A Childhood Promise
Chapter 4
Rash decisions are often our undoing, and can easily be the opposing force's one chance to strike back.
"What?" Relena stood, slamming her palms down on the table. Trieze, Une, Sylvia, and Sally regarded her coolly, though slightly surprised at her outburst. She looked at each of them, then repeated her question.
"I said," Une began, "that we will attack tonight, in three hours to be exact. Everything is ready. They will agree to us, Relena, or else, we're going to have to terminate the Mars project."
"Terminate?" Relena watched the Lady, but directed her question to everyone. Sylvia, seeing the look in her eye, reached over and touched her arm, calming her. Trieze answered her this time.
"In other words, we're going to have to destroy the Mars Atmosphere. If the Martians don't listen to us, they're going to become unmanageable. We only have that one choice."
Relena looked helplessly at them, knowing that if the plan proceeded, Hilde was going to die.
"This is a desperation move, Trieze, we can't do it!" He look up at her with those annoyingly calm eyes, and in her frustration, Relena had to hold back the urge to scream. "There has to be some other way, we're talking about manslaughter!" Sylvia stood as well and touched her hand to her shoulder, but very lightly.
"Relena, calm down," Sally sat still, calm cool eyes that matched the others watching her, "there's no choice. We've already sent a negotiator, and they haven't agreed, so far, and we must use force. There are casualties in every war, Relena."
"Casualties, yeah, I'm sure. But this is a whole planet we're talking about; can you really destroy an entire planet's population?" She was beginning to calm down, and was sitting into the chair. Slowly, her body sunk into the mold of the chair, and she waited a lot more calmly than before for the answer.
"Yes, we can. They aren't going to listen to us. Why is it that you are so keen on protecting those people, anyways?" A new figure stepped in, soon revealing herself to be Catherine, the one who had sent her down here. She shot Relena an amused smirk.
"Is there, perhaps, someone you're trying to protect?" What was she doing? Before now, she had been a faithful servant to her and a negotiator and spy for Earth. But now, it seemed as if she was betraying Relena. Sylvia glared at her from Relena's side, obviously not understanding either. Finally, the smirk was wiped across the young woman's face as she regarded Relena seriously.
"Relena, I'm still on your side, be assured, but there's something that we should know, and you're not telling us. I don't need to know everything, but something's holding you back." Relena cursed under her breath, remembering why Catherine had become her servant; she was very watchful, and caught onto things that no one else did. She also had more guts than Sylvia, and would say things that she wouldn't.
"All I'm saying is that you have to let go of this. As important as whatever it is that's holding you back is, is it worth the war?" She stayed silent as everyone else stared, surprised at the news. "I'm guessing that this is because of something that happened before? If so, you should forget about it; things change, and you have to keep up with it, or else you'll be left behind."
"Catherine!" It was Sylvia's turn to speak as she stood up, not ready to let her pride be beaten. "Relena is not a girl; she can make her own decisions. I trust her to do this, don't you?" Tension rose in the room as the two ladies watched each other. "How would you understand this anyways? You have everyone you love here with you, don't you? You don't have anything to lose…"
"I'm not trying to do anything, Sylvia, but I am pointing out something that you all should know. Relena's hiding something, and it should be uncovered before she can make mistakes. I want to help her, but it's not possible. We have to clear up her mind, can't you see she's just confusing herself more with whatever it is she's worried about?"
The conversation stopped as Relena stood up, the chair legs scraping across the floor. She wasn't mad, just annoyed, as she turned on her heel and strode out of the room, immediately silencing the room.
"Excuse me, but the room has suddenly become too thick for my tastes. I'll be in my chambers." With that, she left Sylvia and Catherine to bicker, but she did catch Sally's worried look, and knew she would be coming to try and pry some things out of her soon.
*~*~*~*~*
"They did, did they?" Hilde thought out loud as Heero watched her. "What happened, exactly?"
"The negotiator told us that we will have to succumb to them, or else they kill us all." Hilde chuckled suddenly, surprising Heero. "What?"
"They're power drunk, that's what. They're thinking that they can win just like that, and it's what we're going to strike on. Come on, let's go speak to the Generals, we may find a way to even out the numbers with this." She strode pass the chocolate-haired boy, and out the door towards the main central unit.
"Hilde… you seem, preoccupied." He stopped there, as he never said more than necessary. It was lucky that Hilde had a sharp mind, or else their being partners for the most part would've been unbearable.
"I know that the plan will work, Heero, it's quite easy to figure out. We strike we they do, and they'll have no time to defend." But he was right; she was preoccupied. Relena… her mind cried out, how much do you know about this? She didn't want to believe that her friend would allow the Earthling forces to follow through with this, but she had made it quite clear that she wasn't backing down from her side.
"Right, but do you have any idea how complicated this is?"
"Yes, I do. There will be some way for us to find fault. There will be a weak point for us to strike, Heero. There's no such thing as perfection. The Earthlings are just getting ahead of themselves." The hallway gave way to hundreds of eerily blue lights from hundreds of monitor screens. Ahead of them were the Generals, Noin and Marquise. Two guards halted them, but took one look at Heero and lowered their arms. There was only one person in the universe with that glare.
"Hilde, Heero." Zechs greeted them both, never looking away from the monitor screen he was watching. Noin was a little bit more friendly, as she looked at them and nodded as she greeted them.
"What brings you here?" Noin asked, since Zechs obviously wouldn't, besides, she was Hilde's cousin. Hilde and Heero both bowed, then Heero addressed them first.
"We've decided that there may be a way to even the odds when the Earthlings attack." He stopped there, waiting for permission to continue, but instead, Hilde suddenly remembered something that Zechs had asked of her before she had left for the mission.
"Oh, and Zechs?" He grunted in acknowledgement, still watching the monitor quietly, tapping a few keys every now and then. "You asked me to give you any kind of information I could on the Peacecrafts…" He paused and blinked, but continued on after a moment. "The youngest daughter… Relena, is involved with the current… dealings. Also, Mr. Peacecraft is ill." He had stopped completely by then, but didn't look at her. Instead, he continued to watch the screen, but she knew he wasn't seeing any of the words on there.
"Good job, soldier. Noin, please discuss the situation with them, I'm going to go for a walk. Too much work." No other words were spoken as he left, but Noin did watch him, and mouthed… something. What was that…? Definitely not Zechs… M…Milli… the rest was lost, and Hilde shook her head to clear her mind before tuning into what Noin and Heero were saying.
*~*~*~*~*
Zechs Marquise stepped into his bedroom chambers, and ran a hand through his long, platinum hair. So Relena's been dragged into this… he leaned against the drawers, digging through his mind for a mental picture of his sister when he had seen her last… ten or eleven years ago. She wouldn't remember him, and he could barely remember her… just very blurred picture of a toddler in pink.
So, his father was ill, and had sent Relena in his place? Just as well, supposedly. Even as he tried to convince himself otherwise, he knew that there was no way he would be able to fight against his baby sister. No, she was just too… too young. For damned sakes! He was supposed to be protecting her!
"Father… you will pay…" Zechs picked up the mask he had been neglecting all day, turning it over in his hands as he studied it. The light reflected off the metal, and he fitted it on his head. "I don't have to listen to you, and neither does she…"
"Milliardo?" Noin's quiet voice flowed through the air. Out of everyone he knew, she must've been the only one who knew his real name. the only one who knew he was the Zechs that the Marquises had found so long ago.
"Yes?" His shoulders slumped slightly at his acceptance of that name, the name he hated. The name his father wore.
"Are you okay?" He shook his head, never being able to lie to Lucrezia. She placed a hand on his shoulder, and patted it affectionately. "It'll turn out alright. Things will go on as they are meant to be, after this."
"I wish I was as sure as you are, Lucrezia." He gave a slight sigh. "But so many things can go wrong."
He walked away from her touch, leaving her alone in the empty room. Noin sighed, knowing what her little cousin and he had in common; they were both fighting against people they loved, and couldn't give up what they were fighting for.
"They say wisdom comes from making mistakes, and being hurt… but will they be strong enough to be wise?" She asked the walls on the bedroom. Of course, there was no answer. With yet another sigh, she walked out the door to follow Zechs into the room she had just left, and finish up their plan. Still, one question plagued her.
Why?
*~*~*~*~*
New problems introduced, and there's going to be a battle! R&R appreciated! Happy Readings!
Chapter 4
Rash decisions are often our undoing, and can easily be the opposing force's one chance to strike back.
"What?" Relena stood, slamming her palms down on the table. Trieze, Une, Sylvia, and Sally regarded her coolly, though slightly surprised at her outburst. She looked at each of them, then repeated her question.
"I said," Une began, "that we will attack tonight, in three hours to be exact. Everything is ready. They will agree to us, Relena, or else, we're going to have to terminate the Mars project."
"Terminate?" Relena watched the Lady, but directed her question to everyone. Sylvia, seeing the look in her eye, reached over and touched her arm, calming her. Trieze answered her this time.
"In other words, we're going to have to destroy the Mars Atmosphere. If the Martians don't listen to us, they're going to become unmanageable. We only have that one choice."
Relena looked helplessly at them, knowing that if the plan proceeded, Hilde was going to die.
"This is a desperation move, Trieze, we can't do it!" He look up at her with those annoyingly calm eyes, and in her frustration, Relena had to hold back the urge to scream. "There has to be some other way, we're talking about manslaughter!" Sylvia stood as well and touched her hand to her shoulder, but very lightly.
"Relena, calm down," Sally sat still, calm cool eyes that matched the others watching her, "there's no choice. We've already sent a negotiator, and they haven't agreed, so far, and we must use force. There are casualties in every war, Relena."
"Casualties, yeah, I'm sure. But this is a whole planet we're talking about; can you really destroy an entire planet's population?" She was beginning to calm down, and was sitting into the chair. Slowly, her body sunk into the mold of the chair, and she waited a lot more calmly than before for the answer.
"Yes, we can. They aren't going to listen to us. Why is it that you are so keen on protecting those people, anyways?" A new figure stepped in, soon revealing herself to be Catherine, the one who had sent her down here. She shot Relena an amused smirk.
"Is there, perhaps, someone you're trying to protect?" What was she doing? Before now, she had been a faithful servant to her and a negotiator and spy for Earth. But now, it seemed as if she was betraying Relena. Sylvia glared at her from Relena's side, obviously not understanding either. Finally, the smirk was wiped across the young woman's face as she regarded Relena seriously.
"Relena, I'm still on your side, be assured, but there's something that we should know, and you're not telling us. I don't need to know everything, but something's holding you back." Relena cursed under her breath, remembering why Catherine had become her servant; she was very watchful, and caught onto things that no one else did. She also had more guts than Sylvia, and would say things that she wouldn't.
"All I'm saying is that you have to let go of this. As important as whatever it is that's holding you back is, is it worth the war?" She stayed silent as everyone else stared, surprised at the news. "I'm guessing that this is because of something that happened before? If so, you should forget about it; things change, and you have to keep up with it, or else you'll be left behind."
"Catherine!" It was Sylvia's turn to speak as she stood up, not ready to let her pride be beaten. "Relena is not a girl; she can make her own decisions. I trust her to do this, don't you?" Tension rose in the room as the two ladies watched each other. "How would you understand this anyways? You have everyone you love here with you, don't you? You don't have anything to lose…"
"I'm not trying to do anything, Sylvia, but I am pointing out something that you all should know. Relena's hiding something, and it should be uncovered before she can make mistakes. I want to help her, but it's not possible. We have to clear up her mind, can't you see she's just confusing herself more with whatever it is she's worried about?"
The conversation stopped as Relena stood up, the chair legs scraping across the floor. She wasn't mad, just annoyed, as she turned on her heel and strode out of the room, immediately silencing the room.
"Excuse me, but the room has suddenly become too thick for my tastes. I'll be in my chambers." With that, she left Sylvia and Catherine to bicker, but she did catch Sally's worried look, and knew she would be coming to try and pry some things out of her soon.
*~*~*~*~*
"They did, did they?" Hilde thought out loud as Heero watched her. "What happened, exactly?"
"The negotiator told us that we will have to succumb to them, or else they kill us all." Hilde chuckled suddenly, surprising Heero. "What?"
"They're power drunk, that's what. They're thinking that they can win just like that, and it's what we're going to strike on. Come on, let's go speak to the Generals, we may find a way to even out the numbers with this." She strode pass the chocolate-haired boy, and out the door towards the main central unit.
"Hilde… you seem, preoccupied." He stopped there, as he never said more than necessary. It was lucky that Hilde had a sharp mind, or else their being partners for the most part would've been unbearable.
"I know that the plan will work, Heero, it's quite easy to figure out. We strike we they do, and they'll have no time to defend." But he was right; she was preoccupied. Relena… her mind cried out, how much do you know about this? She didn't want to believe that her friend would allow the Earthling forces to follow through with this, but she had made it quite clear that she wasn't backing down from her side.
"Right, but do you have any idea how complicated this is?"
"Yes, I do. There will be some way for us to find fault. There will be a weak point for us to strike, Heero. There's no such thing as perfection. The Earthlings are just getting ahead of themselves." The hallway gave way to hundreds of eerily blue lights from hundreds of monitor screens. Ahead of them were the Generals, Noin and Marquise. Two guards halted them, but took one look at Heero and lowered their arms. There was only one person in the universe with that glare.
"Hilde, Heero." Zechs greeted them both, never looking away from the monitor screen he was watching. Noin was a little bit more friendly, as she looked at them and nodded as she greeted them.
"What brings you here?" Noin asked, since Zechs obviously wouldn't, besides, she was Hilde's cousin. Hilde and Heero both bowed, then Heero addressed them first.
"We've decided that there may be a way to even the odds when the Earthlings attack." He stopped there, waiting for permission to continue, but instead, Hilde suddenly remembered something that Zechs had asked of her before she had left for the mission.
"Oh, and Zechs?" He grunted in acknowledgement, still watching the monitor quietly, tapping a few keys every now and then. "You asked me to give you any kind of information I could on the Peacecrafts…" He paused and blinked, but continued on after a moment. "The youngest daughter… Relena, is involved with the current… dealings. Also, Mr. Peacecraft is ill." He had stopped completely by then, but didn't look at her. Instead, he continued to watch the screen, but she knew he wasn't seeing any of the words on there.
"Good job, soldier. Noin, please discuss the situation with them, I'm going to go for a walk. Too much work." No other words were spoken as he left, but Noin did watch him, and mouthed… something. What was that…? Definitely not Zechs… M…Milli… the rest was lost, and Hilde shook her head to clear her mind before tuning into what Noin and Heero were saying.
*~*~*~*~*
Zechs Marquise stepped into his bedroom chambers, and ran a hand through his long, platinum hair. So Relena's been dragged into this… he leaned against the drawers, digging through his mind for a mental picture of his sister when he had seen her last… ten or eleven years ago. She wouldn't remember him, and he could barely remember her… just very blurred picture of a toddler in pink.
So, his father was ill, and had sent Relena in his place? Just as well, supposedly. Even as he tried to convince himself otherwise, he knew that there was no way he would be able to fight against his baby sister. No, she was just too… too young. For damned sakes! He was supposed to be protecting her!
"Father… you will pay…" Zechs picked up the mask he had been neglecting all day, turning it over in his hands as he studied it. The light reflected off the metal, and he fitted it on his head. "I don't have to listen to you, and neither does she…"
"Milliardo?" Noin's quiet voice flowed through the air. Out of everyone he knew, she must've been the only one who knew his real name. the only one who knew he was the Zechs that the Marquises had found so long ago.
"Yes?" His shoulders slumped slightly at his acceptance of that name, the name he hated. The name his father wore.
"Are you okay?" He shook his head, never being able to lie to Lucrezia. She placed a hand on his shoulder, and patted it affectionately. "It'll turn out alright. Things will go on as they are meant to be, after this."
"I wish I was as sure as you are, Lucrezia." He gave a slight sigh. "But so many things can go wrong."
He walked away from her touch, leaving her alone in the empty room. Noin sighed, knowing what her little cousin and he had in common; they were both fighting against people they loved, and couldn't give up what they were fighting for.
"They say wisdom comes from making mistakes, and being hurt… but will they be strong enough to be wise?" She asked the walls on the bedroom. Of course, there was no answer. With yet another sigh, she walked out the door to follow Zechs into the room she had just left, and finish up their plan. Still, one question plagued her.
Why?
*~*~*~*~*
New problems introduced, and there's going to be a battle! R&R appreciated! Happy Readings!