on Aprilius city which destroyed December and Januarius city instead, PLANTs citizens, who were already short because of the infertility problem in the 3rd generations, decreased significantly. Chairwoman Clyne was planning on increasing the citizens by inviting more immigrants from earth while finding a cure to that matter."

"Increasing citizens? Through exchange?"

"Orb has been continuing the exchange in science and technology knowledge with PLANTs. Even at the time of Chairman Durandal's reign, we are already sending people to learn there, and those who wish to go back can contribute what they had learned for the nation. Those who wish to stay can become permanent residents, by choice or marriage. This is still a proposal, the details will be discussed later, but that is the basic idea, at least. If possible, Chairwoman Clyne wants to expand the exchange to other neutral countries, especially The Kingdom of Scandinavia, since the number of Coordinators are higher there than Orb. But she is hoping that in the future, the exchange can include the Naturals too."

"Naturals? In PLANTs?"

"Since they are aiming to be able to increase the natural birth rate, they do hope Naturals will come to PLANTs." Cagalli pinched the bridge of her nose. This was not an easy task by any means. "Since the reason for infertility was the lack of genetic input in the 3rd generation Coordinators, they want to do research with the Naturals, whose genetic inputs are still the way they are. And since they couldn't get any sample before, this way, they can do an open research, and if this turns out to be a success, they could just continue with the program."

"Don't you think it is too fast? The fire has ceased, but that doesn't mean Naturals have complete trust for Coordinators," Mina voiced out her concern.

"They are not going to do it in the near future with Naturals, besides it's still a flitting proposal, they haven't given it any thought about the merit and demerit of it. As for Orb, we are going to continue with the exchange we had been doing until now. We'll see how it is going from there, and after the Orbital Elevator is established and the space colony travel becomes easier, we'll give more thought to it." This was a delicate proposal, everybody who had experienced the cruel reality of how Naturals and Coordinators have lived along the way would instantly think that this was impossible. Naturals wouldn't feel safe in a land where Coordinators took control, and Coordinators would always be wary in presence of Naturals.

"I'm not saying it is a completely bad idea, but watch out with the Federation countries. You have to play it out carefully, Representative. While you are not giving any military aid this time, you wouldn't want a repeat of what had happened before, would you?"

"I understand," Cagalli said after gritting her teeth. Flash of the past where she was being cornered by all the higher-ups from the Atlantic Federation when she was on her earlier days of continuing her father's legacy came to her mind.

"But we will need some materials for the construction. We are currently just a military base, so we are not fully equipped for material mining," Mina continued with the first plan that Cagalli had proposed.

"We'll coordinate with Morgenroete to request cooperation with the DSSD for their material mining model mobile suit. Morgenroete is already in touch with Sol Ryuune L'ange, and they are planning to visit us in the near future."

"You move pretty fast on that part, for a plan that hasn't been completely approved by the other Ministers," she commented on that move. But Mina just sighed, and nodded her approval. "I understand. Also please take care of yourself. You look kinda tired," she added, pointing out the dark circles on Cagalli's eyes.

"It has been an exhausting few days," Cagalli admitted. She was lucky she could spare some time for her birthday, spending it with Athrun, no less. It was like the calm before the storm. The day after her birthday, she was busy with all the endless meetings to discuss the new project budget, and new plan of state budget expenditures, new policy for international relations, meetings with the research council for the orbital elevator establishment, and planning for the next visit to the Eurasian federation and Kingdom of Scandinavia…

"Representative Athha?"

Cagalli gasped, opening her eyes. "Ah, I'm sorry… I lost you there…"

"It was nothing. More than that, please take a few moments to rest, we wouldn't want you to collapse now with so much on our plates." Mina reminded her. "For now, I understand the circumstances. If there is any information or any other things that require coordination with our side, please let me know."

"Alright. Thank you, I'll contact you again later." Cagalli said and hung up. Leaning on her seat, she sighed deeply, massaging the bridge of her nose. Her afternoon had just started but she already felt worn out.

Reaching for the call button on her table, she asked for her aide.

"Yes, Lady Cagalli, what can I do for you?"

"Can you please bring me some co—"Cagalli stopped. Suddenly she remembered the time she spent with Athrun in her office back then. "Can you pour some chamomile tea for me?"

"Right away, ma'am. Should I bring some sweets with your tea, or would you like something else? You haven't had your lunch yet…" The female aide added with worry that Cagalli could hear even through the lines.

Again, she recalled the time when Athrun scolded her for skipping her meals, and she remembered she hadn't taken her lunch yet now that her aide mentioned it, but it was way past lunchtime and now she didn't feel like eating a staple meal either. Her next meeting was in another hour and a half, and she still had to wrap things up at the office before reviewing the material for her next meeting.

"Could you bring some light meals? Like small bread or something…"

"Of course. I'll be there soon, ma'am. Please excuse me," she replied, and so Cagalli cut the call.

Rechecking the data for her next meeting, Cagalli scrolled through her tablet. Upon the rebuilding of the orbital elevator and Ame-no-Mihashira, there was a meeting with the Head Department of Energy and Resources regarding the needed material for the project. After that, she had another appointment for a dinner meeting with the Minister of State for Science and Technology with the Chief of Medical advisor for a proposal that was on her desk since last week. The next day, she would meet with the same Minister, joined by the Minister of State for Financial Policy to discuss the matter of material and the budget expenditure for the earlier project.

She couldn't catch a break, as usual.

Massaging her temple to ease her throbbing head, the car headed to the hotel lobby where she was going to meet with her next appointment. Mina was right, she needed some rest or her headache could get worse.

"Are you alright, Lady Cagalli?"

Looking at her aide beside her, she put on a smile. She was a new one, so maybe she was not used to her being like this. "Just tired. It's been a hectic week," she replied. Same old story she had to endure every day, and her former aide was always with her through them all. This new one should get used to it soon so she can keep up with her.

"Even during meal time you couldn't be at ease," she said with concern.

"I get used to it; I have to," she replied, matter-of-fact. She had no other choice. Her life was no longer her own. Every drop of her blood, every ounce of her strength, every breath that she took, all for sustaining this nation.

"It would be good if the meetings could end quickly without unnecessary banter," she replied with a smile, trying her best to cheer her superior.

"That's too good to be true," she sighed. While maintaining the packed schedules day by day, she was required to maintain her personal health as well. She usually had some kind of built in alarm, that would just call to her when she had pushed herself enough and needed to back down a bit. And today, she felt like her alarm just went off. She might need to reschedule some things and take what little rest she could take. She had been good at managing to refrain herself-just because she had too many experiences of not being able to actually work when she pushed herself too much.

Plus, Athrun would be nagging her later if he found out about it.

Stopping in front of the lobby entrance, her bodyguards got off the vehicle first and opened her door for her, while the other one exited the car from the opposite door. Getting up, Cagalli felt a sudden rush that made her sway a bit.

Her aide held onto her so she didn't fall and one of her bodyguards walked a few steps away to the valet, the other stood beside her and the aide. And a second after, a muffled sound of a gunshot was heard.

"Lady Cagalli!" The bodyguard who stood beside her grabbed and pulled the women down to take cover, as several other shots were fired, hitting the car roof, the door and the wall. The other two, as quick as the commotion started, took their own gun and aimed toward where the sound came from, from behind a thick pillar. After one last shot and a loud thud sound, the commotion stopped.

"Get inside, call for backup; we're heading back to the crown ASAP!" The bodyguard who fired some shots-the one kneeling before the car, the closest to where the shots came-called out orders to his partner who was covering Cagalli. Shouting a short reply, the other bodyguard took Cagalli and the aide inside the hotel, flashing his ID to the staff and rushed to the VIP Lounge on the same floor as the lobby. The current hotel was a common place that the members of the council used on a regular basis, so most of the Security Force members were already familiar with the layout of the place.

At the VIP lounge, the bodyguard who came first ushered them inside, informing briefly that he had done a thorough check on the room, just in case, and then using the communicator, he called the protection unit HQ to report what had just happened, as she got Cagalli to settle in one of the couches. Beside her, the aide looked like she was still in shock. Cagalli took her hand and gripped it tightly, trying to calm her down. She was one of the civilian staff working for the parliament, and this kind of attack had never happened before since she started working with Cagalli. She must be scared of experiencing something frightening like this, Cagalli thought.

"Send some more reinforcement for the other Chief council members too," Cagalli added as she looked up to her bodyguard, "And just in case, increase the protection for the other members of the parliaments until we know the motive of that attack," to which the guard responded in understanding, and passed it onto the HQ.

"Lady Cagalli a-are you okay?" The aide asked her with a trembling voice. Fear was shown clearly in her eyes. That was to be expected, in that situation, it was not impossible that she could be the one who became the victim.

"That was scary, wasn't it? I'm still shocked too. But don't worry, they will take us back to the parliament office. It will be safer there, just wait a little bit." Cagalli tried to smile to ease her fear. As expected from one who had been through two wars, and in the front line, on top of that, the aide thought as she gazed at Cagalli's face who didn't seem too shocked at all.

Inside, Cagalli actually felt more shock because it has been a while since she had gun pointed at her-she was sure the target was her.

Seeing her subject working through the ordeal, Cagalli mused to herself; the last time she was in a life or death situation was that battle of Orb, the day she returned back to her country and regained her place. She knew already, had witnessed even, all the problems that would come to the surface once the war was over. Ending a war was one thing, keeping the peace was another story altogether.

But this kind of attack, directly at her, was a first.

Recalling the attack, the realization that she was about to get killed was slowly dawning into her. As the adrenalin rush was seeping through her, she could feel her heart beating faster and hands trembling a little. Then a sudden realization came that even though she was targeted today, there was still a possibility that she was not the only one they wanted, the other Family Head and ministers could be next. Cagalli clenched her trembling hands tightly and gritted her teeth; this was not the time to be weak, she snapped to herself. If she was targeted, this was definitely not a trivial matter. Well, she hoped that it was just a small assasination attempt to herself only, that it wouldn't lead to something bigger. Still, everybody needed to stay on alert and not let their guards down.

"Lady Cagalli!"

Approaching her were the ministers she was supposed to meet today. They were followed by their own guards. "These Security force members informed us what they heard on the radio. Seeing the commotion in the front seems like it's true. Are you alright?"

"Yeah. Sorry for the inconvenience, but it seemed like the meeting must be put on hold until we knew exactly what had happened. I want to make sure of everyone's safety before proceeding on any other things. I will contact you again regarding the reschedule. Focus on keeping our safety for now."

The ministers nodded their heads, as the security force members who had been guarding Cagalli approached her. "Lady Cagalli, the HQ is going to send vehicles here. We'll take you and the other ministers back to the office, after one other vehicle takes off. We'll lead them to our HQ, and see if they are still going to attack. Of course we'll guard all vehicles with high security so there wouldn't be any problem on the way from here to the office.

"Understood. Also make sure to investigate it as quickly as possible, I'm counting on you," Cagalli said as she turned back to the ministers, "Everyone, as you have heard, we need to increase the protection details for all members to avoid unwanted circumstances. Please follow the instructions from the Security Force member from now on regarding your own safety," she led the other minister to wait in the VIP lounge for further instruction from Security Force members.

After he was free from his duty on the last day of his visit, Admiral Athrun Zala went back to his room where he was staying for the past three days in Borneo at the Equatorial Union for the state visit. Putting his belongings on the table, Athrun decided to take a bath and then sort his things afterward in preparation for his return to his current country, Orb Union. He and his team would be departing back tomorrow morning around 07.00, local time, and would arrive at Orb around 18.00, with the time difference. He wanted to start his report for what he and his team were doing in their last day visit while it was still fresh in his memory. That way, he could move to the next thing on his job after he returns to Orb.

Thinking back about all the things he got from the hearing with the General and a few of his staff, Athrun was pondering over a few issues that he would need to report to Cagalli as soon as he got back to Orb. It was quite a serious thing, and he was hoping it wouldn't get big and troublesome.

After finishing the main point of his reports, he closed his notebook and switched to the news channel. He wanted to finish packing for tomorrow while listening to the news.

Putting most of his belongings in the suitcase—though there wasn't much of it to begin with—Athrun was getting ready for his coming home, when suddenly a particular news got his attention from what he was doing, which made him leap to his feet.

"Today around 16.40 Orb local time, a shooting incident happened at Olofath Tower Hotel ground floor lobby, where the head representative of Orb Cagalli Yula Athha was planning on holding a meeting with the Head Department of Energy and Resources, followed by the Minister of State for Science and Technology. Speculation already arouse that it was an assassination attempt at the head representative, though the motives are still unclear. This is the footage of the signature vehicle from the Security Police enforcement used to transport the member of the parliament, leaving the said hotel. The Orb Parliament deputy secretary hasn't made any official statement regarding this case—"

Dashing across the room to get closer to his PC that was put on the desk, Athrun watched intently as the screen changed from the news-anchor to the footage where several Security Force's—the official task force from the military to guard the member of the Orb government—black, dark tinted cars, equipped with bulletproof bodies and windows, departed from the hotel parking ground. The tinted window, plus the far angle of the camera made it hard to determine who was inside each car, though that was the main purpose of it, for keeping the passenger safe. Ignoring the footage, he listened more to the details of the news.

"—from the eyewitness at the hotel, it was said that none of the parliament members, including the head representative, were injured. Though, there was a body found around the—"

At that, Athrun sat back to the seat near the desk, sighing in relief, though his heart was still running wild with the possibilities at the words assassination attempt and Cagalli being put together; while he was away from her, moreover. He wanted to check on her, but knowing his attempt at contacting her directly would be futile—as he was in a military ground with limited reception, and probably Cagalli as well at Orb—he planted in his mind to make an appointment with her as soon as he landed back at Orb.

One flitting memory came to him when he found out from the news, just like this, that the party for the Junius Seven Memorial Remembrance, which brought Lacus along as part of the committee, was reported missing near the debris belt. Even though she was his fiancee back then, it was all but an arranged future made by their parents and a match from the current system in PLANTs; still at the time, he was already close with Lacus—at least he considered her as a really close friend of his, so of course Athrun was worried about her well-being.

But this time, it was different. Cagalli was different.

If he could, Athrun wanted to fly back to Orb and make sure Cagalli was okay, alive.

And he wouldn't be back to the country until the next 18 hours. Athrun gritted his teeth.

Finally after contemplating his choice, Athrun decided to send an update report regarding his visit to Cagalli, and leave a short message regarding his concern for her safety. Athrun could imagine how hectic the situation in the Security Department and the Government Office. He was not directly part of the Security Force Departement that was currently in charge of her safety, so he couldn't really stick his head as he pleased like when he was her personal bodyguard; it would just hinder the actual team who were working on it. Though he should receive the report from the head of the said special units later.

But it was okay, he thought, trying to reassure himself. Not like before, after this he would surely come back to her.

For now, the fact that she was not injured was enough for him.

AN: I know I don't have the brightest mind, I'm not one who are capable to write this kind of story. I know the issues I presented here might be too crude or weird, its not neatly written or whatever, just go along with it and ignore them. But yeah... It's purely for my self-satisfaction. So Imma try to finish this one

Btw, I didnt change anything in chapter one. The flag was there because it was a full story from the start. It might be unnoticeable when it was a one-shot, but with the prologue, it just became a bit visible, I guess.

So, see you again next chapter, if you still decide to stay,

Cheers~