I don't own anything except Kevin Walker, Jack Carter, Invictus, and Max

The missiles were going to hit the Freedom. There was no time to dodge, no time to do anything at all. As Kevin Walker might have said, there was no do and there was no try; there was only die.

But Kira Yamato did something anyway. Behind his eyes, the seed burst and he became the Berserker once again. And the Berserker could do something.

Without time to grab his beam rifle, Kira deployed his plasma cannons and railguns, while his main display rose and changed to a targeting screen. In a fraction of a second -though it seemed longer- the computer had locked onto the missiles, and the Freedom's multi-beam attack was active once more, blasting out shot after shot, in all directions.

Simultaneously, Kevin had undergone the same change, the effect echoing down his psychic link with Kira. He chose a different target, soaring toward the Dominion once again. His fire did little actual damage -even the mighty buster rifles were stopped by the battleship's laminated armor- but it did serve to keep Natarle's ship busy; too busy to continue the attack on the Archangel.

Kira had successfully stopped the missile attack, much to the astonishment of Natarle Badgiruel and Muruta Azrael, but the Calamity and the Raider were still hot on his trail, firing everything they had. "Take this!" Orga shouted, firing his Schlag cannons at the Freedom.

But Kira was never truly alone in battle. Across the vast gulf, Kevin had sensed Orga's intention to fire, and responded by firing his own weapons at the same instant. Two azure beams merged with two green beams, effectively canceling each other out.

"Thanks, Kevin," Kira panted, and turned his attention to the Raider. "You got Calamity?"

"Affirm," his friend replied. "Now engaging." He broke off his attack on the Dominion in order to devote his full attention to the blue artillery mobile suit.

"Where's the Forbidden?" Kira wondered aloud. "And Athrun?"

Snake concentrated, trying to scan across the huge distances involved in a space battle. "Closer to the Kusanagi," he reported. "Athrun's keeping that ugly thing busy; now let's do our part."

"Roger that." Freedom flipped over, fired its plasma cannons, and spun away to dodge Raider's retaliatory Mjollnir strike.

"C'mon, Calamity," Kevin called. "Let's dance!" And Athrun, if you fail to protect that ship, you'll have to answer to me.

"Why don't you just give up?" Orga wondered, igniting his Scylla. "You're gonna lose!"

"Am I? I don't think so." Stormhawk took the attack on its shield, did a full one-eighty turn, and converted to mobile armor mode. "Catch me if you can, egghead!"

Calamity chased after him, firing a plasma sabot round which was promptly sideslipped. "Why keep fighting us?" Orga persisted, also persisting to shoot.

"Because your breath stinks."

Kira chuckled briefly, then boosted to one side and smacked Raider in the head with his fist as it shot past. "Just leave us alone, why don't you?"

"No way!" Clotho called back. "Special Attack!"

The Coordinator shook his head as he narrowly dodged to one side. These guys are just plain nuts! Wait- "Oof!" The Raider's spherical breaker had come back around, and caught Freedom in the chest.

Seeing his friend go spinning out of control, Athrun's battle with Forbidden suddenly froze. Kira! Behind his eyes, an emerald seed burst, and he too became the Berserker. "I don't have time for this!"

With Justice's left hand, he grabbed Forbidden's scythe, and yanked him in close. "What the-" Shani called out, startled, and then got his answer as the hilt of a beam saber caught his machine in the chin.

Athrun boosted past the now-tumbling mobile suit, hurrying to Kira's rescue at the same time as Kevin's Stormhawk.

Justice took an unsuspecting Clotho from behind, taking a chunk out of its right wing with a beam saber, while Stormhawk charged toward Calamity. "Not to mention," Kevin said, continuing the previous topic, "you're an ugly bastard!"

A buster rifle discharged into Calamity's chest, blowing away the hyper-impulse cannon, and the battle entered a momentary stalemate, with the three enemies spinning around, trying to reorient themselves.

"You okay?" Athrun called.

"Yeah," Kira answered. "I'll be fine. What about you guys?"

"Never better," the super-soldier replied.

"I'm still moving," Athrun said obliquely.

Now, Snake wondered idly, where have Mu and Dearka gotten to?

The Strike and Buster were at that moment reentering the Mendel harbor; but they didn't stop when they reached it. They kept right on going, past the still-docked Eternal.

As they passed, Waltfeld contacted them. "Hey! What's going on?"

"He says ZAFT forces are here," Dearka told him. "Yes, and that guy." Waltfeld looked grim; and behind him, Lacus gasped. They both knew who "he" had to be. " Anyway," the Buster's pilot went on, "we're checking it out. It could be bad if he's right."

"There's a harbor on the opposite side," Waltfeld said thoughtfully. "That's probably where they are. I wonder what they're up to."

"In any case," Lacus interjected, "please hurry up with the Eternal's launch preparations. As long as we're still in here, we have no choice but to leave the fighting to others."

Outside the colony, Asagi Caldwell's Astray finally cut through the last section of metapolymer cable holding the Kusanagi in place. "Sorry! That was tough!"

"Thanks, Asagi," Kisaka said from the Bridge. "We appreciate your help."

"Maximum speed, at the Dominion!" Cagalli ordered from behind him. "Don't get us caught again!"

"Yes, Ma'am."

By now, it was the Dominion that was at a disadvantage. The battle having outlasted the element of surprise, it now fell to pure numbers. Now that the ship's complement of Strike Daggers had been worn down, they were reduced largely to the three Gundams, whose pilots seemed to hit each other as often as the enemy. Add to that the unexpected presence of one of the Archangel-class' designers, the lead -and sole- programmer, no less, and they had problems.

All the while, Azrael seemed quite calm, even after the damage Calamity received. "Well, this is becoming quite interesting, Captain. But don't stop firing now; we've got them on the run."

"If we keep firing now," the captain retorted, "we risk hitting our own machines!"

"Who cares if we hit our own machines?" he said negligently. "They have Trans-Phase armor, don't they?"

He never got an answer, as the ship's multitude of problems were suddenly multiplied by the report from Natarle's fire-control officer. "The Orb Izumo-class is closing, Captain! Fast!"

She gritted her teeth and said nothing; Azrael seemed more philosophical. "Oh, my; I guess they freed themselves."

On the Kusanagi's Bridge, Cagalli's eyes narrowed. "Target the Dominion! Gottfried One and Gottfried Two, fire!"

"Evade!" Natarle ordered instantly, and her ship narrowly avoided the massive beams.

But they were by no means safe. The Archangel finally had the chance to go on the offensive, and Murrue Ramius wasted no time in doing so. "Aim Valiants! Fire!"

The Dominion's helmsman made a determined effort, but the combination of mass and inertia had their way with the ship. Before her course could change significantly, the linear cannons' rounds caught the Archangel's sister ship in the starboard side, blasting off a few Igelstellungs Snake had missed during his last attack.

"Fire a signal flare," Badgiruel ordered, frustrated. "Temporary withdrawal."

"What?" Azrael demanded incredulously.

"We've lost the element of surprise," Natarle told him curtly. "We need time to regroup."

"So you're saying, run away today, and win another day?" The Director couldn't decide if he was furious or not.

"Director," she said flatly, "we have just been hit by the Archangel's Valiants. Your three machines are also running critically low on energy. And, to top it all off, we're facing a precognitive mobile suit piloted by the man who wrote this ship's software. If we don't withdraw, we'll be destroyed."

"But we had them on the ropes!" Azrael wailed, sounding remarkably like a spoiled brat.

"Are you that eager to meet your maker?" Badgiruel didn't waste time waiting for a reply. "Starboard ten degrees; we're leaving this battle area immediately!"

The signal flares went out; Orga and Clotho saw them. "Looks like our time's up," Orga said irritably.

"Looks that way," Clotho agreed. The two Gundams turned and headed for home plate.

The Forbidden, on the other hand, kept up its attack on the Freedom and Justice, its pilot enraged at Athrun's earlier strikes. "Take this, take this, take this!" Shani fired his plasma cannon again and again, trying to hurt the machine that had hurt him.

Finally, the Calamity interposed itself between Shani and his target. "Stop it, Shani!"

"We've been ordered to withdraw, dimwit!" Clotho snapped.

"That guy!" Shani protested. "You know what he did?"

"We have to retreat!" Orga shouted, genuine fear in his voice. "Do you want them to punish us again?"

Shani instantly came to what passed for his senses; he remembered the last time they'd been through gamma glipheptin-withdrawal. Without any further argument, the Forbidden turned tail and ran.

The Dominion gracefully came about and made its withdrawal... for the moment.

On the Archangel's Bridge, Murrue watched her former XO's ship dwindle. "Even her retreats are well-executed," she murmured.

"Too bad she's not on our side these days," Snake commented over the radio. "I daresay she's the best combat commander they've got left." On the armrest screen, his image shrugged. "Well, the danger's over, for now."

"Hey," Waltfeld said abruptly, aboard the Eternal. "Any word from La Flaga or Elsman yet?"

Murrue blinked; she'd forgotten all about it. "Not yet, no," she said slowly. "But they're all the way over on the other side of the colony; it will have taken them some time just to get there."

"Maybe so," Snake said grimly. "But we should have heard something by now. Mir, try and get through to them."

"Right," Mir agreed. "Dearka?" she called, frowning. "Dearka! Dearka! Commander?" She shook her head, looking down at the Captain. "It's no use, Captain; our signals just aren't reaching to the colony's interior."

Snake said something extremely vile in Russian. "Okay," he said finally. "I'll go look for them. Try not to get blown up while I'm gone."

"I'll go with you," Kira put in. "If it is ZAFT, you'll need the help."

"The Justice is undamaged," Athrun said. "I'll go, too."

"No," Kira said quickly. "I think the Dominion may not have made a complete withdrawal just yet; and with two of our best machines going out, you'd better stay here and keep an eye on things."

"You sure?"

"We'll be fine," Kevin assured him. "We'll stay out of trouble."

"As if." But Athrun raised no more objections.

Even as Kira and Snake set off for the colony's other harbor, two pairs of mobile suits were already arriving... as was one lone machine, identical to one of the other four in all but color.

Rau Le Creuset flew his white command ZGMF-600 GuAIZ, and to his right Yzak Joule piloted his Duel deeper into the colony. Their mission was to find the Eternal, and then strike. But Le Creuset had another, hidden agenda... one which would be served by the arrivals of three of the incoming.

On the opposite side, Dearka's Buster and Mu's Strike approached, intent on locating the ZAFT forces. Mu would know instantly when they were close... though he didn't know how.

And a third party, in a blood-red-and-black-striped GuAIZ, sped inward, guided by the pilot's innate sense of Kevin Walker's location. The instant the super-soldier was close, this enigmatic pilot would know. After all, they shared the same face.

Le Creuset and Mu were the first to know of each other's presence. He's here! they thought simultaneously; they altered course toward one another.

Yzak, wondering what his Commander was up to, soon saw for himself on his display. "The Strike?" That didn't really surprise him; back at Orb, he'd seen the machine back in action. At the time, he'd thought Athrun had simply been a little off in his pronouncement that he'd destroyed the troublesome machine; now Yzak had to wonder if Athrun's loyalties had been wavering even then.

But it was the second machine that really got the ZAFT pilot's attention. "The Buster?" Yzak simply could not believe his eyes. The Buster had been badly damaged and captured at the end of the same battle that had claimed the Aegis and (temporarily) the Strike. It shouldn't have been here. Unless those bastard Naturals put one of their pilots in it. Scum! I'll avenge you, Dearka! I promise!

Dearka, meanwhile, was very much alive in the Buster's cockpit, and much better informed about current events. "The Duel? Yzak..." He swallowed hard. None of the "Zala Team" had gotten along with Yzak Joule particularly well; even Dearka had chafed when taking orders from him, on the infrequent occasions when Yzak had command authority. But he'd come closer than any of the others, and he really didn't want to have to fight him.

I'll do it if I have to, Dearka told himself. I've gone too far not to through with it, no matter what stands in the way. But if I can just get him to talk...

Mu and Le Creuset were the first to face off, Mu's Agni against the GuAIZ's beam rifle; they both missed. "A new model?" Mu cursed. "This might not be the best equipment."

While the Duel and Buster similarly exchanged shots, Le Creuset barked a laugh. "I see. So you're the one piloting that machine now... Mu La Flaga!"

Dodging the next shot and rolling upside down, Mu crazily thought of Snake. Right now, he'd probably say something like "takes two to tango'; kid never did have a trace of sanity. He triggered his hyper-impulse cannon and juked left. Wish you were here, Snake; ZAFT machines are your specialty.

"You scum!" Yzak shouted at the top of his (considerable) lungs. "How dare you pilot Dearka's machine?" He fired off a blast from his beam rifle, narrowly missing the heavily-armed green machine.

"Yzak, no..." Dearka whispered; he sideslipped, making no effort to attack.

"What are the odds of us meeting again in this place?" Le Creuset wondered aloud, to Mu; the Three Ships Alliance pilot had not the foggiest idea what the man was talking about.

Unbeknownst to any of the combatants, the harbor's massive doors slid apart, allowing the Freedom and Stormhawk entry. (Think they're out here, Snake?) Kira asked, using their link to maintain radio silence. (I don't see anything yet.)

("Yet",) Snake repeated. (It's a big harbor, tovarisch, and...) He trailed off as a familiar sensation filled his head. (Oh yeah, they're out here. Can't think of any other way Carter could have found us.)

(Carter? He's here?) The idea concerned Kira. (That's not good.)

(No, it isn't. Look, Kira, you find Mu and Dearka; I'll handle my sociopathic copy.)

(Got it. Good luck.)

The two machines separated, one looking to rescue, the other to destroy. In other words, the usual division of responsibilities between the two.

"You stinking Natural!" Yzak was screaming. "I'll make you pay!" He fired off a missile barrage at the Buster.

"Yzak..." Dearka whispered. He fired his first shot of the battle, using his anti-armor shotgun to knock down the missiles. "Yzak!"

Yzak froze. "D-Dearka?"

Meanwhile, Mu and Le Creuset made yet another run at each other. "It was meant to be, Mu," the masked man said with a slight smile. "I'm glad."

"Jackal!" Mu snarled. "Today's the day!" He fired the pair of gun launchers mounted on the shoulder next to his Gatling gun, sending out a pair of guided projectiles.

Le Creuset's GuAIZ managed to lead them into the ground, before heading off again, almost as though taunting the Strike. Its pilot's only reaction was to laugh.

"Dearka?" Yzak whispered, well away from the conflict. "Is it really you in there?"

"Yeah," Dearka replied. "It's me." His image appeared on the Duel's right-hand screen.

His former comrade looked first relieved, then angry. "What are you doing, fighting alongside the Strike?" he demanded. "What exactly is going on here? I mean, I'm really glad you're alive, but man, I can't forgive you if this is what it looks like!"

"Yzak," Dearka began, then broke off as another voice spoke.

"Dearka!"

"Kira?" His head whipped around, to see the Freedom fast approaching, looking ready for battle. When the nuclear-powered machine had arrived, he had no idea.

Yzak saw it, too. "But that's-"

His mind replayed the events shortly before the activation of the Cyclops System at Alaska. The Freedom sliced through the Duel's legs, literally cutting it off at the knees. "Forget about fighting and get yourself out of here!" the machine's pilot said forcefully.

Yzak hadn't forgotten that day, and he swept around to track the Freedom; but before he could fire, the Buster got in the way. "You two, stop!" Dearka told them both. "Kira, please, let me handle this."

Kira raised an eyebrow. "You sure?"

"Yeah."

"Okay, then." He turned away. "But please, be careful. Remember what happened between Athrun and me."

The Freedom jetted away, leaving Yzak confused. "What? Athrun...?"

To his surprise, the Buster's cockpit suddenly opened; the mobile suit pilot's universal flag of truce. "Let's lower our weapons and talk," Dearka requested.

Yzak considered that. This could be a trap... And how could Dearka of all people betray us? But it was one way to obtain information.

The Duel began to descend.

At this time, Snake was nearing his nemesis, his worst enemy... himself.

Nearing the GuAIZ, he keyed his radio. "It's you again, isn't it, Carter? Here to complicate my life again? I'd really prefer to take a rain check, you know; I'm a little busy right now."

The response was like an echo, spoken in the same voice. "Sorry, Hydra. But I don't really care what your schedule's like." Carter smiled thinly. "It's time to finish this, once and for all."

Kevin shook his head. "Don't you remember last time, idiot? I beat you to a bloody pulp and tossed you out a window. Do you really want to get smashed again? And Hydra, by the way, is dead." He kicked in his verniers and drew a beam saber.

Carter's GuAIZ (color scheme clearly taken from the original's long-defunct Punisher) met the attack with a pair of beam claws generated from its shield. "Nice try, old man. But this time, there's no convenient window to throw me through; so it all comes down to piloting skill."

"It's the pilot, not the machine, that truly matters," Snake conceded. "But I have more experience, and my machine has sufficient power to blast you and quite possibly this entire colony into very tiny pieces. So how about we get on with this so I can get going?"

As the pair clashed again, Mu was getting seriously fed up with Le Creuset... especially with his cryptic statements. "If it's my fate to be shot down by you," the masked man said, sounding almost cheerful, "I thought this place would be... appropriate." He ducked under another Agni blast. "But it doesn't look like there's much chance of that happening, now is there?" he went on. "After all, how could the child hope to defeat the parent?"

"What?" Mu, uncomprehending, shrugged off the comment... as well as his virtually energy-depleted Striker pack. Allowing the now-useless weapons to drop, he drew the Strike's last-ditch weapons, which had last been used to destroy Marco Morassim's ZnO: the Armor Schneiders.

Le Creuset, unfortunately, had no intention of allowing that. He launched the GuAIZ's pair of grapplers; one of them caught the Strike in the right shoulder joint, severing that arm, and the other hit near the cockpit.

The main console exploded, momentarily blinding Mu, and a piece of shrapnel stabbed into him, just above his left hip. "Ugh!"

"So much for the mighty Hawk of Endymion!" Le Creuset crowed; and then stopped, as a strange sensation went through his head. "What-"

A beam blast came out of nowhere, destroying the GuAIZ's beam rifle, and a winged shape came speeding into view, still firing.

"It's the Freedom!" Le Creuset managed, just as another shot blew off his machine's head.

"Mu!" Kira called, flashing past. He drew a Lacerta, readied it, and swung as he passed the GuAIZ, severing both legs.

The machine crashed heavily to the ground, briefly stunning its pilot. Within moments, though, Rau had released his straps and was out of the cockpit, sidearm in hand. He ran quickly by the Strike, where Mu was just emerging, helmetless, with a gun in his own hand.

The Hawk ducked back, narrowly avoiding having his head blown off. "Where's he going now?" he muttered, firing off a quick pair of shots.

"Come with me!" Le Creuset called. "I myself shall deliver your requiem!" He turned, fired twice more, and ran off toward a dark, abandoned building that stood nearby.

"What on earth is going on here?" Mu hauled himself out of the cockpit and sprinted after his nemesis.

Kira, in the Freedom, saw him go. "Mu, wait!" He quickly set his machine down, opened his hatch, ad climbed out; he, too, held a sidearm. Can't let him go off alone, he thought, climbing down. Murrue wouldn't be happy if Mu bought it.

A good ways away, Yzak and Dearka had exited their respective machines, stopping a few paces apart. Dearka was unarmed. "Yzak..."

Yzak raised the pistol he held. "Did you think I was naive enough to believe the words of an enemy?"

His old friend looked away for a moment. "Have I become your enemy now?"

"How can you ask me that? You're the one who-"

Yzak broke off as a roaring sound filled the air. "Hit the dirt!" Dearka advised, flattening; an instant later, Carter's GuAIZ slammed into the ground beside the Duel, thoroughly dismembered and smoking.

The Stormhawk made a more controlled landing within seconds, quickly powering down. And for a few moments, all was still; even Yzak was silent where he lay, pistol in hand, completely bemused by the unexpected occurrence.

In the Sturm Falke's cockpit, Snake observed his fallen foe with no small satisfaction. Carter, you idiot, he thought cheerfully. Never take on my machine with a mass-produced model, especially when you're so inexperienced at that kind of warfare. Now it's time to finish this.

He stripped off his flight suit, leaving his standard attire minus the jacket, and checked his weapons. Shoulder-holstered .45, check... combat knife, check... throwing knives, check... plasma rifle, check... Colt... oh, that's not good.

Kevin's Colt Single Action Army was down for the count. Its barrel was cracked, and the grips splintering; a direct result of his bionic arm's power. "Now what?" he muttered, assessing the damage. His trademark gun was gone (he'd given the other to Cagalli), which meant he needed a new one, fast.

Snake briefly contemplated the Colt automatic under his arm, then dismissed the notion and reached under his ejection seat. He swiftly withdrew another holstered pistol, virtually identical to the .45. And so it was: the only difference between the Colt M1911 and the Delta Elite was bore size. The Delta Elite was chambered for 10 millimeter, a caliber he favored due to its extreme penetration.

After quickly swapping the SAA's holster for the 10mm, Snake popped his hatch and jumped out, making one of his trademark bone-breaking landings.

Yzak stared as Kevin Walker dropped to the ground, ran past, and then hit the dirt near the wrecked GuAIZ as its cockpit opened and released a an armed figure, who began firing at the Snake. His confusion grew when it became clear that the shooter was another Kevin Walker; something that became very clear when the flight-suited man dashed briefly into view on his way to the facility where Le Creuset and Mu had vanished.

Snake blew past a moment later, and Dearka whispered harshly to Yzak. "Shoot him, Yzak! You'll be doing the entire world a favor if you whack that guy!"

Animosity momentarily forgotten, Yzak's weapon wavered between the two gunmen. "Which one? And why do they look alike?"

"Shoot 'em both if you have to," Dearka said impatiently. "Snake won't even notice. The other guy, though, is one of his clones, and the one who stole that GuAIZ. ZAFT wants him dead, too, so shoot already!"

Before Yzak could make up his mind, both Walkers were gone. Carter had bypassed the building entirely, apparently searching for an escape route, while Snake had gone straight in. Both were long gone.

Deprived of those targets, he shifted his aim back to Dearka. "Enough! What are you trying to pull, Dearka? It won't work, whatever it is!"

"That was Kevin Walker," Dearka said carefully. "The one they called Hydra."

The Duel's pilot sneered. "Another traitor! I should-"

"He wasn't a willing participant, Yzak! You must have seen the scars. Do those look like the marks of a volunteer?" Dearka challenged him.

Yzak's aim faltered for a moment. "What...?"

On the opposite side of Mendel, mechanics worked feverishly to repair the ships and machines. Four of their mobile suits still had not returned, which left everyone very tense, especially since there was little doubt the Dominion was still nearby.

Meanwhile, Asagi had been sent on a recon run to the colony's far side; she was just now returning. "There's ZAFT forces here, alright," she radioed. "Three Nazca-class battleships are hiding in the debris field on the other side of the colony."

"Thanks, Asagi," Kisaka said wearily from the Kusanagi's Bridge.

"Three Nazcas, huh?" Waltfeld looked grim. "They must be real serious if they're sending three after us." He shook his head. "This could be trouble. What team are they from?"

"They're Le Creuset's," Murrue said softly, unexpectedly. When all eyes on both screens turned to her, her face was very grim. "That's how he knew they were out there." She looked up, as if only then realizing she was speaking aloud. "Mu says he can tell when he's nearby," Murrue explained. "But he doesn't know how. He can sense Rau Le Creuset."

"We must hurry," Lacus said gravely. "The Commander and Kira are out there, and so are Dearka and my cousin. They may be in grave danger."

"Kevin can take care of himself," Cagalli said, behind Kisaka. Her voice and face were tightly controlled. "I'm... I'm sure he'll be fine. They can't have sent more than a couple of machines into the colony itself, or we would have noticed. The Freedom and the Stormhawk can handle anything ZAFT has, and nobody alive could take Kevin on foot. They'll be okay."

"I hope you're right," Invictus murmured from further aft on the Kusanagi's Bridge. "Because I just might have a job for my 'brother'." Without explaining himself, he went back to poring over the Archangel-class' blueprints.

Inside the long-abandoned facility, Mu braced himself against a wall, one hand pressed to his wound, the other holding his sidearm. After entering the spooky place, he'd repeatedly traded shots with Le Creuset, who seemed to be in a talkative mood.

"Do you have any idea what this place is, Mu?" Le Creuset's echoing voice asked.

Mu peered around the corner and snapped off a couple shots. "Why would I, psycho?"

A handful of bullets ricocheted nearby. "It's such a crime for you not to know," Rau mused, while the Hawk darted to another piece of cover.

On the bottom floor, just outside of the huge open room, Kira crouched against a wall, checking the area; his gun was held tightly in both hands.

He nearly had heart failure when a black-clad silhouette suddenly materialized next to him. "Hey, Kira," Snake whispered.

His friend nearly jumped out of his skin. "Snake! Don't do that."

"Sorry." He didn't mean it, of course; the Snake took great pride in his ability to frighten people half to death. (Any sign of Mu?) he went on silently.

Kira shook his head. (I haven't seen him, though I can hear him. And Le Creuset. What about you? Any luck?)

It was Kevin's turn to shake his head. (Nope; Carter got away. Doesn't matter right now.) He looked disdainfully at Kira's weapon and positively sniffed in disgust. "Mouse gun," he sneered. His hand snaked down to his shoulder holster. "Here, take this."

Kira took the big automatic, setting aside his standard-issue weapon. "Thanks. Forty-five?"

"Yeah; my SAA broke, so I'm using ten millimeter. Better penetration." Snake looked carefully through the door. "Okay, let's go."

The Freedom's pilot nodded, and the pair darted through, into the main chamber, weapons at the ready. Snake, despite his words, had not yet drawn his 10mm; instead, he held the enormously heavy plasma rifle. His door opener, if it came to that.

For a time, they could see nothing; so Kira risked a shout. "Hey, Mu!"

Mu jerked. "No, Kira!"

On a higher level, Le Creuset froze in surprise. Kira... Yamato? He's alive?

Snake, below, wondered at the silence. "Okay," he told Kira. "I'm going on ahead." With that, he performed another of his superhuman leaps, landing two floors above.

Rau spotted the motion, and knew it at once for what it was. Only one fully-enhanced man remained alive, and only someone with the full package could have done that. "Kevin Walker! Kira Yamato! Delightful it is that you two could join us... wouldn't you say, Cain?"

Kevin froze for an instant. "That name doesn't mean anything, Le Creuset!" he called back. "Hydra is dead, and so is Cain!"

"Hydra, perhaps, but not the fratricidal Cain!" Le Creuset laughed. "The day Michael Carnehan died, you became in truth that codename." He risked a glance down below, spotting Kira. "Ah, now I understand! So you're the Freedom's pilot!"

Kira used the distraction to reach Mu's location. "Finally!"

Mu frowned as the younger pilot pressed himself against the wall. "Kira! Why did you follow me?" He attempted a glare.

"I wasn't going to just wait outside for you," Kira replied firmly. "Besides, if anything happened to you, what would I tell Murrue?"

The Hawk smiled reluctantly. "Ha. Nosy kid." Even though it might get you killed...

Kira caught sight of Mu's injury. "You're hurt!"

He waved away the concern. "It's nothing, don't worry about it." He glanced down at the Colt the Coordinator held. "But there's something you should know: if you're gonna use that thing, you should release the safety first."

While Kira sheepishly worked his gun's mechanism, Kevin stalked around a level below. "This place... seems familiar..." Maybe I should transform, heighten my senses... but no. In this place, the memories might overwhelm my animal form, and we can't have that. Not after the last time I lost control.

"I wondered when we'd meet again, Cain!" Le Creuset called. "You nearly had me, back at Alaska; if the law of averages hadn't caught up with your shooting, I wouldn't be here right now. But now, it seems somehow right that the four of us should meet again at the place where it all began!"

"Shut up, nekulturny bastard!" Snake jumped again, giving Rau a perfect shot; a perfect shot that was redirected by the super-soldier's momentarily-functional EM field. "That the best you can do?"

"What makes you think I want to kill you, Cain?" Le Creuset laughed. "I won't do that, not yet; there is still much you have to learn about yourself, you know. You remember this place, don't you? Even if Kira and Mu do not?" He ran off into the next room.

Kira, hearing this, was quite startled; but Mu quickly shook his head. "Don't listen to him! No matter what he says, don't believe a word of it!"

"No, Mu," Snake said quietly, suddenly with them. "Some things he speaks of are true. I'm just not sure which yet."

"Forget it for now." Mu dashed off for the door Le Creuset had disappeared through, Kira and Kevin tow. They were forced to drop back for a moment, as a few stray shots passed them, but then they were inside... in a room of bizarre equipment. "What is this place?"

Crouched near one of the tanks filling the room (they appeared to contain human embryos, long dead), Snake said something very obscene. In English, which got his friends' attention. "No..." he whispered.

"What's wrong, Snake?" Mu asked quickly.

"GARM..." Kevin's hands were actually shaking on the grip of his pistol.

"'GARM'?" Mu repeated. "What's that?"

"Genetic Advanced Reproductive Medical Research and Development," Snake said softly. "I hoped I'd never see this cursed place again..."

Kira looked at him sharply. "You know this place? You've been here before?"

The super-soldier nodded, face a mask. "Yeah. But I don't know why, or when." Holding his emotions carefully in check, manipulating his vitals through his augmentation, Snake rose to his feet. "Enough games, Rau!" he called. "What's going on here?"

Low laughter echoed back. "Such a shame, that you don't remember. You know this place, Cain; you can feel its resonance in your very bones, can't you?"

Snake hissed, holstered his 10mm, and pulled the plasma rifle off his back. "Enough riddles, Commander!" In a bid to get Le Creuset's attention, he fired the powerful weapon into one of the long-deceased embryos, causing total vaporization of the test subject, the equipment surrounding it, and a good chunk of wall beyond.

The bid was successful; and all three pilots were forced to the deck as bullets hit the walls. "Nice going, Snake," Mu muttered, and ran to the door at the far side of the room.

"Does it bring back any memories, Kira?" Le Creuset called. "You should know this place!"

Kira paused. "Know this place? But how?"

Mu had had enough. He dashed through the door, rolled to avoid Le Creuset's fire, and leapt over a couch, landing in a covered position. He then popped up, fired a round... and lost his grip on his gun as a flash of white-hot pain hit him in the shoulder; one of Rau's bullets had hit its mark.

"Mu, no!" Kira shouted. He rushed in, similarly jumped over the couch, and turned to face Le Creuset, .45 held in both hands. "Are you okay?" he asked Mu; his only answer was a grunt of pain.

Le Creuset stepped forward into the lesser shadows and lowered his gun. "I'm not going to finish you," he said calmly. "After all, I made you go through the trouble of coming all the way here. I think you should hear the whole story, before you die."

"Before you die, you mean," Snake whispered harshly. He had suddenly materialized behind the ZAFT commander, Delta Elite held in both hands. "Last time, my augmentation was malfunctioning, and threw off my aim; this time it's in perfect shape. But you know, I'm not going to finish you, either; I'd like to hear what you have to say." He lowered the gun. "No promises for afterwards, of course."

"I would expect no less, Cain," Rau said easily, unconcerned. He'd read the super-soldier perfectly; an assassin he might be, but he hungered for knowledge, especially if it concerned his own past.

He reached over to a small table, picked up a framed picture, and tossed it into Kira's view. The young pilot glanced at it, and gasped; it was the same picture Cagalli had shown him.

The next item to land was a photo album, spilling pictures; and this time it was Mu's turn to be startled. "My dad...?" he whispered in surprise.

"Take a look," Le Creuset suggested. "Don't you want to know the full extant of humanity's insatiable desires, of the madmen who pursued their twisted dream in the name of progress?" He smiled. "Because after all, Kira, Cain... you're children of this, too."

Author's note: Dominion has been temporarily driven off, while Kira and Mu have entered the GARM facility… accompanied by Kevin Walker, who seems to have some recollection of the place. Within moments, the truth of Kira Yamato, Rau Le Creuset, and Kevin Walker's origins will be revealed…

One thing I should note here: I realize the confrontation with Jack Carter was brief, but this isn't yet his time to shine. The sociopathic clone will come into his own in the sequel, A Call to Arms… with a vengeance, as will be explained next chapter.

Daniel Lynx, I salute your brother, and wish him luck. Whatever anyone else may think, I support the troops. I hope he does well.

Ominae, I will say that the two become quite close, by the end, but other than that…

Relik, I'm really not sure why Invictus' motives are so hard to understand. Think about it: he is a direct clone of Kevin, with all the same memories up to the start of Project ABADDON. That means he started with Kevin's original value system, and while it would no doubt have changed somewhat based on experience, he'd still have much the same views on matters. In any case, though, that will be further explored a little later on.

As for Robert Frost, I confess I haven't read the whole thing myself (assuming there's more to it, at any rate). I found it in a rather creepy series called Atlantis, by Greg Donegan, and found it fit certain places in the story perfectly… especially something near the very end, as you'll see.

Arekuruu-inabikari-no-She, if you look again you'll see that Lacus doesn't say Eternal has an extra METEOR Unit for Stormhawk; Waltfeld merely comments that the ship was modified to accommodate the machine. As I said, though, he'll be getting heavier firepower soon enough.

Now, I'll say this about the next chapter, in my usual cryptic fashion: some scenes you've been looking forward to finally take place.

Deathzealot, any resemblance between my story and the one you refer to is purely coincidental. Obviously; unlike Kevin Walker, I'm not even an empath, let alone a telepath. And since I have no idea who this person is… Anyway, we're getting close to a twist I'm pretty sure no one else has ever thought of before. You'll see what I mean.

RVD, I'm informed your story has just been updated, so I'll likely be reviewing your work soon enough. As always, thanks for the review; and you're about to get the answer to your question.

Shinji Ikari, for starters, I didn't actually quote Gaignun Kukai; technically, I paraphrased. The actual line, if memory serves (which it should; I've only beaten that game a hundred times), used the phrase "will not", not "cannot". I know, I'm being nitpicking; but who cares?

As you've probably seen by now, I took care of the Chapter 17 edit, including the new point you raised. I also went back and rephrased that line in Chapter 19 (well, replaced one word, but it sufficed). However, having read over it again, I'm afraid I now disagree with you complaint about Kira's lack of reaction to Kevin calling himself a monster. Sure, he'd normally at least remark on it… but before he has a chance to, Kevin hits him with the revelation of who was behind that assassination two years ago. I would think that would kind of drive the previous point right out of his head.

I'm afraid I really have to disagree with your comment about this being one of the worst fan fiction archives on the Net, but I will say no more; I have no desire to instigate a major argument, when so much of my attention is focused on getting the chapters ready; besides, a difference of opinion is really irrelevant.

Point taken about the cloning technology, but fear not; I've got it all figured out anyway, as you'll see before too long.

Point also taken regarding Athrun; I'll have to add something in there, once I think of exactly what. I get the distinct feeling that before I post the final chapter, I'll have to go back and take care of a few last revision details. Fortunately, I don't think there are too many.

Your mention of George Glenn's preserved brain intrigues me, I must admit. Just what did they do with it? My assumption (if I thought about it at all) was that he had simply been buried or cremated whole, following his assassination.

Okay, time for what I suspect may be a lengthy explanation regarding Lacus. I'm afraid neither of your interpretations is exactly correct. Let me begin by saying that Lacus clearly does not think all killing is wrong: let me remind you that it was her idea to blow up the Vesalius, in Phase 46. That said, what she means is that while it's preferable to use nonlethal means (i.e., try them and then execute them), sometimes it's not possible to, and the only way to bring them to justice is to do exactly what Kevin proposes. The problem, from her point of view, is that he wants to do it out vengeance for inflicted injuries, not justice for past crimes; a subtle but very distinct and important difference.

Now, onto to the matter of Kevin and Invictus (and I might point out that while Cagalli may be an idealist, she's also more of a realist than, say, Kira or Lacus). First, Invictus may not be as jaded as Kevin, but even before ABADDON Kevin was a realist, and disbelief in world peace is realism, like it or not.

As for him being an assassin, remember that most of his time was spent assassinating other clones; despite his fearsome reputation, he actually hasn't done as much in that regard as Kevin himself. Besides which, his life hasn't been anywhere near as harsh, overall.

And of course he's more cheerful than the original: his memories don't cover the things inflicted upon Kevin by Oracle, which means he doesn't have quite the colossal grudge against ZAFT, the Earth Alliance, Blue Cosmos, etc, etc…

Yes, Invictus' character does get explored more later on, never fear.

Don't be surprised by all the "cliché-breakers"; while I don't have any intrinsic problem with clichés, I do generally prefer originality. Admittedly, such things do seem to happen by accident…

You make an interesting point regarding Kevin/Waltfeld interaction. There will be something along those lines, but I haven't yet decided if I'll insert a scene, or write it up for the series of one-shots. The latter might be better, as I could do it a bit more in-depth; these one-shots will be written in first-person, as a way to delve deeper into a given character's perspective on events involving or related to Kevin Walker.

You'll be pleased to know that, starting next chapter, I'll be including a mini-glossary at the end of each, before the author's notes. Since there isn't much specific to Brothers in Arms -relatively speaking- a handful per chapter should suffice to get in everything before the end.

As you've seen, I did change this past battle; I went back over it last night, decided it was too close to canon, and rewrote the engagement. This, by the way, will be about the last major battle where it's possible to be too close to canon.

I'm pleased to learn I'm still balancing Kevin's abilities well enough. It's a little tricky, of course; on the one hand, I can't have him too good, but on the other, given his established abilities, I can't have average small fry kicking the stuffing out of him, either. It's a fine line to walk.

Sorry that the entirety of GARM isn't here quite yet, but next chapter it will be; and I think I handled Le Creuset well enough, when it comes to my own twists. Of course, I'll have to spend tonight and tomorrow night both getting it ready; there are a number of small changes I need to make, based on more recent ideas. It should, however, still be posted according to my regular schedule, so you'll very likely be seeing it Monday night.

Kevin's survival won't be explained quite yet, obviously; you'll note that in Chapter 2, Le Creuset wonders about it himself. But, though it may rest slightly on fuzzy logic -I mean, come on; it was a fusion bomb- it will be more complete than my original intention.

Guess that's everything; time for me to sign off. Let me know how it was. -Solid Shark