From the coordinates and the trajectory, it took the Joule team a few days to reach Mendel Colony. There was no activity or lurking enemies around the colony and debris. Yzak took a crew inside the broken colony. The group searched the different openings. There was no sign besides the wreckage of a small ZAFT shuttle. He commanded the pilots to split up and see if they could find anything else in the surrounding area. Yzak stayed to figure out the scene. He moved a map inside his cockpit on one of his screens.

It seemed like the small shuttle was coming in for a landing but something must have happened for it to skid across the ground before crashing into the pillar. He moved his GOUF to follow the path of the small shuttle. He would pause to see the small clues, like pillars recently broken and the remnants of powder clouds from artillery scorched against the pillars. He ordered his crew to search in these new locations. Yzak continued to move towards the wreckage.

As someone who was a master at close combat and long-range attacks, it was easy for Yzak to figure out what roughly happened. A trap was set. There were hidden enemies trying to take down the small shuttle. They succeeded.

The GOUF came to a standstill. Yzak opened the cockpit to let the chain bring him down to the ground. From there, he surveyed the area once again. He looked to see where his pilots were at. He looked over to the small shuttle crumpled next to the pillar. He headed towards it. The ground was disturbed but no footprints. As if someone tried to clean up the area, leaving no traces.

He looked to the cockpit. Windows were broken and the metal frame was bent. He narrowed his eyes to focus on something shining. It was a piece of rebar that had been cut. He looked over to the second seat, the window had no shards around it. Yzak looked at the body of the shuttle. There were small indents. Not bullet holes, too small. He moved his finger around it. There was a slight dip in the indent. A bullet wouldn't make another indent like that. He walked around the small shuttle, studying it. Yzak walked over to the storage that was open. He peered inside to see a stand for a long-range rifle.

One of his pilots radioed him. "Sir, we have found something!"

"What is it?" Yzak looked around to them. There mobile suits were clustered around one of the higher levels. He could make out a pilot standing on the cement slab next to an opened cockpit.

"They didn't clean up entirely, we found a body," the pilot relayed. "The back half of the head is missing."

Yzak turned back to the storage bin with the stand that looks like it had not been used. The bullet used in that rifle would make an exit wound similar to that. "Follow the procedures on the investigation and retrieve the body."

"Yes, sir!" The pilot acknowledged.

Yzak went back to further investigating. He walked around until he felt something wrong with his shoe. He looked down to see something shiny under the dirt. He moved the dirt away to reveal a tranquilizer buried in the ground. He bent down to pick it up, only to find a few more buried in the ground. There were some that had a red tail, some had a blue tail, and very few that had golden tails.

His crew came over to him as he was next to the shuttle placing something into the hole. The tranquilizer fit perfectly in the hole. He spoke to the team to head back since they found all they could.

It was odd. Yzak was going over the scene in his head as he flew back to the vessel. It was a trap, yet the two people in the shuttle were prepared enough to have a long-range rifle. There was no other fire power. It wasn't supplied with the usual gear. A trap that needed tranquilizers. This had become very weird.

Once on the vessel, Yzak gave the doctor on board three tranquilizers, one of each color, to figure out what was exactly in it. Yzak also waited for the reports from the small team he took with him. He had already organized the information. Since he was now waiting, Yzak took this time to review the chess game Athrun had sent him.

Yzak opened up the file, typed in the password, and waited for it to load. It was a 2D version of the board. Nothing he hasn't encountered before. He clicked on the button to watch the moves unfold. It started out normal like any other chess game. However, it piqued his interest when the white rook and two white pawns were clustered to one side behind the black pieces line.

"That's not how chess is played!" He scrutinized the game. Yzak watched the pieces continue to move until the last piece moved which was the white king moving away from the black queen.

Dearka had come in while Yzak blurted that out. He had a couple of files in one hand and a bag of tranquilizers in the next. He walked in, the door sliding shut behind him. Dearka could see a chess game in play.

"That's an unusual chess game," Dearka stopped next to him.

"If you could call it a chess game," Yzak did not know who was playing against Lacus but this game brought on more trouble than what he was originally thinking it was going to be. "What do you have?" He wanted to go back to something easy. He didn't want to think about that uncouth game.

"I have the reports from you crew that you took with you," Dearka handed him the files. "Along with the results to the tranquilizers." He held up the bag. "The red one," he pointed to it. "Can take down a Natural. Blue one, a Coordinator." Yzak followed Dearka's pointing. "The gold one, heh." Dearka let out a whistle. "That one is way different than the first two. The first two have sedatives, but the gold one is paralytic. Meaning one prick from the end of the needle and you're out for at least a week."

Yzak had a look of confusion. "Why would they need something so heavy when the first two could have taken them down?"

Dearka shrugged his shoulders. "Who knows? They wanted those people alive at least because they could have easily killed them. Does this chess game have anything to do with them?" He was curious.

Yzak shook his head. "Terminal. This is from Athrun. He said an enemy had threaten Chairwoman Clyne and Commander Yamato at their estate. They came to move a piece in person. He wanted my insight on this game."

"And?" Dearka wanted to know since Athrun and Yzak would always play chess against one another during their time at the academy.

"I've only watched it once," Yzak let out a sigh. He was going to have to view it again anyways. "Besides the moves that are illegal, it is an interesting game." He was reluctant to admit it.

Dearka perked up. "Interesting?"

Yzak knew he was curious. Dearka set down the bag next to the files, while Yzak moved the computer screen so he could see. Yzak pushed the play button once again. The two watched the chess pieces move.

Afterwards, Dearka felt a bit confused by the game. "Didn't you say statistically in a regular tournament, white defeats black with little more than fifty percent, and if they were actual professionals then it was like sixty something percent?"

Yzak smirked. "Yes. Fifty-five percent in a regular tournament. Sixty-four percent if it was all elite players."

"And white usually wins because they make the first move, right?" Dearka watched the game again as Yzak pushed play once more.

"Yes," Yzak watched with him. "Grandmasters who play black have a slim chance of winning, less than ten percent."

"But this person," Dearka strayed off as he watched the game to continue to unfold.

"Is outmaneuvering the white pieces easily," Yzak ended his sentence. "Even if white goes first, black will go second, each move then is fair, mirroring one another until the end. White is advantageous because it goes first, they can setup up whatever strategies they need to, making black fall into it. Black can win by being calm, seeing through white's strategies, and making their own traps. Strategic gameplay."

"And why you and Athrun kept at it, relentlessly," Dearka reminded him. "How many times did you two battle against one another?"

Yzak side eyed him. "Enough."

"What all did you lose to him besides chess, again?" Dearka started to tease him. "Horseback riding, mobile suit piloting, melee combat, ranking number one student in the academy at that time, his father was also Chairman of Defense, he had Lacus Clyne as his fiancé." He held a finger up for each one.

Yzak flinched. "Would you stop bringing that up?!"

Dearka let out a laugh. "You only bested him at marksmanship because he had a fever, allegedly. Neither of you are good at singing or painting. You even tried to best him with some instruments."

Yzak started to scowl. "Can we stop bringing this up?"

"It's in the past, plus look where Athrun is at now," Dearka felt a tinge of guilt. "He's in Orb and you're here as Commander. Maybe you should have done dancing against him?"

Yzak balked. "He still has a fiancé though," he muttered to himself.

"Hm," Dearka leaned in a bit. He had heard what Yzak said under his breath. "But he wasn't there when she needed him. Anyways, Athrun came to you for help. You've been in more battles than he has. Who's the seasoned one now?"

"I don't compare the two of us anymore," Yzak looked at the screen. Dearka glanced at him. "Haven't been. I only wanted to prove myself back then, I don't have to do that anymore."

Dearka raised his eyebrows in surprise. "Oh, is that because you are already where you want to be?"

Yzak glanced away a bit, as it was true to a point. The two continued to look over the chess game for a little while longer. Since neither of them could figure anything out at the moment, the two decided to get back at the task at hand. Yzak organized all the files before sending it off through the proper channels. Dearka headed back to make the rounds, checking in on everyone. The Joule team stayed in the vicinity around Mendel Colony to see what action to take next.

On the Aesculapius, in a metal room where mesh metal covered the lights and ventilation, a single metal bed was in the center. Even in space the room felt warm. Selena could feel thick metal bands on body. A set on her ankles, a set below her knees, a set above her knees, a set around her thighs, a set on her wrists, a set below her elbows, a set above her elbows, a set above her biceps, and one around her neck. She kept her eyes closed and her body in the same rhythm as if she was asleep.

She felt her body was mostly bare except what felt like elegant underwear. The material was soft but thick enough to support her. She didn't pick up any other sound except for the air moving in from the vents and the faint sound in the distance.

The pain she was supposed to feel from her recent fight, was gone. She did not feel pain in her shoulder where the rebar went through. She felt fine, not even groggy from the tranquilizers. It must have been a few days since the battle. She kept faking her comatose to analyze the situation she was in. Selena did feel an injection being flushed through from one of the bands upon her into one of her veins.

As she was gathering data, in his lab, Ra was looking through the microscope. A medical machine next to him let out a beep, letting him know it was down. He moved away from the microscope to the laptop that was hooked up to several medical machines. He clicked on the icon that had a red dot next to it.

This opened up to a file of a codon chart. He scrolled through reading the sequences. Another machine beeped with another icon ready with results. Ra clicked on that one next. It brought up the genome sequencing. He scrolled through with his eyes opening wider. Pop ups were circling different sections with information bubbles explaining the genome sequence.

He let out a chuckle as he scrolled down before leaning his head back and laughing full force. Ra came back after that moment, staring at the sequencing results.

"I don't have Eve," his smile tinged with menace. "I have something much more powerful. I have Lilith. Who would have thought that Dr. Hibiki's colleagues who abandon him to work with the Kingdom could come up with something far better than he could ever create? She's not something of equal like the extra rib from Adam, oh no, she's a being of her own." Ra pushed a button next to him. He started to speak while holding it down. "Make sure to have the Morningstar properly equipped. After our time up here, I want to make sure its ready at a moment's notice."

"Yes, sir!" The command was accepted.

After some hours, Selena decided to test the waters but acting like she was slowly waking up. Ra was notified about her changes. He dropped his tasks to be in the monitoring room next to hers. He watched on the screen as she took in her surroundings. The light in her room was dim to not strain her eyes.

"She's doing rather well," Ra concluded as he watched her test out moving her body from her toes and finger tips. There was a doctor and nurse with him that were on hand to watch her during her stay. Her bands sent data back to them on pulse, oxygen, and other health readings. "I just got the results from about her genetics. I will send them over to you so we can further tailor her needs. She's an extraordinary being. Its no wonder why my predecessor wanted her mother. Unfortunately, her mother could not bear children due to her body, thus crossing her off his list, but this made her find alternate ways of having children. She couldn't get Dr. Hibiki but she did get some of his colleagues. Dr. Hibiki took the zygote from his pregnant wife and placed it in an artificial womb, there he genetically improved him to become the Ultimate Coordinator. He even said that his son was more him than his mother. One could argue about the sciences and ethics of his opinion, but that's for a different time." He watched her try to get up but finding out she was magnetized to the table. "Azura couldn't even get that far. Selena, Sven, and Anita grew in artificial wombs from the start. Their genetic makeup helped them survive but also made them into rivals of Kira. It will be interesting to see what the offspring will be. How two different genetically modified beings will mesh together? I have Punnett squares of the possible outcomes but I am letting Nature decide."

"The three have never been in a uterus?" The doctor was surprised.

"Only when they were eggs ready to be procured as we are doing now to Selena," Ra explained. "Freya, Anita's mother, had no problem of having kids, but she had her child the same way, showing solidarity for Azura. Such sentiment. Now we will be doing the same since it will be rough on the child and mother because the next phase after this will be rough. I need to make sure both mother and child are safe. It is a miracle as it is to get Selena to this stage. We can't mess anything up. We must work slowly and use the protocols. Make sure everyone is going by them step by step. We can't skip steps or else we will jeopardize everyone's safety. Let's not take things for granted."

A few days later, Selena had gotten the routine of things. She was able to float freely in the room from time to time. When it was time for her shot, she could feel one of the bands inject her. It was a different band each time. One of the days, she was magnetized to the wall, a robotic arm came out of a sliding metal door to ultrasound her lower stomach. After the reading, it withdrew. She was unmagnetized after a few moments. In one part of the room, a compartment would slide open for her to use the restroom. A smaller compartment would open up for meals. She felt like a caged animal. It wasn't hard for her to spot the cameras in the room, hiding behind the mesh screens. She kept herself calm even though she felt the rage inside her. Her muscles did not twitch but the muscle memory of ripping off shackles and gripping the screens to fling them off pulsed throughout her body. It was an eerie feeling.

While she was locked in a room, Yzak sent back information to Athrun. Athrun went through the information. It took a few days until Athrun relayed this information back to Kira. The two were on a video call. Athrun had sent over everything first that way Kira could have a chance to look over it while Athrun gave his thoughts.

"The readings show that the black set wins every time," Athrun explained. "Doesn't matter which maneuver."

"I saw that," Kira frowned. "You can't beat it even with an AI system that the outsource created. Is this really the outcome? Can we really trust the person who gave us this information? What if they didn't calculate things properly?"

Athrun could understand Kira's point of view. "I felt the same when I read over what he sent back. However, we may not get along all the time, but I know he would never give false information. He has too much integrity even if he doesn't realize it."

Kira blinked, taken back from what Athrun said. "You really trust him."

"Heh," Athrun gave a faint smile. "I had to; he was a part of my team."

"Do you mind if I ask who it is?" Kira was now curious about the person who gave a detailed report about the chess game, along with creating an AI system to try to beat the chess game. "The report stated about the illegal moves and the AI system that was made had several options. One playing with the illegal moves, one without, one with every master chess gameplay, and so on."

"You know him as well," Athrun stated. "He was the Junior Chess Champion in Martius City. He couldn't go onto the professional leagues as he entered the ZAFT Academy instead. I sent this to Yzak."

"Yzak!?" Kira was surprised. "He did all of this?" Athrun nodded. Kira let out a chuckle. "It shouldn't come as a surprise. He's a great pilot and even greater commander. He doesn't know it was Selena, right?"

"No," Athrun made sure of that. "I also don't like in his report how the Black Queen does the majority, if not all of the fatal moves, in order to win the game. It possibly does mean that we don't stand any chance against Selena. I touched base with Andrew, its looking like similar results there too. I passed along the information to him as well. We'll see what he has to say in a few days. I hope it doesn't come down to it, where it's us against Selena, but it may be that way."