Disclaimer: I do not own Gundam Seed or Seed Destiny
Athrun Zala was exhausted. After weeks of working on the negotiations, he was ready for a break. Dressed in a white t-shirt and a pair of shorts as he climbed into bed. His wife groaned as he set the cell phone on the table and switched the light off.
"Night." he said.
She rolled over onto his chest, burying her face in his shirt, "Good night."
He smiled, Cagali was one of the only things that belonged to him. Something that could never be taken away. He barely saw her until they went to bed now. They would eat meals, and that was about it.
It was a pathetic married life.
He wrapped his arms around her. But it was their pathetic married life.
Athrun was grateful for every part of it. Reaching an arm around her, he touched the wedding band on her finger.
"I love you." he whispered into her ear.
She smiled, tilting her head back, he kissed her. She then laid her head back on his shoulder like she always did, and fell asleep. Cagali was first and foremost, aside from the Princess of Orb, a warrior and a solider. She would be able to go days without sleep, and then fall asleep instantly when given the chance. He was the same way too, but her more so. The difference between him and Cagali was that even though he was stronger and more skilled, she was used to the harsh elements. Training in space does not exactly teach you how to dress in the desert or how to survive in the Siberian tundra. That's something they expect you to figure out yourself.
Over the year she had grown out her hair a little, and usually kept it in a small ponytail. It was down to the middle of her back. When Athrun asked about it one day, she said it was because she wanted to try something new and this was the only thing that she could fit in her agenda. Athrun was about to close his eyes, when they snapped open slightly. He sat up as Cagali groaned, burying her face in his pillow. Athrun stood up and walked across the room softly in nothing but his shorts and a tank shirt, opening the balcony doors quietly. He walked out to the balcony, starring at the sky.
He felt his heart raced. The smell was all over the place, the air reeked of fuselage and alloy.
"Athrun?" Cagali stood at the doorway.
"It's very close." he said, "Probably already on the island."
"What is?"
"Twilight."
Cagali stared at him a moment, and then her eyes grew wide as the ground shook. There was a crash of something in the background and planes and mobile suits appeared overhead. Athrun frowned, throwing a robe over his wife and pulling on some slacks, he grabbed her wrist.
"Come on!"
Athrun flipped open his phone, dialing the numbers. Kira's voice came on the other line.
"Kira?"
"I know, Athrun. I'm already on the way to Kaguya." Kira said, "You're late."
"Sorry, I didn't feel it till until now."
"It can't be helped. They're probably after Cagali. We need to get her somewhere."
"I know-" Athrun gasped as a bullet echoed through the hallway, he grabbed Cagali and threw her to the ground, "Kira?"
"Still here, what's going on?"
"There someone inside. Call you back."
"I'll send backup." Kira said, "You let anything happen to Cagali and I'll kill you myself."
"Oh, you don't need to worry about that." Athrun smirked, "Keep safe, old friend."
"Keep safe." Kira hung up.
"What are we going to do?" Cagali yelled, "There's no way out!"
Athrun looked down the hallway, he frowned, "We have to find a way out somehow," taking out his gun, and caulking it back once. He turned around the corner, and fired. There was a yell, and he ducked back the corner, and fired again, "I can't hold them off for long. I won't let Twilight take you. They are not known for kind treatment of political prisoners."
Another shot rang out from an adjacent hallway. Athrun gasped, and grabbed her arm, running through the storm of fire down the hall. Shooting the lock on the study, he opened the door in time to find a barrel of a gun sticking into to his face.
"Ah, Mr. Athrun Zala in the flesh."
Trent smirked, sitting at the desk. Dozens of guards were in the room. The middle-aged man was probably around Patrick Zala's age before he died, maybe a little younger. He was an old-fashioned, military man. After taking control of ZAFT, he exerted almost a totalitarian style of enforcement on the military. No tolerance for Naturals, and for those who conspire with them. Meaning, Cagali was in a lot of danger and so was Athrun for being married to her.
"Chairman Trent." Athrun said, "It's a pleasant surprise to finally have you in my house. Although you should have contacted me before hand. We may not have enough room for all those mobile suits you have parked on my front lawn."
"You are funny, Mr. Zala." Trent stood, "But I'm afraid not funny enough to save yourself or your Natural bitch of a wife."
"Watch your mouth, Chairman." Cagali said, "Or I may take that as an insult."
"Silence, woman." the Chairman glared at her, "You may be the leader of the free world, but I do not hold your authority to any legitimate power in PLANT.
"That's funny. I seem to remember PLANT recognizing Orb's authority long ago-"
"Cagali, that's enough." Athrun whispered. He turned to Trent, "Let her go, you can have me instead."
"Athrun!" Cagali snapped.
The Chairman laughed, "This is rather amusing, the two of you. I half expected the Natural behind you to offer herself for the country."
They both froze.
"If you don't give me your precious wife, Mr. Zala, I will flatten Orb in a second." he said, "I have enough power to destroy this miserable island. However, if she gives herself up, then I may just tell my soldiers to only singe the edges a bit. It's your choice."
"You bastard." Athrun cursed at him, "There's no way-"
"I'll go."
Cagali stood in front of him.
"Cagali..." Athrun gaped at her.
"But you must promise me." Cagali said, "You must promise...as one human being to another...that you will not harm Orb or my husband in any fashion."
"Deal." Trent said, "You're worth it, Hime. Seize her."
"No!" Athrun shrieked as they grabbed her. He rushed towards her, but the soldiers grabbed him first. Throwing him to the floor. Cagali looked back at him, and smiled sadly.
I love you...
"Cagali!" he yelled, "Let me go! She's done nothing wrong, you have no right to take her from me!"
"A deal is a deal, Mr. Zala." Trent smirked, "I look forward to facing you on the battlefield. You have yet to prove yourself in the eyes of many people. And don't worry about Mrs. Zala, we'll take very GOOD care of her."
"Touch her, and I swear to God, I'll kill you-"
A shot rang out in the room, and he heard a shriek from Cagali. He slammed into the floor, blood soaking his shirt from the gunshot to his left shoulder. They had fired it close to his heart on purpose, he glared at the red guards as they past. The pain was making his eyes blur out of focus. He could see the tear streaked face of his wife.
"Athrun Zala." Trent walked up to him, "When you are ready, we'll meet again. Maybe you'll pose more of a danger then you do now."
"You-"
With a swift kick to the side, Athrun blacked out.
"CAGALI!"
He woke with a start, and sighed.
Athrun rubbed he left shoulder, it ached sometimes late at night when he would wake up alone in bed like he did at that moment. The huge, silk canopy bed that he and Cagali used to sleep in. He was still able to smell her sometimes, and that perfume she used to wear.
His wife was gone.
Athrun looked out of the window at his country. His country. He had spent almost a year running it now, and he sort of understood how Cagali felt, even how his own father who was once the leader of PLANT. But at that single moment, he did not care about Orb, or about anything else.
Athrun wanted her back.
They had started to talk about settling down, neither one of them were getting any younger. He knew that they were going to have a daughter, and when Cagali asked him how he knew that, he would just laugh at her. He said they were going to have a daughter, and they were going to name her Lenore after his mother. Cagali did not object to any of this.
There was a blink on the com.
"Yes?" Athrun said in the dark.
"Sorry to wake you, sir." the secretary said.
"No need, I was already."
"We just got a message from Captain Kiriyuhi, sire. You may want to take it."
It was his contact in Twilight. Only he, Murrue Ramius, Mwu La Flaga, Kira, and Kisaka knew who she was. No one else was trusted with her existence. She was employed as a doctor in the top medical research program, and informed him directly about Twilight's activities. Mostly, to see if there was any way to find his wife, but also because they had found out Twilight was trying to revive certain dead pilots in ZAFT. When he found out it was Rey Za Burrel, he decided to dispatch someone right away.
Athrun frowned,
"Patch it threw."
