Mobile Suit Gundam Century's Dawn
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The calendar of the Universal Century has reached the year 300. The Earth has fallen into a state of disarray due to a
war against an organization of countries who are seeking total world domination. Even though the Earth Federation has
numbers on their side, they are being overwhelmed by the battle-hardened soldiers of the Alliance of Middle-Eastern
Countries. This is because they had one advantage: strange humanoid machines that could devastate entire platoons
with a single strafe. To make matters worse, the Colonies have severed all diplomatic and economic ties.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Exalon attempted to set a trap for the Desert Dictators, trapping them in the valley. Unfortunately, the Terran
Alliance interfered by attempting to put charges on the Exalon. Koshiro saw Paiyako attempting to take on the Zeon
alone and attacked. Paiyako's core cycle was destroyed but she landed in the B-Gundam's hands. Ben Hoshum attacked the
B-Gundam but Koshiro used the beam rifle to fend him off. Now, both Koshiro and Paiyako are worried. One is afraid
that he would have to face his friend in battle, the other is worried over the B-Gundam's intentions in saving her.
[Title: Village of the Damned]
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sasari Mei, head of the Terran Alliance, huddled in a bush with a control. With her were the other participants in the
semi-successful raid on the Earth Federation Flagship. Despite Paiyako Mushimi's attempt to blow up the AMEC, the
others managed to fit their charges on various parts of the Earth Federation Flagship.
"Everybody cover your ears," she announced before hitting the button.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Everything was quiet on the Exalon. Koshiro was in the cargo bay working on his virtual targeting program. Everybody else
was on the bridge at their usual stations. Suddenly, a violent explosion raked the entire ship. It was so violent that
Tasha fell off her seat and landed on her arm.
"Report," Commander Lucas called out.
"Multiple explosions throughout the ship," Victor reported.
"We're losing speed and altitude," Muro added.
"Cargo bay to bridge," called Koshiro's voice. "What's going on up there?"
"Stand-by," Commander Lucas replied. "We're making an emergency launch of the B-Gundam."
"Roger. Helmet Interface System activated." Gundam Pilot's visor turned blue. The cargobay door opened. The catapult
flung the B-Gundam outward. Koshiro landed on one knee, an improvement from last time. With scanners set to full,
Koshiro began to look around. When visual failed, he switched to thermal scan. That focused on the Terran Alliance
that was hiding in the bushes. "Found you!"
"Sasari, it spotted us," a lookout called out.
"Okay, people, evacuation plan Vega. Paiyako, Mileena, stay with me." Everybody began scrambling for cover. No
matter what Koshiro tried, he wouldn't be able to catch them all.
"They're scrambling like ants," Koshiro reported to the Exalon crew.
"Forget them, Gundam Pilot," Lucas called out. "The Exalon's safety comes first."
"Roger, returning." The B-Gundam turned and walked away like it was brooding.
Sasari, Paiyako, and Mileena had taken cover at one of the entrances to the Terran Alliance headquarters. Sasari and
Mileena had already entered the tunnel, but Paiyako peeked out at the retreating B-Gundam. She still wanted to know
why it saved her, especially since doing so put the both of them at a disadvantage.
"Paiyako, come on," Sasari called back. Paiyako disappeared into the tunnel.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"Bad news," Henry said. "We won't be able to make repairs without landing."
"All right. Victor, find a safe place to land."
"I think I already see a place," Muro jumped in. "Forty-five degrees portside." Everybody looked in that direction
and saw smoke erupting from there. "It might be a village."
"If it is, I don't think they'll be happy when the Flagship of the Earth Federation comes crashing into main street,"
Shinji cracked.
"Good point," Lucas agreed. "Lee, send a message to the Gundam Pilot. Tell him to scout ahead to see the status of the
village. In the mean time, Muro try to gain as much altitude as you can to delay our crash until we get to it."
When Koshiro got Lee's message, he acknowledged it. Suddenly the B-Gundam's backpack sprouted wings and the boosters
fired. The B-Gundam rose until it was even with the Exalon.
"Wow, I didn't know it could fly," Shinji commented.
"Do you think Koshiro can pilot it?" Lee asked Commander Lucas.
"Koshiro has surprised me a lot in the past few days," Lucas replied. "I wouldn't put anything past him."
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
She was making dinner when she began to hear it. A low rumble, like a jet engine. Picking up a pair of buinoculars,
she looked through them. She saw a large humanoid-shape flying machine heading her way.
Something about the humanoid shape triggered a long-forgotten memory, a memory of another humanoid-shape flying
machine. She remembered it flying in after a battle. She remember how majestic the giant machine looked, even
during it's most blackest moments.
The children have been around her playing a game. Now they stopped and were looking in the same direction as she was.
"Miss Keela, what's that?" The youngest one asked.
"I'm not sure, Sonya. Better take cover just in case it lands."
"I'm not afraid of them, I'm not afraid of anything," one of the others boasted.
She chuckled, as if she wasn't surprised at the . "Yes, but Sonya is so you gotta take care of her."
"What? I'm not!"
"Just go hide and don't make a sound."
"Aww..." But the children were already shoved into one of the houses that still had a wall. She doused the fire and hid
the pot. Then she took cover herself.
Koshiro landed the B-Gundam and stepped out.
"I don't believe it," she gasped as she stared at the machine. "A Gundam! After all these years, I never thought I'd see
one again."
He opened his visor and took out a communicator.
"Gundam Pilot to Exalon, I arrived at the town. Looks in shambles, no sign of visible life. Safe to come in."
"Roger, Gundam Pilot," came Lee's voice. "We're coming in."
Koshiro took off his helmet which was a bad move. Something beamed him in the skull. It was a stone.
She cursed. "What do those children think they're doing?"
More stones began hitting him. He raised his arm to prevent his head from being hit any more and spoke into his
communicator.
"Exalon, come in, abort landing, I repeat, abort landing! There are hostiles here!"
"Negative, Gundam Pilot, Henry reports that we have to land now or else the engines will explode. You'll have to contain
the hostiles until we arrive."
"With what? I don't have a gun!"
"What about the B-Gundam?"
"Don't you think that's overkill?"
"Wait," she called stepping out of her hiding place. He saw her and backed up to the B-Gundam. "They don't mean any harm."
Koshiro got a good look at her. She looked to be a little older than him, with long blonde hair and blue eyes. She was
dressed in a pink skirt, white shirt and knee-high boots. She walked past him and over to the house.
"All right, you four, that's enough. Come on out this instant!"
The children came out, all looking disappointed. Sonya, who looked like a young version of herself dressed in an oversize
pink T-shirt and blue shorts. Christopher, with his mocha-coated skin, black bowl-shaped hair and green overalls.
Benny, the mute red-head with freckles and an orange vest and blue jeans. And Ray, the auburn-hair wonder and
probably the mastermind of the stone-throwing exercise.
"Just what did you four think you were doing?"
"But Miss Keela, we didn't make a sound," Ray protested.
"I don't care what you did, you had no right to hit him."
"Yes we did," Sonya said. She stormed up to him and kicked him square in the shins. Even though she was barefoot, it
still hurt for Koshiro. She retreated behind the other three. "He destroyed our town!"
"What are you talking about?"
"Sonya! Forgive them, but I guess they have every right to be mad. Their was a battle between the Earth Federation
and AMEC a few months ago. These children have been nursing a grudge ever since."
"It's all right, I know how they feel. My home town was destroyed by the Earth Federation and AMEC too."
"So why are you in an AMEC robot?" Christopher protested
"This isn't part of the AMEC, it's the Earth Federation's."
"Liar! The Earth Federation doesn't have any giant robots!" Ray said fiercely.
"That's enough. Apologize now!"
"We're sorry we hit you," Sonya, Christopher, and Ray said as they bowed. Benny just bowed but looked really ashamed.
"Um... it's all right."
"Forgive me for not introducing us earlier. This is Sonya, Benny, Christopher, and Ray. My name is Keela Niyoko.
I've been taking care of these four ever since the battle."
"Aren't there any adults here?" Koshiro asked.
Keela shook her head. "They were all killed. We spent the last month burrying them. The children too." She looked
over her shoulder at a pile of mounds with sticks drilled into the ground. Obviously, it was meant to be a makeshift
cemetery. "Might I ask who you are?"
It's Koshiro. Koshiro Anaka. I used to be from Scatterhaven until it was all destroyed."
"So where is your ship?" Sonya asked.
"It's on the way. Don't worry, I'll escort it into a place that won't destroy your graveyard."
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
When the Exalon arrived in the airspace around the damaged town, the B-Gundam was waving its beam sabers like signals.
It instructed the Exalon to set down right on the outskirts. Commander Lucas and Muro stepped out. Koshiro was waiting
for them along with Keela and the children.
"Everything all right?" Commander Lucas asked noticing the ice-cold cloth on his head.
"I'm fine," Koshiro answered. "Nothing broken, I think."
"Did you take care of the hostilities?"
"More or less," Koshiro said looking down at the children. Commander Lucas and Muro followed his look. Ray was digging
into the dirt with his foot, Christopher was picking his nose, Benny was staring straight ahead like a zombie, and Sonya
was staring at the ground like it held all the secrets of the universe.
"How long will the repairs take?" Koshiro asked.
"Henry says it'll take only a few hours. Luckily, nothing vital was damaged beyond repair."
"All right, I'll help."
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
On the Zeon, Ben Hoshum was getting chewed out by Captain Garrett.
"That's twice you were beaten by a nobody in a ridiculous-looking Mobile Suit. Perhaps the rumors surrounding the
Dark Messiah are just that, rumors."
"I haven't had a chance to go up against an expert Mobile Suit pilot yet," Ben protested.
"He shot you once, just once, and you went running like a coward. Dark Messiah my foot, your name should be Dark Chicken."
Ben screamed an outrage then ran out. Captain Garrett smirked. "All he needed was a little push."
Archangel exited the Mobile Suit bay and started flying in the direction where the Exalon was heading, a determined look on
his face. "I'll show everyone, that Mobile Suit will be destroyed by my hands, then none will question the reputation of
the Dark Messiah, least of all, an upstart greaseball like Garrett."
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The sun was beginning to set over the horizon. Keela made a fire and served a stew to Commander Lucas, Muro, and Tasha,
who had her arm in a cast. Koshiro was helping the others with repairs and the kids had been put to bed.
"It's been so long since we've seen other humans," Keela was saying. "But they've adapted pretty well."
"Most of them. I noticed Benny seems a little quiet. Is she deaf or...?" Muro realized that it was a rude question to ask.
"She's mute. She used to be such a talker, but after the attack, she just shut up in her own little world. I haven't heard
her speak in a while. I all but forgot what she sounded like."
"I feel so bad for her," Muro said. "To think, we caused all this."
"We never mean for these incidents to occur," Commander Lucas said. "We already destroyed one town and that's one town
too many."
"I remember when my home was destroyed," Keela said. "It was so horrible, seeing it float around in pieces."
"Float?" Tasha asked trying to balance her bowl on her lap. "What was your home?"
"A space colony called Side 7."
Tasha dropped her bowl. "Side 7?"
"You're telling me you're from space?" Muro couldn't believe it.
"Why are you so excited, it's not that big of a deal."
"We thought all colonies were wiped out long ago."
"No. Actually, when I came to Earth, I stowed away on a supply shuttle. There were plenty of Colonies left."
"When was this?"
"Let's see... I'm 15 now, so I guess it's been about five years since I left Side 7." Keela found it uncomfortable
talking about the past so she decided to change the subject. "I suppose you have an AMEC ship trailing you along with
an ace Mobile Suit pilot."
"Right on the button," Muro confirmed before Lucas could order her to keep her mouth shut.
"That's what I thought," Keela said meakly as she poured Tasha another bowl. "From what I've seen of it, your Gundam
looks like a replica of the old RX-78 model."
"You mean there's more than one Gundam out there?" Tasha asked.
Keela gave her an odd look. "There are actually quite a few Mobile Suits out there." She looked up to the sky. "Perhaps
there are as many Mobile Suits as there are stars in the sky." She stirred the pot instinctively. "Humans always seem to
be in the middle of one war or another. I guess we're just repeating history."
Muro pulled Commander Lucas aside. "Commander, let's take her along."
"Huh?"
"She knows more about what's going on than we do. Her knowledge would be a great assett to us."
"Her knowledge of what, Muro?"
"She probably has seen a Mobile Suit in action before, she could show us how to use it, harness its ultimate power."
"Muro, this is the Earth Federation flagship, not a babysitting service. The only reason I took in Koshiro was because
he has the B-Gundam." Unknown to Commander Lucas, Koshiro stepped up, but only Muro noticed him and secretly gave him
an apologetic look.
"If I may interject," Keela said. Commander Lucas and Muro hadn't hear her come up. "You don't have to take us on
permanently, but if you're heading towards civilization, we wouldn't mind a lift. I want these children to sleep in
real beds and have roofs over their heads, just the basic essentials."
"Once we reach Washington D.C., we can set them up there. It'll be that easy," Muro debated.
"But there's no guarantee that we would be able to protect her. We have no weapons and the B-Gundam can't be in two
places at once," Commander Lucas argued.
"Miss Okawa, I'm sure the Commander is only looking out for the health of the crew. He doesn't want us in any dangerous
situations. I'll just have to take them to Porter City or New Dublin."
Commander Lucas then noticed Koshiro. He probably thought he just came up. "Koshiro, will repairs be completed soon?"
"It'll be another 90 minutes."
Commander Lucas' phone rang. "Lucas... all right, I'll have him check it out." He closed the phone and turned back to
Koshiro. "Scanners reported something unusual heading this way. It could be a Mobile Suit, but they're not sure. Go
check it out. No fighting unless you get attacked first."
"Right." Koshiro ran to the B-Gundam which was stationed in standby position (down on one knee). He took off.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Koshiro didn't have to go far. Archangel was charging towards him.
"You again?" He asked. "I thought I got rid of you."
"I will destroy you, then the Pegasus-class, then I will be retributed."
Koshiro barely had time to activate the beam saber as Archangel attacked with its double-edge metal spear. The B-Gundam
took a step back to position himself.
Koshiro cursed. "If only I had the beam rifle."
Ben's comment echoed that. "Not so tough without your big gun."
Archangel slid one end of the spear in between the B-Gundam's legs. With one turn, he brought the B-Gundam down.
He then stabbed the B-Gundam's legs with it.
"Now you won't be able to stand, and thus an easy target." Archangel slammed his fists into the B-Gundam's rib area.
Koshiro felt like he was taking the hits instead of the B-Gundam. It was so painful. He tried to bring his arms up but
Archangel pinned them down. He started kneeing the stomach where the cockpit area was.
Koshiro had only one chance. Playing possum. He quickly turned off all his systems. Outside, Archangel saw the B-Gundam's
eyes go out.
"This was too easy, but oh well." Archangel stepped on the B-Gundam's stomach one more time. He then took off again.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"All power readings from the B-Gundam have gone silent," Victor announced.
"Does that mean..." Lee didn't want to finish the sentence.
"Probability 95%," Tasha said. "Then again, I never did trust statistics."
"We have no choice," Commander Lucas said. "Take off."
"But what about Koshiro?" Henry pointed out.
"It'll be hard to attempt any sort of rescue operation in the afterlife, Henry." The Exalon began taking off.
Keela got the children into one of the houses to protect themselves from the exhaust from the Exalon's engine.
"You're not getting away from me. I shall destroy you!" Ben cried. He charged towards the Exalon.
Keela was trying to keep the children under control.
"No, you can't go out there, you'll get hurt."
"I can take on that big bully," Sonya said punching the air like a boxer.
"Oh, are you sure? Taking on a big Mobile Suit by yourself?"
"Yeah, I can!" And before Keela could stop her, Sonya ran out.
"Hey, you big bully, why don't you pick on someone your own size!" Sonya picked up a stone and threw it. She threw
another one, and a third one.
Archangel stopped. Ben's mono-eye turned to look at her. {What does that kid think she's doing? I better be careful or
else I might crush her.}
Suddenly Archangel's foot began to rise. It turned in the direction of the Exalon and the direction of Sonya. The
problem was Ben wasn't moving the controls.
"No, what are you doing? Stop!" It was like Archangel had suddenly developed a mind of his own. Ben watched in horror
as the leg was about to crush Sonya.
She would've been crushed, if the B-Gundam hadn't come flying down and tackled Archangel sending him flying to the other
end of town.
"I thought I disabled you!" He then realized that the B-Gundam was using its thrusters as its means of travel, not its legs.
Archangel turned the B-Gundam over so that Archangel itself was now the one on top. It brought its hands together with
the B-Gundam's head in between them.
Koshiro felt his vision begin to stagger as the head was crushed beneath the weight of Archangel's hands. The B-Gundam
weaved its hands up and chopped Archangel's shoulders. With its thrusters, the B-Gundam was overturned. It retreated
to Sonya.
"I've had enough of you!" Ben cried as he powered up his fusion cannons on Archangel's belt.
"Beam shield," Koshiro said as he activated the B-Gundam's one defense. The shield came on and met the combined blasts.
The B-Gundam was being pushed back.
"Come on, B-Gundam," Sonya called. "You can beat that overweight tin can."
Koshiro's eyes widened. Overweight, that was it. "Sonya, you're a genius." Koshiro turned off the beam shield and laid
down so that the blasts would pass over him. Finally, Ben made the move that Koshiro hoped for. It charged forward.
Koshiro held up the B-Gundam's feet. Archangel ran into them. Koshiro brought the B-Gundam's legs over
catapulting Archangel to the other end.
The B-Gundam held out its hand, palm up to Sonya. Sonya looked at it then pointed to herself with a quizzical look.
The B-Gundam nodded its head. Stacy climbed onto the hand.
"Sonya, get down from there," Keela ordered.
"It's okay, Miss Keela, the B-Gundam's going to take us to safety."
Keela wasn't sure, but instinct plus past experience told her to trust the Mobile Suit. "Everybody get on," she instructed
and helped the three older children onto the hand. She climbed on herself and instructed all the children to lay down.
The B-Gundam carefully closed its hand making sure there was a little crack for its passengers to breath. It then took off.
Archangel didn't follow them. Mostly because Ben was investigating the insides of Archangel. He had lost control of
Archangel and he didnt' know why. Was it a program error, or was it a problem within the Mobile Suit itself?
It is possible that somehow an outside influence got control of it, but how was that possible? That's what he was here
to find out. He searched through Archangel's motor circuitry until he found what he was looking for. A small V-shaped
piece of circuitry that wasn't part of Archangel's original design. It was a Menovsky Receptor, designed to control a
piece of equipment from long distance. That meant that somebody had temporary control of Archangel.
The question was... who and why?
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
On the Exalon, Commander Lucas addressed Keela and the children.
"We'll take you as far as the United States. After that, you can do whatever you so wish. Is that acceptable?"
"Yes, Commander," Keela said. "We'll try not to be a bother."
The children saluted.
As Keela escorted the children off the bridge, Commander Lucas turned to Muro. "Muro, I hope I don't regret this."
"Don't worry, Commander," Muro assured him. "I have a feeling things are going to turn out just fine."
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The fate of having to face Paiyako as well as the battles begin to take its toll on Koshiro. As Commander Lucas and Muro
Okawa investigate possible dangers that the Earth Federation is in, the Desert Dictators begin a covert operation to take
down the very heart of the Earth Federation.
Next episode: Internal Conflict.
Dissention comes from all sides.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The calendar of the Universal Century has reached the year 300. The Earth has fallen into a state of disarray due to a
war against an organization of countries who are seeking total world domination. Even though the Earth Federation has
numbers on their side, they are being overwhelmed by the battle-hardened soldiers of the Alliance of Middle-Eastern
Countries. This is because they had one advantage: strange humanoid machines that could devastate entire platoons
with a single strafe. To make matters worse, the Colonies have severed all diplomatic and economic ties.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Exalon attempted to set a trap for the Desert Dictators, trapping them in the valley. Unfortunately, the Terran
Alliance interfered by attempting to put charges on the Exalon. Koshiro saw Paiyako attempting to take on the Zeon
alone and attacked. Paiyako's core cycle was destroyed but she landed in the B-Gundam's hands. Ben Hoshum attacked the
B-Gundam but Koshiro used the beam rifle to fend him off. Now, both Koshiro and Paiyako are worried. One is afraid
that he would have to face his friend in battle, the other is worried over the B-Gundam's intentions in saving her.
[Title: Village of the Damned]
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sasari Mei, head of the Terran Alliance, huddled in a bush with a control. With her were the other participants in the
semi-successful raid on the Earth Federation Flagship. Despite Paiyako Mushimi's attempt to blow up the AMEC, the
others managed to fit their charges on various parts of the Earth Federation Flagship.
"Everybody cover your ears," she announced before hitting the button.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Everything was quiet on the Exalon. Koshiro was in the cargo bay working on his virtual targeting program. Everybody else
was on the bridge at their usual stations. Suddenly, a violent explosion raked the entire ship. It was so violent that
Tasha fell off her seat and landed on her arm.
"Report," Commander Lucas called out.
"Multiple explosions throughout the ship," Victor reported.
"We're losing speed and altitude," Muro added.
"Cargo bay to bridge," called Koshiro's voice. "What's going on up there?"
"Stand-by," Commander Lucas replied. "We're making an emergency launch of the B-Gundam."
"Roger. Helmet Interface System activated." Gundam Pilot's visor turned blue. The cargobay door opened. The catapult
flung the B-Gundam outward. Koshiro landed on one knee, an improvement from last time. With scanners set to full,
Koshiro began to look around. When visual failed, he switched to thermal scan. That focused on the Terran Alliance
that was hiding in the bushes. "Found you!"
"Sasari, it spotted us," a lookout called out.
"Okay, people, evacuation plan Vega. Paiyako, Mileena, stay with me." Everybody began scrambling for cover. No
matter what Koshiro tried, he wouldn't be able to catch them all.
"They're scrambling like ants," Koshiro reported to the Exalon crew.
"Forget them, Gundam Pilot," Lucas called out. "The Exalon's safety comes first."
"Roger, returning." The B-Gundam turned and walked away like it was brooding.
Sasari, Paiyako, and Mileena had taken cover at one of the entrances to the Terran Alliance headquarters. Sasari and
Mileena had already entered the tunnel, but Paiyako peeked out at the retreating B-Gundam. She still wanted to know
why it saved her, especially since doing so put the both of them at a disadvantage.
"Paiyako, come on," Sasari called back. Paiyako disappeared into the tunnel.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"Bad news," Henry said. "We won't be able to make repairs without landing."
"All right. Victor, find a safe place to land."
"I think I already see a place," Muro jumped in. "Forty-five degrees portside." Everybody looked in that direction
and saw smoke erupting from there. "It might be a village."
"If it is, I don't think they'll be happy when the Flagship of the Earth Federation comes crashing into main street,"
Shinji cracked.
"Good point," Lucas agreed. "Lee, send a message to the Gundam Pilot. Tell him to scout ahead to see the status of the
village. In the mean time, Muro try to gain as much altitude as you can to delay our crash until we get to it."
When Koshiro got Lee's message, he acknowledged it. Suddenly the B-Gundam's backpack sprouted wings and the boosters
fired. The B-Gundam rose until it was even with the Exalon.
"Wow, I didn't know it could fly," Shinji commented.
"Do you think Koshiro can pilot it?" Lee asked Commander Lucas.
"Koshiro has surprised me a lot in the past few days," Lucas replied. "I wouldn't put anything past him."
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
She was making dinner when she began to hear it. A low rumble, like a jet engine. Picking up a pair of buinoculars,
she looked through them. She saw a large humanoid-shape flying machine heading her way.
Something about the humanoid shape triggered a long-forgotten memory, a memory of another humanoid-shape flying
machine. She remembered it flying in after a battle. She remember how majestic the giant machine looked, even
during it's most blackest moments.
The children have been around her playing a game. Now they stopped and were looking in the same direction as she was.
"Miss Keela, what's that?" The youngest one asked.
"I'm not sure, Sonya. Better take cover just in case it lands."
"I'm not afraid of them, I'm not afraid of anything," one of the others boasted.
She chuckled, as if she wasn't surprised at the . "Yes, but Sonya is so you gotta take care of her."
"What? I'm not!"
"Just go hide and don't make a sound."
"Aww..." But the children were already shoved into one of the houses that still had a wall. She doused the fire and hid
the pot. Then she took cover herself.
Koshiro landed the B-Gundam and stepped out.
"I don't believe it," she gasped as she stared at the machine. "A Gundam! After all these years, I never thought I'd see
one again."
He opened his visor and took out a communicator.
"Gundam Pilot to Exalon, I arrived at the town. Looks in shambles, no sign of visible life. Safe to come in."
"Roger, Gundam Pilot," came Lee's voice. "We're coming in."
Koshiro took off his helmet which was a bad move. Something beamed him in the skull. It was a stone.
She cursed. "What do those children think they're doing?"
More stones began hitting him. He raised his arm to prevent his head from being hit any more and spoke into his
communicator.
"Exalon, come in, abort landing, I repeat, abort landing! There are hostiles here!"
"Negative, Gundam Pilot, Henry reports that we have to land now or else the engines will explode. You'll have to contain
the hostiles until we arrive."
"With what? I don't have a gun!"
"What about the B-Gundam?"
"Don't you think that's overkill?"
"Wait," she called stepping out of her hiding place. He saw her and backed up to the B-Gundam. "They don't mean any harm."
Koshiro got a good look at her. She looked to be a little older than him, with long blonde hair and blue eyes. She was
dressed in a pink skirt, white shirt and knee-high boots. She walked past him and over to the house.
"All right, you four, that's enough. Come on out this instant!"
The children came out, all looking disappointed. Sonya, who looked like a young version of herself dressed in an oversize
pink T-shirt and blue shorts. Christopher, with his mocha-coated skin, black bowl-shaped hair and green overalls.
Benny, the mute red-head with freckles and an orange vest and blue jeans. And Ray, the auburn-hair wonder and
probably the mastermind of the stone-throwing exercise.
"Just what did you four think you were doing?"
"But Miss Keela, we didn't make a sound," Ray protested.
"I don't care what you did, you had no right to hit him."
"Yes we did," Sonya said. She stormed up to him and kicked him square in the shins. Even though she was barefoot, it
still hurt for Koshiro. She retreated behind the other three. "He destroyed our town!"
"What are you talking about?"
"Sonya! Forgive them, but I guess they have every right to be mad. Their was a battle between the Earth Federation
and AMEC a few months ago. These children have been nursing a grudge ever since."
"It's all right, I know how they feel. My home town was destroyed by the Earth Federation and AMEC too."
"So why are you in an AMEC robot?" Christopher protested
"This isn't part of the AMEC, it's the Earth Federation's."
"Liar! The Earth Federation doesn't have any giant robots!" Ray said fiercely.
"That's enough. Apologize now!"
"We're sorry we hit you," Sonya, Christopher, and Ray said as they bowed. Benny just bowed but looked really ashamed.
"Um... it's all right."
"Forgive me for not introducing us earlier. This is Sonya, Benny, Christopher, and Ray. My name is Keela Niyoko.
I've been taking care of these four ever since the battle."
"Aren't there any adults here?" Koshiro asked.
Keela shook her head. "They were all killed. We spent the last month burrying them. The children too." She looked
over her shoulder at a pile of mounds with sticks drilled into the ground. Obviously, it was meant to be a makeshift
cemetery. "Might I ask who you are?"
It's Koshiro. Koshiro Anaka. I used to be from Scatterhaven until it was all destroyed."
"So where is your ship?" Sonya asked.
"It's on the way. Don't worry, I'll escort it into a place that won't destroy your graveyard."
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
When the Exalon arrived in the airspace around the damaged town, the B-Gundam was waving its beam sabers like signals.
It instructed the Exalon to set down right on the outskirts. Commander Lucas and Muro stepped out. Koshiro was waiting
for them along with Keela and the children.
"Everything all right?" Commander Lucas asked noticing the ice-cold cloth on his head.
"I'm fine," Koshiro answered. "Nothing broken, I think."
"Did you take care of the hostilities?"
"More or less," Koshiro said looking down at the children. Commander Lucas and Muro followed his look. Ray was digging
into the dirt with his foot, Christopher was picking his nose, Benny was staring straight ahead like a zombie, and Sonya
was staring at the ground like it held all the secrets of the universe.
"How long will the repairs take?" Koshiro asked.
"Henry says it'll take only a few hours. Luckily, nothing vital was damaged beyond repair."
"All right, I'll help."
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
On the Zeon, Ben Hoshum was getting chewed out by Captain Garrett.
"That's twice you were beaten by a nobody in a ridiculous-looking Mobile Suit. Perhaps the rumors surrounding the
Dark Messiah are just that, rumors."
"I haven't had a chance to go up against an expert Mobile Suit pilot yet," Ben protested.
"He shot you once, just once, and you went running like a coward. Dark Messiah my foot, your name should be Dark Chicken."
Ben screamed an outrage then ran out. Captain Garrett smirked. "All he needed was a little push."
Archangel exited the Mobile Suit bay and started flying in the direction where the Exalon was heading, a determined look on
his face. "I'll show everyone, that Mobile Suit will be destroyed by my hands, then none will question the reputation of
the Dark Messiah, least of all, an upstart greaseball like Garrett."
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The sun was beginning to set over the horizon. Keela made a fire and served a stew to Commander Lucas, Muro, and Tasha,
who had her arm in a cast. Koshiro was helping the others with repairs and the kids had been put to bed.
"It's been so long since we've seen other humans," Keela was saying. "But they've adapted pretty well."
"Most of them. I noticed Benny seems a little quiet. Is she deaf or...?" Muro realized that it was a rude question to ask.
"She's mute. She used to be such a talker, but after the attack, she just shut up in her own little world. I haven't heard
her speak in a while. I all but forgot what she sounded like."
"I feel so bad for her," Muro said. "To think, we caused all this."
"We never mean for these incidents to occur," Commander Lucas said. "We already destroyed one town and that's one town
too many."
"I remember when my home was destroyed," Keela said. "It was so horrible, seeing it float around in pieces."
"Float?" Tasha asked trying to balance her bowl on her lap. "What was your home?"
"A space colony called Side 7."
Tasha dropped her bowl. "Side 7?"
"You're telling me you're from space?" Muro couldn't believe it.
"Why are you so excited, it's not that big of a deal."
"We thought all colonies were wiped out long ago."
"No. Actually, when I came to Earth, I stowed away on a supply shuttle. There were plenty of Colonies left."
"When was this?"
"Let's see... I'm 15 now, so I guess it's been about five years since I left Side 7." Keela found it uncomfortable
talking about the past so she decided to change the subject. "I suppose you have an AMEC ship trailing you along with
an ace Mobile Suit pilot."
"Right on the button," Muro confirmed before Lucas could order her to keep her mouth shut.
"That's what I thought," Keela said meakly as she poured Tasha another bowl. "From what I've seen of it, your Gundam
looks like a replica of the old RX-78 model."
"You mean there's more than one Gundam out there?" Tasha asked.
Keela gave her an odd look. "There are actually quite a few Mobile Suits out there." She looked up to the sky. "Perhaps
there are as many Mobile Suits as there are stars in the sky." She stirred the pot instinctively. "Humans always seem to
be in the middle of one war or another. I guess we're just repeating history."
Muro pulled Commander Lucas aside. "Commander, let's take her along."
"Huh?"
"She knows more about what's going on than we do. Her knowledge would be a great assett to us."
"Her knowledge of what, Muro?"
"She probably has seen a Mobile Suit in action before, she could show us how to use it, harness its ultimate power."
"Muro, this is the Earth Federation flagship, not a babysitting service. The only reason I took in Koshiro was because
he has the B-Gundam." Unknown to Commander Lucas, Koshiro stepped up, but only Muro noticed him and secretly gave him
an apologetic look.
"If I may interject," Keela said. Commander Lucas and Muro hadn't hear her come up. "You don't have to take us on
permanently, but if you're heading towards civilization, we wouldn't mind a lift. I want these children to sleep in
real beds and have roofs over their heads, just the basic essentials."
"Once we reach Washington D.C., we can set them up there. It'll be that easy," Muro debated.
"But there's no guarantee that we would be able to protect her. We have no weapons and the B-Gundam can't be in two
places at once," Commander Lucas argued.
"Miss Okawa, I'm sure the Commander is only looking out for the health of the crew. He doesn't want us in any dangerous
situations. I'll just have to take them to Porter City or New Dublin."
Commander Lucas then noticed Koshiro. He probably thought he just came up. "Koshiro, will repairs be completed soon?"
"It'll be another 90 minutes."
Commander Lucas' phone rang. "Lucas... all right, I'll have him check it out." He closed the phone and turned back to
Koshiro. "Scanners reported something unusual heading this way. It could be a Mobile Suit, but they're not sure. Go
check it out. No fighting unless you get attacked first."
"Right." Koshiro ran to the B-Gundam which was stationed in standby position (down on one knee). He took off.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Koshiro didn't have to go far. Archangel was charging towards him.
"You again?" He asked. "I thought I got rid of you."
"I will destroy you, then the Pegasus-class, then I will be retributed."
Koshiro barely had time to activate the beam saber as Archangel attacked with its double-edge metal spear. The B-Gundam
took a step back to position himself.
Koshiro cursed. "If only I had the beam rifle."
Ben's comment echoed that. "Not so tough without your big gun."
Archangel slid one end of the spear in between the B-Gundam's legs. With one turn, he brought the B-Gundam down.
He then stabbed the B-Gundam's legs with it.
"Now you won't be able to stand, and thus an easy target." Archangel slammed his fists into the B-Gundam's rib area.
Koshiro felt like he was taking the hits instead of the B-Gundam. It was so painful. He tried to bring his arms up but
Archangel pinned them down. He started kneeing the stomach where the cockpit area was.
Koshiro had only one chance. Playing possum. He quickly turned off all his systems. Outside, Archangel saw the B-Gundam's
eyes go out.
"This was too easy, but oh well." Archangel stepped on the B-Gundam's stomach one more time. He then took off again.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"All power readings from the B-Gundam have gone silent," Victor announced.
"Does that mean..." Lee didn't want to finish the sentence.
"Probability 95%," Tasha said. "Then again, I never did trust statistics."
"We have no choice," Commander Lucas said. "Take off."
"But what about Koshiro?" Henry pointed out.
"It'll be hard to attempt any sort of rescue operation in the afterlife, Henry." The Exalon began taking off.
Keela got the children into one of the houses to protect themselves from the exhaust from the Exalon's engine.
"You're not getting away from me. I shall destroy you!" Ben cried. He charged towards the Exalon.
Keela was trying to keep the children under control.
"No, you can't go out there, you'll get hurt."
"I can take on that big bully," Sonya said punching the air like a boxer.
"Oh, are you sure? Taking on a big Mobile Suit by yourself?"
"Yeah, I can!" And before Keela could stop her, Sonya ran out.
"Hey, you big bully, why don't you pick on someone your own size!" Sonya picked up a stone and threw it. She threw
another one, and a third one.
Archangel stopped. Ben's mono-eye turned to look at her. {What does that kid think she's doing? I better be careful or
else I might crush her.}
Suddenly Archangel's foot began to rise. It turned in the direction of the Exalon and the direction of Sonya. The
problem was Ben wasn't moving the controls.
"No, what are you doing? Stop!" It was like Archangel had suddenly developed a mind of his own. Ben watched in horror
as the leg was about to crush Sonya.
She would've been crushed, if the B-Gundam hadn't come flying down and tackled Archangel sending him flying to the other
end of town.
"I thought I disabled you!" He then realized that the B-Gundam was using its thrusters as its means of travel, not its legs.
Archangel turned the B-Gundam over so that Archangel itself was now the one on top. It brought its hands together with
the B-Gundam's head in between them.
Koshiro felt his vision begin to stagger as the head was crushed beneath the weight of Archangel's hands. The B-Gundam
weaved its hands up and chopped Archangel's shoulders. With its thrusters, the B-Gundam was overturned. It retreated
to Sonya.
"I've had enough of you!" Ben cried as he powered up his fusion cannons on Archangel's belt.
"Beam shield," Koshiro said as he activated the B-Gundam's one defense. The shield came on and met the combined blasts.
The B-Gundam was being pushed back.
"Come on, B-Gundam," Sonya called. "You can beat that overweight tin can."
Koshiro's eyes widened. Overweight, that was it. "Sonya, you're a genius." Koshiro turned off the beam shield and laid
down so that the blasts would pass over him. Finally, Ben made the move that Koshiro hoped for. It charged forward.
Koshiro held up the B-Gundam's feet. Archangel ran into them. Koshiro brought the B-Gundam's legs over
catapulting Archangel to the other end.
The B-Gundam held out its hand, palm up to Sonya. Sonya looked at it then pointed to herself with a quizzical look.
The B-Gundam nodded its head. Stacy climbed onto the hand.
"Sonya, get down from there," Keela ordered.
"It's okay, Miss Keela, the B-Gundam's going to take us to safety."
Keela wasn't sure, but instinct plus past experience told her to trust the Mobile Suit. "Everybody get on," she instructed
and helped the three older children onto the hand. She climbed on herself and instructed all the children to lay down.
The B-Gundam carefully closed its hand making sure there was a little crack for its passengers to breath. It then took off.
Archangel didn't follow them. Mostly because Ben was investigating the insides of Archangel. He had lost control of
Archangel and he didnt' know why. Was it a program error, or was it a problem within the Mobile Suit itself?
It is possible that somehow an outside influence got control of it, but how was that possible? That's what he was here
to find out. He searched through Archangel's motor circuitry until he found what he was looking for. A small V-shaped
piece of circuitry that wasn't part of Archangel's original design. It was a Menovsky Receptor, designed to control a
piece of equipment from long distance. That meant that somebody had temporary control of Archangel.
The question was... who and why?
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
On the Exalon, Commander Lucas addressed Keela and the children.
"We'll take you as far as the United States. After that, you can do whatever you so wish. Is that acceptable?"
"Yes, Commander," Keela said. "We'll try not to be a bother."
The children saluted.
As Keela escorted the children off the bridge, Commander Lucas turned to Muro. "Muro, I hope I don't regret this."
"Don't worry, Commander," Muro assured him. "I have a feeling things are going to turn out just fine."
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The fate of having to face Paiyako as well as the battles begin to take its toll on Koshiro. As Commander Lucas and Muro
Okawa investigate possible dangers that the Earth Federation is in, the Desert Dictators begin a covert operation to take
down the very heart of the Earth Federation.
Next episode: Internal Conflict.
Dissention comes from all sides.