Author's note: Others own the rights to the G-Gundam characters. All other characters are my creations. Please do not use them without my permission.
Shadow Life – Part 15
By: Diane Maher
Karla waited inside Midnight Gundam as the fighters who were to take part in the final round of the gundam fight were introduced. She listened as each gundam and its fighter was introduced and the emcee gave some background information on them. She wondered what Claus had authorized them to say about her. The next thing she knew was that it was her turn next.
The doors opened and Midnight Gundam rode on its platform down towards the white tiled battle ring where the fighters and gundams were gathered. Karla was amazed at the size of the crowd gathered for the opening ceremonies marking the start of the final round of the gundam fight.
Karla watched the members of the Shuffle Alliance closely as the ceremony continued. She activated her gundam's scanners and panned the suites set aside for the colony leaders. She glimpsed Niklas as he stood at the window of the Neo-Austrian suite. The image zoomed in and she saw his face clearly.
"When the gundam fight is over, we'll be able to be together, Niklas," Karla said.
In the background, she saw Claus making a fool of himself drinking and making advances on his secretary who was just as bad as he was.
"You two deserve each other," Karla commented snidely.
She watched as Niklas rolled his eyes, turned back towards Claus and probably said something. When Niklas turned back to the window, he appeared frustrated and angry.
Niklas was in the Presidential suite along with Claus and the other members of the Neo-Austrian staff and security. He watched from the window as Midnight Gundam was introduced and noticed that not much was said about Karla or the gundam's abilities. Hopefully, Karla wouldn't be lulled into a false sense of security because of this."Niklas, come have some food and beer to celebrate our making it to the finals," Claus said.
"No thanks, I'm not really hungry or thirsty right now," Niklas replied coolly without turning away from the window. He watched in the window's reflection as Claus shrugged and pulled his secretary closer.
"Your loss, the food is delicious and the beer is excellent," Claus said.
"What are you up to, Claus?" Niklas asked as he turned to stare at Claus. "I've never seen you this happy."
"That's Mister President Claus to you," the secretary said in a slurred voice.
Claus stopped stuffing his face long enough to reply, "I'm not up to anything, Niklas. I am quite pleased with the fact that Midnight Gundam is in the finals. It's the first time Neo-Austria has ever made it to the finals."
Niklas frowned and turned to look at Claus sidelong. And it only took the destruction of one woman's life to make it happen! Niklas thought angrily.
He turned his attention back to the opening ceremonies marking the start of the final round of the gundam fight. He listened as Domon Kasshu made his declaration to win every one of his matches. Shaking his head in amazement, Niklas muttered, "Arrogant fool."
Once the torch was lit by the impressive moves of Domon Kasshu and Master Asia, the fighters dispersed. Before leaving to return to the hangar, Niklas went into the bathroom. While there, he heard several of the men in the next room talking to the monitor. At one point, he heard a woman's voice moan, "Oh, Niklas!"
Niklas' brow furrowed in anger as he thought, That's Karla's voice! When he was finished, he zipped his fly, flushed the toilet and washed his hands. As he left the bathroom and walked towards the door to leave, he passed by the room where the men were watching footage of him and Karla making love. This is the last straw! Niklas' eyes narrowed in anger and his hands clenched into fists as he heard their catcalls and their sleazy desires to be the ones making love to Karla. Without a word, he walked out of the Presidential suite and slammed the door behind him.
Niklas walked down the stairs to street level. As he merged with the crowd his mind wandered back to what he had witnessed in the suite. It never occurred to him that Claus would bug their quarters here in Neo-Hong Kong. He felt sick to his stomach. If Karla knew about this, she might go ballistic or worse, she might lose her confidence all over again. Niklas knew that he couldn't allow that to happen. He would examine their quarters for surveillance devices when he returned.
In the Neo-Germany suite, Chancellor Heinrich von Geist sat in front of the window and watched with interest as the Neo-Austrian gundam was introduced. He looked at the device in his hand and went through the various surveillance options available. He listened as Karla talked to herself and smiled. He was also able to monitor the functionality of her gundam. He said, "With this device, I can ensure that our fighter knows everything about his opponents and their gundams beforehand. All we need to do is inject the fighters he will face with the appropriate solution."
"Is that why you brought Karla here, to make her a guinea pig?" Wolfgang asked.
"Partially," von Geist replied. "I brought her here because she is an obstacle that Schwarz must overcome to win the gundam fight for Neo-Germany. I will be the new ruler of Earth and space."
"Mother will not come to see you if you are going to be like this," Wolfgang commented. He turned to leave, paused and asked, "Will the injection hurt Karla?"
"If your mother wants to be like that, fine," von Geist said. "As far as I know, the injection will not harm Karla."
"She still loves you, you know," Wolfgang said.
"I know your mother still loves me, she just doesn't agree with how I handled the situation with Karla," von Geist replied.
Wolfgang shook his head, and left to return to his room. When he entered, he reached for the light switch, flipped it up and found that the lights weren't working. He closed the door and was about to open the drapes.
"So the Chancellor has made Karla a guinea pig. What is he planning?" a voice asked from the shadows.
"To rule Earth and all of space," Wolfgang replied. "He wants to make sure that you win all your matches, Schwarz."
"I will do what I must. Please find out what you can about how he intends to cheat," Schwarz said.
"He got some technology from someone that will allow him to know the status of every fighter, even when they are in their machine," Wolfgang said.
"Who did he get it from?" Schwarz asked.
Wolfgang shook his head. "I don't know. Von Geist said something about being able to hear what Karla said to herself inside her gundam."
Schwarz inhaled sharply. "But that's..."
"Impossible?" Wolfgang shrugged. "It seems that you're going to be capable of doing the impossible, reading the minds of your opponents."
"I don't need a crutch to win my battles," Schwarz said.
"I know that. I'll try and keep you updated on my father's plans," Wolfgang said.
"Danke, Wolfgang," Schwarz said as he merged with the shadows once more.
At the Neo-Austrian hangar, Niklas scoured their living quarters for any hidden bugs. He found quite a few microphones and several tiny cameras. He placed a tiny device on each of them and then went and pressed a button. Several hisses were heard as each device was rendered inoperative by an electromagnetic pulse. Niklas was about to collect them up and throw them away when he heard the sound of Midnight Gundam approaching.
Niklas went to greet Karla. He looked up at Midnight Gundam and smiled with pride. The new coating he had put onto the gundam made it look shiny and impressive. He was more impressed with Karla as she climbed out of the cockpit and lowered the platform to the floor. She had been through a great deal to get to where she was now.
"Hi Niklas!" Karla called as she stepped off the platform.
"Karla," Niklas replied. "You and Midnight Gundam looked great during the opening ceremonies."
"Thanks. You looked like you were angry at Claus," Karla commented. "I was watching you with the scanners."
Niklas frowned. "I am angry at Claus. He's almost as arrogant as Domon Kasshu."
"You think so?" Karla asked as they headed for the living quarters. When they entered, she saw the detection equipment sitting next to the door. "What's this?"
Niklas replied, "I was checking for surveillance devices. I don't trust Claus."
"Good idea. I don't trust him either," Karla said. "Did you find any?"
"What?" Niklas asked, suddenly nervous.
"Did you find any listening devices?" Karla repeated.
"Um, yes, I did and several cameras. I have neutralized them all. I was getting ready to remove them when you returned," Niklas replied.
Karla went and sat on the bed, removed her mask and after thinking for a minute, exclaimed, "That perverted scum, he's been filming me sleeping with you?!"
Niklas leaned up against the wall and crossed his arms over his chest and nodded. "I agree that Claus is untrustworthy. That's why I decided to check for bugs."
Karla pulled on her mask, stood and said, "Excuse me, I'll be back."
Niklas shrugged. He saw the angry look in her expression and wasn't about to get in her way now.
Karla went to the Neo-Austrian embassy where Claus and his staff were staying. She drove her corelander inside the gate, parked and entered the building. Claus' secretary tried to stop her, but Karla stormed into Claus' office.
"Ah, Karla. What do you want?" Claus asked smoothly.
"You scum! You've been preparing for a second public humiliation of me?" Karla demanded. Her hands gripped the desk and she slipped a listening device there that blended in with the surface of the desk.
Claus' innocent mask slipped onto his face. "Why, no Karla. What ever gave you that idea?"
"Don't play the innocent with me, scum! Niklas found the listening and recording devices," Karla replied.
"What makes you think that he didn't put them there in the first place?" Claus asked as he folded his hands and placed them on top of the desk. "After all, he's a mechanic. Wouldn't he have the necessary equipment to do that sort of thing?"
Karla thought for a moment before replying, "Niklas has been honest with me, unlike you."
Claus smiled. "But he has the ability and the proximity needed to plant the devices, surely you can't deny that?"
"I never did. Niklas doesn't have any reason to do such a thing," Karla replied.
Claus leaned forward, pressed a button and whispered, "Oh? Well, Niklas gave us this. Turn around and watch."
A section of wall slid down and a flat screen was revealed. Karla watched in horror as footage of her making love to Niklas was shown. Her eyes widened in shock and her jaw dropped beneath her mask. "Not again!" she whispered. Upset, Karla left Claus' office and returned to the Neo-Austrian hangar.
