Chapter 01: The Calm Before the Sturm
Disclaimer: I do not own anything, besides, Chris, Aelan, Nicola and their shipmates at the first. Kevin Walker belongs to Solid Shark, as I have enjoyed using Walker very much. Sturmfalke belongs to Gundam Wing as one of the Wing Zero's just some tweaks from Solid. Black Lightning, Avian, Crimson Blade, Red Queen, and Avalanche are all mine. P.S. This stories title belongs to a friend of mine.
ORB: Two years later, September 14th
Walking towards a shuttle was a male with natural looking hair style of the silver color walked towards his shuttle. He was put in-charge of a secret project. Garret walked into the shuttle, with the ORB Lieutenant uniform on, the white and blue uniform with the orange stripe on the collar. His current trip is scheduled to take him to the former Artemis Base, where the Junk Guild currently resides. A few weeks ago, he got word to Lowe Guele to craft him a new weapon for the mobile suit he is designing for himself, as the leader of the ORB mobile suit infantry unit.
"Lieutenant" A soldier said saluting to his commanding officer as he was assigned to Garret to go to Artemis.
"You can stand down, I don't like the formalities, Just call me Garret." Garret told him as the pilot nodded. "Now, ready to go, I feel like getting my weapon sometime in the next week or so." Garret told him as the pilot nodded and began flight preperations for the shuttle, while Garret took his seat. And then the shuttle began to take off towards space and its destination.
Private Island In the Marshal Islands Orphanage, Kira sat on the beach as he supervised a few of the children who were having a fun time in the ocean. Behind him, were some of the scattered remains of the Hyperion, Ironwalls M1 Astray and the Aegis. Kira remembered that day very well, as it was the time where Kevin nearly decided to give up living after putting himself through the way of the electric chair. Kira just sort of smiled at that, "Stupid things done during stupid times." Kira thought knowing what happened afterwards. "I sure hope my brother is doing well in the afterlife." Kira told himself looking into the sky. "I hope he is taking good care of Flay and Tolle." Kira said with a somewhat Tear in his eye.
"Hello Kira" Came the sweet angelic voice of Lacus from behind him. Kira looked behind him to see the girl he has been dating for the last while since Cagalli has been dating Athrun. The pink haired beauty smiled as Kira nodded.
"Hey Lacus, is something up?" Kira asked as she sat down beside him, moving her dress to allow her to sit in the sand.
"Yeah, I'm going to go visit my brother in a bit, you wanna come along, there are still a few weeks before he and Athrun go to space to meet with the new Chairman, so I was going to ask him, if he wants to get everyone together for some relaxation, everyones been so, well tired." Lacus told him as Kira nodded.
"Yeah, that be a good idea, gives us some fun." Kira said looking to the sky as he could see Garrets Shuttle heading to space. "Well there goes Garret, which is good, he's going to that Junk Guild that contacts Malchio every once in a while." Kira said looking at the shuttle leave Earth.
"Yeah, I wonder what that secret project is of his, that he has to go to space to do?" Lacus wondered, as pretty much only one person does know that they are friends with. "Well only Kevin can answer that but he chooses not to" Lacus answered her own question with a smile. Then all of a sudden an orphan girl and a boy, dropped a handful of sand each over Kira and Lacus. The two spit the sand out of there mouths as Kira immediatly went after the little boy.
"Hey you get back here!" Kira said as he play chased after the young boy. Lacus was brushing the sand out of her hair as the little girl came to her.
"Sorry, he told me to do it." She said innocently.
"Don't worry, I'm not mad, just don't do it again ok." Lacus said with a smile while the girl nodded in agreement. "Come on, lets go help Kira catch the trouble maker." Lacus said with a wink as the girls now began to help Kira catch the little child.
A few hours later, Kevin Walker walked the halls, of the ORB noble building, for a usual meeting. Kevin was not really into those tight noble style suits, so he had a tailor make him his own personal getup, which, basicly his get up was a muscle shirt and a pair of jeans, that were the color of gold and purple. This just meant to be his version of the Emir's of ORB gowns, but rather his normal wear. And the one who has allowed this is Cagalli, a girl that he promised a friend to protect. That friend was her brother, a man named Ironwall, someone who fought along side Kevin to the very end.
He walked into the doorway, into the room as he looked around he saw all the higherups of ORB inside. As he sat everyone looked around, Kevin looked around the room, and starting from his right was Rhondo Mina Sahaku, she now has different thoughts of what her brother once had. She looks more into ORBs current state, unlike her brother who thought ORB should rule all, do to its superior technology. The next one beside her however was a fat man, with a hair style of balding and sideburns, with the color of Gray. His name is Unato, Ema Seylan one of the other head ORB reps. Next to him is his son, the purple haired natural youth Yuuna Roma Seylan, infact half of the room was Natural, Yuuna, and Unato, while the other half Coordinator Mina and Kevin. Cagalli Kevin thinks is a coordinator, but she didn't care if she was or not, so never went to truly find out. She just kept telling Kevin when he asked her to find out is that, she is who she is, no matter what her genes are.
"So what is this meeting about?" Mina asked as she rested her chin on her hands as a sign of boredom.
"Yes Mina does raise a good question." Kevin said siting down in one of the chairs as Cagalli entered the room next.
"Ok good, I am glad to see everyone is here." Cagalli said as she wore her casual clothing. "I am here to say that, well I have gotten word that Mu La Flaga has vanished from ORB. Also the Justice has also gone missing, we are thinking by the same people" She said saddened as Kevin looked at her with shock. He and the Hawk of Endymion are very close friends, and this hit him hard.
"Is there any clues on what happened to him? Or the Justice?" Kevin asked as Cagalli shook her head, as he slammed his fist onto the table, holding back his full strength.
"Ok a friend and a Mobile Suit are missing anything else?" Mina asked as Cagalli looked at her. Cagalli knows that Mina's brother actually wanted Cagalli dead, but he is now dead, but Cagalli doesn't trust Mina like that right now. "Hey don't give me that look Miss Atha, but don't we have that little treaty thing the Earth Forces are trying to get us to sign?" Mina said.
"Indeed, the lady there gives a good point." Unato said as he and Yuuna looked at the Coordinators of the board. "You know where Yuuna and I stand."
"Yeah, and that brings up why, they were the ones that attacked ORB in the first place!" Mina told them. "True, my brother joined them, and guess where he is now, floating in space as a corpse!" Mina told them.
"My brother floats as dust in space as well." Cagalli said saddened as Kevin nodded. He and Jason never saw eye to eye, but he respected the mans way of things.
Yuuna then looked at Kevin. "What of you Onishi, do you share the same sentiments as Miss Sahaku, and Cagalli?" Yuuna asked.
"Well I will just say this, I'm with Cagalli in a way, we stay neutral, no matter what. But thats my personal perspective, not much respect for ZAFT and no Respect for the Earth Forces." Kevin said as he went into deep thought. 'From these kind of discussions, one would get the hint another war is among us.' Kevin thought to himself.
"And what of these Earth Forces ships vanishing over the Himalayas." Unato brought up.
"This is the first I have heard of this." Kevin said as Yuuna looked at him oddly.
"Well there seems to be some disappearances of ships over the area, it was first thought to be just the weather, but now, the Ships are no where to be found, and if any is found everything is gone, weapons, food, and water. Heck the Earth Forces even asked us to escort their newest ship of the Archangel class." Yuuna said with a slight smile. "They are asking for mobile suit back up from us."
"Oh great, and who exactly do you have in mind Yuuna?" Kevin asked sarcasticly.
"Why you of course Onishi, and take Miss Sahaku as well." Yuuna said as Mina looked at him a bit annoyed.
"Fine whatever, but don't expect us to be to willing to do such a thing." Mina said. "But where do we rendevous?" She asked.
"Yes that is a good question, when and where are we suppose to meet up with this ship?" Kevin asked.
"According to the Earth Forces, they are having the ship meet up with our support, just north of here, they are leaving western America and crossing the ocean. Then they will cross the ocean to the next Atlantic Federation's main base."
"Alright then." Mina said as she got up as her purple cape waved around as she turned to leave. "Well are you coming lord Walker?" she asked as Kevin got up and went with her.
When the two were walking down the hall, Mina looked at Kevin in the corner of her eye. "Man those two piss me off." She said as Kevin in his stoic physique.
"Your not the only one Mina, ever since I met them, I've didn't like their Ideals." Kevin said as they went down in the Elevator.
"Hmm, so when do we leave and will we be needing a crew of our own?" Mina sked him as she rested on the rail of the elevator.
Kevin took the question to thought, "Hmm, I think we could take the rebuilt Dominion, and I think I could muster a crew for it." Kevin told her as she nodded in agreement.
"Hmm, that sounds good then, I'll get Morgenrete to move the Rebuilt Goldframe to the Dominion then, until then I will see you later." She said going her own way after the Elevator door opened.
Kevin went his own way to the parking lot. He walked over to his Harley motorcycle and reved its engine. Before he began to take off he looked at his watch. "Hmm, Lacus is supose to be arriveing at home in a few minutes." He said as he took off to his cliff ridden mansion.
Space, Colony Aprilius 1, Chairman Gilbert Dullindal's office.
The Chairman of ZAFT a long black haired man sat behind his desk looking over many papers of current events happening in the PLANTs, such as the new machines being made, and everything else happening in the PLANTs, even the the Earth Forces suspecting that ZAFT is behind the attacks in the Himalayas. "Hmm do you have any idea who is doing this?" Dullindal asked the person siting infront of him.
"No clue sir." Said a woman, who had long silver hair, but her roots were a light brown of her natural hair color. "Even though I do have one suspicion." She thought as her face now came into view, the woman wore a red mask, and ZAFT new her as the Red Queen.
"Oh really Miss Creuset." Gilbert told her as she looked a bit annoyed.
"Please Mr Chairman, don't call me that, i'm going by my maiden name, Stratos. Please just call me that." She said as Gilbert nodded.
"Alright Aelan, oh and I got some news for you, do you know a person named Meer?" Gilbert asked as behind the red mask, Aelan had a look of shock. "From what I can see of your facial expression, you do know her." Gilbert said with his hands held together. "Meer is someone I approached to give an opportunity." Gilbert told Aelan as he passed her a file. "This is the Meer I speak of, check to see if its one of your friends you have been looking for." Dullindal told her as Aelan picked up the folder.
She scattered through the pictures of the file, many of the pictures are of Lacus Clyne, and a black haired girl, with small eyes. "Sir, this is indeed her, but why all of the Lacus Clyne pictures?" Aelan said as she showed him a picture of Lacus.
"Well, you do remember the impact she had on the soldiers two years ago correct?" Gilbert asked as Aelan nodded. "Well, I've heard of someone that sounded a lot like Lacus with her singing. I called around and found out that she was the one with that ability. So I asked her this. 'How would you like to be Lacus Clyne herself." Gilbert told her as Aelan sort of smiled.
"Well that sounds like her then, she wouldn't pass up an Opportunity like that." Aelan said knowing her true friends rather well. "She is the perfect person to do this kind of a job, but is it safe sir?"
Gilbert nodded that it was indeed safe. "Yes Aelan, she is completely safe, but lets not get out of the true topic we came to do. But to tell you, I will tell you where your friend is after the meeting ok?" He asked as Aelan nodded. "Alright, now back to whoever is framing us, I would like you to go investigate, Your Red Queen unit has been rebuilt and upgraded." Gilbert told her.
"I will sir, I have a feeling the Earth Forces may go a little out of the way to take matters into their own hands. Especially with our new mobile suit program and the data link we got of their new ships, both the Raptor, and the Girtly Lue, but we have no data on their designs yet." She told him as he nodded and stood.
"Come this way Aelan, so I can give back your machine, after you left it with us for repairs." Gilbert said as he punched in the codes to open the door to the hangar. "Oh and just a heads up, as far as we know, your machine is the only one still with its Nuclear engine since the Junius Treaty." Gilbert told her. Aelan knew what that meant, as since the treaty, the use of Neutron Jammer Cancelers were now outlawed, but the Neutron Jammers stilled exist in the Earths Crust.
"Yes sir, and its a good thing to, most of its systems take up a lot of energy I do believe." Aelan told him as she walked into the room that had opened. She looked at what stood before them.
"Oh, and we took the liberty of changeing its code, from ZGMF-2314, it is now the ZGMF-X21A, as the successor of both the Freedom and the Justice." Gilbert told her.
'Yeah, but unkown to him, the Justice has truly gone missing. As it just so happens me and John Tyler still have our sources. Especially since he joined ZAFT to keep an Eye within." Aelan told herself, she and John talked a few weeks ago, and she did tell him that she wont stop until she did Kill Kevin, while John agreed, and it was her choice. "This is no problem to me sir, its only a code name, and well it suits it better. Now how about you tell me some of the new features ZAFT added to the new generation of this machine." She asked as Gilbert nodded.
"Ok, first that you may of taken note of, is our best replica's of the Sturmfalkes own Buster Rifles rather than your old Beam Machine Guns." Gilbert told her as she did take note of the new attachment. "And, I know this word means some bad feelings for you, but we also put the Aegis G-Weapons old Scylla Multiphase Cannon and added it into the chest of your machine." Gilbert told her as he noticed once he said Scylla, he could see that he was right. Scylla was a code name of one of Aelan's closet friends. "I may say this, for your hunt for the last of your kind I would say, it would be a fitting end to destroy him with that weapon." Gilbert told her as she nodded.
"True enough, to die by a weapon named after someone you have killed." Aelan said as she walked over to the cockpit of the machine. "I will work on the Machines OS, then I will go visit my friend sir." Aelan told him as he nodded in agreement. "But what of the wings sir, they are a different design of what my machine once had." Aelan wondered as indeed, the wings on the machine were different.
"Oh yes, it seems ZAFT has a way of making you a Guinea pig. First was your Phase Shift armor for Hyperion, and now this. Its a system called the Wings of Heaven or something like that. They are a new piece of the Colloid technology, but doesn't change your machine into invisible mode. Instead makes after images or so we think, thats why your machine will be the prototype of the tech." Dullindal smiled as Aelan nodded and then Gilbert left her to do her buisness.
"Hmm, I wonder she seems to be hiding something, could she know who's attacking those ships?" Gilbert asked himself as he sat at the desk once again.
"Sir, Commander Gladys is here for her meeting with you, and so are Commander Yzak Joule, and Lieutenant Shiho Hahnenfuss are also here to see you." The intercom machine on his desk told him, as he hid the folder of Meer and Lacus from them.
"Alright, you can send the three of them in." Gilbert told her as the doors opened. Infront of him were a two woman, and one man. And they were the silver haired young man, who is actually part of ZAFTs Council replacing his mother. Next to him is his most trustworth ally, a black haired woman who wore the mail version of ZAFTs Lieutenants Shiho "Housenka" Hahnenfuss. And last was a woman Gilbert has had a relationship with before. Commander Talia Gladys. "Its good for all of you to make it."
Meanwhile, inside the hangar, Aelan typed on her machines keyboard to set up her systems to work in the Gravitywell of the planet. "Could it possibly be them, I hope so, last time I seen them was sending them to Earth on my Meteor unit." She told herself as she brought up the new Scylla cannon's system. "So Athrun's weapon is now mine, hmm I wonder how Kevin will react when he sees this weapon appearing from nowhere." Aelan wondered as she the did the system of her shield over again. Upgrading it for that the shield can open infront of her chest to fire her cannon and her new buster Rifles. "Ok, I should be done in a second." She told herself finishing the Red Queen's new OS system. "Ok, now is my time to go see Meer, I wonder how she is doing, from what I could read in those books, she has been through some Plastic surgery already." Aelan told herself as she left the Gundam and went to the hall where Gilbert was having his meeting.
As soon as she opened the door, Shiho, and Yzak looked immediatly. "Well, well, if it isn't the Red Queen, finally decided to come out of hiding?" Yzak asked her as Shiho punched his arm. "Hey your not suppose to assault your commanding officer Shiho." Yzak barked.
"He, thanks Shiho, at least there is someone that can keep him in line." Aelan said as Shiho nodded.
"Its been a while Commander." Shiho said standing up as Talia looked at her. Talia went over to Aelan and presented her hand.
"My names Talia Gladys, I am now the Captain of the prototype ship the Minerva. Your the Red Queen correct?" She asked as Aelan nodded.
"That would be me, its good to meet you Talia Gladys." Aelan told her as she looked at Gilbert. "If you'll all exuse me, I have an errand to run." Aelan told them as Gilbert stood up before she turned.
"Just hold on a second Aelan." Gilbert said getting a envelope from his desk. "Here take this with you, its a private matter for the person your meeting with ok. And also on it is the address of where she is ok." Gilbert told her as she nodded and then left the building.
Earth The Nation of ORB
Kevin finally got back to his Mansion as he put his coat on a rack not far from the door. The place was huge, but he still had no maids or butlers, such as the not believeing the Noble part of his blood. 'Hmm, I wonder how the others are doing, no doubt by now they Heard Mwu has gone missing.' Kevin thought to himself as he walked the halls of his mansion, and went to his video phone. He walked up to the item and picked up the receiver, and began dialing in the numbers. "Ok, I can't get Dearka, he has gone up to the PLANTs and rejoined the Military with John. And I can't get Mir, she's gone and working for a newspaper, I might be able to get the others though." Kevin told himself as he began with Meryl Steiglitz, to be the helmswoman of the trip he was going to take to the Himalayas. And then he continued throughout the list, the the doorbell rang of his home. "Ahh, that must be sis coming for her weekly visit." Kevin said as he got done of his last call to the crew and getting them together for a mission.
He walked up to the door, "Funny though, I haven't seen Murrue or Andy around at all today." Kevin said as he opened the door, infront of him stood both Lacus and Kira.