Reverse Effects
AN: I do not take any credit for the original plot or characters from Gundam Seed. However, this fanfic and my characters are copyright to me, Lithian.
Chapter Three
Both being thrown back into reality by a jogger running past them, Zechuri and Brendy blushed and looked away from one another. "I should get going." Zechuri said, standing up.
Before Brendy could even think of protesting he was already running off towards the car station. Sitting there with a confused look on her face she sighed and then heard footsteps behind her. Alia and Thal blinked, watching as Zech was finally out of sight and then watched as Brendy stood, starting to gather up all of the items she had brought.
"Well I'm going to head over to have a chat with Cagalli." She gave a smile and wave, then turned around a left Thal and Alia in a daze.
"Okay.. that was interesting." Thal said. Alia nodded in agreement.
Aboard the Lunar Nas, in space heading for Earth..
Kesler floated above his bed, reading a book while Sirka tried to go to sleep, but failed miserably. Sitting up he watched his friend, then got up, pushing himself towards the door with a gentle tap of his foot on the floor.
"I'm going to look at the mobile suits, want to come?" He asked, his black and green hair moving in slow motion to catch up with his body. Marking the page he was on, Kesler nodded and followed his friend out, watching the workers pass them by.
As they came to a stop outside a door, Kesler pressed the button and then both the boys walked out onto the long platform, eye-level to the mobile suits. They admired the finely tuned structure in silence for a moment and then they high-five each other.
"Damn.. and they're trusting US to pilot these.." Sirka said with a laugh.
Kesler grinned, "Yeah but the four of us are the best, apparently."
Straightening out their red uniforms, the boys headed down the stairs and walked over to where one of the mechanics, Alger, was instructing the others on where to put the weapons, etc. When he saw Sirka and Kesler walk up he smiled, middle-aged features showing how tired he was. The mechanics had barely gotten any sleep, since they were descending on Earth faster than they had planned.
"Hello boys. Have you gotten a chance to configure the mobile suits yet?" He asked, eyes wandering up to Sirka's machine.
They both shook their heads and Alger pointed to the the girls' machines, the Prisma and Espionage. "The girls already got theirs up. You two should get the Saturn and Velocity finished before we reach Changrin, on Earth." Alger said, turning and walking away.
The boys turned to look at each other and blinked. Sirka shrugged and they went off on the own ways to configure their machines.
Orb's headquarters - Bosmant...
Cagalli paced back and forth, her purple blazer swaying as she moved continually. Athrun was propped in the corner, watching her and finally stepped forward. Intercepting her path he gently rested his hands on her shoulders, causing her to look up. Athrun kissed her softly, his wife immediately calming and returning the kiss with a deep one of her own. Stepping back to give her breathing room Athrun smiled, watching as Cagalli sighed.
"This news is unnerving Athrun. Kira and Lacus haven't even been told yet, have they?" She asked, brow furrowed in concern. Athrun shook his head, scratching the back of his neck, agitated.
Outside of Cagalli's office, Brendy showed the guards her ID and then pressed the intercom button, "Aunt Cagalli it's me, Brendy, I'm coming in."
She pressed another button that opened the door, and then stepped inside, feeling the thick tension radiating from the couple. Blinking she walked over by them, looking from her aunt then to her uncle. "Is something the matter?" She asked, her lavender eyes glimmering.
Cagalli eyed her, not knowing if she should share such information with her niece or not. What the hell, she'll find out soon enough..
There was a dead silence in the somewhat dark office until Cagalli pointed to her desk, where a manila folder lay, papers sticking out. "Look there. ZAFT has created four new mobile suits and a new warship. Right now, it's headed for Earth where it will land in Senguar." She said in exasperation.
"Yes, and sources have said that they plan on taking out Arubis which isn't too far from here." Athrun said. His wife nodded, Brendy staring at them wide-eyed.
"So they're trying to start up a war! Why!" Her voice was raised, eyes narrowed in anger.
"Apparently one of the high-chairman's children was murdered by an Earth forces soldier not too long ago and it has been kept under wraps just so THIS could be started.." Athrun stated, voice tainted with malice.
Brendy was about to yell but then she looked at them both, "Fine then. I want to fight."
The words that came out of her mouth startled both Cagalli and Athrun, figuring that - being the daughter of Lacus and Kira - she would want to stay OUT of the war.
"No way. Kira would never let you. WE would never let you." Cagalli said.
Tears started to ebb at her eyes and she looked to the wall at her left. "But.. I want to protect Orb, and all the other innocents.." Brendy said in a whisper. The adults looked to one another, not knowing what to say.
Back on the Lunar Nas, in dock at Senguar..
It was surprising how fast they had reached Senguar, but the crew was relieved to get some time off before the attack on Arubis. Sirka had changed into a comfortable pair of black pants and a short sleeved t-shirt, and was walking calmly with Seda. He smiled down at her, causing her to blush.
Kesler just rolled his eyes, enjoying the feeling of gravity. Riley stretched, enjoying the fact she didn't have to wear her uniform anymore.
As they exited the ship Riley took in a deep breath of air, seeing as they were coming out in the open end. "Ahh.. nice." She said.
Kesler laughed somewhat and ran his fingers through his dark blue hair. "Hey.. We're close to a beach, feel like going?" He asked, blinking at his friends. T
hey shook their heads, "No.. I think I'm taking Seda to show her around Senguar." Sirka said.
The girl blushed but didn't object. She had never been to this base before so, why not?
"Hey wait, I haven't been here before! Why are you only taking Seda?" Riley said with a pout.
Sirka kind of blushed but Kesler prodded Riley's side. "Let 'em be."
He smirked and pulled out his wallet, handing her a business card from a store in the area. "Do you remember Heidi?" He asked.
Crooking an eyebrow as she took the card, Riley nodded. "Yeah.."
Kesler stretched and hopped into a jeep when they came to the rental parking lot. "Well, she works there, go pay her a visit." He said with a wink.
Inserting his data card into the jeep, Kesler took off in the direction of the beach with a wave. The three friends waved also and then went off in their separate ways.
Back at Orb, on the beach...
The waves lapped at the shore, brushing over Brendy's feet. Cagalli and Athrun had just told her parents about the whole ordeal, and right now they were "thinking things over." With a sigh she got up, her knee-length dress rippled with a breeze, her burgundy hair doing the same. Climbing up a hill that became a cliff over the ocean, she looked down with a smile. She could remember taking many a jump from here. The thought lifted her spirits a bit..
Meanwhile, Kesler Mannin was just cresting the hill when he spotted the girl. From behind she looked like she was about to commit suicide - or at least try to.
He slowly walked up, very careful not to spook her. "Miss.. Why don't you back away from there to where it's safer."
She turned to look at him, confused . Arching an eyebrow she leaned forward, and Kesler bolted forward in an attempt to stop her.
Brendy shrieked as she felt him grab her around the waist, losing her balance and ending up falling anyway. What confused her the most was that the boy seemed to be twisting them in mid air so he would be on the bottom and she on top.
Does he not know there's an OCEAN beneath us? She thought, taking in a deep breath as she saw them coming closer to the water. Since the fall had been sloppy, they made a loud 'splash!' and separated immediately through the force of the water.
Both came topside and swam toward the beach. Stuck to her body, Brendy felt like she was wearing no clothes at all and began picking at her dress. Equally soaked Kesler sighed and rung out the base of his shirt, watching the girl out of the corner of his eye. Brendy, now content somewhat with how her dress was laid out, looked at him with narrowed eyes.
"What in the HECK did you think you were doing!" She yelled.
Confused he widened his eyes at the tone of her voice and put his hands up in defense. "I wasn't the one trying to kill myself, you were."
His statement made Brendy laugh. Her, commit suicide? Now THAT is a joke. "I was going for a swim. Done it like that ever since I was little.."
She smiled fondly at the memories then sighed as her eyes fell back on his soaked form. "Who are you? I haven't seen you around before.." The girl blinked, arching an eyebrow, "Are you from Orb?"
Knowing he was in Orb territory, he didn't really know how he should respond. His eyes wandered over her sleek form for a few moments until he felt her eyes piercing him.
Looking up he gave an innocent grin, "No.. Just visiting." It wasn't really a lie..
Shrugging it off the girl sighed and turned around, waving for him to follow.
"Come on, I know where we can get dry." Brendy said, turning around as she wrung out her hair some more.
Kesler blinked and looked around, "Uhm no that's alright, I need to get going ASAP.." He checked his watch as if to confirm his lie.
The girl arched an eyebrow but gave a smile, "Alright, nice meeting you." And with that she disappeared around the corner of the cove wall.
Left rather dumbfounded, the ZAFT soldier turned on his heel and began the ascent towards the military jeep. He could only hope no one had spotted it.
In their quarters on the Lunar Nas..
Riley, Sirka, and Hazzy were all sitting in Kesler's room chatting. Pushing the button that allowed him access to his sleeping quarters, Kesler was somewhat surprised to find them just lounging about.
"Ok so can I ask why you guys are in my room?" He asked, blinking his bright blue eyes.
The two girls immediately pointed to Sirka who shifted his gazes from both of them to his male friend.
"Well, you have a TV." He stated simply with a shrug of his shoulders.
Riley smiled at Kesler and then turned the TV back on, since he had turned it off when he had entered the room.
The elite soldier had not totally dried off yet, but the wet factor hadn't sunk in with his friends quite yet. Rummaging through his duffle bag he pulled out his uniform and sighed. He hated wearing this thing.
"I'll be out in a second." Kesler said, heading into the bathroom to change.
Riley was the only one who acknowledged this with a simple 'alright' and then turning back to the TV.
A few moments later, he emerged from the bathroom and ran his hands down the front of his red elite uniform, straightening it out. His black-blue hair had been dried and brushed, so he looked very... well, handsome?
Sitting on his bed next to Sirka, he slipped on his boots with a sigh and then put his face in his hands tiredly. Sirka was about to ask him what was up with the sudden exasperated sigh, but the intercom to Kesler's room crackled and a woman's voice came through.
"Kesler Mannin, I take it your comrades are in there as well?" The captain said. All four of them shot up, paying full attention.
"Yes ma'am, elites Cavess, Seda, and Sminns are all here." He replied, trying not to sound spooked.
"Then please report to the bridge - all of you." Captain Walder said, the communicator shutting off without any last words from her.
The children blinked but all headed out of the room, path set for the bridge. Kesler wasn't really focusing on his surroundings, since his mind was fixated on what had transpired earlier that evening. That girl, he thought, looked awfully familiar... The faces of whom she reminded him of were dim outlines - but if he thought hard enough he would eventually figure it out.. Right?
The Yamato home...
Brendy flopped back on her bed, burgundy hair splaying out in an animated fashion and her eyes locking on the ceiling. Once she had departed from the boy's presence, she had returned to the orphanage to dry off as much as she could. And after playing with the children for a few hours she finally went home with her parents, whom were concerned about the latest news that she had found out from her aunt.
She couldn't help but think about that boy. There had to be pilots for those suits, right? She thought, brow furrowing.
Darkness coated her room, the only speck of light coming from under her door in the hallway. Apparently her folks were still awake. She couldn't doubt them though, there was a lot to consider. She might have to do some spying of her own. The ship was at Senguar - which meant so were the pilots.
"Tomorrow I'll go and check it out for myself.." She said with a smirk. Rolling onto her side she fell asleep, smiling and still thinking about that boy.
..downstairs
Kira and Lacus sat at their kitchen table, looking out into the dark night. "How did everything we worked so hard for, just get thrown away?" Lacus asked.
Her husband didn't know how to answer, so he just turned to look at her, eyes sitting placid. "We aren't part of any military - only Athrun and Cagalli are. But hearting Brendy say she wants to join Orb if we're dragged in scares me."
A hard wind pressed against the window, the howl that followed spooking Lacus a little. They both knew their daughter would probably excel at piloting a mobile suit or even working on the bridge of a ship. Coming out from the living room (apparently) was Birdie, its mechanical wings flapping right before it landed on Kira's shoulder. "Birdie!"
Kira smiled at the word, for each time it spoke he remembered Athrun and the good old days. "I say we let her Lacus.." Kira said, fixating his purple eyes on his wife.
Her reaction was delayed because it was completely not like Kira at all. Lacus's long pink hair fell over her shoulders as she dipped her head down, bangs falling over her eyes. Kira blinked, watching her. Finally she looked back up at him, a smile on her face. It was settled then. She could do what she wished.
"Now how do we go about telling her this?" Lacus said, cocking her head slightly.
Lunar Nas Bridge, Senguar..
The door opened with a soft 'swish' and the four elites were greeted by the captain, who stood behind her chair in a relaxed pose. Not forgetting their ranks for a second, each saluted and stood firmly in their spots. "Calm down, you don't have to be so formal with me.." Janie said with a smile.
Kesler blinked but realized everyone else had relaxed besides himself. Scratching the back of his neck he fidgeted. Feeling her eyes on him he looked up. "Ma'am?"
Amused she shrugged and shook her head. "Tomorrow at six AM we'll start our attack on the Earth Forces base Arubis." She said, voice more serious now.
The pilots listened as she gave them in depth information about the attack in the morning. In the back of Kesler's mind, however, he had been processing the girl and the two forms of whom she reminded him of. Right as the captain was about to close, it struck him.
"Kira Yamato and Lacus Clyne!" He hit his forehead with the palm of his hand, "How could I have missed that!"
His outburst caused everyone on the bridge to stare at him. Janie stood up straighter and walked toward him. She was clearly interested in this. "How do you know of them?" She asked.
Riley arched an eyebrow, "Who doesn't know about them?" She laughed and stretched, forgetting that she was talking to a captain. "For that matter, most people even know about the crew - not just the major players in the first war."
Janie shot a 'watch it' glance to Riley who in turn shrunk back. Once again the captain looked to Kesler. "Answer."
"Well.. I think they had a daughter. Because I saw this girl," he paused, "..this girl who looked almost exactly like Lacus but she also looked like Kira too."
Crossing her arms over her chest she turned and walked away from him. With a sigh she sat back down in her chair and stared out of the large window. "Dismissed."
Warily, they turned around and left the bridge. Clay, CIC for the Lunar Nas, turned in his chair and looked at the captain. "If I may ask, what was that about?"
Captain Walder removed her hat and put it on her lap. It's only to be expected, but I wonder what this daughter of theirs will take a role in. She thought.
"Captain?" Clay asked again, blinking.
Snapping out of her daze she turned to the CIC and smiled, "Oh nothing. Just a bit of curiosity."
AN: So, I added a little more on. Review, please? -puppy dog eyes-
charlotte-lefay - Thank you! I'm sorry it's taken me so long to just get up to chapter three. My mom is working more and my step dad is back out to sea so I'm stuck babysitting a 5 year old and 8 month old But everything should get up quicker now that I have Micro. FrontPage :P -glomp-