"Those dumb-- ow!" Cole winced as his wound was being sewn up on his shoulder. Standing near him was Melina, who had brought a first aid kit to him and was fixing him up. Cole was sitting in the waiting room of Morgenroete, leaning back on one of the couches, his coat lying over the back of it.. "Followed me while out of their airspace, too. I tried to head into space, but they pulled a surprise attack and shot my drive thrusters. I had no choice but to head back here." Outside, the ZZ was being rolled into one of the hangar bays, scorched and damaged.
"That's what you get for letting your anger get the better of you," Melina nagged as she pulled the needle out of his skin, halfway through. "So what happened? Why'd they do such a thing?"
"They did it." Melina looked at Cole's face, confused. "Their General was the one who ordered the Devil rebuilt. Considering what kind of a man he was, he must have done it for power." Cole winced again as Melina pushed the needle in. "If he took it into space, it'd be because the Earth Alliance has a weaker eye on the colonies. They told me that he had died, but I think he's actually piloting that thing himself." He looked at Melina as she sewed another stitch, "Tell me, did you ever test the cockpit's compatibility before it was taken?"
"I didn't even have any knowledge that it was under the Earth Alliance's jurisdiction when it was sent to space. It makes me wonder who should really be in charge at Morgenroete and Aube. I don't think these people are upholding the ideals of Representative Athha." Cole looked out through the window from the couch, seeing the last of the ZZ's body as the hangar door closed. Melina finished sewing the wound shut and cuts the remaining string from the stitches. Cole let his sleeve lower and moved his arm around.
"He was insane, that man: always hungry for power. And he treated women like crap," Cole said as he stood up and walked towards the window. "I wouldn't be surprised if he did take that thing. It'd explain the big cover-up." He watched the sun set. "Well, I guess I'm staying overnight." He walked back to the couch and sat down, sighing. "Man, I guess I haven't had any sleep in a while," Cole spoke as his eyes slowly closed and he fell asleep. Melina smiled down at him and shook him a bit.
"I think a bed would be a lot better." Cole turned a bit, but remained asleep. Melina giggled and left the room, coming back with a blanket. She put it over Cole, who was now lying down on the couch. "Sweet dreams." She turned and left the room, closing the door.
Cole turned over a bit, his face showing a hint of distress. He saw himself standing in utter darkness, looking down at a small Doric pillar. On top of it was the silhouette of a blade and what looked like a magnum. Cole walked to the pillar and picked up the magnum. As he lifted it, the blade came up along with it, replacing the barrel of the magnum, which shined brightly against the darkness. The sword was straight like a broadsword on one side but curved down into a widening blade on the other. Halfway down the blade was the etching of a lion's head and some strange rune-like writing. Cole looked at it, unable to read it. He held up the sword and the darkness was suddenly split in half, the light blinding.
Cole opened his eyes slowly, seeing his hand up in the air. He sat up and sighed, his hand to his face.
"What the..?" He turned his head, looking at the sun rise from the tops of the hills. "I see. I fell asleep..." Cole looked down at his hands. "Was it... Revolver?" He got up slowly and walked to the window. The ZZ was being pulled out of the hangar. On the ground, Melina was directing the workers on where to tote the mobile suit. Cole folded up the blanket, put it on the couch, and walked out of the room, heading outside.
As he exited, the jeeps drove past, Melina watching them drive off. She turned around and looked at Cole, smiling.
"How long was I out?" Cole asked as he rubbed the back of his head, yawning.
"Well... I'd say a few hours... But the ZZ is repaired and ready to go." She smiled, looking back at him. "You definitely seem cuter when you're asleep." Cole sighed, his face going a bit red.
"Thanks a lot... I feel better knowing I look 'cute'." He walks towards the ZZ. "So, is there a shuttle ready at the mass driver?"
"Yeah. One specifically designed for carrying the ZZ and two passengers." Cole turned to look at Melina.
"Two?" he said as he crossed his arms a bit. "May I ask why?"
"Well, someone has to take the shuttle back. Plus I feel like seeing you off halfway," she replied, Cole a bit surprised.
"Why? I'm not that important... Well, not in general." Cole stayed quiet for a minute and walked closer to her. "What, do you like me that much?" Caught off guard, Melina went red and shook her head.
"Of course not! I just want to make sure you don't fall asleep and crash my precious mobile suit." Cole growled and clenched his fists.
"Your mobile suit! That thing is my mobile suit! I'm the one who salvaged and repaired it! You only helped install the Minovsky Drive thrusters and the new reactor--!"
"--Which are the main parts of it, meaning without me you'd be sunk!" Cole stayed quiet for a second. "See? I knew that would corner you."
"No, I'm just ending it there because..." he grins as he continues, "I don't want to appear as childish as you." Melina gasped at his comment. "Anyways, the ZZ needs to be loaded now so I'll go take care of that." He walked over to the ZZ and started climbing, looking back. Melina was looking down sadly, staying quiet. He sighed and jumped back down, walking over to her. "I'm sorry. I guess I got carried away, and..." He rubs the back of his head shyly.
"It's okay," Melina replied silently. "I guess I kind of deserved that." Cole sighed as she spoke.
"No, you didn't. I said something I shouldn't have and I'm sorry. I guess I'm still aggravated about those Earth Alliance bastards," he responded equally quiet. He straightened up and bowed to Melina. "I'm sorry. I do more harm than help to you." Melina stayed quiet for a minute as a few drops of water began to fall from the looming clouds above. She walked up to Cole and put her hands on his shoulders, lifting him up from his bow.
"It's okay. You already have enough to worry about." Melina smiles up at Cole. "You're a lot more help than you think, Cole," she added, watching his surprised face break into a little smile.
"Thanks... Melina," he replied. The rain fell as the storm drew closer. "I think we'll have to wait for the storm to blow over before we try launching." Melina nodded and led Cole back towards the main building.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - -
"Why are you so intent on finding that thing?" Melina asked. They were in the mess hall of Morgenroete, waiting for the storm to pass. Cole sighed after a minute of reflection. "It seemed as if... You'd met it once before." He looked at Melina, his eyes retaining a hint of sorrow.
"Well... Four years ago, when that radical ZAFT group was attacking neutral colonies in space, there was a special group of anti-ZAFT space dwellers who aided the Earth Alliance in destroying most of their forces since the Alliance had no great amount of power in space." He leaned back. "I was a member of it, though I had lived on the Earth for some time. The only reason I left was because I had finished restoring the Full Armor Enhanced ZZ. Once in space, I landed on the Moon's surface and ran into one of the radicals' squads. Overall, I decimated them, which caught the eye of James Leonheart, the leader of the anti-ZAFT force that was dubbed the Rebellion. He recruited me to the group after a lot of negotiating." Cole laughed a bit as he continued. "We became really good friends. He was almost like a foster father to me. But as the incidents drew to a close, he died during a battle and I became the leader..." He stayed silent for a minute, Melina waiting patiently.
"I guess he had a lot of faith in you." Cole smiled a bit, looking back at her.
"Well, it didn't last very long. We were sent to one last battle against the remaining radicals. They were drawn into a corner and hiding in the shadow of the Death Planet. We took them all out in no time flat... But they came back." Melina's eyes widened a bit. "The suits repaired themselves and attacked us again. Finally, we decided that we couldn't try and keep them alive, so we obliterated them, losing quite a few of our comrades. That's when it appeared. The Devil broke out of the debris of the planet and killed everyone. I managed to escape relatively unharmed. Ever since then, I told myself that I'd get revenge on that thing for what it did." Melina looked down, saddened. "But not just because of that." She looked back up at him.
"What do you mean?" Cole closed his eyes, staying silent. "Cole?"
"Let's just say that thing... I lost someone because of that thing." He looked down at his hands, his fists clenching.
"Someone? Like family or friend or..." Cole kept silent as Melina asked. She stopped herself and sat quietly. "I see. That kind of someone."
"What it did was completely unforgivable. I want to destroy it not only for vengeance, but to make sure it won't do the same to someone else." The two remained silent for some time as the clock on the wall ticked. Cole stood up slowly, looking up at it. "I wonder if the storm has passed yet."
- - - - - - - - - - - - - -
"All personnel, clear the mass driver!" A voice rang out on the PA system. The shuttle was sitting on the track leading to the driver. The ZZ walked into the shuttle, the bay door closing behind it. "Mobile suit secure. Shuttle is ready for launch."
Inside the shuttle, Cole got out of the ZZ and made his way to the cockpit. As he entered the small bridge, he readjusted the collar of the space suit he was wearing.
"Damn... This is why I hate going into space. The suits leave very little breathing room," he commented as he sat in the co-pilot chair. In the chair next to him was Melina, giggling at his comment.
"Well, would you rather die from the lack of pressure?"
"You'd think with all of this new technology they'd have more comfortable space suits." Melina giggled again. "I mean it. I never really leave the ZZ's cockpit anyways, so I don't see the point," he added in, sighing. The radio clicked and the voice from the control tower PA came on.
"You are clear for launch. Have a safe trip, Lady Melina." Melina smiled, nodding.
"Thanks. See you in a little while," she said, shutting off the radio. "Ready to go?"
"I hate this part..." Cole says as the shuttle suddenly jolts forward. The shuttle slid along the track, barreling across the mass driver and into the air, heading out of the atmosphere. Cole closed his eyes, feeling gravity pulling him against the chair. Melina stayed calm, keeping the controls steady as the shuttle passed the thick layer of clouds and speeding through the blue sky.
"Okay. We're just about out of the atmosphere," she said, trying to comfort Cole, who still had his eyes closed. "You know, you don't have to close your eyes."
"It keeps me from going insane," he replied, keeping his eyes closed. She smiled again, the shuttle flying into space, escaping the pull of gravity. The shuttle's thrusters flared up and it turned slightly.
"Next stop, Mars Bio-Domes," Melina said, looking back at Cole, who finally opened his eyes and breathed a sigh of relief as the shuttle moved onward towards the moon's orbit.