-Prince Edward Island, July 17, C.E. 71, 0900.
The small inlet to which the six new warships sat seemed so peaceful to Azrael. From where he stood, atop one of the newly constructed platforms overlooking the bay, he could see flocks of birds flying overhead calling out to one another, maybe searching for food. Green trees with their leaves full grown extended high into the sky along the glossy shores. White wave crests sloped inward towards the sandy beaches which were combed to perfection. It seemed fitting to Azrael that this inlet, as peaceful as it seemed, be the starting point for the new equipment he hoped would end the war fairly soon.
Five of the warships, two new Jani-class assault ships, and three new Fiery-class battleships rested in an oval shape, nearly encompassing the entire circumference of the bay. Directly in the middle of the circle sat the Earth Forces' new pride and joy, the Dominion. Using all the technological data from its predecessor, the Archangel, the Dominion had been secretly constructed in various hidden locations around the planet, with the final, completed warship just having been put together a few weeks beforehand. The only real difference between the new ship and its predecessor was the paint scheme, which was gray and orange, instead of white and red. Several compartments that existed aboard the Archangel had been removed from the Dominion to allow for more room inside for its hangar. Although nothing was currently inside of the ship except maintenance personnel, the rest of the crew would be brought aboard once the ceremony began at approximately 1000, it would only be a matter of time before the deadly machinery that she was to carry would be hauled inside of her, ready to deliver the death blows to the Coordinators and their so-called ZAFT organization. Just staring at her magnificent form made Azrael all tingly inside.
Standing atop of the wooden platform, Azrael felt the crisp wind blowing through his blonde hair and gently caressing his face. It was unusually cold this time of year, it was the middle of summer and yet it was only about sixty degrees at the current time. While it may have been cold, the sun was shining brilliantly in on the bay, illuminating the fantastic inlet in beautiful light. Not a cloud was in the sky, which was good since today would also be the day that their new aircraft would be put on display for their honored guests. To go along with the new warships, Azrael had pushed for a new type of aircraft and mobile suit to be developed to compliment the larger ships. As a result, their new mobile suits, called Strike Daggers since they were technically a mass production of the X-105 Strike, which was unfortunately currently aboard the Archangel, were ready to be put into action at the first possibility. The new aircraft had just been put through the prototype stage and were waiting to be put to the test, which would happen today. Secretly however, Azrael and the Atlantic Federation had also constructed three mobile suits of their own, the Calamity, the Raider, and the Forbidden, but they would have to wait to be tested until the right opportunity presented itself.
"Mr. Azrael, sir." Azrael heard the voice of Captain Rutherford calling quietly to him from behind. Waving his hand toward the ocean ahead of him, Azrael had the young man come forward and stand next to him on his right. In contrast to Rutherford's standard Earth Forces military uniform, Azrael was clad in a stylish blue suit that he had had tailor made for this occassion. "Magnificent view isn't it, sir."
"That it is Captain." The birds had begun to sing once again, which was now beginning to annoy Azrael. How good would it have been to just casually shoot them all out of the sky with a rifle, or have the new aircraft run them down when they arrived. "Anything to report?"
"All the representatives from Eurasia and the Far East have arrived sir. They'll be hear in about half an hour."
Azrael chuckled. "Anticipating that they'll be getting a sneak peak at the ships no doubt."
"Admiral Sutherland's already explained to them sir, that they'll have to wait like the rest of us. Also sir, there's been a development at the Barthun Airfield."
Azrael frowned and turned his body to face his assistant, resting his left arm on the railing of the platform. "What kind of development? I hope it's nothing serious."
"Not that I know of sir. It's just that we haven't been able to communicate with the Airfield since late last night or early this morning."
Azrael waved his hands. "Pfft...probably just knocked the transmitter off line. Nothing to worry about."
"Yes, sir," Rutherford answered. "In that case sir, I think it's time we got ready for the ceremony."
"Right. Captain, have General Corsig report to his post on the Montgomery. He'll deliver his address from there. Make sure the planes don't come overhead until he begins his speech."
"Yes, sir," Rutherford saluted and marched off. Azrael took one last look at the inlet from his position and then turned to walk back to the temporary command center, which was just basically some tents, to get something to eat and clean up his face which had been blasted by the wind. A devilish smile appeared across his face and his thoughts were parallel to his expression. Soon Azrael...very soon all those Coordinators will be dead. Our blue and pure world will be set and nothing will stop our ideals.
-Somewhere over the Atlantic, July 17, C.E. 71, 0945.
"How far out are we Athrun?" Kira asked, taking his eyes off of the viewport for a moment. Sitting next to him, Athrun studied a screen on his diagnostic board that brought up a map of their current surroundings, a small red blip standing for their own airplane. Right now, they were directly south of Prince Edward Island, where the commissioning ceremony was to take place, about seventy miles away. Considering they were moving at an estimated three hundred twenty knots, they could make the target in the time they needed to. "Do we need to go any faster than we are?" Kira wondered.
"Nah. As long as something doesn't go wrong we'll make it." Turning his upper body toward the rear of the plane, Athrun called down into the nose. "Hey Donnie! How's it look from down there?"
"Everything's A-O.K. down here Athrun. The turning radius is working fine and the targeting computer's online and ready to go."
"Great. Just make sure you get an accurate read before you drop our payload. The wind's getting pretty strong the farther north we go so be prepared for some resistance!" Athrun heard an affirmative answer and he turned back to face the forward viewport. "How many bombs we got back there Kira?"
"Twenty. The maximum amount she can hold." Kira chuckled and spread a cocky grin across his face. "Wouldn't it be nice if one of them landed right on top of one of the bastards' head." Athrun laughed as well, which was nice to see considering Kira knew Athrun was still pretty upset over Dearka, but he still acted as though duty came first in this situation. Or as it could be called here, retribution.
Directly across from Kira's plane in the formation, Niada Barrington could see the waves cresting across the blue ocean in white streaks when he stuck his head out of his side window. His twin brother Stevy sat to his left, stearing the plane while Niada enjoyed himself. The passing air made Niada's long, black hair, tied back in a pony-tail, fly back behind him like smoke in the aftermath of a great fire.
"Are you trying to be a dog, or are you just trying to look like one?" Stevy mocked from Niada's left.
"Can I help it if this feels good?" Niada barked back. "I'm surprised you don't try it?"
"My hat'll blow away genius!" Stevy commented. Niada turned back toward the front of the plane and could almost see the air rushing past the nose of the huge bomber in great white streaks. Suddenly, the front of the plane began swaying back and forth to the right and then to the left. Stevy grunted heavily as he retained control of the plane, snapping the control stick right and left. "Sai! Don't play with the turning mechanism!"
"Sorry!" Sai apologized, "I just wanted to see if it worked!"
"You're more likely to crash the plane than we are kid! Don't touch anything you don't know how to work."
Niada chuckled, bringing his head back into the plane. "You know who he reminds me of?"
"Don't remind me..." Stevy responded quietly, knowing that the comment was directed at himself for how he used to act when he was younger. A prankster and nothing else.
Inside the cockpit of the lead plane, John leaned his left arm out the open window while his right hand worked the control stick. Mwu was doing the same, but with the opposite arms and hands. John noticed that Mwu's leg was still heavily constricted underneath the black brace and every once in a while Mwu would wince in pain when they hit a rough patch of air. "You alright Mwu?"
"I'll live," Mwu answered.
"Hurt?"
"Yeah..." Mwu conceded reluctantly. Hurt? Heh, feels like I've got a dagger stuck in there. "What do think's gonna happen John?"
"What do you mean?" John responded, not taking his eyes off of the forward window.
"After this. Where are we gonna go? What are we gonna do. We'll have no real allies since both the Earth Forces and ZAFT'll be after us."
John sighed with agreement. He too had been thinking much of the same thoughts ever since they left the Archangel. Nowhere on Earth seemed safe for them right now. "I don't really know right now. We'll just have to go with what we get I guess."
"Archangel's not an ordinary ship John. As far as I'm concerned both sides are gonna make it their prime goal to get to it, and I'm not ready to let that happen to all of them back there."
"Me neither, kid. But right now, I just don't know what in the hell we're gonna do." Mwu sighed sadly, then rested his elbow on the open windowsill of his window, leaning his head against it. Shutting his eyes gently, Mwu attempted to find some sort of peace within himself at this critical moment. About to deliver a payback strike against the bastards who had stabbed him in the back and tried to kill him, and he wasn't even that thrilled about it right now. He assumed it was just worry that someone he knew would end up biting it when the bombs fell. Thoughts of Hugh Swanson came into his mind, way back from when they were young kids back in Philadelphia. Damn it! Mwu banged his fist lightly against the steel fuselage. Just thinking about Hugh made his insides go hollow.
As Mwu retreated back into himself, one man in the fuselage of the plane finished wiring a few peaces of silver and other precious metals into the mechanisms of one of the bombs. The medals John, Mwu, Jay, and the others had earned were all wired to this single bomb. Coop had tried to offer his medal of honor to the pile, but John had refused, citing that that medal was one that Coop had actually earned, since it was the Earth Forces who had actually been the ones who had helped him earn it at Alaska. Light gleamed off of the shiny surfaces and providing some beacon of hope to those who were crouched inside the cramped fuselage of the plane.
A small chiming noise sounded inside the cockpit of the plane. Mwu's eyes slowly opened and focused on the sound's origin. It was coming from the radio transmitter. Mwu reached up to turn the radio on but a hand stretched out to restrain his arm. John shook his head slowly from side to side and Mwu backed off. Flicking on the receiving end of the signal, hooking the signal's frequency into the transmitter so the other bombers would be able to hear the message, Mwu sat back and listened to the next words that came through.
"This is the Dominion of the Earth Forces 7th Orbital Fleet. Is Lieutenant Patterson on the receiving end of this transmission. If so, please respond."
Keying his own private comm channel, John spoke into the small receiver located in the pocket of his jacket. "Zala. Zala you there?"
"I read you sir," Athrun's voice came back.
"Athrun. I need you to talk to them for us."
"Huh?" Athrun gasped, "Why me?"
"Cause Azrael's heard the rest of our voices Athrun." Stevy's voise sounded hoarser than usual because of the usual static coming through the transmitter. "You're the only one he hasn't heard."
"...O.K. then..." Athrun replied quietly. Mwu waited until Athrun's voice to come back through the radio and respond to the message. "This is Lieutenant Patterson here. Dominion I read you loud and clear."
"Lieutenant? There something wrong kid? Your voice sounds different."
"Uhh..." Athrun managed a small cough, "I'm a little down on the weather today, I apologize for that. cough What are our orders right now sir?"
"Well right now all I know is that you'll have to do a simple fly-by, nothing special, just make the planes look good. Mr. Azrael has said that he wants everything to be spotless for today. I'm transmitting the coordinates to you now."
The map in front of Mwu lit up with a small green dot, honing in on the coordinates. Southern coast of Prince Edward Island, Mwu identified it as when he zoomed in on the location. "Thank you sir. cough cough" Athrun called back. "We'll get there as quickly as we can. Signing off."
"Signing off." With that, the line went dead. John blew out a sigh of relief and Mwu wiped his brow which had started sweating about halfway into Athrun's act. Stevy moved his fingers through his long brown hair as Niada moved back inside the plane's cockpit, shutting the window beside him. Kira patted Athrun on the back informing him that he'd done a good job, and Athrun just grinned in return.
"Well..." Mwu murmured.
"Yeah..." John answered dubiously. So far so good.
-Prince Edward Island, 0955.
"Ladies and gentlemen." Azrael began his speech from the top of the tallest steel platform that overlooked the crystal bay. Representatives from every nation in the Earth Alliance were present at the ceremony. The ones that Azrael most wanted to impress were the ones from the Atlantic Federation, Eurasian Federation, and the Far East Republic, who were seated along the shores of the bay. "Today, we commence what we firmly believe will be the final strikes against the ZAFT. Our proud new warships and their crews will deliver the blows that will bring about the end of this war and bring the Earth Forces victory!" Applause sounded from different locations across the bay. Admiral Sutherland sat to Azrael's right along with other members of the Inner Council. The only one not present was General Corsig, who was standing along the observation platform of one of the new Jani-class, located nearest to the dignitaries.
"Now, I'd like to present to you, the officers who will lead us to victory. Standing on the observation platform, behind the honorable General Draven Corsig are the men and women in charge of these fine new vessels." More applause sounded and Azrael could see many of the officers smiling and conversing happily with one another. "Without further ado, General Corsig will now speak for our officers!"
Azrael moved from his place and took his seat next to Sutherland. As he sat down, Captain Rutherford walked up and whispered into his ear that the bombers were on their way. "Excellent..." Azrael whispered back, "You gave them the coordinates and the routes we designated for them?"
"Yes, sir. They'll be here in about five minutes."
"Be off then, Captain." Azrael turned his attention back to the platform of the Jani-class where Corsig was beginning to speak.
"On behalf of all the men and women of these fine new vessels, I would like to thank you all for honoring us with your presence. It is an honor, not only to myself, but every single one of us in the Earth Forces, that we have the full support of our own homelands, both in heart and mind. Behind me stand the people who will guide our grand nations to victory over our enemies above us. As I speak, our forces have..."
A faint chiming sound caused Azrael to lose track of Corsig's speech. He darted his eyes to his right where he saw Sutherland take a small comlink out of his pocket. Sutherland sternly asked what was the matter and Azrael leaned in closer to hear the response.
"Admiral. Barthun Airfield was assaulted last night by a group of saboteurs. The main transmitter was knocked off line so we're just now getting word out from them..." A loud roaring noise rained down from above the bay and Azrael bent his neck upwards to see the massive forms of his new bombers streak by overhead at full speed. They looked like giant eagles soaring through the sky searching for prey to stalk and kill. Azrael smiled, fully forgetting what was being said over the comlink.
The planes disappeared over the trees surrounding the inlet and headed further north, where they would turn around and head back toward the inlet. Azrael heard the next portion of Corsig's speech. "As you can see from here, we have also taken this opportunity to display the Earth Force's new bomber aircraft. The K-type." More applause sounded from the crowd of dignitaries gathered on the platforms surrounding the bay. "Capable of delivering twenty high explosive bombs to our enemie's forces, these aircraft will not only rain destruction down on the ZAFT forces here on Earth, but also those in space, thanks to the other systems built into the plane's operating systems."
"What do you mean they were stolen?!" Sutherland's outburst snapped Azrael out of his proud thoughts. Listening in on the conversation, Azrael was able to pick out words such as stolen, new bomber, and explosions. The wind picked up and blew at Azrael's hair and suit. He once again turned his head upwards and saw the new bombers making their second overhead pass, though this time they were at what he guessed was almost five thousand feet. Azrael's mouth frowned at this. The orders delivered to the air commander of the planes in no way shape our fashion said that they had to go higher. Squinting his eyes closer together, Azrael became even more confused when he saw the bomb doors underneath the airplanes swing open.
On the platform of the Jani-class, Corsig had stopped his speech to gaze happily up into the sky to look at their new planes. However, his excitement soon turned to confusion as a small, black object floated out of the plane's open doors. Azrael's mouth dropped as he saw several more of the black objects sail down after the first. It was then that Azrael realized what they were and what was happening.
"Oh no..." Sutherland gasped next to him. The first black object sailed down through the sky and landed right on top of General Corsig's head.
-K-Bomber, 1000.
The first shockwaves from the explosions reached the bombers a few seconds after the fires ignited. From where he sat, Mwu could see a fireball engulf the Jani-class closest to the shore of the inlet. Smoke and fire concealed the ship as more of their bombs went off. He could see two other ships suffering the same fate with yellows and oranges expanding rapidly across the once blue inlet. Thick black smoke began ascending towards the planes which were shaking slightly with the shockwave's impact.
After a few moments, Mwu opened his window and stuck his head out, looking behind him toward the bomber's tail. His faced produced a grin that everyone aboard the plane wanted to see. "We got three of 'em!"
Choruses of enthusiastic shouts rained throughout his plane and the others. Kira slapped Athrun gleefully on the back when they saw the results. Stevy pumped his fist and Niada threw his arms above his head, beaming with happiness.
As more of the black smoke cleared, Mwu was able to get a clear view of the destruction they had caused. "Aw shit!" he cursed.
"What's the matter?" John asked.
"We missed the center target!" Mwu shouted, referring to the ship in the center which could only be the Dominion. Speaking into the plane's comm, Mwu said, "What the hell happened down there Kurk?"
"Sorry Commander! The wind resistance screwed me over at the last minute. Looks like one of Lieutenant Barrington's bombs hit the starboard leg at the base though!"
"Thanks. Good job otherwise though kid!"
"We heading back to the Archangel now John?" Mwu heard Kira's voice call out from the radio.
"Where else are we gonna go Kira? Everybody form up on us and we'll head back. Maximum speed!" Pushing the engines to their limit, the massive bombers soared through the sky, back toward their home base and their only current sanctuary on the planet. All the way there, Mwu was grinning from ear to ear. See what happens when you piss us off Azrael? What'd you think Hugh? Darting his eyes toward the ceiling of the plane, Mwu thought, Yeah I know, we're still up shit creak. But we'll worry about that later. Right now, Mwu leaned back in his chair and moved his arms behind his head, I just wanna kick back and relax.
-Prince Edward Island, 1010.
Sutherland stared out at the blazing inferno with hatred sizzling in his eyes. The bastards had done it to him again! Those damn Coordinators! Mark my words you bastards! You will all burn in hell for this!
"How did they do it William?" Sutherland turned his head slightly to see Azrael approaching from behind him, his once sparkling blue suit now plastered with ugly, gray dust.
"Must've stolen the bombers while we were away. Knocked the radio transmitters out so we wouldn't know. Why must they always do this to us?!" he shouted.
"Easy William," Azrael urged. "I think I may know how we can relieve the strain however." Azrael gestured to where Captain Rutherford was assisting the fire crews attempting to put out the blazes. So far, they weren't having much luck as two of the three ships that had been hit looked completely destroyed. Entreating his assistant to come forth, Azrael asked the taller man, "Where's Archangel? Still at Bermuda I assume?"
"No, sir," Rutherford responded uneasily. "I received a call from the base's commander this morning. The ship left last night without citing exactly why. I assumed you wouldn't want to know about it during the ceremony so I never brought it up..."
"You imbissil!" Sutherland shouted, bringing the back of his hand across the young man's face. Azrael grabbed hold of Sutherland's arm and restrained him from injuring Rutherford any further.
"Come on William!" Azrael snapped. "We cannot fight against each other if we want to win this war! We still have the ship's frequency. Call them up and give them some suicide mission that'll get them killed, alright!"
"Yes, Mr. Azrael," Sutherland hissed, finally relaxing the tensions that had built up inside his body. The shit-heads aboard the Archangel better pray that I don't get to them first!
-Archangel, 1015.
The white walls of the ship's infirmary surrounded Murrue, as she waited for Frank to awaken from his surgery. Though it had been almost four hours, her brother still hadn't shown any signs of waking up. His facial expression was calm and serene and his skin complection had returned to its normal, golden form. She took that as a good sign that he would be alright. Several times she had found herself dozing off into sleep. Murrue hadn't been able to sleep for almost a day now. Every time her eyes would close, she would snap herself back to attention, never trying to leave Frank alone, for fear that when he woke up, she wouldn't be there for him.
For the fifth time, Murrue's eyes became extremely heavy and she practically dozed off, leaning to her right, her head coming into contact with her shoulder, which snapped her back awake. She sat back up straight and returned her stare to where her older brother lay. Come on Frank, she thought sadly, Please wake up.
A chiming noise broke her stare once again. She stood up from her chair and walked over to the terminal which she activated. "Yes, what is it?"
"Just thought you might want to know what's happened to Commander la Flaga and the others Captain." Ensign Neumann's voice was just eminating with happiness which made Murrue smile slightly.
"Well..."
"They got three of the ships." Yes! Murrue thought eccastically to herself.
A soft moan shocked her out of her thoughts. Turning her head sharply to her rear, Murrue saw Frank's eyes slowly open to about halfway. "Frank...!" Murrue gasped, bringing her hands to cover her mouth again, which hid her smile.
Frank's brown eyes slowly moved to fixate on his sister's now shaking form. "...Murrue..." he gasped. "...Where...am I...?"
"The Archangel's infirmary," Murrue responded, kneeling beside her brother's bed. His eyes were now fully open and his once lifeless body had begun to stir. "Mwu and the others brought you here last night."
"Mwu...?" Frank murmured, attempting to find his voice. Slowly, Frank began to rise off of his pillow, but Murrue gently restrained him, propping his pillow upwards so he could sit up. "Why am I here Murrue? What's happened? How long have I been out?"
"I don't know exactly..." Murrue attempted to find the right words at this time. "You were unconscious and in shock when they brought you in last night. We rushed you into surgery and you've been out of it ever since."
"I remember...pulling Jake out of the plane...and thinking..." Frank's eyebrows crunched downward in a sign of anger. "The bastards in the Council set us up didn't they?!" he gasped angrily.
"Yes," Murrue responded quietly. "You and the others were taken prisoner in New York. Based on what I know right now, they brought you with them and arrived here last night. A few hours ago they left with the planes they stole to try and get some revenge on the Council for all of us."
"Did it work...?"
"Three ships destroyed," Murrue responded. Frank smiled gently, which made Murrue feel all warm inside.
"Nice..." Frank murmured. "Man, I must've been out further than I thought," he murmured, brining his hands up to clutch his face and forehead. "Why does everybody else get to have all the-." Frank's voice stopped suddenly there and Murrue knew exactly why. Moving his hand slowly away from his face, Frank's eyes were full of shock and wonder as he stared at his right hand, the one he had cut off himself. "...I...thought I..."
"You did," Murrue answered his question for him. "The doctors brought you into surgery to fix your wound. They said they could attach an artificial one in your real one's place and I gave them the O.K. to do so..."
Frank turned his new hand this way and that. The skin completely matched his own. Whenever he moved it, a small clinking sound would emanate from the steel he discovered attached to where his wrist had been. Covered by a brown plate, the steel was almost invisible to the naked eye, unless you knew what to look for and exactly where it was. He flexed his fingers in and out, realizing that the artificial hand worked just as well as his real one had. Slowly but surely, a smile spread across Frank's face. "I think I could get used to this..."
"Oh Frank!" Murrue beamed, throwing her arms around her brother's neck, holding him tight to her. Frank's arms wrapped themselves around his sister's small figure, not letting her escape from his grasp as he held her. "I don't know what I would do if I lost you, brother?" Murrue cried.
"It's O.K. sis. I'm fine. We're all fine." Frank soothed Murrue just as he had done when they were younger and she was going through a tough time. After a while, he released her and asked, "Hey, is my stuff still here?"
"Yes, it's still in your quarters, but-,"
"Great!" Frank threw off the covers and swung his legs out over the side of the bed.
"Frank!" Murrue gasped.
"I'm fine Murrue," Frank reassured her. "It's only my hand. I can walk fine now. When are Mwu and the others supposed to get back?"
"They should be back any time now."
"Good. 'Cause I want to be there when they do." Frank marched out of the infirmary in just his infirmary shirt, which caused Murrue to giggle a little. Luckily Frank's quarters was only a few doors down the hall, so no one would notice that he'd forgotten to secure the back strings of his infirmary's shirt.
-Archangel, 1100.
Screeching, the wheels of the bomber touched down on the Archangel's deck. Catching hold of one of the outstretched cables spread across the deck, the bomber glided to a halt, though this time it was smoother than when they'd originally done it. Mwu credited this to the fact that the landing had been made at night while this one was made during the middle of the day. "Well, that went well," he commented happily.
Grasping the front of the diagnostic board in front of him, Mwu rose gingerly out of his chair and managed to get his footing on the floor of the plane. Taking hold of his crutches, Mwu slowly turned his body around 180 degrees and hobbled out of the cockpit, John provided assistance whenver Mwu would need it. As the rubber ends of the crutches thudded against the metal bulkhead below him, hangar crewmen attached the bomber to cables and pullies, which would move the plane over to where its sister aircraft were resting on the far side of the hangar. Stopping for a moment to take into account the new configuration of the hangar's equipment, Mwu realized that the once huge facility now seemed rather small with all the mobile weaponry filling it from one end to the other. On the starboard side sat the four mobile suits the Archangel had onboard, and next to them, facing the front of the ship, his mobile armor, the Moebieus Zero, was secured with steel girders and connectors which prevented the supportless craft from moving. With the K-bombers having been moved to the port side of the hangar, angled away from the wall to face the front of the ship, the ship's two Skygrasper planes, the smallest pieces of aircraft in the hangar, had also been moved to the rear of the hangar. Above him, attached to mounting equipment on the ceiling which could move on a small cable pully to either the front or the back of the hangar, hung the power packs, known as Launcher, Sword, and Aile, which could be mounted onto either the Strike or the Skygraspers.
"Impressive isn't it Mwu," John whistled next to him. "Hard to believe all of this firepower is under the command of one ship and its crew."
"Yeah, I know. And I thought that there wasn't enough room in here before." Moving to the port side of the hangar, Mwu sat down on a crate that had fallen off of a pile that was stacked against the wall. "You think we did what we wanted to accomplish back there John? Or do you think all we did was piss Azrael and the rest of those bitches off?"
"I don't know..." Noticing Kira walking across the hangar, John motioned the younger man to join the two of them and asked him the same question.
Kira responded with a shrug. "All I know is that that was the most fun I've had in a long time." Kira chuckled at his own statement and slapped Mwu's outstretched hand, which was shaking from his own laughter.
"I'll second that, Kira. That was fun wasn't it John?"
"Yeah, now that you mention it, it was kind of entertaining." Then John laughed himself. "But hey, I'm 45! What do I know about fun anymore?"
"And why is it that you guys have all the fun and I'm always left out?" The voice made Mwu's head snap over his left shoulder and he grinned from ear to ear.
"Frank!" Mwu beamed, standing up from his crate only to stumble, fall, and splat onto the floor with a big bang!
"For Christ sake Mwu! You got a busted ankle!" Kira's reprimand was shrouded with laughter as he moved to help Mwu onto his feet again.
Once he'd regained his balance and had the support of his crutches, Mwu hobbled over to where his friend was leaning against a support beam, his ankles crossed and facial expression joyous. His was clothed in his white Earth Forces uniform, though Mwu noted that he too had taken off the Atlantic Federation insignia and also his rank badge. His skin complection had returned to its normal golden tan and his hair and mustache were perfectly combed.
"How ya feeling buddy?" Mwu beamed ecstatically, slapping Frank on the shoulder.
"I've been better, but see for youself." Frank raised his right arm and Mwu was shocked when he saw a hand extended out of the sleeve of his friend's jacket.
For a moment, Mwu just stared in awe at his friend's hand which appeared to have miraculously reattached itself to his arm. Kira and John also stared in awe at the new limb protroding out of Frank's sleeve. "Is that...?" Kira muttered.
"No, not quite," Frank answered, lowering the sleeve of his jacket and showing his comrades the brown plate that now substituted for his wrist and allowed them to listen to the steel moving on the inside of his hand. He explained all what the surgeons had done and how they had told him it would function just as well as his real hand. "Best of all, they say I can fly again as soon as I want to!"
"Awright!" Mwu shouted happily. But then he stopped and looked over to John with a confused look on his face. "Which reminds me John. What in the hell are we going to do now?"
John shrugged his shoulders and answered, "I really don't know to tell you the truth. It all depends on what Captain Ramius wants."
About twenty minutes later, on the Archangel's bridge, John called a meeting of the officers and senior crew members aboard the ship. Arrayed in a circle near the rear of the bridge, the group of eight included, John, Mwu, Frank, Murrue, Natarle, Stevy, Kira, and Athrun, the latter were present because John believed their insight into the situation would greatly help the ship and the people aboard her.
"Right now we don't have many options," John began, starting to pace from one end of the bridge to the other. "If we go to any place that's friendly with the Earth Forces, we'll be arrested and executed immediately. The same goes for any place friendly with ZAFT. Captain Ramius, are there any neutral nations that you believe would assist us if we went there?"
"I really can't say," Murrue responded dejectedly. "Many of the neutral nations have declared they want nothing to do with either side and the only one out of all of them that has shown us any kindness in the past has been the Orb Union."
"But they're halfway across the planet, so it's not likely we'll ever get there without running into some resistance correct?" John asked.
"In order to get there, we'd have to cross over the continent," Natarle said.
"Which is controlled in the North by the Earth Forces and by ZAFT in the South," Frank added.
"And if we go the other way, we'd face the same problem," Mwu broke in. "Although we were able to do it once before, the chances of getting it done twice are slim to none."
"Athrun. What's the strength of ZAFT's forces in the South American Republic and the other places?" John asked.
"From about as far north as Venezuela, all the way southward, except for the very tip of the continent, which is controlled by the Earth Forces, their ZAFT forces are well trained and well fortified." Athrun activated a console and produced a map of the South American Republic, blue colors representing the Earth Forces controlled areas in Panama, and southern Chile and Argentina, and red colors representing ZAFT's presence in Cuba, and the rest of South America. "There's no way we'd be able to get across the mainland unharmed."
"And given the situation with our supplies its highly unlikely that we'd even make it to Orb without having to stop for supplies," Kira added, solemnly.
"Otherwise, besides Orb there's really no other option for us right now. Not only are we marked for death in Earth Forces territory, but if we even come close to ZAFT controlled lands we'll be attacked immediately."
"So in other words, there's no place on the planet that's safe for us right now," Stevy remarked, standing toward the back of the group, attempting to stay out of sight.
"That about sums it up, Stevy," John responded.
"Then why don't we go up instead of east or west, north or south?"
All eyes turned to Stevy and then Murrue realized, "You don't mean space do you?"
"What other choice do we have right now?" Stevy reminded her.
"And just how do you suggest we get to orbit, Lieutenant Barrington?" Natarle asked sternly.
"She's right Stevy," Frank added, "we'd need a mass driver to get into orbit and all the drivers on the planet are either occupied by ZAFT or the Earth Forces."
"All except the one on Orb, but as we decided earlier it's unlikely we'd even make it to their territory," Mwu said bluntly.
"Well let's go over the list of the drivers on the planet and see where we stand," John said, moving to the front of the bridge and looking out the front viewport at the vast ocean. "Start with Panama."
"Earth Forces," Mwu answered.
"Carpentaria,"
"ZAFT," Athrun responded, slowly.
"Victoria,"
"ZAFT controlled now," Natarle answered.
"Kaoshiung,"
"ZAFT," Kira remarked.
"Alaska,"
"Destroyed," Frank said quickly.
"Gibralter,"
"ZAFT," Murrue answered.
"Orb,"
"Not going there," Mwu answered.
"Cuba,"
"ZAFT," Athrun said again.
"That's all of them Colonel," Murrue answered quietly. "It looks like we're out of luck when it comes to available mass drivers."
A lengthy pause followed with no one saying anything. Then John turned around and walked over to the console that was showing a map of South America. "Can we still access satellites from here, Captain?" he asked.
"Yes, we can," Murrue answered, "It just may take a while."
After receiving the O.K., Athrun worked the keys on the console and managed to access an orbital satellite and feed its data into the console's system. "Center on latitude 36 degrees South, longitude 58 degrees west." Athrun did so and the console's screen centered on an area in the southern part of the South American continent.
"That's Argentina Colonel," Athrun answered.
"Zoom in." Athrun did so and the image became larger, rolling white clouds now rolling over an area near the Argentina and Uruguay border. Lush, green vegitation could be seen from the satellite's feeds abd the clear, blue ocean loomed off the coast. "Can you zoom in any further than this?" Athrun did so, and the area became even larger.
However, something seemed to be out of place. On the tip of a peninsula on the eastern coast of Argentina, a small line was jutting out of the land mass, which wasn't supposed to be there.
"What is that?" Athrun asked. Everyone moved closer to get a good view of what the console was showing.
"Bring up heat signatures in the area," John commanded. Athrun followed the orders and the green vegitation was replaced by a heat detection map. Deep blues were spread across much of the map with occassional yellows and oranges popping up in areas that were designated urban areas. The small line that was sticking out of the coast was coated in a pale yellow, amidst the deep blue of the surrounding landscape. There weren't any cities in the vacinity, so it couldn't be a town.
"I'll be damned it's still there," John burst.
"What's still there boss?" Mwu asked.
"A mass driver Mwu." Separate conversations broke out among the other seven people gathered around the console.
"What's a mass driver doing there?" Natarle asked.
"I didn't even know that it even existed," Frank remarked.
"Nobody did. ZAFT didn't even know about it," Athrun added.
"Because hardly anyone did Athrun." John's answer brought all the conversations to a halt and all ears tuned into his voice. "That mass driver's been kept a secret among high ranking military officials for years. I only knew about it because an old friend told me it was there. I'm not about to disclose his name right now for security reasons. Do you understand? It's one of the older model ones and it probably hasn't been used in over ten years."
"Then how can you be sure it even works Colonel?" Natarle asked.
"We'll just have to wait and see when we get there won't we," John smiled. "Captain, it's up to you."
"Right now we don't have really any other options." She moved to place her index finger on the console's screen. "But according to this map, the driver's only about a hundred miles from the Atlantic Federation's base in Santiago."
"They shouldn't be able to detect us until we get really close to it," Mwu responded. "There's a whole mountain range in between the driver and the base so their sensors won't be able to find the Archangel until we get really close. But if you think that it'll be too dangerous for the Archangel to go Captain..."
"No, it's fine. We'll have to head there immediately if we want to escape the planet."
"It's finalized then?" John received affirmative nods from everyone gathered.
"Alright then. Mr. Crew, change course!" Murrue ordered. "Adjust course to-."
"Captain!" Pal shouted over the order.
"What is it Ensign Pal?" Natarle answered for Murrue, who was still issuing the orders.
"Admiral Sutherland's on line one!" The bridge fell into silence. Sutherland had contacted the Archangel unaware that John and the others were aboard her. He'd stumbled upon his quarry and it would only be a matter of time before they hunted them down. But what was the point in delaying the inevitable anyway, John thought.
"Mr. Pal," John said. "Did the Admiral request for Captain Ramius or the senior officer aboard?"
"Uh...I think he said senior officer...?"
John turned to where Murrue stood, a smile on his face. Murrue smiled back and said, "Be my guest Colonel."
John walked across the bridge and took a seat in the Captain's chair, which felt too large for him at the moment. Reaching into his jacket's pocket, John pulled one of his cigar's out from its box and produced his lighter from the inside of his sleeve. Lighting the cigar and taking a few puffs, John gave the signal and Pal activated the front viewscreen.
The almost frightening image of Admiral Sutherland popped into view as the static dissolved, an agnered expression on his face. "Captain Ramius. I just received word that-." Sutherland stopped suddenly when he realized who was sitting in the captain's chair and who he was seeing. His expression went from angry to shocked in an instant.
John just smiled, taking the cigar out of his mouth. "Surprised Admiral?"
"Namora...what...?"
John chuckled. "You think you could kill me and the rest of us that easily? We've been here since last night."
Sutherland frowned. "How did you get out," he hissed.
"And you were wondering who blew the shit out of your battleships this morning." John put the cigar back into his mouth and puffed on it for several seconds, watching Sutherland's expression grow fiercer by the second. John smiled once again, pointing the cigar upwards with his teeth. "When I said you'd made yourself a powerful enemy, what made you think I was talking about me?"
"You son of a bitch!" Sutherland shouted. "You stole our planes and tried to kill us! And it's apparent that the Archangel was in on this from the beginning! By god as god as my witness-!"
"What are you gonna do, Sutherland?" John asked sarcastically. "You gotta find us first. Ship's not carrying any of your Earth Forces homing beacons anymore. As far as I'm concerned we and everybody aboard this ship aren't offiliated with you bastards anymore. So good luck finding and hunting us down...jack-ass." Everyone on the Archangel's bridge grinned with pride.
"You are all dead Namora. Every last one-!" The image cut out then, disappearing once again into a field of static.
"I didn't think we'd want to hear the rest of that," Pal remarked casually.
"So easy," Stevy chuckled. Mwu and Frank laughed in agreement.
"How long do you think it'll take us to reach the driver, Ensign Neumann?" Murrue asked.
"At top speed we can get there in a week Captain."
"Get to it then." John vacated the chair he'd been sitting in and allowed Murrue to take her seat back. While Murrue and Natarle conversed with one another, and Mwu, Frank, Stevy, and Athrun left the bridge, John managed to catch up to Kira and pull him aside.
"Kira," John asked. "I've got a little assignment for you." John whispered some words into Kira's ear and then he asked, "You up to it?"
"If it means everyone on this ship has a better chance of surviving, then yes, I'd be glad to do it, Colonel."
"Kira just call me John already," John said, patting Kira on the shoulder and sending him back on his way. Before Kira left, John called to him, "I'll have Athrun take care of the big ones while you work on your assignment Kira, alright!"
"Yes, sir," Kira responded, then he left to go down in the elevator. John returned to the front portion of the bridge where he asked Murrue and Natarle about their defensive weaponry which they would undoubtedly need when they reached the vicinity of the driver.
"Right now I think we'd be best off using the Freedom and the Justice, ma'am," Natarle remarked. "They both can fly in the atmosphere and don't need any support craft to stay in the air."
"Yes, you're right Natarle," Murrue answered. "It'd probably be a good idea to send the two Skygraspers up as well. Will Commander la Flaga be able to fly though?"
"You kidding," John commented. "Nothing's gonna keep Mwu out of the thing's cockpit when the fighting starts, and Frank can pilot the second one, because if he doesn't, he'll be bouncing off the walls by the time we get into space."
"We still need someone to operate the weapons system though," Natarle commented. "Chief Murdoch will be needed down in the hangars so we don't really have anyone who knows how to operate it."
"Sure we do," John answered. "Ensign Haas knows how to operate that shit. He's been using that stuff for over two years. I guarantee he'll do a good job."
"Everyone's going to have to," Murrue added. "Or else we'll never be able to get off the planet..."