A/n
Here is Phase 47, and no it is not a battle scene but a story one nonetheless. I hope you enjoy the Phase.
Phase 47: The Sins of the Past
July 13th, 71 C.E.
Mendel Colony Interior
When Mu came into the main dock Mendel had, he entered the system of airlocks that would take him to the colony's interior. It was much the normal kind of airlock system colonies had to work with to transition from space to the inside. The lock system was automatic, so Mu had the Strike slowly moving through it. Once inside, he saw that it was mostly brown for the ground of the colony, no green to be seen. There were structures lining the ground which were in varying states of disrepair. The signs of the long-standing absence of life of any kind induced feelings of unease and rising tensions. The breathable atmosphere in the colony the sensors showed only amplified the feelings that were coming to Mu. With there being no sign of a mobile suit, which Creuset could be using, Mu was on edge. The masked man wasn't one to be idle unless it benefited him in something. It could mean Creuset had something setup to attract him into a trap. Traps set by Creuset tended to be lethal and should be avoided if at all possible.
The tingle came back to Mu and it directed him to one of the larger building complex collection. Mu headed that toward the area and saw something in an open area in front the largest building. The closer he came the clearer Mu could see and the object was turning out to be a mobile suit. It appeared to be a new ZAFT model as he'd never seen the machine he was looking at. It seemed like a different version of the CGUE with newer equipment. It would be just like Creuset to get new equipment. It wasn't like the masked man wasn't trouble enough without giving him something more to work with. Instead of complaining, Mu landed the Strike in the open area in front of the building complex. He exited the mobile suit and touched down to the ground and scanned the area. There were no obvious signs of a trap being laid that Mu could see from a preliminary sweep.
The tingle came once again and pointed to the largest building for where Creuset was located. Yet, before Mu moved to track Creuset he took out the pistol all pilots had as standard equipment. He checked that a clip was loaded and ready to use and found the gun was ready to use. Mu flicked off the safety and cocked the gun then moved forward at a steady pace. If the chance did come up, Mu would shoot Rau Le Creuset. If the masked man could be captured safely, Mu would seriously consider doing so. Should Creuset be held accountable by someone, like the Federation, they would try the man and make him pay for his action. However, Mu didn't believe Creuset would make capture nigh impossible, the man would be more likely to die before he would be captured.
Mu entered the building, moving cautiously as it was dark and Mu didn't doubt plenty of places to hide and attack from. Creuset had no issue attacking from hiding places instead of fighting honorably. Mu wouldn't put it past the masked man to stab another in the back if the fancy came to him. There was still enough light to see the general layout of the room Mu was in, so he could move without hitting things. The area he was in looked to be some type of reception area for like a hospital or something similar. So, Mu continued forward at a steady pace down the main corridor, scanning around constantly to not be caught by surprise. He hung to the walls and corners so he could proceed as safely as he could. Mu would be on edge as he kept going, Creuset hadn't popped up or even showed his face yet. Until the masked man did so, Mu wouldn't feel close to calm. He wanted to know where the man was so he couldn't spring some sort of trap on him. The only thing Mu could trust Creuset to do was make his life harder and potentially trying to kill him.
As Mu got further inside the place, he found the place was a medical facility, the fact came from some of the rooms he glanced into. Many rooms appeared to be medical examination rooms that a doctor would use to look one of their patients. Yet, there were also what Mu would guess were medical lab areas for testing things doctors gave them. The rooms were matching the idea of this place being a medical complex like the reception area suggested. Mu recalled that Mendel was supposed to be for medical research overall. It was also supposed to have been the headquarters for the group GARM R&D which had been the largest genetic research group before the war. This could very well be one of their medical complexes that they served their cliental for all Mu knew.
The only reason that Mu knew much about GARM R&D was his father had interest in the organization. Mu assumed his father Al Da Flaga had done investing and probably into GARM were Mu to guess. It reminded Mu how estranged he had become with his father before he had died in the house fire that had take Mu's parents. While Mu remembered his father being strict, he'd been a good honest man. He had some fond memories of him when he was younger, even if that had changed just as he'd entered his teenage years. His mother had always told Mu his father helped invest for others' futures as his trade. Al had mentioned the name GARM a few times, which was why Mu had thought his father had been investing with them. Mu was brought out of his thoughts when there was noise ahead of him. He rushed forward in the corridor he had been traveling through and around a corner. Just after he rounded the corner, Mu was forces to take cover behind the wall as gunshots came his way.
Creuset hadn't been aiming to kill Mu La Flaga, that would come at a later point. No, Rau wanted Mu to pursue him so he could reveal the truth to the fool. Rau had wanted to taunt Mu about what his "father" had against him. Al Da Flaga had told Rau everything, how he saw Mu as a disappointment, a failure. Al had ranted that Mu hadn't inherited his skill of investing and manipulating finances. The man had become so obsessed with "cementing" his legacy in history it become hysterical to Rau. He'd even agreed with Al to help him make his mark in history. And true to his word, Rau had helped the man make his mark, just not in the way Al had wanted. Rau had been the one to orchestrate the "viral outbreak" in this very colony. He had done it to help destroy the mad dream born here along with destroying the biggest investment Al had made. Then, to wrap up the "historical mark" for Al Da Flaga, Rau had set the fire in the Flaga residence after making sure the was no way for those inside to escape. "I must say Mu, fate seems to be set on us meeting to settle our issues, doesn't it," Rau called. "The irony of it all is almost too much."
Fate had nothing to do with Mu taking down this man, he would do it for the betterment of the human race. It needed those like Creuset as it needed poison fed to it. So, Mu gritted his teeth, "What the hell are you doing here Creuset," he shouted.
At the same time outside of the complex in the colony interior, Krystal and Dearka spotted the Strike close to an unknown mobile suit. The unknown looked like it was a ZAFT-produced unit just not a model that neither recognized. Krystal made the suggestion they check the area out to make sure it was somewhat safe before doing further searching on the ground. Dearka didn't much like the old lady giving him what sounded like orders, but her suggestion had merit. Dearka didn't have anything personally against Krystal McAlester, but she could be bossy sometimes. So, Dearka agreed to the sweep of the general area to make sure there weren't enemies who would attack them. Thus, they split up and circled the group of buildings looking for any signs there could be enemies around. As Dearka rounded a structure, he came face to face with a mobile suit he didn't expect, the Duel.
Yzak had been scanning around as per the Commander's orders. He was circling back and check on the commander since he had done a fair sweep. There had been a blip for a moment, but when Yzak had been going to see what it was, the blip disappeared. He figured it was due to the interfere inside the colony messing with his sensors and was just a random echo. However, as Yzak had been head back where the Commander had been, he came across none other than the Buster. For a moment, Yzak felt shock at seeing Dearka's machine again since it was lost to the legged ship. And yet, the shock quickly morphed into anger that some OMNI hotshot thought they could used the Buster like it was nothing. When he had heard Dearka had been captured, Yzak hadn't taken it very well. He might not had shown he'd cared about his comrades much, but he didn't like losing them. Right in front of himself was glaring evidence of Dearka's absents and irked him badly! The Buster had been Dearka's and Yzak wouldn't let a Natural-type hotshot get away with it.
At seeing the Duel, many thoughts raced through Dearka's mind with the implications it brought. If the Duel was here, then Commander Creuset could be as well. From what Athrun said, ZAFT had as much reason if not more than OMNI did coming after the Archangel and its allies. Dearka didn't want to fight Yzak if there was a way to avoid it. They may not agree on everything, but they had fought alongside each other and that meant something. So, Dearka was about to open a channel to the Duel when it raised its beam rifle. Dearka jerked the controls to avoid the bolt before he had to do acrobatics to evade the attacks that followed. It was clear Yzak was mad about something and so wouldn't be open to talking at the moment. The issue was Dearka couldn't think of a way to calm Yzak down enough to get him to stop shooting him.
Krystal had searched the general area around the Strike and the ZAFT machine and had seen nothing. The ZAFT machine did say they were around, likely at the northern spaceport of the colony. She would've reported that to the Archangel or one of the other ships if she could, but com-signals were blocked by the colony structure and the airlock systems. If the colony was fully operational, then there would be a com-exchange with receivers on the interior that had lines which fed to exterior com-systems. But those were down and had been turned on because there had been some damage and they weren't needed at the time they were inspected. So, Krystal went looking to the Buster so they could regroup and do a ground search. However, when she spotted the Buster, she saw it was dodging the attacks of the Duel. Krystal shoved her throttles forward and surged ahead and got in between the two with her shield in front.
Yzak's anger increased at seeing the black enemy unit appearing out of nowhere. That machine had been nothing but irritating when he had tried to take it down. It had shown him up and though it wasn't mentioned any more, Yzak hadn't forgotten the embarrassment. So, Yzak focused on the Shadow and began striking at it with a vengeance. Dearka would remember to thank Krystal, and not calling her old lady for a bit in gratitude for the save. Yet, he didn't like the old lady and Yzak fighting to dispatch one another. However, he couldn't think of a way to separate the two without it getting messy. Dearka was looking around for something to work with to get the two apart, when he spotted the Blitz approaching the fight.
Nicol had boarded the Blitz after having convinced Captain Ades to let him go and check on things. The Commander had been away for longer than it should take to do an examination of the colony and situation. Nicol was worried there was more going on than was being said and if things did go bad, he wanted to be around to help. And while the colony's com-exchange was down, there could be no communication from the inside to the outside, so no checks could be made. Nicol still wouldn't fight Athrun if that came up but he had to see what was going on. There was the possibility he could talk with Athrun and get his story and put together a better picture. Once inside the colony, Nicol had been scanning around for a few minutes before he caught sight of the Duel. And a moment later he realized Yzak was fighting the black machine, which was a very bad thing. Nicol also saw the Buster a short distance away from the two fighting. He connected a channel to the Buster, "Dearka," Nicol started, "are you in the Buster?"
"Yes," Dearka returned, "But we need to separate those two before one of them kills the other. There is a lot more going on right now for us to be fighting one another."
Nicol couldn't agree more with Dearka about there being more going on and so they shouldn't be fighting each other. And by the sound of it, Dearka had at least had more information which Nicol wouldn't say no to hearing. Thus, Nicol switched com-channels to the Duel and moved forward to stop Yzak from fighting. There comrade was fighting angry and so he would be hard to convince to stop. "Yzak," Nicol called, "Stop, stop attacking!"
Yzak jerked in his seat as there was noise in the cockpit, and when he looked around, he found the Blitz holding the Duel. Nicol shouldn't be out here and he shouldn't be holding him back from defeating an enemy. Yzak struggled, but the Blitz's hold on the Duel didn't break, "Let go Nicol," he snarled, "I'm going to take this one down before I avenge Dearka!"
The Buster moved forward and grabbed the Shadow, "Hold up," Dearka urged, "We can work this out without killing each other. Calm down, let me and my friend calm the Duel down so we can talk things out." Krystal stopped and glanced back at the Buster, wondering what Dearka was talking about. If they could talk things out, then Krystal wouldn't say no to the opportunity. But the way the Duel had been fighting against her, she doubted the pilot would be willing to hear reason. However, Dearka sounded sure that he and the Blitz could get the Duel to calm down. So, Krystal backed up a bit and waited to see what would happen with the two calming down the Duel. Dearka moved forward and switched his com-channel to the Duel's, "Yzak, calm down," Dearka called. "We can talk this out without attacking each other!"
It took a few minutes to get Yzak to calm down enough to stop struggling against Nicol and Dearka. After Yzak had gotten to the point he was listening, the four mobile suits landed in the nearest open area that had enough room for the machine. The Blitz and the Duel were next to one another facing the Shadow and the Buster in a mirroring position. Dearka exited the Buster's cockpit and lowered to the ground with the zip-line. Yzak got down to the ground about the same time and was glaring at Dearka. The tension was palpable in the air between the two who had once been comrades.
Nicol got down from the Blitz's cockpit, and when he saw Dearka, he smiled as he was glad to see that Dearka was alive. It was questionable fact after Dearka was captured, and with no word about him and not helped. The lack any word about Dearka had made the worst-case scenario far more probably. So, to know Dearka was alive and okay relieved growing fears OMNI had killed him. Plus, Nicol would love to know what Dearka had been doing while separated from them. There had to be a story to why Dearka was working with the black suit as an ally.
Krystal descended from the Shadow's cockpit and she scanned over the three teens as she lowered to the ground. The three Coordinators were about the same age as Kira and Lacus were and Krystal thought those two were too young for the war. They were in their mid-teens which was the age it was customary to take an interest in the opposite gender. The three should be doing school and thinking about dating girls, not fighting in a war. It was another thing that the war had changed that it shouldn't. And now this very war had pitted these teens who had been comrades against each other, it was wrong and sad at the same time. She didn't have words to properly express how horrible this face-off was to watch.
Yzak was fuming about the current circumstances. Dearka was in the company of an enemy unit, and so was likely working with them. Nicol and he had been worried about what happened to Dearka after he'd been captured. If he was alive and able, he should have communicated to ZAFT so a rescue him from OMNI. But no, he hadn't done that and so he was a traitor to ZAFT. With that in mind, Yzak took out his gun and pointed it at Dearka. Dearka had been slowly walking towards his comrades but stopped when Yzak aimed a gun at him. "Yzak, what are you doing," Dearka uttered. "Why are you pointing a gun at me?"
"I can ask you the same question, you came in with the Black mobile suit," Yzak said loudly while pointing at the Shadow. It was an enemy machine, to be working with it was working with the enemy thus being a traitor. Dearka should know that just as well as any of them. "So, how do you explain that Dearka? You're with an enemy unit, and it defended you, meaning you're helping the enemy!"
Nicol sighed as Yzak was looking for issues instead of listening to what Dearka had to say for himself. Yzak wasn't going to give Dearka a change unless he was forced to as he would only go by appearances. Those only told so much, and in this case Nicol suspect Dearka's explanation would do better in explaining how things came to be what they were. "Yzak, calm down," Nicol urged, closing the distance between him and Yzak. "If you want an explanation, then you have to give him an opportunity to actually give one. You are putting words in his mouth that he is not saying." Nicol turned and gave a smile to Dearka, "It's good to know that you're alive Dearka. After you were captured," Nicol hesitated, "Well, it was hard to accept that we wouldn't see you again. I wouldn't doubt there is a story as to how you managed to survive and get here."
Dearka returned the smile to Nicol, "Thanks Nicol, it's nice to know that I was missed," he replied. "And yes, there is a lot that has happened from when I got captured to here and now." Yzak, gritted his teeth at Nicol stopping him. Dearka was helping the enemy, it was as plain as could be. If he had been alive, then he should have communicated that and not helped the enemy. "Nicol," Yzak growled, "if he's alive and didn't communicate with ZAFT, then it means that he's a traitor!"
It hurt to be called a traitor by one Dearka saw as a comrade, a bit more than he'd thought it would be. Dearka hadn't gone against what he believed when he'd enlisted in ZAFT while on the Archangel. If anything, then Dearka had even more reason to fight as he had been now than before. His time on the Archangel had taught him there were important reasons to fight to end this war. And from what Dearka had been seeing, ZAFT was going back on their promises and making the war all about killing Naturals. He couldn't get behind that anymore, he fought to protect the PLANTs but not by killing Naturals. So, Dearka faced Yzak with a serious expression, "I have not gone against the things I believe," Dearka stated firmly, "But with what I've seen and been through, I can't go back to just following orders blindly like before. There was so much that we didn't know before and it makes a huge difference."
Nicol put a hand on Yzak's shoulder and gave him a look that said to listen and Yzak begrudgingly agreed. Dearka continued, "The pilot of the winged suit, his name is Kira Yamato and he's piloting the X10A Freedom right now. He's one of the most naïve guys I ever met, and I doubt he has a mean bone in his body. Kira is also best friends with Athrun since they were kids." Dearka told them about how he had come to learn how wrong they'd been, that those on the Archangel weren't bad or even mean people at all. Dearka had even found out that the pilot that had flown the Strike to the battle where Dearka had been capture was also a Coordinator. Meaning all three of the pilots that they had been going against for the first half of their pursuit had been Coordinators like them. Dearka kept telling them what he had seen and learned while he had been on and with the Archangel.
While that was going on, Kira entered the colony interior and flew around looking for evidence of any of the three that went missing during the battle. Neither the Strike, Shadow, or Buster had been in contact or had returned yet and it had been a lengthy period of time. The Eternal had mentioned the three had entered the colony interior but no reason as to why. And with the colony's com-exchange down, there was no way to communicate to the inside from the exterior. Thus, Kira had volunteered to go and search for the missing while the Dominion was repairing itself from battle. Those in Mendel needed to regroup before the Dominion came back and there was no real estimate on that. So, when he spotted the Strike around one the larger collection of buildings Kira touched the Freedom down next to it. Kira locked the cockpit and then quickly took the Freedom's zip-line to get to the ground, made sure he had the hand gun pilots were equipped with. When he was ready, Kira made his way inside the building to search for Mu.
Rau smiled with what was ahead, the dirty secret that Mu was about to have shoved down his throat. It made coming here even more worth the journey beyond getting specs of the N-Jammer Canceller to the Alliance. Mu was chasing him and wouldn't stop when it would be better for his health if he did. Rau had his mouse heading for his trap, there was little that could change that. If Rau could shoot Mu with the horror and despair on his face, it would be the end of perfect day. "Oh, Mu," Rau continued, "So, Al Da Flaga never told you about this place. He invested a lot in it, so why wouldn't he tell his son, his legacy about it?"
What Creuset was saying didn't make any logical sense to Mu at all. First, how would Creuset even know about his father and what he did? And Creuset had no reason to use Mu's father to screw with him. The masked man was stringing him along, that much was obvious. However, Mu couldn't figure to what end Creuset was pulling him along and it angered him. If the masked man was leading him into a trap, he should just get on with the attempted. "Why would I know this place, you idiot," he yelled back. "My father was just a financial investor, that has nothing to do with you!"
Mu had been making progress at closing the distance between himself and where Creuset sounded like he was. The bullets that were sent his way implied he was getting closer as they forced Mu to duck behind objects to not get a bullet in him. And yet, Mu swore that Creuset wasn't shooting to kill him, which was odd for the man as he had always done that before now. Of course, Mu shot back at Creuset, but there was no sign that he had made any hits on Creuset. The only answer that Mu could come up with was something about this place had Creuset wanting Mu alive for the moment. His attention was snapped out of his thoughts when a stinging and burning sensation burst in his right shoulder. A bullet had found him, yet, when Mu glanced at it, the bullet looked to have passed through so no serious damage that he could tell.
The grunt that Creuset picked up told him he had hit Mu with a shot. He actually hoped it hadn't been a lethal hit, it would take out the fun of this. Rau wanted Mu alive to hear the truth, after that, should the man die, Creuset would be fine with it. So, Rau decided to keep going to see if he could get a response that said Mu was alive. "What a crime it is, for you not to know," he called. "Why it's almost like he didn't trust you. Oh, wait," Rau paused for effect. He had always enjoyed disparaging the man that had wanted to use him for his own ambitions. "That's right, you were a disappointment to him after all," Creuset bellowed back with tones of mirth. "You couldn't live up to your father's expectations, so he stopped trying to shape you to what he wanted."
While Mu had some issues with his Father during his teenage years, they had been talking still at that time before his sudden death. Mu had figured his father had a specific idea in mind for what Al had wanted for him. Mu had made it clear he had other plans for his life and would make his father proud in his own way. Mu had just gotten his acceptance to OMNI's pilot academy the day the fire had taken his parents from him. His father had said if Mu did get accepted to the academy, then he would be proud. Mu wouldn't listen to Creuset on whatever crap he had to through about Al Da Flaga. He was moving forward when a different voice echoed through the halls, "Mu!"
Mu stopped and twisted around at hearing Kira's voice. What was the kid doing here? Creuset had shown an unhealthy interest in Kira as an opponent, Mu didn't want that encouraged. This was already a dangerous situation for Mu, Kira coming into it just upped the danger. "Kira," he replied. "Be careful!"
The moment Rau heard Mu shout the name he did, Rau completely froze as a storm of emotion washed over him. For the briefest moment, Rau thought he'd heard Mu wrong, or that it could be a mistaken case of identity. He knew the name Kira, how could he not with how he cursed with the fervor he did and because of this very place no less. The blindest fool here Ulen Hibiki would talk about it endlessly as it was involved with his ridiculous obsession. Memories flooded back to Rau of his miserable days here. This was the colony he was "born" here or really created at, by none other than Hibiki. And having to see Hibiki most day and essentially ignoring him after a week Rau came out of his tube had started Rau's hatred. It was those days Hibiki had treated him as nothing which had fed Rau's personal hatred of Hibiki and fueled what had become Rau's goal to destroy the human race. The little staff that had tried to befriend him, but their attempts were for not after Hibiki had rejected him.
Rau had to suffer back then as Hibiki would rant about his dream of "perfect potential" he pursued. The man was disgusting by most standards people had, but Rau had his personal hatred of the man. Tormenting Hibiki's wife hadn't even put a dent in the man, as interesting as it had been for Rau. Hibiki had extracted his own child who had the name Kira for his insane work against his wife's wishes. Hibiki had justified it by saying with twins, he would have a "natural" control to compare with. Rau had turned to the one who had donated the DNA to his creation to escape Hibiki. And yet that had been little better as Al Da Flaga had quickly tried to make him into the image he wanted and not let Rau choose for himself. That had come to a quick end and had been the first time Rau had killed someone or in the case of the fire he'd set, many people. That event had made Rau feel better than good, it had silenced one of those who wanted to use him. Rau had enjoyed the screams of those inside the Flaga home, it was the happiest day of his life at that point.
Even with his doner gone, Rau still had his hate of Hibiki, it had driven him to help kill all in this colony, his precious project included. So, chances of the boy surviving were beyond low which would mean it wasn't the fool's project. And yet, Rau couldn't help but pause as there had been rumors Hibiki's wife had been on Earth at the time. If the woman had taken the boy from Hibiki, he could've survived. The only problem Rau had with that theory was Hibiki didn't leave his project alone, he'd always been around it or had eyes on it. The man had never let the babe out of his sight. Rau would know about Hibiki's paranoia, it had may any attempt to kill the boy Rau made fail before they got too far. However, that woman had connections Rau found out with some of the staff that had worked here. Thus, if any could steal Hibiki's precious babe, then it would've been her. Rau hadn't watched Hibiki's wife much looking back, he'd been narrowly focused on Hibiki himself and his project.
The more that Rau thought about it, the more possible it seemed Hibiki's boy may have survived the attempts against him. Rau had seen the lengths a mother could go to protect their child a few times and had learned not to underestimate it. Then if Mu knew this boy, it was possible and even likely this "Kira" could've been one of the legged ship's pilots. If it was the one he had gone against, it could easily explain why the boy was improving as quickly as he did. Rau couldn't help the insane smile which came to his face. Assuming this boy was Hibiki's project child, it would make this trap incredibly better. The boy made it here after all against impossible odds and probably didn't know the truth about himself. The very thought got Rau to admit there could've been something to Hibiki's insanity. The more he thought about there being something to Hibiki's dream got Rau be unable to hold back the laughter, "Kira you say, Mu," Rau posed, "The whims of fate are something else, to say there are beyond hysterical is not enough anymore."
Kira made his way quickly to reach where Mu was as Creuset was speaking and laughing. When he got to Mu, he spotted a red splotch on his right shoulder. "Mu are you alright," Kira asked quietly so Creuset didn't hear. Mu waved off the concern, "I'll be fine, just a stray bullet stinging me," Mu remarked. "it's nothing to worry about right now. I'll get it looked at later since we have more issues to worry about with Creuset here." Mu glanced at Kira's gun and saw proof the kid had very unlikely used a gun before now. The safety was on and the kid didn't appeared to have coked the gun to load a bullet in the chamber. "Kira, if you are going to use a gun, you need to switch off the safety and cock it first you know."
"But where are my manners," Creuset called in a mocking tone, "What an honor it is to have you here, Kira." Kira looked at his gun as Creuset had continued before he gained a flustered expression as he saw that Mu was right with the safety on his gun was on. Granted, Kira understood the mechanics of how guns worked, but in all reality, this was the first time he was using one to defend himself. He turned off the safety and focused back on the situation at handed. Creuset kept shouting from further in the complex, "You've been the one piloting the Freedom I would bet, but you didn't steal it." Rau paused as the boy would know who had stolen the Freedom. That event had set things back a bit in Rau's plans and he'd never figured out who had took the machine. "But you would know who did since they would've given it to you. I would love to talk to you about that, after all, you're a star here dear boy, or didn't you know that?"
Kira blinked and stared down the corridor where Creuset's voice had come from. What had been said didn't make any sense to Kira. He'd never been to Mendel that he knew of, or any of the colonies at L4. So, how would he possibly be known here let alone a "star" at this complex? "I don't understand what he's talking about," he muttered, "I've never been to this colony, or any at L4."
Mu put a hand on Kira's arm, "Don't listen to him, Kira," Mu stated, "The man is trying to get a rise from you, that's his thing. Let's move forward and get this guy." As Mu and Kira continued forward, Rau kept going, "Let me guess, dear Mu told you not to listen to anything I say. But I assure you, I'm speaking the truth Kira, your existence became the main reason this facility was kept in operation. But as you won't believe me because of what Mu told you, please, come further in, I will show you proof of what I say. I even promise not to kill either of you until I show you the truths that are hidden here. Come now, what are you waiting for?"
Mu and Kira kept moving forward as Creuset kept ahead of them and out of sight. "Don't hesitate either of you," Rau called as he entered the inner lab area ahead of those following. "Come and I'll show you where the tale that we three play a part in all began! And what a tale it is, you don't want to miss it!"
The two went up a set of stair that led further into the complex going in the direction Creuset's voice had come from. The more rooms Kira and Mu searched, the more Kira figured this place was a medical complex. However, as they went, Kira was getting weird feelings coming to him and he couldn't explain them. All the while, Rau Le Creuset teased them as he stayed ahead of them, "Why Kira, did you know this is where you were born if you can call it that which I would question. Or didn't you know your last name is that of those who adopted you and not the name of your biological parents? Perhaps you don't know of your origins yet?" Creuset let out a laugh, "I certainly understand being told lies Kira, you and I have been told many by those we've been around. It really is a shame, I watched you when you were born and surrounded by your proud father."
Mu wasn't buying anything Creuset was saying about Kira. The masked man had an obsession with the boy and that was it. He was trying to physic Kira out and Mu wouldn't let Creuset do that to the kid. And the way Creuset said the word "father" was filled with disgust and hate, though Mu couldn't say why. Mu glanced at Kira and saw he was hesitating, so Mu put a hand on his shoulder. "Don't let the things Creuset says get to you Kira. He would lie if it benefits him and his schemes, don't fall for his tricks," Mu said to Kira. "You have people that care about you, keep them in mind."
Kira nodded slowly, but somehow, the things that Le Creuset said wouldn't leave Kira's mind. The two worked their way through rooms that looked like waiting rooms at a doctor's office as well as hallways with offices on both sides. Yet, it was as they came to a door that had the plate: "BL4+ Humangene MA Nipulation Lab" that gunshots were fired at them again. They shot back before moving into the room. The area had two pools filled with liquid, that had nine tanks in the liquid in each pool and there was a walkway between the two pools. Kira glanced over the displays on top of the tanks and saw that the readings were of something he could only guess to be embryos of some sort. On the edges of the room were shelves with containers with partially grown embryos that looked human. While taking in the elements of the room, they were setting off things in Kira's mind, but he didn't understand why that was happening. "Does seeing the gene lab space bring back memories for you Kira," Creuset asked further ahead, "For you should know this place."
Vague ideas were popping up, none of which made sense to Kira, and it scared him a bit. "Me, know this place? Why should I know," Kira started to say? However, Kira's gaze fell upon a name plate on the wall and his voice caught. The plate said "Prof. Ulen Hibiki M.D., Ph D" and that name was one he'd heard once before. His parents had mentioned it before that Kira could recall. It had been when they had thought he was asleep when he was young, and the name hadn't been said in a nice way. He thought his mom had been talking about a friend when he heard the name, but he couldn't be certain. Kira hadn't understood why at the time as he had been really young back then, but the memory was one of the earliest he could remember. Mu kept moving forward and Kira followed him, even as confused as Kira was at the moment.
Mu could tell Kira was confused and while Mu wanted to help him, there wasn't the time. Creuset's voice had sounded much closer than before, like he was only a room or two ahead, meaning the man could attack them. Mu wouldn't let the masked man hurt Kira more than he might have already. Mu had just entered a room when he spotted Creuset waiting. He raised his gun but Creuset beat him to the punch and fired sending a bullet into Mu's right side. Mu fell to the floor and his gun spun away from his reach. Kira snapped out of his confusion at the gunshot to see Mu on the floor, the blood coming from his right side. Kira realized that Mu had been hit and when Kira glanced to the other side of the room he saw Creuset standing there. Kira rushed forward and placed himself in front of Mu, gun at the ready pointing at Creuset.
Rau Le Creuset stepped into the light, gun in hand, pointing at Kira. Seeing the boy now with his own eyes, Rau could see it was indeed Hibiki's "perfect child." The boy looked too much like Hibiki's wife for it to not belong to her and that cursed man. Hibiki's child had survived and had grown into a young man with his "perfect" genes given to him by his father. "I don't intend to kill either of you," Rau stated, "not yet at least." Rau pointed his gun away as the boy had clearly never used a gun with how he was trembling. "I said I would show you both the truth, and I fully intend to. It would be a damn waste for you both to be ignorant of everything that came from here that connects to you two."
Kira kept his gun pointed at Creuset even though the man had stopped aiming his at Mu and him. Rau picked up a book from the nearby table, and tossed it in their direction. When the book hit the floor, pictures came out and Kira quickly recognized one as the same Cagalli had shown Athrun and himself. But there shouldn't be a copy of that picture in a place like this, there was no reason to be that Kira could thing of. Mu was glaring at the masked man and glanced down at the collection of pictures that came out of the book. One picture held Mu's attentions, for it was one of himself when he was a child, and he was with his father. It had been back when he got along extremely well with his father, much happier days in Mu's memory. Both Kira and Mu focused back on Rau, "And how do you have these pictures here, Creuset," Mu demanded angrily.
Rau snickered, "They have been here the whole time, Mu," he replied. "They are one of the records the staff kept of work they did here." Rau shrugged, "Were you aware this was one of the places Coordinators could be made after some banned the practice? This place was more specialized, only for the rich and wealthy could afford the work done here." Rau began chuckling, "This place proves human desire and greed are truly insatiable. They weren't satisfied with what nature's method of reproduction would give them even when it had proven to be better. They wanted their "perfect" designed babies just as they ordered, every quality and feature as they wanted." Mu didn't miss the way Creuset said perfect which had been in a hated tone. Rau continued, "Nature "messed" up orders, so one man here was determined to take nature out of the reproduction equation as he used to call it." Rau focused on Kira, "Your biological father Ulen Hibiki would rant about how he would make the perfect way to exactly design humans to order. He believed he could play god and went about proving he could, fool that he was."
Kira's voice wasn't working at being told his biological father was here and had been working to prefect the process of making Coordinators. He'd never asked his parents about who his biological parents could be. Kira had just never felt the need to know since his parents loved him. Yet, Creuset was implying Kira's biological father had been working on a means to create the perfect child. Was it possible that this Ulen Hibiki did make Kira the way he was?
Mu had gotten to his knees before he lunged for his gun and aimed at Creuset. Rau had seen the movement and wouldn't allow Mu to interrupt this. So, Rau shot Mu's shoulder and kicked away the gun. "No interrupting, Mu," Rau chided. "Keep your opinion to yourself, and I'll get to you soon enough." Rau turned back to Kira studying the boy's body language. It seemed the boy didn't know about his biological parents. He definitely didn't know about how Hibiki made him, the work which had gone into it, and what he was because of all of that. That in itself was quite something with the boy being so sickeningly innocent. He hadn't the faintest idea he was seen to be the perfectly designed human with the greatest potential possible. Rau sniffed "So, you have no idea how you came to be what you are, Kira. I figured that had to be the case with how you are now. If you knew the truth, then you wouldn't have turned out as you have. You wouldn't have turned out so normal," Rau remarked saying normal in a hate-filled tone. "You have no signs or marks of the tainted circumstances that brought you into existence, you're free of such chains."
Rau took a step toward Kira looking him over, still not quite believing this was Hibiki's project child. "Quite honestly, it never occurred to me when Athrun first brought your name up, that you could possibly be Hibiki's dream child." The way that Creuset said 'dream child' didn't sit well with either Mu or Kira, for it was beyond derogatory. Rau hated this dream child for some reason or another, but neither could say why. Kira's hands were shaking as he kept the gun set on Creuset, the confusion had returned and was doing a number on him. Kira was becoming a little scared as what Creuset could say next. Rau took another step toward Kira "Really, I had assumed that at least you'd died. The man never let you out of his sight and he was here when the colony's population met their fate."
Mu shifted back to a sitting position as he was listening to Creuset. The masked man knew too much about the events he was talking about for him not to have been involved in some way. "Any how do you know any of what you say, Creuset," Mu challenged.
Rau glanced at Mu, "Oh, I'll get to that in a moment, Mu." He turned back to Kira, "Any yet, then I recall Hibiki's wife happened to be supposedly visiting Earth when Mendel had its accident. That woman would've taken the babe she got to keep from Hibiki so I expected that one survived. But who would've thought that woman managed to steal you from your father? That man always seemed to know where you were, being his work and everything. His paranoia saved you from assassination attempts, so I have to give the man he cared about his work. If that woman got you to Earth she could've hidden you before she was killed I suppose." Rau paused staring at Kira's confused expression, wondering if the boy could really be so ignorant to how many wanted him dead. "You have no idea just how hard some tried to kill you, Kira. Blue Cosmos made a few tries themselves, and they were creative at it."
Kira could believe what Creuset said about him, it couldn't be true. He was no one special, definitely not this dream child that Creuset was talking about. Kira was just a normal person, a Coordinator true, but still nothing more than that. The only reason those like Blue Cosmos should want to kill him was for the same reason they would any Coordinator. "Nothing you're saying makes any sense, Creuset," Kira stated as evenly as he could. "I'm just like anyone else, I'm Coordinator but still a normal human being."
Rau laughed softly at the ignorance of this boy, it was hysterical. "Normal you say, Kira," Rau questioned. He then shook his head, "None could be farther from normal than you, boy. That you believe that is very interesting as it says the environment you grew up in was not manipulated as was intended." Then his face gained a near crazy expression as he spoke again, "Hell, looking back on events, what you've done even leads me to believe that there may be something to Hibiki's mad dream." Kira was getting frustrated at being led on, "Get to the point, what are you saying that I am," he demanded.
This boy's ignorance was wonderful, it was as a painful slap in Hibiki's face. Any harm done to Hibiki was something Rau would applaud as he hated the man. But still, it was too rich that Hibiki's dream child was right here in front of him. It caused Rau to break out laughing, "Why dear boy, you are the dream humanity has reached for. You're the Ultimate Coordinator, the culmination of mad men's ambitions, humanity perfected that none can reach! The perfect human being," he stated insanely. "The complete designed human that defies nature and shows men can play god!"
That was one of the last answers that Kira expected to hear from Creuset. It made little sense to him, the terms 'Ultimate Coordinator' and the other two terms meant nothing of significance to him. But the descriptions that went with the terms, weren't nice ones to Kira at all. Kira didn't consider himself anyone out of the ordinary, certainly not ultimate or perfect. He made mistakes like anyone else could, and he learned from each of them, so what would Rau Le Creuset say he was these things?
But things didn't end there, Creuset continued, "It was Doctor Hibiki who created the artificial womb, built and designed to make the perfect human child made to order. And after his failed attempts, he made you, the only real successful birth that came for that project. The man was so obsessed with this 'dream child' of his, that he saw nothing wrong at all with using other children to produce you." The more Creuset said, the more confused Kira became. All that was being said, was crazy, but there was a whisper in the back of Kira's mind that kept saying 'what if', what if it was true. That whisper wasn't helping Kira at all, it was only making his confusion worse.
Mu gritted his teeth, "And how do you know any of this crap you claim to be true, Creuset," Mu snapped.
Rau turned to Mu, "Because I was here when it happened, Mu," he snapped filled with hatred. "I came into existence here and was ignored by the one who did so. I had to listen to Hibiki's rants of how he would beat the system nature had established since humans came to be. I watched that man waiting to get back at him for creating me for selfish desire. And what was the best way to do that you would ask?" Rau pointed at Kira, "It was to do things to you, Hibiki's precious project child. You were all he cared about, his obsession he willingly did horrible things for." Rau cackled again, "He even cut his own pregnant wife open to extract you to make another attempt while his woman begged him not to. The only reason he kept your twin around was to have a control subject. That's what he called your sibling, nothing more than a piece to compare his project to. That is the one the brightest humanity had to offer, and he didn't care about anything other than his work. That's the human race in a nutshell, creatures of desire and ambition, they care nothing about one another!"
Mu glared at Creuset, "You're insane, Creuset!"
Rau looked at Mu and laughed, "Maybe I am Mu," Rau turned and walked to a console. "However, today will be the day that the secrets I know will be revealed. You see, I was not born naturally at all, but nor am I a true Coordinator. Oh, I was altered at an early in the embryonic stage as most Coordinators are, but there's so much more to the story. And it all goes back to the first one. George Glenn, humanity's first enhanced human Coordinator," Creuset proclaimed. Lights suddenly came on, revealing the room they were in currently, in its entirety. The room was of a laboratory, and the equipment said that it was geared for genetic engineering. Mu got up to his feet and both he and Kira moved into hiding behind consoles. Mu was shaking Kira, trying to get him out of the daze he was in currently. Mu didn't blame the kid for being shaken, Creuset had been speaking directly to Kira and had been saying stuff that was hard to prove or disprove. All the things that were being said by Creuset, they had to confuse Kira in more ways than one, whether any of it was true or not.
"Can you comprehend how much chaos that the man and what he represented spreads even today, the darkness that he brought out of humanity?! What so many people began doing after what he revealed what he was," pose Creuset in growing volume, the tone of growing insanity becoming clearer. One of the displays lit up and videos began playing: "Video record, dated August 9th year 52 of the Cosmic Era," said a female voice. Then, the sound of people talking echoed throughout the things that they were saying suggested they were talking to doctors about their unborn child they were intending to be a Coordinator. There were also angry shouts of mistakes made according to what had been requested. All the sounds were only adding to Kira's daze of confusion as it kept going. Mu took the gun in Kira's hands, knowing the kid wouldn't be able to use the weapon effectively as he was.
As the videos continued playing, Creuset spoke again, "Oh, the things that people would do for the dreams of the child they wanted, the greed they had and showed. And that's where Doctor Hibiki and others like him come in. Hibiki was the one who created the artificial womb to make all the dreams of people even more possible. That invention of his was made to cut down on mistakes nature made. But it came at a price that none know, nor will ever admit! And in the end, what have people gained for obtaining their dreams? The world as it is now and all the horrors and violence that it includes, that's what has come from fulfilling dreams!"
The logic was sick and twist, Mu knew the man was a certifiable nut case, but he hadn't thought Rau Le Creuset had lost this much of his mind and he was screeching rubbish! Such a man was dangerous in so many different ways, Mu prepared himself to pop up and shoot the man. Yet, Creuset kept screeching, "The twists and turns that came because of this obsession, could trump the 'progress' made in earlier times with ease! Humanity is so amazing, isn't it? So much potential and so many things they can create yet, what do they use their potential for, to try and take what another has that they want no matter what is requires! Take me for that, I was created to fulfill an ambition, and it was all destroyed. The one who created me got his dues for the obsession when all in this colony died for it. And as my DNA donor burned for his insistence to leave a legacy in history. Humans even come up with ways to make others miserable and then kill them, that's what humans bring to one another! None can escape this fate, and yet still some foolishly try. The stupid Human Federation is probably the closest group to succeed so far, but they too will fail! THIS CYCLE WILL CONTINUE INDEFINITELY UNTIL THE HUMAN RACE BRINGS ABOUT ITS END!"
Mu had more than enough by this point, the ravings of this mad masked man were ridiculous and need to come to a close! "And what gives you the right to be a judge of any of us Creuset?!" Mu shouted. Creuset laughed manically, "I HAVE EVERY RIGHT MU! I'M THE ONLY ONE THAT CAN JUDGE HUMANITY AS IT IS! I'M THE PRODUCT OF HUMANITY REACHING FOR THEIR AMIBITION!" Mu popped up and shot off some rounds at Creuset and moved to a different hiding spot. Mu did this to draw attention away from Kira, but Creuset had a hanging piece of equipment fall and provide a smoke screen and a shield for him.
Rau couldn't resist taunting Mu as he was the last direct piece from his life before he became Rau Le Creuset. "Don't you remember, Mu? We met once before, long ago before we ever came into contact with one another on the battlefield," Creuset claimed in less volume than he had been screeching in before. Then he started to laugh madly, "Your father, Al Da Flaga was an arrogant fool, who believed he could cheat death. And I curse that I'm a clone of that man, he was the one who demanded Hibiki make me. I thought he could get me away from the fool whose obsession had blinded him. But Al Da Flaga was not so different, he was obsessed just in being remembered in history. That was all he could think of, it is why he was so disappointed in you since you wouldn't do what he did. But I got him back for trying use me by burning down his house with him inside," Rau snapped back, "it was a fitting form of revenge! It would have been better if you were in there with him and his wife too, but then we wouldn't be here like this if that had been the case."
The reminder of having to watch the place he had called home burn down, infuriated Mu. Both his parents had been in the house that day, the plan was Mu would be there for dinner and announce his acceptance to the pilot academy. But when Mu had come to tell them, he'd found the house burning in a blaze. Mu had gotten along with his mother and things had been improving with his father. And he had to watch the house burn with them inside unable to do anything to help them. Rau claiming he was the one who set the blaze angered him more than the things Mu had to see Creuset had done recently. "You expect me to believe that my dad had a clone made and that it's you. Like anyone would believe such a fairytale," Mu yelled rage in his voice.
"Rest assured Mu, I don't want to believe it any more than you do, it is that crazy," Rau bellowed back, "However, it's a fact that can't be denied! The same horrible DNA that the fool had in himself, runs in me."
Kira managed to shake himself out of the confused daze and refocused on the current situation. He looked around for something to work with as Mu had taken his gun and was a distance away from him now. Kira spotted a scalpel on the floor that could be thrown at the man that was shooting at them. So, Kira listened and waited for the opportunity to rush out, grab the tool and send it Creuset's way. "It is because of fools like Hibiki and Da Flaga that humanity must come to an end. These foolish and insane ambitions will do the job anyways if given enough time," Creuset shouted to the room at large. And in the end, the conceited fools floundering in the chaos and destruction will get exactly what they wished for!"
Kira sprinted out and grabbed the scalpel from the floor, but heard bullets coming in his direction as he went. There was a gunshot from behind Kira and the grunt from Creuset said that Mu had hit the man. Kira twisted his body and took aim and threw the medical tool at Creuset's face, and the blade caught the mask which came off Creuset's face. Everything went silent just after the mask hit the floor, Mu and Kira stared at the full face of the man that had always had a mask on it. For Mu, it was as if he was staring at the face of his father when he was a child. It showed that his claim to being his father's clone was pretty much true and it gave Mu a sick feeling. From Kira's perspective, it was strange, there was resemblance between the face and Mu's own, but they weren't the exact same.
Rau knew the two were resisting the truth which the world had to face. So, Creuset had an angry expression on his face, "Do you seriously think that you can change the world from the direction its going now? No one can change the war or stop it from bringing an end to humanity!" Creuset began cackling madly, "Voices of reason go unheeded, and nothing changes, fools like Ellen Blass think that a rousing speech can sway the minds and hearts of people. The whirlpool of hatred is spreading far and wide and can't be stopped by anyone! It can only be destroyed and everything else with it, that is humanity's destiny!"
After shouting that, Creuset turned and ran off. Mu tried to pursue the man, but his injuries stopped him from doing so. Kira went to Mu and asked if he was okay, Mu was breathing hard, "I'll be fine Kira," Mu replied, "Don't listen to anything that mad man said kid, he's insane and made it very plain right now." The two headed back through the facility to get back to their mobile suits to return to the allies.
Back in the interior of the colony, the four pilots were still talking with each other. Krystal was watching the three teens arguing over the Dearka's actions while he was on the Archangel. On the other hand, Nicol was quite shocked by the information that Dearka gave about his time since capture. What he said did explain some of the standing questions with the legged ship and their pilots he had. If they were Coordinators, then there the radical improvement was easier to understand. There was still the pilot of the Blitz's twin and Nicol would be interested in an opportunity to meet and speak with them or him as Dearka had implied they were male. However, there were more pressing matters to attend to before catching up could be properly done.
Krystal's attention was diverted as there was sound to her left. When she looked that way she spotted the Strike and the Freedom flying up. By their course, Krystal would guess they were heading for the southern airlock system to exit the colony interior. That made her consider the merits of returning to their allies. The battle with the Dominion had been drawing to a close when she and Dearka had come inside the colony. If the Dominion had retreated, it wouldn't likely be for long, just to repair and prepare to attack again. Right now, there was the three Gundams and the M1 Astrays to defend their allies. The enemy had three Gundams as well and they had proven to be problems. Krystal made her decision and headed for the Shadow planning to head back to the outside.
Dearka heard movement behind him and when he turned, he saw the old lady heading for the Shadow. It was a good idea to head back to the Archangel to Dearka. Even should they had pushed the Dominion back, Dearka felt that ship would be back. So, Dearka turned and started making his way to the Buster. Yzak took a step forward, "Dearka, you're being deceived," he insisted. Dearka stopped and twisted to look at Yzak and Nicol, "Am I? I wonder which one of us is really being deceived," Dearka replied. Then he looked Yzak straight in the eye, "I don't know for sure what I'm doing is absolutely right, but I've made up my mind in this. With the things I've seen, I can't turn a blind eye anymore and live with myself. I cannot agree that all Natural-types are inherently evil as it being claimed by those who give ZAFT orders. I've seen that they are not, so I can't just blame all Naturals are responsible for the woes the PLANTs face anymore."
Nicol was doing some quick thinking as Dearka had been speaking. He agreed that what was being said by some that Naturals were at fault for everything wrong wasn't right. Dearka had clearly learned a lot while he'd been away and Nicol would love to know what he'd seen. Going back to the ship would only continue the "following" orders blindly and that wasn't helping. While following Dearka had an unknown result, it gave a possibility to see what was going on. Thus, Nicol stepped forward, a thought and resolve set in his mind to see through learning truth. "Then perhaps you could use some help," he asked, "I'm willing to go with you."
Dearka had been turning back to board the Buster when he heard Nicol's offer and he stopped again. Nicol's offer was borderline betrayal to ZAFT depending on who was the judge for the point. Dearka knew what consequences he would most likely face when he returned to the PLANTs and wasn't looking forward to them. But if Nicol helped him, he was put in the same boat as Dearka was in pretty much. Not to say that Dearka was against the help, and he appreciated Nicol offering to do so, but still. He was a friend, he didn't need to get into trouble like Dearka had done with his recent actions. "Nicol, why would you," Dearka started to ask, but Nicol cut him off, "We're friends. And I want to hear Athrun's side of this story of what has happened before I judge whether he did right or wrong." Nicol gave a soft smile, "Besides, we're going against the Alliance, so I see nothing wrong with that, do you?"
Dearka stared for a moment longer at Nicol due to his offer before he let out a laugh. Nicol was using his usual, simplistic logic that was not worth arguing with, "No, no I can't say I do," Dearka replied. He sighed, "See your normal logic can still confound the foolish and shut up us idiots Nicol." Nicol smiled before he jogged back to the Blitz and boarded the suit, at the same time Dearka ascended the zip-line to the Buster's cockpit. Krystal had stopped at her zip line staring at the remaining teen. "So convinced that your comrade is being deceived," She called. "Then ask yourself who is the greater fool in this? The one that goes forward with their eyes open, the one that follows them, or the one who just does what they're told by others with their eyes shut?"
Krystal then used her zip line to get up to the Shadow's cockpit hatch and climbed inside. Yzak was left standing where he was the other three boarding their machines. The Blitz, Buster, and Shadow lifted off the ground and turned in the direction of the southern airlock system. Yzak stood where he was, an internal battle with his sense of honor and duty versing his conscience and loyalty. On the one hand, Dearka had come in with an enemy mobile suit, so therefore, that would mean he would be a traitor and enemy. However, the way Dearka had told it, he hadn't done anything technically wrong yet and Yzak couldn't deny that. The whole situation was confusing and it frustrated Yzak a great deal, in the end, he went for the Duel. If anything helped him vent his frustration, then fighting OMNI's forces certainly did it for him. And by the sound of it, if he followed the rest, then he would get to do just that. Once in the Duel, Yzak lifted off and shot off after the others and shortly caught up with them. Nicol smiled when he spotted the Duel falling in with them, "Decided to join us then Yzak," he asked.
"Don't even start with that Nicol, I going to fight OMNI on the south side of the colony, and you all happen to be going in the same direction," Yzak replied hotly. Dearka smiled and held in the snicker that he felt, hearing Yzak blatantly deny why he was doing what he was just so that he didn't have to tell the truth was still funny. As the four made it halfway to the airlock tunnel, the Strike and the Freedom flew in from bellow and got slightly ahead of their group, heading for the dock too.
Meanwhile, the retreat of the Dominion from battle hadn't been pleasant but having to run from a fight is never easy to do. However, the Dominion and all on board were alive because of the decision to pull back. Overall, the damage to the Dominion was not all that bad if one just went by physical damage. If that was all there was to deal with, Natarle would've been grateful, but that wasn't the case. There was enough done during the battle that was now causing problems that need to be seen to before fighting came again. Natarle had left the damage report and the responses to them to her second in command. She went to her quarters, the one place she was finding she could have peace and could be away from Muruta Azrael.
The previous battle hadn't been anything like Natarle had thought her first battle would be. But there had been a number of valuable lessons taken away from it. First, she hadn't expected that she would be ordered to fight the vessel her first assignment was with. And if she could've spoken more with Murrue Ramius, she was fairly confident that she could have convinced her to stand down. That hope had been dashed with Director Azrael cutting over before she could and essentially pushing for battle. Then, there had been the appearance of Tyler McGregor, and he brought issues all of his own to the table that she hadn't imagined thought of at all. Things had just changed so much from information that had been supplied to her before arriving on site that the situation had just gone careening down hill quickly.
In fact, there were three standing problems as Natarle saw it; the ships, the mobile suits and their pilots, then Tyler McGregor himself. For ships, the information she had received was the Archangel was considered rogue and was to be hunted down. There had been nothing about there being two other ships. There was little on records about the orb vessel, one had been seen visually by OMNI Forces a couple time and was considered to be from the Orb Union, but that was all. The other ship there was nothing at all on, it was the first time anything like it had been encountered. It was just assumed that ZAFT was responsible for its construction and had come from the PLANTs. Both of those ships had made things more difficult to handle the Archangel. The director had insisted one adapted to situations, but the man didn't understand the battlefield could only allow so much of that. Then, the Archangel was a good, well-built and well-armed ship and Natarle knew that from the start. After all, she had been around the ship somewhat before she was halfway through the construction process. Still, the Dominion was of the same class, even if Natarle believed the crew needed more training. That was the one thing the Archangel had in her favor, the crew knew what they were doing and could adapt as the need arose. That made her a strong opponent and that made fighting her a challenge, Natarle knew.
The second problem, the mobile suits on the battlefield had been something else, but that was an understatement for most of them. There was two out of the four remaining G-weapons, the Strike and the Buster, along with the Shadow had been out there. The Strike had new equipment to work with which had given it better mobility to work with. The addition of the two mobile suits that director Azrael was interested in were armed well. They also seemed to have a power supply that didn't run out added to the difficulty they presented. Then, the other unknown purple machine that had appeared a little bit into the battle had only added to the difficulty. It had similar qualities to the two Azrael was after and could be in the same ZAFT series. And of course, there was the mobile suit that Natarle suspected Tyler had been piloting, and like the other unknown was powerful and had an endless power supply.
Who was piloting what mobile suit, Natarle couldn't guess with what she knew at this time. However, assuming that the crew was relatively unchanged, Kira would be in one of them. Tyler was clearly of the red machine with how it taunted her. But with there being seven suits, they made up only two of the pilots, leaving five unknowns. Perhaps if someone had come up with a Natural-use OS, then maybe Mu and Krystal could be two out of those five. Yet, even if that was true, there was three pilots unknown and Natarle couldn't begin to guess who the pilots could possibly be.
Then the final problem of the battle was Tyler McGregor, and that was a whole separate thing. The teenager had bugged and frustrated Natarle to no end while on board the Archangel. The male teenager had from the moment of coming onto the Archangel irritated Natarle. And he had done so in a way that no one had before with his actions of disrespect and his attitude. More than once, Natarle had entertained thoughts of throttling Tyler McGregor around the neck out of sheer frustration that he caused her from time to time. Whether the teen did such things to goad her on purpose or just did what he did without regard to those around him, she couldn't decide. He had possible done things to the Archangel, but even she had to admit there had been no proof of an act of betrayal by him. Natarle may not appreciate the things he did to seemingly to annoy her to no end, but Tyler had been a good kid over all, she had to admit. But for him to appear on the battlefield after going through the injuries that being in an explosion no doubt gave him, it was a miracle in its own way. Nevertheless, Tyler hadn't only shown that his regard towards authority and attitude were unchanged. But his sense of humor that Natarle had gotten to unfortunately see could be much more troublesome that she'd surmised before. He had fun at her expense. He insulted a high position holding person being ruder than he had ever been to Natarle. And he had done both sounding like there was nothing wrong with his actions, he had done so much more.
In the battle, Tyler had flown in front of the Dominion while flaunting being there. He had left a mess for Natarle's crew work on clean up which was being done currently. Tyler had also dared her to shoot him which made her aware of the horrible mess he had given the Dominion. Getting ride of the cause of the mess had been ridiculous and she suspected Tyler had made it harder to stop. The teen had predicted her moves and actions better than she wanted to admit as it had taken time to get things in order. The mess which had caused most systems to have problems was extensive and had all of the ship's mechanics working to fix things. Really, they were doing what they could to get the Dominion in working order rather than repairing systems fully. It was being done that way due to the directors insistence there needed to be another attempt to capture the machines he was after. The issue as Natarle saw it, were the Dominion to head out when enough was fixed, the ship would not be at its best.
Honestly, Natarle had cursed Tyler with what his "something" had done to her ship. When the initial damage reports had begun coming in with the onboard systems she had nearly lost it. How she wanted hunt Tyler McGregor down, throttle him for a while and then toss him into a brig cell and rip off the key pad. She had wanted to do that before, but this time she would make sure it would never open again. She had gone searching for who his parents were as she had several times before when his behavior was an issue. She wanted to have a talk with them on how their parenting had produced the rebellious teen. But unfortunately, like the times before, there was no information on the identity of his parents.
The loss of the battle against the Archangel and her allies wasn't completely unexpected when Natarle thought about it. Two of the Strike Daggers had been lost, and damage had been sustained to the others. Then the three machines that had come with director Azrael hadn't done that much better. Although, their pilots were half the problem in Natarle's view and nothing had been said in how that could be improved. They had been fighting each other and weren't using teamwork at all. They had paid for their rash actions and by what Natarle was being told, were in the infirmary being "worked" on. Something about medication running out he been mentioned and that they need time to recover was said to her. There wasn't any other answers given beyond that when Natarle inquired.
The three custom machines had still taken some harsh damage from the fight and were being worked on. The Raider had lost its shield and the spherical breaker "Mjolnir" destroyed by the Tyler's mobile suit using its heavy cannons. The Forbidden had put a lot of strain on the scythe it wielded, and it would need work to fix. The Calamity hadn't taken any major or serious damage, but there were still repairs made on it. The Forbidden's Geschmedig Panzers had been used to bounce beams to hit the Raider and Calamity by the red suit and the system needed more adjustments in hopes to prevent that.
The abilities of the suit Tyler piloted as well as the purple unknown mobile suit had been impossible to predict. Tyler's machine especially been unpredictable, from its weapons to its defenses. It even had some kind of device that did a near identical job as the Forbidden's Geschmedig Panzers, along with what appeared to be two plasma cannons it possessed which had more power behind them than other weapons like them. The purple machine had a few points of worry for Natarle, even if others didn't agree with her. First, it could transform like the X303 Aegis could, even had beam sabers in the forward joints like the GAT prototype had. The other real problem with the suit, by what she viewed, its body parts could change, exposing hidden weaponry. So, who knows what arsenal that suit had to work with when it came to combat.
Nevertheless, none of the clear facts she iterated made any difference. She might as well not had said anything at all or just talked to a wall. No, all she'd had to listen to, was director Azrael saying how disappointing it was to have lost the battle. Never mind they had been clearly outgunned, outmatched and outdone, in a way that even a rookie could see, apparently none of that mattered. Then, the information they were given on their outset was incomplete and from the PLANTs by Azrael's own words, therefore they hadn't been able to prepare adequately. No, none of that mattered at all to Director Azrael, the man hadn't any idea how things worked on the battlefield. Still, he kept reminding her that she was supposed to follow his orders and not deviate. Natarle had gotten close to telling the blonde to shove his opinion up his rear and screw him, she hadn't felt like that about another, not even Tyler McGregor.
Natarle, knowing that sitting around and leaving her mind to go off on tangents that were ridiculous was a bad thing to do. She headed back to the bridge so see what she could do there to get things moving. Her ongoing conundrum didn't go away for element of it were on the bridge, namely Director Azrael. She ignored the man as she sat down in her chair, "What's our status," she asked. "Major necessary repairs are mostly done on both for the ship and the mobile suits," reported the vice-captain. "Though the suits would do better with more adjusting. Then the ship's onboard systems are okay and things will work enough for the moment. But we would need hours more to potentially get things in full working order. Whatever did the damage did more than we estimated originally."
The news wasn't what Natarle wanted but it was about what she expected with the time they'd had. The Dominion should head back to lunar HQ to get work done before battle again, but that wouldn't happen. If that wasn't bad enough the sensor operator speaking up made things worse, "There's still the three Nazca-class vessels at a distance of 122, captain, they haven't changed their position."
Attacking the Archangel and her allies again would be a serious risk. ZAFT could attack during or after an attempt and finish off the Dominion. With them here, it suggested to her that Azrael's information may have come with a trap attached to it. ZAFT seemed to be waiting for something whether an opportunity to attack or something else. Logically tactics would say to leave the area and come back with help. However, the one she was being constantly reminded she was to take orders from wouldn't allow a tactical retreat to HQ. "Taking on all three at once would put us at a disadvantage, especially if we were to go against the three ships that we were before at the same time. With us not being at full strength, the chances of success are slim," Natarle muttered.
While what the captain said could be true, the goal was unchanged and Azrael would not let that be forgotten. The only change in the point was there now was more targets that could be acquired for the goal. Instead of there only being two, there was now four machines to choose from. "The goal is still the same, the acquisition of one of those two, or I suppose I can say four of those unique mobile suits," Azrael remarked. "Truthfully, I would prefer more than one, but one would do if it's intact enough. The destruction of the Archangel would be nice, but as long as we get one of those machines, then the mission is accomplished."
The director was more difficult than Tyler tended to be and Natarle didn't think she would meet another that would outdo Tyler. The man was asking for a ridiculous thing for the Dominion were it at full strength. And the man was demanding it with the ship at half strength or so. Natarle turned and faced Azrael, "Director, while I can understand your interest, with what is available the chances that the Dominion will be able to do the task is low," Natarle replied. "Thus, what you 'suggest' we do is pretty much suicidal."
"It is so easy for someone to say that something is impossible, whether it is such or not Miss Captain. But it's quite another matter to make things that seem or are impossible, possible, is it not," Azrael posed.
Once again, the director wasn't hearing what Natarle was saying. He was picking out things that served his goals and nothing which would deny him. So, frustration flared up in Natarle at hearing the justification that the one she was supposed to be taking orders and suggestions from. He wasn't looking at the facts or the odds they were facing, he was just waving them off as a 'challenge' to be overcome and not using common sense at all. "That's easy for you to say, but this is the battlefield, failure here means death," Natarle attempted to reason. However, Azrael cut over her, "Oh, it is no different in the business world Captain Badgiruel, to lose in business is death as well," Azrael countered. "So, are you one of those people that fights battles that you know you'll win only?"
The answer was not helpful to Natarle, to say that the business world and the war were the same, was ridiculous. As far as Natarle could tell, Muruta Azrael was far more intent on fulfilling some vendetta which she couldn't see, than anything else. With him being a member of Blue Cosmos, the vendetta had something to do with killing Coordinators. Azrael was looking at her, waiting for an answer, "No director, but I fight all battles with survival being the first priority in mind, even if that means the objectives I'm working to achieve have to be delayed," Natarle said carefully.
"Not that I can't understand doing that, after all, you've got to do what you've got to do to be victorious. Still, we can't sit here and do nothing forever, now can we? That being said, give it your best shot and remember, nothing ventured, nothing gained." Azrael returned.
Natarle saw that there was no reasoning with this man as things stood. Perhaps looking death in the eyes would make the man understand, but it wasn't the time for that. And though, it went against her better judgement right now, she ordered her crew to make themselves ready for combat. The engines were fired up and the Dominion moved out from its hiding spot behind a nearby colony in the cluster by Mendel.
A/n
Okay, I'll leave off there and continue it in the next Phase. So then, onto the highlighting and pointing out things I do at the end of a Phase. This phase was of course was the scene inside Mendel both with Creuset and the others. First, I wanted to point out that Mu and his father Al hadn't been on the best of terms much as canon implies. However, in this story, Al Da Flaga was in the process of making up with Mu and his acceptance to OMNI's pilot academy opened the door to that. I want to give the implication that Al Da Flaga was potentially turning over a new leaf, not admitting he was changing for the better, just saying he was open to possibility. Yet, Mu knew his father invested in to companies like GARM R&D even if he didn't know why. Creuset knew Mu's father was having second thoughts about some things, so had "taken care" of the man with the house fire. But Rau knew Al Da Flaga more than Mu as he was estranged as a child.
Second, you readers may have noticed, I have made use of Nicol after sparing him unlike canon. This is just the first instance I will be using Nicol for the storyline much like other characters I choose to save, even "those" I have yet to mention. Nicol is a voice of reason which Yzak will somewhat listen to. In canon Yzak doesn't listen to Dearka, but with Nicol he is at least begrudgingly give him the time. Because of that, Nicol and Yzak get an explanation as to what had been happening they were never told about. That will make a difference in future phase as you readers will see.
Back to the scene with Crueset, Kira, and Mu, I did give more background as to why Crueset detests Kira. It isn't Kira as a person or his personality which Rau hates, it is the fact that Hibiki created and modified Kira which is the source of his hatred. I laid out Rau hated Hibiki and Kira was the "project" Rau would always hear Hibiki ramble about. I don't know about any of you, but when you hear another talk about one thing over and over, it can get annoying or worse. Rau even implies he was involved with what happened with Mendel. And in truth, he was part of the group that injected the colony with and man-made plague which killed the inhabitance. He'd tried to kill baby Kira several times before that but due to Hibiki's paranoia failed to do the job. So, Rau sees Kira as nothing more than a crazy man's dream which he hates. The conversation also give us a view into Rau's "borderline" insanity. But do not mistake, Rau Le Creuset is a man with a goal he is driven for which could be seen as an obsession rather than insanity.
Finally, the last scene is with the Dominion which I wanted to lay out the after effects of the battle in Phase 46. We know Tyler's "gremlin" did a number on the ship, but I thought it would be nice to say how bad it was. Of course, Natarle goes over what she sees the problems of the last battle as, but I figured it funny to have Tyler as a separate problem. As I said, Tyler would have her cursing his work before the end, and so she was thank you very much! Natarle was mad and I can't exactly blame her for cursing and threatening as she did. And for those who haven't read the original, the mention of Natarle trying to identify Tyler's parents is an ongoing gag for the two. Also, I wanted to show that Natarle is becoming more than irritated with Azrael, that will come to a head, I assure you.
In conclusion or wrap up whichever whay you want to put it, the Phase helped the story more than the scenes being neat. I assure you the next phase will be back to the battle scene, and it will be neat with the changes going into it. The next phase has been coming much faster than this one did. If it keeps up the pace, I might get it out some time in the next few days, though don't hold me to that. I will post it when it is finished and cleaned, that I do promise. As always, some of you take the time to write a review and tell me what you thought of the phase and the story thus far. I appreciate and read each and every review and consider what is said in them. The next phase is titled "Changing Tides" and is close to be doing with the subject matter and will need cleaning before posting. Until then peace out to all of you readers, thanks for joining me for this phase!
