Disclaimer: Standard disclaimers apply. I do not own Gundam Wing; they are the legal property of Sotsu, Sunrise, Bandai, and any other company I failed to mention.

Warnings: Mild language and violence; actually, the language's a bit stronger in this one, but nothing too bad.

A.N: Okay, this is the first part of the last chapter in Zero Soul and there is an epilogue that follows it. I'm sad to see this story come to an end, but it was going to happen sooner or later. In the last chapter Zechs set aside his differences with Heero and agreed to take the restraints off Tallgeese III to use it in the upcoming battle with OZ. Meanwhile, Sally and Wufei discovered some disturbing details that involve the Seele units. In this chapter the scenes go back in time in reference to the first scene with Trowa and Wufei. In the original version it was counting down the hours, but this time around I'm gonna use the 24 hour clock.

ZERO SOUL

Chapter 15: A New Dawn

Part 1: Countdown to the Inevitable

By: Vegie-kun

Present day: 1600 hours
Location: Siberian wilderness

It was late afternoon, slowly approaching early evening, and the sun was saying its last goodbyes to the land. The area seemed peaceful as a flock of birds made ready to leave the trees in which they were resting. Without warning a bright patch of light could be seen in the distance as artillery shells filled the hazy orange sky. The once serene silence was now broken by the occasional sounds of explosions. Countless mobile suits littered the horizon, resembling a swarm of killer bees on the attack.

"Wufei," Trowa called to the Chinese pilot, "how are things on your side?" He paused to duck as a Gemini swung its beam sabre. As soon as the mobile suit completed its action, Heavyarms dashed forward, knocking the Gemini backwards.

"What do you think? Shit!" the Altron pilot cursed as unknown gunfire hit him in the back. His Gundam slumped forward, but he managed to prevent it from toppling over completely by supporting himself on one knee. Faster than the wind, he swung with his Twin Beam Trident and struck the unlucky mobile suit's side. If the suit had been an ordinary Leo, it would have been destroyed, but it was a Gemini II and the double beam trident only managed a well-sized dent. "Dammit! It'll take us forever to destroy these things! When is Yuy's plan going to take effect?!"

The Heavyarms pilot wasn't able to respond right away; another Gemini had caught his attention. After kicking the OZ suit away, he unleashed a round or ammunition into the fray, dispatching two of the enemies. "Be patient, Wufei," he replied in the calm, but firm tone that was uniquely his, "we have to wait for Water and Fire to do their part before anything can happen."

"Argh! Shit!" he cursed again, biting back the pain as he was slammed in the side by another suit. "I still say it was a bad idea letting the two of them handle that end of Yuy's so-called plan."

"Wufei, there wasn't anyone else capable enough for the task," he was cut off momentarily by two oncoming Geminis, but was able to dodge them easily. "They will succeed... they have to, we are out of time and options."

"Gods dammit!"

One day prior: 1600 hours
Location: Preventer Headquarters

"What did you say?!" The Chinese pilot wailed at his partner as he slammed his hands on her desk. "Do you even know what you're getting into?"

"As a matter of fact, I do," she curtly replied, standing up to meet his gaze. /Dammit, I liked him better before he reached his growth spurt, at least I was able to look down on him./ "It's no different than the other missions I've been assigned." She crossed her arms over her chest and tried her best to keep from strangling the young man.

"Yes, it is!" The pilot's teeth clenched as his hands balled into fists.

"How so?" There was impatience in her voice; she really didn't want to be here having this conversation. Her morning had been a hectic one; she'd been given a copious amount of paperwork, had to attend two meetings to devise and strategize battle plans, and had to make the necessary preparations for her upcoming infiltration of OZ's base.

"You'll be alone." It was said in such a somber tone that even those who'd been long acquainted with the young pilot would have had a hard time believing that it belonged to him.

"No, I won't," she huffed, exhausted, "I'll be with Fire."

"But you won't be in the same sectors," Wufei retorted, showing an unexpected amount of concern for the older woman. He unclenched his hands and let them drop to his side. "You'll be headed for the main communications room while she's off to wherever those doctors are... I don't like the idea of the two of you going in there without backup."

"Wufei..."

"What if they discover you? What are we going to do then?" the youth rambled on. "Yuy's half-cracked plan has no room for failure, if something were to happen to you, we are all affected-"

"You don't trust me?!" her face flushed with anger and shock. It was her turn to clench her fists as she gave him a deadly glare.

"I didn't say that, onna!" he retorted.

"Stop calling me that!" she snapped angrily.

The young man sighed heavily and held up a hand, asking for her silence. "Sally... all I'm saying is that I'm worried. I know you are more than capable of handling this, Fire too, but... just be careful."

"Wufei..."

One day prior: 1400 hours
Location: Preventer Headquarters

"How many of the Maganacs were taken out?" Duo asked from his seat at the cafeteria table. The Deathscythe Hell pilot had just seen Hilde Schbeiker off at the spaceport an hour ago and, as of now, was trying to learn all he could about the events that transpired with his Arabian comrade. Of course, this was done over a tray of food... lots of food.

"In all," he began sadly, "it was five suits and five Oliphants. That reduces our number to only thirty-five."

"Do you think that will affect us any?" he asked as he leaned back in his seat, one arm resting on the table while another held a sandwich.

"Against those Geminis, every suit we have counts," the blond was serious and the other pilot could tell. Holding his head in his hands, he slowly let out his voice. "I don't like to sound grim, but we're in trouble."

"Oi, you're telling me?" the braided pilot let out a humorous chuckle. He took a bite of food, swallowing it before he continued, "At least you were able to get some decent field experience with them. I haven't had that pleasure yet so I'm going to go into the battle without any real firsthand knowledge of what those suits are capable of. If you ask me, I'm at a slight disadvantage."

The Arabian couldn't help but laugh at that remark. /Leave it up to Duo to make it seem as if he's been cheated out of something during wartime./ "I see what you mean."

"So where does that leave us now?" the American pilot inquired. "Last I heard they outnumbered us fifteen to one. What are the current figures now that we lost ten of our own suits?"

"Well, it's not so bad… just eighteen to one," the youth saw the Deathscythe pilot grimace and decided to give him a sympathetic look.

"We're dead," the jovial boy dramatically responded, flailing his arms about for emphasis.

"Will you stop that, baka?!"

Both Gundam pilots turned their heads, looking up to see the scowling Chinese man above them. Like the other two he had on his Preventer uniform; a portfolio clasped in his hands. "We're needed in conference room 2 for a briefing."

"Briefing? Now? But I haven't finished my meal yet," the American gestured to his strange array of food.

The shorter boy gave a disgusted look and tried to turn away. "Ten men couldn't finish the food that you've laid out, baka. C'mon, I want to get this over with as quickly as possible so we can prepare for the OZ attack." With that he turned around and headed for the exit. Duo reluctantly left his small buffet as he got up and followed behind with Quatre in tow. They took one of the elevators to the second floor conference room; all curious as to what would be in store for them.

When they entered the expansive room with the large oval table situated in the middle, they saw that the majority of their team had already arrived. Zechs and Noin were sitting next to each other on the right side close to the door while Trowa sat in the seat next to them. Sally occupied a chair a few seats away from him and Lady Une was at the head; a mop of dark brown hair was glaringly absent. The three youths moved to take their seats around the table, waiting patiently once they got there to hear what had to be said. A few moments passed before Lady Une coughed lightly, signaling the beginning of their meeting.

"You're probably wondering why Heero isn't here at the moment; he's still on L1 and will join us once the attack starts... I take it everyone knows about the battle soon to come," she looked around the room and saw the nods. "I'm sure it also hasn't escaped you that we are severely outnumbered." Her tone become serious and her eyes no longer held any humor. "Their numbers total at least 650 not to mention they have an extremely powerful Gundam as well. More than half those numbers are mobile dolls, which prove to be both advantageous and disadvantageous for us. If we are to stand a fighting chance against OZ we must work together and… Heero has kindly offered a plan that will help make use of our limited resources."

A few faces at the table began to pale. It wasn't because they doubted Heero's ability to come up with a good plan; it was just that his plans sometimes went into the extremes and often involved something self-detonating If the suicidal pilot lived up to his nature, then they were going to be put through the ringer. The Japanese youth had never been one to be subtle; once his mind was set on something there was little anyone could do to stop him. That was what they feared; the knowledge that Heero would not stop, no matter what was going to happen. One way or another, it was going to be either OZ or them, maybe even both, who would not leave the battlefield alive.

"You will be fighting in teams," she began again, "Duo and Quatre will be team one, Wufei and Trowa will be team two, Zechs and Heero will be team three, and the Maganacs will be split into teams of five. Quatre, you'll be the one to lead the assault." She saw the look of fear in his eyes and responded before he could. "You can do this Quatre. Heero trusts your judgment; that is why he chose you. The attack will commence in 25 hours, and once it begins, you are to make sure that none of the OZ mobile suits leave the Siberian area."

"Victory means teamwork. Our top priority will be the disabling of the mobile dolls. If we can eliminate the control console for the doll program, we'll only have to deal with half those numbers and most of the pilots will surrender once they realize what has happened. However, even after we render the dolls inoperable, we still have Neo Epyon to contend with. The outcome will never be guaranteed unless we can take out that Gundam, which means having to deal with Relena." She saw Zechs getting up to protest and held up a hand to silence him.

"Let me finish, Wind," she said turning to gaze at the entire group. "A few weeks ago we had no idea how those Seele units functioned but that was then; now we have sufficient data that can aid us in our search for the solution. In order to take out the Neo Epyon we have to take out its pilot. While the Gundams, Tallgeese III, and Maganacs are dealing with the Geminis, two of our special operatives will infiltrate the OZ base in Siberia." She stood up and pressed a button on the panel next to her shutting off the lights as a screen descended from the ceiling. Displayed on it were images of blueprints and floor plans, most likely to the base. Using a laser pointer to direct their focus, she continued on. "Once inside operative one will locate and proceed to the main medical facilities here in search of the doctors responsible for the Seele units. At the same time, operative two will head for the main communications room here."

"I don't understand," Noin spoke from her seat. "Why would the second operative need to go to the communications room? Wouldn't it be safer for them accompanied the other in the search of the doctors?"

"It would be safer, yes, but it would take too much time and manpower; both of which we do not have. During Heero's time at the base he was able to discover a way to break off the influence of the Seele units." She pressed a button and the image switched to blueprints of the Seele units. "On the day Relena escaped from our facilities, she was sent a transmission ordering her to return to their base. It turned out they had to use a lot of power to do so and in turn, they blew out a circuit on unit number three. While that wasn't enough to free her completely from the devices, it was able to weaken the units' influence. Her time in WingZERO during the assault on the North American base triggered some sort of memory lapse, causing her to lose consciousness." She hardened her gaze and a devious smile spread across her face. "What we want to do is trigger another such memory lapse that will render her inoperable as a pilot during the battle."

"But she won't be in WingZERO though," Duo pointed out.

"Don't concern yourself about that, Heero has already assured me he has that part of the plan all taken care of. The operative sent to the main communications room will send a strong signal to the Seele units, hopefully short-circuiting unit three. That assignment will be carried out once they have deactivated the mobile doll. Things should be easier once those tasks have been completed."

"Wait a minute," Wufei began suspiciously, "who are these special operatives going to be?"

"I'll let you know once I give them the details of their assignment."

One day prior: 1800 hours
Location: OZ base

Last minute preparations were being made to the Gemini mobile suits strewn about the underground base. Everywhere engineers and mechanics scrambled around trying to make themselves useful lest they incur the wrath of the General. The Gundams weren't going to be taken out easily, but they had to be if OZ wanted any chance of conquering the Earth Sphere Unified Nation.

Luckily for them, the intimidating general was currently in his room, contemplating the events yet to come. His hands cradled his head as he sat at the edge of his bed, eyes shut with exhaustion. /Soon... soon everything will return to the beginning. OZ will be in control once more and there will be order, purpose, peace... the only obstacles left: the Gundams and the Preventers… but that will be taken care of soon enough. They may have five Gundams but only one of them has the ZERO system, and there's no way they can stand against 650 mobile suits. More than likely, WingZERO's pilot will be going against Rei... she's so much like Anna-NO! Stop this; you cannot get distracted at this point. Concentrate on the task at hand and victory will ensue./

He reached out for the picture frame on his dresser and stared at it; his body visibly slumped as tears escaped from the corners of his closed lids. /Oh God... Dammit! I always turn back to you when the times get hard... We were supposed to see this future come to fruition together! Why did you have to die back there?! Why did you have to leave me? I thought we were friends. I thought we'd always be there for each other, so why aren't you here now?.../

*FLASHBACK*

In the dirty alleyway between two broken down apartment buildings, footsteps were heard running through puddles. Seconds later, two children, looking no older than eight, popped out and ran into the street of a large town located in a more secluded part of Germany. One of the children was a boy with messy black hair and bright blue eyes. The other was a small girl with tangled honey blonde hair and warm blue eyes. Faces smeared with dirt and grime, and tattered clothes that were nothing more than rags; it was obvious were they stood on the social hierarchy.

In their arms they carried pieces of bread; most likely stolen. Despite their ragged appearance, the two had smiles upon their faces; they expressed nothing but hope. After running past another corner the two eventually stopped by a large oak tree. Exhausted, they fell down at its trunk, laughing joyfully. Once the laughter died down, the boy gave a sigh and turned his attention to the spoils in his arms, then to the ones in the girl's.

"Here," he said placing a piece in her pile, "you're uneven."

"But-" she began to protest but was hushed by a headshake.

"Nah, your family needs it more," he saw her lower her gaze and he shifted closer, putting an arm around the slender form. "It's okay, don't worry about it. There'll always be more bread."

"Thanks, Julian," she said softly, meeting his gaze.

"Hey," the boy said cheerfully, trying to lighten the mood, "did you hear about the people coming here today?"

"Is it the Alliance soldiers?" There was fear in her voice.

The boy blinked and felt her uneasiness with the subject of the Alliance. "Not exactly, it's OZ!" he beamed when he said that. "They're here to fix this place up and we'll be able to get money and food and real homes!" His words were so full of excitement the girl couldn't help but return his smile, yet a question still nagged at the back of her mind.

"How are they gonna do that?"

"Well, they've already started by re-opening the factories just outside the town and have started hiring people to work there. I think our families will be working there, though I'm not exactly sure of that yet," he said with an amused expression on his face. "They'll also build a school here to train new OZ soldiers. I heard they were gonna start recruiting real soon. And you know what?" There was a big grin on his face. "I'm going to join them!"

"Really?"

"Yeah," the statement was full of enthusiasm though his gaze was concentrated on the grass, "and I'm gonna be the best soldier there, then no one will have to worry about being hungry or cold anymore 'cause I'm gonna take care of them."

"Hey," the girl exclaimed hesitantly, "can I join you? I don't want to be left behind." There was a pleading look on her and the boy felt his heart tear.

"Of course! We're gonna be the best students there! Just you and me, Anna. Did you really think I would leave you behind?" She nodded and he chuckled. "I'd never do that to you! You're my best friend and I'm your protector, right?"

The girl beamed up at him; unable to contain the joy within her, she dropped her provisions and hugged him. "Always, Julian! We'll always be the best of friends!" The embrace was hesitantly broken and the girl looked into his cool blue eyes blushing. "Sorry, Julian. Guess I got carried away there."

"Hey," the youth began but quickly dismissed the thought, "forget about it." The boy turned his attention towards the open field spread out before them; his face held only determination and quiet strength. "We'll forge a new future for this world," he vowed silently to the wind, unaware that the girl had also heard his declaration. She placed a small hand on his forearm and leaned into his figure.

"Together?"

"Together."

*END FLASHBACK*

/Oh, how stupid I was... God, I miss you so much... We survived everything our childhood had to throw at us... only to miss out on the rest of our lives. Damn it all!/ He suddenly stood up and violently threw the frame on the floor. The glass broke immediately upon impact; cracks running like rivers on its surface while pieces shattered and broke off from the rest.

"Damn," he sobbed, falling miserably to the floor as soon as the word left his lips. "Foolish, childish dreams were never meant for a world such as this..." His arms hugged his body and he curled into a ball like a lost child, still sobbing. "Fools... we're all fools. Striving for our own selfish goals, we lose sight of the things most important to us... dammit... damn it all..."

In one of the training facilities within the OZ base the doctor with the graying dark brown hair and the one with white hair stood behind a wall, looking into the adjoining room through the one-way mirror. Both held clipboards, jotting down note and note with fervent interest of their subject in the next room; the pilot known as Rei. The two watched as she repeatedly and flawlessly dispatched soldier after soldier that came at her. The door to their room opened and another man with black hair and beard casually walked across the room to join them.

"How is she?" he asked casually.

"Better than ever," the eldest doctor replied. "I guess the tension of the upcoming battle is causing her to react as such. Her reaction time has jumped up at least 15 percent in the last two hours alone... Those Preventers are really going to have something to worry about."

"What if the units malfunction again?" the brown-haired man inquired.

"Will you stop worrying about that? Everything will be fine. Do you have so little faith in our work that you would question the Seele units' reliability?" The white-haired man queried mockingly.

"It's not that at all," the younger man said apologetically.

"Then what is it?" There was very little patience in his voice.

"It's the girl. Her mind... no, her spirit, is much stronger than we give it credit for. If we're not careful, she could break free of its hold by herself."

"You put too much faith in the human mind," the eldest doctor retorted. "If humans are so strong then why did they allow themselves to be controlled so easily in the past?" He snorted derisively. "Humans haven't changed; they've just found new masters to obey. It's a sick process that will never end… just like war and hatred."

The brown-haired man became silent and the darker-haired man went up to the window and pressed the button for the intercom.

"That's all for now, Rei. We'll begin testing with the ZERO system in an hour."

On the other side of the barrier the girl's body went still as the orders were given. She stood breathing heavily; sweat covering most of her body and a stern look etched on her face. In the quiet of the room she was able to hear the beating of her heart as it pounded rapidly within her chest. /Only 21 more hours to go, before I will be able to face him… Heero Yuy. I will definitely eliminate you./With that small declaration, the girl slowly headed towards the exit.

One day prior: 2300 hours
Location: L1 laboratory

"Heero? Are you still up?" Doctor J's voice cut through the stillness of the dark room. He turned his mechanical gaze onto the figure hunched over a laptop and sighed. "Go to sleep, Heero; you've done all you can, there's nothing more to do but to wait. All of OZ is probably sound asleep by now."

"No," he stated coldly, "she's still awake, and training."

"Maybe so, but you'll have an advantage if you're well rested," he replied with a knowing smile. "Try to at least get in 6 hours, hmm?"

"Hn. Is everything set with WingZERO?"

"Yes, but what will you do if you are forced to activate it? Her impression is just as strong as yours, and she wasn't able to defend against it. I wonder if you'll fare the same way." He adjusted his specs and grinned. "The other old men and I have been placing our bets to see who'll be the victor. They've put their money on OZ's little toy soldier, but I have my money placed on my own heartless one. Don't die now or else I'll be out of a retirement fund."

The old man left the young pilot to his solitary confinement-like state, chuckling as he made his way through the corridor. Heero neither ceased in his typing or strategizing as various plans ran through his chaotic mind. /There can be no mistakes. No mistakes at all. One false move and we lose the battle and Relena… I'll die before I let either of the two happen. Failure means death and death is the only thing to hope for if OZ wins.../

The videophone on his stand suddenly beeped and the youth hesitated before pressing the button to answer the call. The screen clicked and Heero met pale blue eyes, curving eyebrows, fair skin, long platinum blonde hair, and a mocking smile. His Prussian blue eyes narrowed, and he seethed through his teeth. "You. How did you get this number?"

"Oh, does it really matter now?" came the unmistakable voice of Dorothy Catalonia. "I'm more surprised by the fact that you were able to remember me."

"What do you want?" he asked in a low and dangerous voice.

"What? Can't I just call to say hello?" The girl's smile widened when she saw that his patience had left him. "Alright, I'll explain myself… I must tell you though, the Preventers should get a better security lock on their computer system; it doesn't take much to hack into it and retrieve information on say... someone's number. You should really think about helping them improve their system; I hear that you're an expert on such things."

"What do you want?" he asked again ready to end the call.

Dorothy gave a soft chuckle that was uniquely hers and fixed her eyes on those of the Gundam pilot. "Ah. Ever the Perfect Soldier; always straight to the point as usual. Fine then, it's about Whitenburg."

"What about him?"

"Other than the information you 'acquired' about him at the underground Siberian base, what do you know?" She saw his eyes widen slightly, a bit confused, and smirked. "Nothing. Other than what was on his profile, you know absolutely nothing about why he's initiating this war."

"He wants control of the Earth Sphere Unified Nation," he stated matter-of-factly.

"In a way that is correct, but it's not the absolute truth," she replied knowingly.

"Well then, what do you know?"

"Everything."

Present day: 0000 hours
Location: Preventer Headquarters

The tall young man stood in his office, staring out the window. His arms were crossed over his chest as he remained motionless and stoic, something that wasn't new, especially for him. Sleep hadn't claimed him yet and he doubt it would anytime soon. The hours were drawing to a close and soon it was all going to happen once again. It was going to be a fight that paralleled the last climactic battle of the Eve Wars. The only real difference was that they wouldn't be able to kill the one thing that truly threatened them. He tensed when he heard light footsteps approach him and made ready should that person be an enemy.

"Thinking of the battle, Trowa?" came Noin's mature voice.

He nodded and she took up a position next to him, his form taller than hers. "She will get hurt." He stated calmly, almost coldly.

"No one's gonna argue with you on that," she sighed lowering her gaze for a second before averting it to the night scenery outside the window. "I'm pretty sure though, that it won't affect her much. I just wonder if she's going to be the same person after this."

"She's a strong girl." As usual, he pointed out what really mattered.

"I already know that," she stated. "I was the one who accompanied her to all those OZ meetings during her time as ruler of the Sanc Kingdom. You have no idea how aggressive she can get when people try to discourage her. Trust me; if she can survive all those stuffy conferences, then she can survive getting a few scrapes and bruises."

There was silence between the two once more and they held their gaze on the outside world. "Do you suppose he's thinking about her?" he asked suddenly, staring into the star filled depths of space.

"Maybe," she replied gently, a bit of laughter escaping her lips, "you can never really tell with that guy." Her face became set and her voice was firmer with her next words. "It's sad really; to see another war develop right before our eyes. Humans haven't changed much and I doubt they will anytime soon in the future. Despite everything they have witnessed throughout history, their greed and selfish desires always seem to blind them to the sufferings of the people."

"Peace always follows," he stated almost automatically.

"Only if the right person is still alive to instigate it," Noin retorted sardonically.

In the apartments located in the building adjacent to Preventer Headquarters, Duo Maxwell was keeping himself occupied with the person within the video screen. Bright blue eyes and an impish smile were comforting him in his time of confusion and anxiety. He had acted as if he were unfazed by the events yet to come, putting on a happy mask that allowed him to get by that day. He tried to put forth a brave front but it was exhausting; at least he didn't have to try so hard in front of her, she knew him better than that.

"It's going to be alright, Duo," Hilde said reassuringly. "You're one of the greatest pilots I know, and it's not like you haven't been situations like this before."

"Yes, it is different," he was exasperated. "I'll be fighting 'Jousan. I don't care if she's in OZ mode while she's fighting; she's still 'Jousan to me."

"Are you kidding me?" the German girl remarked with a wide smile. "Relena's going to kick your butt on the battlefield; don't make it sound as if you won't have any trouble taking her down."

"Hah! Me? Lose to Relena? I'd like to see that happen!" he stood up and shouted, placing his hands on his hips.

"I don't know about that," the girl mocked slyly, "the reports that Wufei, Heero, and Quatre submitted about their encounters with her suggest otherwise." She was teasing him and, by the look on his face, it was getting to the Gundam pilot.

"Shinigami doesn't lose to girls," the American smirked, confident, before going into a hysterical fit of laughter. This was his ego at stake here and damn him if he was going to lose a battle to a pacifist!

Hilde couldn't help but smile at the comedic expression plastered on his face. /He really needs this right now. It's better for Duo if he goes into battle with a desire to win... I know he'll succeed./ "Good luck, Duo. Stay alive for me, okay?"

"Don't worry; I've beaten OZ before and I'll do it again, anytime, anyplace... Thanks babe."

Present day: 0200 hours
Location: OZ base

The young man laid back on his bed, fingers interlaced behind his head, completely exhausted. He'd spent the last 16 hours overseeing the preparations for the upcoming battle. His body ached, but he knew it would go away soon enough; he had more important things to worry about. Beautiful brown eyes stared up at the ceiling, obscured by a few locks of reddish blonde hair, casting its gaze on the fan that seemed to spin idly round. How many nights had it been where he'd find himself like this? To his knowledge, it had been too many to count.

His mind wandered subconsciously to the earlier events of that day; namely, the girl's daily exercise with the ZERO system. Although all her tests had been done in a simulation cockpit the system was synced to the one that was installed in her Gundam. Yes. It was her Gundam; he was finally able to admit it after such a long time spent in denial. The tests with the ZERO system proved that her mind was more than capable of handling the effects usually induced by the program. Every time she was in that simulation cockpit, he always saw her improve bit by bit until her mind seamlessly merged with it and they became one single entity. The strangest thing though, was that every time she ran those tests, a part of his heart would ache. It wasn't from jealously but sadness… a sadness he could only trace to the past.

"Anna." The name instilled both joy and sorrow within him and another person he knew. /He's falling apart, you know? He tries to keep your memories alive but it's killing him at the same time. He's afraid to move on, fearing that he'll forget you if he does... Oh, who am I kidding? I'm no better off than he is, I miss you too... Although you two were my superiors, you were also like my brother and sister... How I wish for those old days again, before those damned Gundams appeared... and then there's that girl. It's not helping him any since she does resemble you. Hell. It's not helping me either because every time I see her in that cockpit I think that it's you and that it's your soul being slowly eaten away by that Gundam. That girl should have never been allowed inside that thing; all it does is scrape away at the pieces of one's soul until there's nothing left.../

"Why did you do it?" /Why did you volunteer to fight that day? … Why am I blaming you? You had no idea the Gundams where going to be there that day at New Edwards... you had no idea you were going to die that day as well. If... if only... Dammit! It's stupid to think that you can change the past. It's written in stone and can never be altered, but the future... You'd always say that it was made of clay and had yet to be molded... I shouldn't be dwelling on things that have already passed; I'll end up like him if I do and that's the last thing I'd want to deal with right now. *sigh* How old am I now? Twenty-seven and still hopeless. I wonder if I'll die today; get blown up by one of those Gundams. Nah, I can't let that happen, I have to make sure that he stays alive until the end. I promised you I would... just hope that I can keep it./

Feeling the weariness descend upon him, his eyelids started to slowly drop and his thoughts drifted off into oblivion. Faces flashed through his mind in its final hour of consciousness: those of Whitenburg, the doctors, soldiers, Darlian, Anna, Rei, and then the pilot of WingZERO. Somehow, the images of Rei and Heero began to alternate in the dark corners of his mind. He paid little attention to their faces, but their eyes stood out to him; they were so much like each other. They were cold, emotionless, unnerving, and dangerous; twin orbs that spoke of death to all who'd interfere with their missions. /I don't know whose eyes I'd rather look at; the emptiness of the red ones or the coldness of the blue ones./ The young man shuddered as he remembered those heartless Prussian blues. Passing by the prisoner's cell, he'd seen them peering out at him, eyeing him like a predator.

"What do I do now?" He queried before he succumbed to the song of night.

Present day: 0500 hours
Location: L1 laboratory

Heero sat in the cockpit of his majestic WingZERO; gazing longingly at the Earth from his position on the colony. /Soon./ He looked down at his blue spacesuit and adjusted his gloves and the straps that kept him fastened in his seat. Despite the new information that had been given to him, he still managed to get a decent night's rest. /This doesn't change anything; I'll make him pay for what he did to Relena... but what about that promise I made? ::You said that you would never kill again:: I've already killed! ::No, you haven't!:: Those men at all those OZ bases died to satisfy my need for vengeance... vengeance for taking her away from me. ::Those bases were nothing but decoys; they didn't have anyone manning them. You still haven't killed; you have yet to break that promise, don't question it now. You've come a long way to get where you are, don't ruin it by letting your anger take hold of you:: *sigh*/

The youth hung his head and chuckled. /What's wrong with me? I'm arguing with myself... again! When did I become like this?! When did I lose control?/ He stopped his laughter and looked up at the screen; pressing a button, he brought up an image. "Relena." It was the young Foreign Minister all right; aquamarine eyes, shimmering brightly with hope, not those dead red eyes that ate away at his heart. It was a picture taken when she had been truly happy and unburdened by her work: a rare one, taken in the garden of the Peacecraft mansion during a vacation that was forced on her by Noin. Don't ask how the Japanese pilot managed to get hold of it. He had his ways; he always did.

/I lost control the first day I met you./ Heero's form was still and silent as he stared absently at the picture. In the quiet cockpit, he could hear the rhythmic beating of his heart accompanied by the emptiness of space. It was such an eerie place; desolate and cold, not like the warmth of the Earth. Still, space was his home, and he knew he would be connected to it for as long as he lived. /I met you on my way to Earth from space and I almost killed you./ He switched off the screen and leaned back in the seat, taking a deep breath.

Out of the corner of his eyes he saw the first rays of the sun as they came out of their hiding spot behind the blue planet. Its golden light spread across his screen, bathing him in its warm glow. It was dawn: the beginning of a new day and possibly the signal for the ending of something else. He sighed once more and activated the controls on WingZERO, his fingers were but a blur as they pressed buttons and flipped switches. The engines started up and in seconds he was blasting off through the sea of stars towards man's original home world. /I'm coming for you./

-to be continued-

I'm finally done with this part! Sorry, it took so long but I had to cut it in half or else it would have been a novel in itself.