I don't own anything except Kevin Walker and Invictus

The silence on the Archangel's Bridge following the explosion and eerie shriek was deafening.

Mir stared blankly at her display, which minutes earlier had displayed four signals; then Commander La Flaga had been forced to make an emergency landing, then Tolle's signal had vanished... and now the Strike and Stormhawk had both gone silent, simultaneous with an enormous explosion... and a shriek from Stormhawk like nothing she'd ever heard.

The silence was finally broken when she shook off her stunned immobility and began frantically calling over the radio. "Kira, come in! Kevin, Kira, please respond!"

Over Mir's radio calls, La Flaga's voice could be heard on Ramius' armrest intercom. "Hey! What's going on? What was that scream?"

"I don't know what caused it," Ramius said quietly, "nor the explosion... but you should know we've lost contact with Skygrasper 2, the Strike, and Stormhawk."

La Flaga's eyes widened. "All of them? No..."

Badgiruel finally tired of Mir's frantic calls and switched off the transmitter. "Enough, Crewman," she said softly. "It's useless."

"What's the last known location of the Strike?" Ramius asked.

"An island to the south, Captain," Pal reported. "Not too far from here."

"You're not suggesting we go and look for them?" Badgiruel's tone was one of disbelief.

"We can't just abandon them-"

"Heat sources detected!" Tonomura interrupted. "They're DINNs, Ma'am!"

"Prepare to intercept," Ramius ordered.

"Not possible," Badgiruel countered. "Over half our weapons are out of commission. We wouldn't last ten minutes like this."

That brought Mir's head up again, and she hit the transmitter. "Kira, come in! Please respond-"

The Lieutenant shut it off again. "Will you stop it? They're MIA, understand?"

"Shall I list her as MIA, Ma'am?"

"What does 'MIA' mean?"

"It's a military designation that stands for Missing In Action, but what it really means it that we don't think they'll be coming back."

Everyone on the Bridge was remembering the time when Cagalli had been shot down, and Sai protested. "But what if they did manage to escape?" he demanded.

"We can't just leave them," Ramius said furiously. "Commander, the Skygrasper?"

"Negative," La Flaga replied, hating every word. "It still needs work."

"Captain, are you asking the crew to give up their lives?" Badgiruel said incredulously.

Ramius turned to Kuzzey. "Any word from Alaska?"

"Negative. Still no response."

She hissed through her teeth, then thought of a solution. "Keep trying to reach Alaska," she said, "and send out a distress call along with the coordinates of this island to Orb."

"To Orb?" Badgiruel protested. "But that nation's-"

"I will take full responsibility!" Ramius said harshly, shutting up even Badgiruel. "Orb will accept; we're asking them to save lives."

"DINNs closing, Ma'am."

"Ensign Neumann, maximum thrust! Our number one priority is to get out of this area!"

"Yes, Ma'am! Taking off at maximum thrust."

The Archangel lifted into the air once more, its crew regretfully leaving behind three of their comrades.

High above, in the PLANT colony known as Aprilius One, Kira Yamato's eyes opened. He had no idea where he was, and had the dim sense that he should be dead.

He realized he was in a bed of some sort, with bandages on his head and torso from the waist up. He seemed to be in a gazebo of sorts, near a garden; and he was not alone.

"Good morning, sleepyhead!" Lacus Clyne said cheerfully, seeing him awake at last.

Kira was now very confused. "What the... where... am I?"

"You're at the Clyne Residence, in the PLANTs," Lacus replied. "I'm so glad you're finally awake."

"How did I get here?" He tried to sit up.

Lacus hurriedly stopped him, and a pale-skinned man, who seemed to be blind, replied to his question. "I found you lying in my prayer garden," he said. "You were injured and in need of assistance, so I brought you here in my shuttle. My name is Reverend Malchio."

Kira nodded blearily, then sat bolt upright as memories began to return, of his battle with Athrun, of Tolle's apparent death... and the Aegis' self-destruction, taking the Strike with it.

Lacus gripped his shoulders, concerned, as he began to hyperventilate. "Kira?"

"Why... why am I still... alive...? I... I fought... against Athrun... I couldn't have survived it..." Kira's eyes were wide and horrified.

"What?"

"I took... his friend's life," he said, barely aware of his surroundings. "Then... he took my friend's life... It was inevitable, I guess... I tried my best... to kill him..."

"But you had no choice," Lacus reassured him quietly. "You were on opposite sides. But neither of you died, so everything's fine."

"But he may yet die," Malchio interjected, nodding to a second bed, which Kira had not noticed. "Do you know him?"

Kira looked at the bed, and he realized that it was Kevin Walker who lay motionless in it; for some reason, his helmet was still on, visor opaque, but there was no doubt it was him.

"What's wrong with him?" Concern for himself had vanished at the sight.

"We don't know," Lacus admitted. "His wounds healed themselves very quickly, but he still won't wake up; we don't know why."

"He is dying," Malchio said softly. "Even now, his life is slipping away."

Kira stared at his unconscious friend, confused and worried... and then the answer hit him. "He wants to die," he said, voice scarcely audible. "He's trying to die."

Lacus was startled. "What? Why? And who is he?"

"It's Kevin. Remember him? I think you knew him before... And he's trying to die because he wants peace." He reached over and flipped open the Snake's visor, revealing his face... which was twisted, as though by some horrific sight. "He's been through a lot, ever since ZAFT got hold of him. And now... He's just going to lie there and die... after everything he's been through, he's just going to die."

"Is there nothing that can be done?" Malchio asked quietly. "He is one of the bearers of the Seed; his loss would be tragic, yet I see no way of reaching him."

"There is a way," Kira said, concentrating. Yes... he could still feel his friend, deep inside... and the link was now stronger than ever... "Just a second; I might be able to get through to him."

Kevin drifted in a sea of dark, alone and unfeeling. He sensed that he was not quite awake, yet not quite asleep... and that death beckoned, calling him.

Not a bad idea... he thought. I have failed everything, everyone... and in death, that thing I have sought so long, perhaps I may find peace...

Snake began to slip away, consciousness growing dim, but then another thought intruded. (Come on, Kevin, you gotta wake up. Snap out of it, before it's too late.)

(Shut up,) he replied dimly to the voice. (Just let me die, as I should have died so long ago...)

(I can't do that, Kevin. I don't want to be the one who tells Cagalli you just gave up and died.)

That statement conjured anger. (She'd want me to die,) he snarled. (If she knew I still lived. I failed her, just like I failed everyone else.)

(What?)

(I promised her I'd keep Kira alive, and I failed. Cagalli would never forgive me. She trusted me...)

The unseen voice snorted. (Get a grip, Kevin. Just who do you think is talking to you?)

(What?)

(Who else can get inside your head like this? I didn't die, Kevin, and neither did you, so snap out of it. Do you really want me to tell Cagalli that her best friend willed himself to die because he thought I was dead when I wasn't?)

(...Kira? Aegis didn't get you...?)

(Almost, but I guess we both got out in time. Now come on, wake up before you starve or something.)

(Yeah... maybe I'll do that...) Kevin suddenly recalled another person named Zala. (Besides... I've still got somebody left to kill.)

Kira opened his eyes and immediately turned his head toward Malchio. "You'd better back up; when he wakes up like that, he-"

"Aaaahhhh!" Snake sat bolt upright very suddenly, claws extended and slashing at the air, narrowly missing Malchio's head. "What- where- what's going on?" He glanced around wildly, then relaxed and retracted his claws as he realized he wasn't under attack.

"It's good to see you're awake," the man he'd just nearly beheaded said. "We were beginning to think you might not make it."

Kevin lay back, confused. "Kira? Where are we?"

"You're in my home," Lacus explained. "It's good to see you again, Kevin."

He waved a hand. "Likewise, Lacus. And no need to be so careful anymore; Kira knows who I am." He looked over at Kira. "What the blazes happened, tovarisch? Last thing I remember, Aegis blew us all to kingdom come, then I heard you talking in my head. Was I dreaming, or...?"

"No, that was me," Kira told him. "I guess you were right about the link."

"Guess so." Snake glanced around, still not certain of his surroundings. "How'd we get here? And what happened to the Archangel?"

"I brought you both here," Malchio said, "after you were apparently thrown clear of your mobile suits. It was obviously unhealthy to leave you in such a place, and I happened to have business in the PLANTs."

"And I offered to take care of you," Lacus interjected. "So, how are you feeling?"

Kevin winced. "Like I got hit by a mountain. Ouch." He reached up, fumbled for a moment, and pulled off his helmet.

Lacus gasped, and Kira looked startled, for the reason Kevin's helmet had been left on was suddenly very obvious: half his face was normal, but the right half was completely gone, revealing smooth, shiny metal, from the base of his jaw to up under his hair. He was two-faced, one half natural, one half cybernetic, uncovered by the artificial flesh Orb had applied.

"Kevin-? What happened to you?" Kira asked after a moment.

His friend looked surprised. "Oh, this? I guess I forgot to mention it, but the reason I was in a hospital in Orb a couple years ago was because of a nasty encounter with pirates that left me with half a face." He lightly touched the bare metal. "Everything to the right of that scar is synthetic; for that matter, so is the scar itself." Indeed, the distinctive facial mark was gone, the only trace of it being the oddly-patterned edge of real skin.

"I see you've been through many dangers since you last left here," Lacus said sympathetically. "Well, now you have time to rest; this place is always peaceful."

Snake nodded wearily. "Yeah... rest isn't such a bad idea. It's been nothing but battle for a long time, except for a brief stop in Orb." He swung his legs over the side of the bed, attempting to stand.

She tried to stop him. "Kevin, please; you suffered many injuries; you need to rest."

He shook his head. "I'm fine, physically." And he was; as Lacus had said, his wounds had healed themselves. "My cybernetics would have taken care of it while I was out."

Lacus reluctantly let him stand, and Kevin took stock of his current situation. He was clad in bandages and the remains of his flight suit; the torso appeared to have been blown off during the explosion. Noting that the aches and pains were merely from having been motionless for too long, he cautiously extended a claw partway and methodically sliced off the bandages.

The sight of the scars covering his upper body elicited another gasp from Lacus. "What happened to you?"

"A great many things," he said simply. "More than you ever want to know."

"It appears you're a very resilient individual," Malchio commented. "As befits a bearer of the Seed."

(What the bloody blazes is this "Seed"?) Snake asked Kira silently.

Kira considered that. (I think I heard something about it in Orb; it's an acronym that stands for "Superior Evolutionary Element Destined-factor".)

(Sounds like mystical pseudo-science to me,) Snake said with a mental snort. (But then, who am I to talk? I'm the one who believes in Fate.)

Malchio the blind monk appeared able to sense an echo of their silent conversation. "You have the power to communicate with your minds?"

Kevin glanced at him and raised an eyebrow. "Perceptive, Reverend. Yes, it appears we now can, but only between ourselves. I don't fully understand it, but I believe it to be some kind of outgrowth of my zoanthrope abilities."

"Perhaps so." The monk inclined his head. "I have heard much of you, from various sources. They say you are the one they called Crimson Tiger. So he truly was one of that rare breed."

"Indeed. But the Tiger is dead; though, unfortunately, not yet buried."

"By the way, Kevin," Lacus began. "Did you ever find that friend you mentioned?"

Kevin smiled. "I did indeed, Lacus; fortunately for my sanity."

"Well, that's good. But I think that's quite enough talk for now," she decided. "Kira, you are still injured, and Kevin, you may be healed, but you still need rest."

(She's right, Kevin,) Kira said with a silent chuckle. (Even you need to sleep sometimes.)

(Yeah, yeah. I'm just worried about the Archangel, and Tolle.)

(But Tolle's dead, isn't he?) Kira said, remembering the explosion just before his last conflict with Athrun. (I saw his fighter blow up.)

Kevin dropped back onto the bed. (There's a chance he got out,) he disagreed. (The Zero System showed me what was about to happen, and I did manage to intercept the shield. Admittedly, Stormhawk smashed the Skygrasper a second later, but I'm pretty sure Tolle ejected before it blew. I just hope he got clear of the blast radius.)

(Yeah... Which reminds me; I wonder if Athrun made it?)

(Probably,) Snake replied darkly. (He's nearly as tough to kill as I am, though probably not as resilient to death when it comes for him. No, he'll have survived, if only to give us another headache down the road.) He sighed silently. (I wish it hadn't come to this, but it did. As long as he's with ZAFT, he's the enemy.)

(I know...)

Malchio and Lacus chose that moment to take their leave, the latter calling over her shoulder, "Sleep well, Kira, Cousin."

Kira glanced from Kevin to the door and back again, dumbfounded. "Cousin?"

The two-faced super-soldier grinned. "Ah, so there are a few things you still don't know about me, eh, tovarisch? Now you know why Lacus and I greeted each other as we did when she arrived on the Archangel: my mother was her father's sister."

His friend shook his head in utter disbelief. "You mean, all this time I've thought you were just old friends, when you're actually first cousins? Why didn't you tell me?"

Kevin closed his eyes. "You never asked."

On Earth, an aircraft from Orb landed in the waters just off the coast of the island where Aegis and Strike had met their ends. Archangel had called for their help in searching for three downed pilots, and Cagalli, for one, insisted on answering the request. Two of her best friends had been listed as MIA here, and she intended to find them.

The sight that greeted her as she left the aircraft, however, was not encouraging. Pieces of the Aegis were strewn everywhere, and the Strike lay on its back, badly damaged, on the beach. And of Stormhawk, all that could be seen was a disembodied hand, clutching the remains of a buster rifle.

"Oh... no..." Cagalli stepped onto the beach, Kisaka behind her, and she feared the worst.

"It appears as if the red machine self-destructed, and took the Strike with it," Kisaka said softly.

"Over here!" a rescue worker called. "Looks like that fighter pilot ejected; we've got him over here!"

There, indeed, lay Tolle Koenig, still strapped to his ejection seat, very unconscious. He was in pretty bad shape, but it looked like he'd survive, provided he received prompt medical treatment. "Get him aboard the aircraft," Kisaka ordered. "We'll take him with us, until we can get word to the Archangel."

"Yes, sir!"

Cagalli, meanwhile, turned her attention to the lamed Strike; while she was glad Tolle was alive, she hadn't gotten very close to him during her time on the ship. It was Kira she was desperately looking for, and Kevin... whose mobile suit was nowhere to be found.

"Cagalli, don't!" Kisaka called after her, as she climbed up to the Strike's cockpit.

Cagalli ignored him and looked fearfully through the gash in the hatch, half-expecting to see Kira's dead body. Instead, there was... nothing. Just an empty ejection seat, still in the cockpit. "Kira..." she whispered.

"A shame," her bodyguard said softly, misinterpreting her quiet.

"He's not here," she said, with more animation.

"He's not?"

"He must have been thrown somewhere," she said, thinking rapidly. "No, maybe he ejected!"

"Cagalli, wait!" Kisaka called as Cagalli jumped down from the Strike.

"Colonel Kisaka!" They'd apparently found another survivor, and Cagalli raced over.

"Kira?" She pushed her way through. "Kira?"

But it wasn't. Athrun Zala lay unconscious on the beach, half in the water; his visor was up or shattered, and his left arm was clearly broken.

Cagalli stared down at him, fists clenched. "We're taking him with us," she said finally, voice tightly controlled. "Maybe he can give us some answers."

She turned away and walked slowly back to the plane, barely aware of her surroundings. Could both her friends have perished in that battle? If so, why was there no sign of Kira? And where was the Stormhawk? The Strike had survived in recognizable shape, so should not the Stormhawk, which was more durable, have left more evidence than simply a severed hand?

Were they really... dead? Cagalli couldn't bear the thought.

Athrun Zala awoke slowly, confusedly; unlike his former friend Kevin, he didn't go straight from sleep to wide awake. But when he could see, he realized he was in a medical bed of some kind, with his arm in a sling, bandages on his chest, and an IV in his other arm.

"I see you're finally awake," Cagalli said coldly from the other side of the room. She was holding the revolver Kevin had given her on him. "Currently, you're onboard an Orb aircraft. We found you lying on the beach, and we decided to bring you with us."

"What does Orb want with me?" Athrun asked, eyes narrow; he recognized her, from their time on a certain deserted island. "Or am I in the custody of the Earth Forces?" he added with a smile.

"You know better than that," she replied. She leaned toward him, and her eyes resembled those of Snake when he was angry; in other words, very frightening. "There's something I have to know. Were you the one who destroyed the Strike?"

Athrun was stunned for a moment, then lowered his head. "It was me," he whispered.

Cagalli felt as if someone had punched her. "What happened to the pilot?" she demanded. "And where's the Stormhawk? Did they eject, like you? Or-" She broke off. "We couldn't find Kira or Kevin. Anywhere! Say something!"

"They're gone," Athrun said after a long silence. "Because I took their lives." His eyes vanished into shadow. "That's right, I did. I pinned the Strike with my Aegis, then blew up; and that fancy suit was caught in the blast. I don't see how either of them could have escaped."

She grabbed his collar, stuck the gun against his chin, then slammed him down on the bed. "Murderer!" Cagalli turned away and slammed her fist into the wall, enraged and grief-stricken beyond words. "It's not fair!"

Athrun pushed himself back up. "By why... am I still alive?" His eyes saw the recent past, not the wall in front of him. "I guess it's because I got out just in time." Cagalli suddenly whirled and pointed the revolver at him again. "Or maybe... you're destined to finish me," he finished sardonically.

"Kira... took too many risks," she burst out, "didn't always know what he was doing, and always cried! But he was kind! He was a nice guy!" Somehow, the idea that Snake could truly be dead hadn't quite sunk in yet; perhaps because he'd come back so many times before.

"Yeah, I know," Athrun said with a quiet chuckle. "Sounds like Kira hadn't changed a bit."

Cagalli's eyes widened. "You knew...?"

"He was a sentimental crybaby," he said, mind on the past. "And he was smart, but he didn't think things through."

"Did you actually know Kira?"

He nodded. "Yes, we were... close, ever since the days when we were kids. It was three of us, Kira, Kevin, and I. We were the best of friends once... though I suspect Kevin was always the smartest of us."

"That's crazy!" Cagalli blurted. "If you were such good friends, how...?"

Athrun looked away. "We parted as friends, and when we met again, we were enemies." He remembered their battles, and suddenly he looked her in the eye again. "I tried to convince them to join us, over and over! They were Coordinators, understand, that's where they belonged! But they just wouldn't listen!"

"How could you possibly expect Kevin to join you after what ZAFT did to him?" she demanded furiously. "You know what they made him into!"

That deflated him for a moment. "I didn't know then," he said softly. "I had no idea what had been done to him. But that must have been a rogue operation, ZAFT couldn't have done something like that!" Athrun's voice rose again. "Don't you get it? They weren't on my side anymore! I had no choice but to kill them!"

"You idiot! How could you come up with something so stupid?" Cagalli grabbed his shirt. "How could you do something so terrible?"

"He killed Nicol right before my eyes!" he shouted. "Nicol was sixteen; he loved the piano! He only fought to protect the PLANTs and Kira just cut him down!"

"Kira only fought to protect others, too," she sobbed. "But that doesn't explain why he had to pay with his life! And at the hands of his best friend!" As Athrun, too, began to break down, she continued relentlessly. "One guy takes a life for vengeance... then someone else takes his life... How is that kind of crooked thinking ever going to bring about peace?"

Neither of them could say anything coherent for several minutes, until something suddenly came to Athrun's mind; a memory of when the Blitz exploded... and he froze. "Oh... no..." he muttered, barely audible. "I... I killed... the wrong guy..."

Cagalli glanced up, tears still going down her face. "What?"

"It wasn't Kira who did it... it was Kevin... Only that new mobile suit could have fired that shot..."

She clenched her teeth. "Well, if it helps, you got him, too!" she said furiously. "All that was left of his mobile suit was a hand!"

He seemed hardly aware of her presence. "He swore to kill me... but I killed him instead... and Kira, too... for the wrong reason..."

Athrun collapsed on the bed, blinded by the confusing tragedy he had played a key part in.

Kevin Walker stood close to the railing overlooking the lake behind the Clyne Residence, deep in thought. For the first time in months, he appeared like a normal teenager. An observer, seeing his left profile, would simply have seen what everyone else did during the time he was on Heliopolis: your average sixteen-year-old student, without a trace of the lethal potential he had revealed on that fateful day.

Turn to the right, however, and one saw a shadow of the trials Snake had been through; for the PLANTs did not have the sophisticated medical technology Orb had used to craft the synthetic face he'd worn over the tough metal. For now, it was as well that he and Kira remained in seclusion, since Kevin would have inspired terror in a rattlesnake with his face alone.

So he stood, the man with half a face, wearing a copy of his old black civilian attire, minus the weaponry; without which he felt very strange. Kevin wondered what was happening on Earth, and if the Archangel had reached Alaska safely... and how Cagalli must be reacting to the news of their "deaths".

"You are troubled," Reverend Malchio said, coming up behind him.

"Doesn't take a monk to figure that out," Snake said calmly.

"You have great darkness in your past, do you not, Mr. Walker?"

"Yes, you could say that." He idly flexed his hands, within which lay deadly weapons. "You probably know by now, Reverend, that Walker is not the name I was born with; it was merely the first alias among what became many, the one I used in Copernicus."

"Yet you now see it to be your true name, Baron," Malchio noted. "Does your past truly mean so little to you?"

"The past is dead, Kevin Onishi is dead; today is what matters." Kevin finally glanced over his shoulder. "I was never very close to my parents, Reverend, and in light of more recent discoveries, I'm even less so. The only part of my past that matters is a very good friend of mine, whom I grew up with, and I fear is very much distressed by my apparent death. And that of Kira; they, too, became quite close. So no, the past means little to me, and the only name that matters is the one my shipmates gave me."

"Some call you 'Snake', does they not?' The monk tilted his head. "A curious name, particularly for someone once known as the Crimson Tiger."

"Jack Carter is also dead," Snake said quietly. "And I have not dared use my powers in a long time. So they call me Snake, in honor of another name I once had, among ZAFT, and my special-operations past. They call my kind 'snake eaters'."

"You seem to glory in some parts of your past, yet the very powers that allowed you to survive it make you wish for death. A contradiction, I would think."

"We all have our peculiarities. And I gather Kira has been telling tales, since Lacus doesn't know my rather frightful past."

Malchio nodded. "He, too, does not wish you to die, Baron. He doesn't understand why you would choose death, when there is so much good you could do."

"Good is for heroes," Snake said, turning around to face him. "I'm a lot of things, Reverend, but I am not a hero. ZAFT made me a monster, named me for a monster, and a monster I am. I'll do my part in this war, but my aim is not altruistic; all I care about is avenging myself on ZAFT. Don't bother telling me it's not the right thing to do, because I really couldn't care less. Once I've done what I can, all I want is death, because that's the only way I'll have peace, and it's the only proper end for a monster."

"You are what you make of yourself," the Reverend said quietly. "ZAFT has only made you into a monster if that is what you chose to make of yourself. You have the power to make a difference, yet you seem eager to throw it all away."

"You know, I'm getting really tired of people saying I 'have the power to make a difference'," Kevin said, irritated. "A difference, sure; but someone with my lethal talents and bio-modifications has no right to exist."

Malchio smiled slightly. "So, then, you think a gun is evil simply because it exists? That just because a weapon is more powerful than any other, it is inherently malignant?"

That gave Snake pause; he'd never thought of it that way before. "You, Reverend," he said after a long moment's thought, "are making a scary kind of sense. I never thought to apply the 'guns don't kill people, people kill people' argument to myself." He raised an eyebrow. "You're saying that ZAFT created the weapon, but it's what the person pulling the trigger uses it for that matters?"

The blind monk nodded. "You are a wise and perceptive man, Baron, but you are somewhat blind when looking at yourself. If you had truly thought about it before, instead of simply coming to the instinctive conclusion that you were an abomination, you would have reached this conclusion yourself long ago." He touched the young man's shoulder. "Don't waste your life, Baron. I won't try to tell you right and wrong; seek your vengeance if you must. But remember that you are not yourself inherently evil, and that there are those who would greatly mourn your passing."

Kevin nodded slowly. "I see. Thank you, Reverend; you may have just saved my life." The depression that had been with him for so long began to lift, as he once more considered the prospect of a future that held something besides death. "I suppose when in doubt, I should visit monasteries," he cracked, sense of humor also returning from its brief leave of absence following a certain very large explosion.

"Whatever works, Baron," Malchio said, smiling. "Remember that you control your destiny, not ZAFT or anyone else."

Kira was quite startled when next he saw his friend; he couldn't remember seeing him that cheerful since they parted in Copernicus, three years before. "Kevin...?"

Kevin smiled. (Reverend Malchio just got my head straightened out,) he said silently. (I guess there is something to the idea that monastic orders teach you more than just how to wear really scratchy robes and concentrate on nothing.)

Taking the cue that he wanted the conversation discrete, Kira replied in the same manner. (He finally convinced you what Cagalli and I have telling you the whole time, huh?)

Snake shook his head, amused at himself. (I've always held to the idea that guns don't kill people, people kill people, but for some reason it never occurred to me to equate what ZAFT turned me into with a gun. Doesn't matter what they wanted to do with me; or even that I did obey their orders for a time. What matters is what I choose to do with the skills and weapons they gave me.) He grinned, a feral expression that boded ill for his enemies. (And I choose to annihilate my creators. Don't misunderstand me, tovarisch; my attitudes are largely the same. Our monkish friend has simply convinced me to stop trying to blow myself to bits.)

Another voice interrupted them. "Well, hello, Kevin. It's been a long time."

They both turned. "Hello, Uncle Siegel," Kevin said. "I hoped we'd meet again; I apologize for my rather abrupt disappearing act, but it wasn't exactly my idea." He nodded at Kira. "This is Kira Yamato; until recently, pilot of GAT-X105 Strike, and, like me, an old -one might say former- friend of your daughter's fiancé."

"Yes, I know," Siegel Clyne said with a nod. He shook Kira's hand. "Good to meet you; my daughter has told me about you. I want to thank you for rescuing her, both from the Debris Belt and your own friends. It must have been difficult for you."

"It wasn't easy," Kira admitted. "But I did what I thought was right."

"And we even managed to get out of it without being shot to pieces," Snake added cheerfully. "A near thing, since Commander Le Creuset decided it would be a good time for a sneak attack; were it not for Lacus returning the favor, we might not have made it." He unconsciously brushed a hand over the metal side of his face. "By the way, Uncle Siegel, do you know what became of my mobile suit? I assume that it survived the blast."

"It did," Clyne answered. "And a ZAFT team salvaged it about an hour after Reverend Malchio recovered you; it's currently being repaired, upgraded, and studied at a secure facility."

Kevin muttered something Russian under his breath. "I see. I'll have to deal with that situation sooner or later, preferably before they manage to duplicate the technology."

"Yes, well, speaking of ZAFT, there's something I wanted to ask you about." Clyne pulled a photograph from a pocket and handed it to him. "Can you tell me what this is?"

The super-soldier examined it; it was a picture of himself, about three years younger, wearing the white uniform of a ZAFT Commander, like Le Creuset. "Ah," he said calmly. "An old photo, obviously; I swore never to wear that uniform again if I could possibly avoid it." He looked up at Siegel. "That was taken three years ago, on a small space station at L2, beyond the Moon's orbit. That's when I was still Commander of the experimental unit being formed there, the Destroyers."

Clyne stiffened. "You were part of Project ABADDON? But how? Why?"

Snake smiled thinly. "It wasn't voluntary, I assure you. That's why I disappeared right after my parents' deaths; the madman in charge of the Project, codename Oracle, kidnapped me, systematically tortured me for a period of about two weeks, then brainwashed me, wiped my memory, and put me through the augmentation process. Voila, Commander Walker, codename Hydra, was born, a loyal ZAFT assassin... until the chemicals wore off and I tore everyone to pieces, before setting off the station's nuclear self-destruct device."

Siegel blinked in shock. "I had no idea Patrick's pet project used unwilling subjects... I can't say I was displeased when the program mysteriously came to an end, but I never suspected it happened like that. No wonder you fought against ZAFT." He shook himself, then produced another photo. "Perhaps that has something to do with this."

Kevin took it, then froze, and Kira took a look at it. He saw instantly what had caused such an odd reaction; for while the uniform was the red of ZAFT special pilots, this appeared to be another image of Kevin... only from mere days earlier. "Kevin...? What on earth...?"

"I can't see how it could be you," Clyne said. "It was taken two days ago, at Carpentaria. But this pilot bears an uncanny resemblance to you."

"So he does exist," Snake murmured. "They actually went and did it, those crazy bastards." He looked up. "That's not me. But we share DNA."

"A twin?" Kira asked. Then he remembered something. "But I thought your twin was dead."

"He is," his friend confirmed. "But the person in that picture is no older than three years. He's a clone, made from my genetic material."

For the second time in as many minutes, Siegel Clyne was startled by something that had been done right under his nose, while he was Chairman of the Supreme Council. "They cloned you?"

"Yeah." Snake studied the photo. "There was talk of it while I was with the Project; since I had turned out to be the best of the best, the most lethal human being in history, they decided it might be a good idea to make more of me. Apparently, they finally did, sometime before I set off that nuke and destroyed the samples. They've taken so many samples of me I'm not sure I'm all here," he added with a brief smile. "They probably used an RNA sample, as well, which means he has all my skills up to that point. For example, I wouldn't want to try fencing with him, because we'd be evenly matched. In fact, he might even be better, if he's kept in better practice than me." He nodded slowly. "Kira, remember that feeling I had near the Vosgulov, during the battle where the Blitz was destroyed? The clone must have been aboard; what I felt was a duplicate of myself, with a mind similar enough to sense."

"How do you know there's just the one?" Clyne asked. "Couldn't they have just cloned the clone?"

"No," Kevin replied emphatically. "There are enough dangers cloning the original; clone the clone, and you greatly increase the risk of nasty, very possibly fatal errors in the genetic code." He shook his head. "And even if they were crazy enough to try it, this one would be the only copy with a complete augmentation package; the specs and the know-how were lost in that fusion blast."

"Where did you get these?" Kira asked Siegel.

"I happened to be making a search of ZAFT personnel records, and I came across a familiar face in a classified file; even I couldn't access it. That's what triggered my curiosity in the matter." Clyne chuckled. "Imagine my surprise when I found a second file with your face. It was labeled 'John Carter'."

"Cute," Snake said sardonically. "He took one of my own aliases for his name. Appropriate, that he be the true Crimson Tiger-" Abruptly, he stopped, and his face went white.

Kira looked at him, frightened by the reaction; he'd never seen Snake scared before. "Kevin?"

"He's got one thing I don't," he whispered. "One ability I don't have." Kevin turned slowly to face his friend. "His DNA and RNA are from before I lost control of my zoanthrope powers. Which means..."

Kira flinched; he didn't need to hear the rest of that sentence. He'd seen Kevin Walker transform on a handful of occasions, and he was scary when in full control.

"Uncle Siegel," Kevin said slowly, "I'll stay here long enough to recover my strength. But I cannot remain out of this war for long; I cannot in good conscience allow Jack Carter to roam the world unfettered. I don't know what he's been up to, but if he's got all my power, combined with true loyalty to ZAFT, I have to stop him."

Clyne nodded. "How can we help?"

"Get me better."

Author's note: Kevin Walker has lost half his face, and his true connection to Lacus Clyne has been revealed; or has it? Some things have yet to be revealed.

Now the identity of Jack Carter, the man Rau Le Creuset and Invictus discussed just after Heliopolis, has been exposed. Is he truly the only clone of Kevin Walker?

Okay, I realize this update is a little faster than normal, but there didn't seem to be much I needed to change, and there were a few questions I wanted to answer quickly; I'll get to that in a moment. I should also mention that I kind of skip over the events on the Archangel from Phase 31- 33, as they have, to my mind, little that's really important to my version of events. It picks up again as of Phase 34.

Now, to the responses section. First, Mr. n/a, about six months ago I would have agreed with you. Since then, however, I've found that I approve of the Custom variants of at least the Wing Zero and the Deathscythe -though Altron is a little… iffy- so my decision is made. What we have here is a simple difference of opinion.

Arekuruu-inabikari-no-She, you've just seen what happened to Kevin in the aftermath of his machine's malfunctions; next chapter you'll see what's done regarding the N-jammer Cancellers. Stay tuned.

Shinji Ikari, I do seem to have a knack for Kevin/Dearka battles, don't I? But, of course, that was the last one. The next time Buster flies, it's to protect the Archangel.

I'm pleased you think I pulled of the battle itself well; that is always a little tricky, so it's good to hear I did this one right.

As you can see, Athrun figured out the truth on his own; as for Kira, though, he's got a lot of other things on his mind about now. He'll be just a little busy for awhile to really think about that particular incident, I think.

And, no, Kevin doesn't end up using the Drake Ryan identity. That's a relic from a previous notion I had, where Kevin didn't end up in the PLANTs. I think this plan worked out better, in the long run; otherwise getting certain modifications for the Stormhawk might have been a little… dicey.

What I meant with Kevin "not being in position", by the way, was that it's just a little hard to kill someone from several million kilometers away, even for a Destroyer.

Glad you liked the Kevin/Mu interaction, but that leads me into an area that apparently requires explanation. Some of it is obvious, from the events of this chapter -and I trust I came up with at least a semi-believable reason for it- but others… well, here goes.

To begin with, I'm pretty sure I'm actually reading a little more into the zoanthrope senses than is canonical (all that is specifically stated is that they can sense each other), but, as you said, it's originality that matters. Now, for specifics.

Kevin does not have am empathic bond with Cagalli per se; it's just that he knows her well enough to read her emotions, if she is deliberately "broadcasting", so to speak. As with most people, under normal circumstances she merely registers as a presence to him.

The connection with Kira is completely different. Thanks to various factors already mentioned -zoanthrope empathic abilities, embryonic genetic modifications, and cybernetic augmentation- in addition to the not-yet-revealed secrets of Kira's birth, the two have formed a sort of mind-to-mind connection, which was first hinted at in Chapter 7 (when they entered the Berserker state simultaneously, with Kira's seemingly triggered Kevin's change). Given the other psychosomatic phenomena already spoken of in the series, like Le Creuset being able to sense Mu and Kira, and vis-versa, I thought it was plausible. This, by the way, is what I meant about the Kira/Kevin interaction becoming more important later on. They interact a lot more from here on out.

Now, as to your questions: a "Captain's Mast" is non-judicial punishment at ship-or-shore station; unlike a Court Martial, the next level of punishment, a Captain's Mast can only restrict the offender to ship -or station, if on shore duty- or add extra duty. Not pleasant, but not as serious as a Court Martial.

Amazing the trivia one picks up.

About the weaponry, I should first point out that the Stormhawk's azure beams were merely my own little touch (suggested by Dragoon Swordsman) which has nothing to do with the actual Wing Zero. To be honest, I have no idea what color the Wing Zero's beams were in the series.

That said, you are correct that the Balaena cannons are the weapons in the Freedom's wings; however, they're plasma cannons, not beam weapons (recoil for those is at least semi-believable, since plasma cannons are not technically energy weapons).

In case you're interested, the weapons on the Freedom's hips are Xiphias railguns. A general rule of thumb for figuring out what kind of weapon is being used in Gundam SEED is this: green streaks are basic beam weapons, yellow are always projectile weapons (machine guns, rail- and linear guns, et cetera), and red with blue corona are either hyper-impulse (like the Agni), plasma, or positron (like the Archangel's Lohengrin; in other words, antimatter. Nasty stuff, no wonder Strike gets vaped.) Using that as guide -as far as I can tell, it holds true in every case- you can tell if a given weapon is energy, kinetic, or something like plasma or antimatter.

If you have any more questions about the background of Gundam SEED -history, technology, that sort of thing- I can probably answer them. When writing this story, I exhaustively researched the source material, via the website and the fact that I have all but Phases 16, 19, 20, 23, 24, and 27 on tape or DVD; so if you've got any questions, just let me know.

That brings me to a question of my own, by the way: you mention that Kevin's assassination of Garcia saving the Junk Guild and various others some grief. Does that mean that Garcia actually survived Artemis, or what? I'd think he was killed, since a Moebius smashed right into the control room he was occupying, but your phrasing indicates otherwise.

Well, now that I've spent an estimated ninety minutes -and about 1000 words- on the notes, I think I've finally said everything that needed to be said. Let me know just horrible this chapter was (or, hopefully, the reverse). -Solid Shark