Chapter 18

Zero

"Are you prepared now to do your duty by me?"

Analica Delizabane

A slash of pure white blurred before her eyes as they popped open. Anne was sweating and felt the moisture of her eyes tickling down the sides of her face, pooling in her ears. The blur before her cleared and she recognized the ceiling rising high above her. Feeling equilibrium restored to her, Anne sat upright trying to orient herself. There was a dull ach in her upper arm and a sense of urgency in her bones. The movement had jarred the resting IV needles embedded in her veins. Slowly, she removed them from under her skin and cast them aside. She was about to do the same to the Heart Monitor sensor that encased her finger, but hesitated, hearing the soft beep of the machine on her left. Carefully, she leaned over and flicked the machine off.

She surveyed the room quickly and found it empty. A parted curtain hanging in a nearby window indicated it was late afternoon. The needle bruises on her arm suggested that she had been lying here convalescing for a long while. Rubbing her face, Anne sucked in a breath as the world around her began to make sense. Her mouth dried as she came fully back to herself, recalling the whole of the long dream and its ending. The experience felt completely fresh, as if she had just woken at the end of AC 195, as if the war had only just come to an end, as if they had only had peace an hour. Anne bent forward in the bed, head drooping suddenly and put her hands to the side of her head, scrunching up her hair and felt the hot tears flood her eyes. She wept over the loss of Treize all over again. His death was a fresh wound bleeding everywhere. God, how had she put this pain aside all those years ago? Here it was, completely unchanged and as terrible as the moment Tallgeese II lit up the sky. How had she managed to move on from that moment that froze her blood and breath and heart? Much had been forgotten about those days and all the ones before it, things she promised herself she wouldn't let go of again. The mind never really loses anything, not even her mind. A few deep breathes helped. She had to remember his wishes and her own. Life went on. That moment lasted no longer than any other. No more forgetting. Now, she would keep the keys of her memory in her own hand. Still, she felt the sting shooting up and down her chest. It was as if he had just left her after having lain together, breathing the same air. It was as if he were still breathing, still breathing. Treize.

She pressed her breath back into her body and wrapped her arms around herself, rocking back in the fresh grief. But in a moment the pain ebbed and she remembered the rest of it, the words, the letter, the orders, and the voice in her mind. Go to Zero. Anne wiped her face with the back of her hand trying to regain control of herself. After a few minutes of steady breathing she rose out of the bed. Her legs were stiff and she stumbled through her first few steps, holding onto the bed post for support. Carefully, she walked to the adjacent bathroom. The days spent in bed had left her feeling sticky and ripe. Quietly, she did her best to sponge off, washing her hair with the stripping hand soap by the sink. Anne didn't dare run much water for fear of bringing a guard in, for she was certain that there must be one nearby. Then she stood before the mirror and gathered herself. This was enemy territory and she was a prisoner. If she hoped to make it to Zero a good plan was needed. They would keep the black Epyon in one of the compound hangers, probably the largest one on the western side. She knew these grounds well enough to make it there undetected as long as things had not changed too much since she had last been here. Slowly, Anne clenched her fists and then spread her fingers wide, pumping the blood through them and trying to prepare herself.

A single guard at the door would be preferable. However, two would be problematic and more probable. Anne slid across the outer wall of her bedroom, listening through the plaster and dry wall for sounds of life in the hallway. She reached the door and heard a male clearing his throat and shifting his weight every few moments on the other side. There seemed to be only one, but more might be near. If the man outside was to be dispatched, he must come inside the room to avoid the assault being seen by a passerby. Waiting would be necessary, though she felt there wasn't time to waste. Heero's insistent words repeated in her inner ear like flowing water. But it would hardly get her any further if she were caught. It was getting late. She glanced at the dwindling light coming through the curtain.

A clicking noise distracted her, low but distinct coming through the spaces of the door and wall, a sound like metal spinning across hollow metal. Anne imagined a bottle being opened, or a flask, cap unscrewed. She pressed her ear to the space and listened for the sound of an exhale. It came soon after with a soft belch and another shifting of weight. In her mind's eye she saw the young guard on the other side leaning against the hallway wall, bored and restless and drinking on duty, something he would not do unless he was alone. Rising up carefully Anne closed her hand around the door knob. She prepared her other hand, pulsing the muscles of her fingers. A steadying breath and Anne turned the knob until the door unlatched, then released it and pushed herself flat against the wall. Gravity took over and the door swung inwards on its hinges. Anne heard the guard turn, wait a moment and then moved to inspect. She saw his hand on the knob and his head moving slowly through the door frame, looking deep inside and missing her form flush against the wall. Anne filled her lungs silently and sprung toward him.

The bleeding started at dusk. Zechs had been walking upstairs when it came on him. He had just seen to the staff, making sure they knew to obey Dorothy for the time being. The staff had been resentful but many of them considered Zechs master of the house since he had lived there for over a year. Dorothy was upstairs with Treize Alexander. Elizabeth Foster was in her own room and it was to there that he was headed. Hildre had advised him earlier to relax and allow the Preventer office to do what they could in preparation. Zechs hated being estranged from military planning, but he recognized that his increasingly odd behavior was making people uneasy. He had to put his faith in his underlings. If something happened, they would alert him immediately.

The pain came without warning this time, an electrical current striking through his brain stem and the blood seeped out his nostrils as he collapsed against the steps. A fraction of a second later the pain transferred to his cut like a twisting knife between his ribs. Instinctively, Zechs' hand went to his abdomen trying to hold his guts from the tear he felt sure had been cut into his flesh. The images followed. Gabriel soaking wet and bloodstained glaring at him from his one eye. Then a light from above, a window with a woman standing in it, watching them, then an explosion of red. Zechs felt his chest seize and he rolled down to the stairs in torpor. A portrait of a young woman with a great slash mark through it. Aria, vengeful and ecstatic, holding a sword before them. A bent figure kneeling before him as he pressed a gun barrel to their forehead.

It was over rather quickly this time. The blood still came out his nose at a steady pace but the pain had abated. Zechs lay flat on his back and stared at the ceiling, breathing heavily. He couldn't make sense of everything he saw but it indicated to him that the time was almost on them. In a kind of stupor, he grabbed the railing and pulled himself up. No one had heard or seen him suffer the seizure and fall. He nearly crawled to the second floor and into his daughter's room where she absently played with blocks, murmuring to herself. Zechs looked at her without awareness and then in the same stupor he left the room for a nearby bathroom. Mechanically he went into one of the drawers and pulled out an old pair of scissors. The mirror showed him just how bloody his face had become. Zechs observed himself in the mirror from a strange distance and watched as he began to unconsciously cut his long hair. Strand after strange fell into the sink, slashed away robotically until it was about as short as Treize's had once been, the bangs still long and falling over his face. The scissors dropped from his hand and he wiped the blood away with his sleeve.

"I will have to kill you" he whispered to his reflection. His voice felt like it came from somewhere else. Zechs felt farther and farther away as he left the bathroom and went back into Elizabeth's bedroom. He sat down on her bed staring into space. Eventually, his daughter tired of her blocks and sat down on the bed next to him, silently holding his hand. He was aware of picking her up in his arms and carrying her up the flight of stairs to the media room. Inside, he found himself looking at the treasured objects he and Duo had once tried to lift from the house. There were the obscure American Television DVDs and the invaluable NASA relics nearby. Americana, all of it. He should have recognized it for what it really meant.

A feeling of dread swept over him and he thought of the woman in the window in his vision and the one that stood before him with his gun pressed against her head. He couldn't assign any other emotion or instinctual thought to these visions. They seemed like numb bits of information, a machine process to him. From the depths of that detachment came a sad remembrance.

Noin. It had been so long now since he had seen her face or heard her lilting voice, always so compassionate toward him. He would do it over if it were possible; marry his devoted Lucretzia and never returned to this planet. Zechs knew he could have found some contentment in just making her simple life happy. It wouldn't have been any great sacrifice for him and from where he had come it would've been far more than he deserved. Was that perhaps why all these things followed him to his torment, because he deserved it? The sins of yesteryear still weighed heavy on him, though he was in the practice of forgetting the past. Everyone was. Since his return from isolation no one of consequence had called for his blood. In all truth he was a war criminal, one of the worst. In the old days they would have sent him to The Hague and executed him for crimes against humanity. But The Hague was centuries gone and the current pacifist era engulfing Earth and Outer Space had found forgiveness and forgetfulness a useful policy. And then of course, he had done his part to save the world from rule under Mariemaia. He was saving it again from the tides of war and revolution.

But was he really saving it from those things? Could anyone really save it? It was very tempting to chalk his previous beliefs in total pacifism to youthful naivety. After all, Zechs was not even twenty years old when he decided to break the Earth with the Libra. That was perhaps the trouble with the world's obsession with youth. Young leaders do not have the ability to keep their passions in check and their ideals aren't always thought out.

Well, that wasn't true for Treize. His complex ideals had been considered every moment of his life, and they were more effectively realized. Zechs still cringed to think how he had been out-maneuvered in the quest for a peaceful humanity. It also was not true for Noin. She understood war and battle, but like most wished it was unnecessary. All she wanted was for people to live and live well. The merest thought of Noin created such a painful nostalgia for those days when they were both confident soldiers. Hard times but good times, better than these, for him at least.

Zechs' nostalgia died as he felt the tug in his head and neck. He sensed something coming, a communication. Zechs turned to the desk behind the couch and looked at the phone that lay cradled there. His vision pulsed when he looked there. With his daughter still in his arms, Zechs watched the phone waiting for it to come to life. With open eyes fixed on that spot, Zechs seemed to fall into waking dreams. He remembered a random dream of Noin taking his hand and telling him it was for his wife. The meaning was always lost to him. In this dazed state the pieces of the dream and his visions seem to stitch together, threading an answer before his mind's eye. He saw the hand that Noin held wrapping fingers around a heavy pistol, the barrel pointed against Anne's head. The smell of his daughter's hair, black like Noin's drifted into his bloodied nostrils. But for his selfishness, this might have been her daughter. But that thought brought to mind the image of the child's true mother, the hardest of memories to bear. Two women loved, two lost. What to do about the third? What to do about the third?

Zechs continued to stare at the telephone.

Trowa stood near Quatre in the hanger, watching Wufei and Hildre bicker about the proper way to prep a mobile suit for battle. Quatre paced nervously, not liking when two people he liked fought. Trowa wasn't as sensitive. He was more intent on watching Ten and a few other officers testing calibrations for the EMP, hoping to get a correct frequency that would disrupt the Calypso suits. Neither Trowa nor Quatre were needed here. But the absence of Zechs whom they had come to see as their general had left them feeling disjointed and nervous. The presence of Gundam pilots was reassuring to some of them, although Ten made it clear that they were beneath his notice. Ten was a follower of Zechs, but he was so proud that Trowa felt sure he would soon think himself beyond even the Lightning Count.

Hildre was the most nervous out of everyone. Duo's incapacitation aside, she had never been in an offensive battle and Wufei was not making it any easy for her. Trowa watched as the young man snapped at her whenever he caught her copying his movements on the mobile suits. Several times Wufei was stopped from calling Zechs in by Hildre's biting comments. She was insistent that Zechs needed to collect himself before the impending battle. It troubled everyone that a battle was indeed on the horizon and that there was no real weapon against the enemy.

This did not bother Trowa at all. He was confident that Zechs would make a grand entrance and put the fear of God into all his men and Hildre. They would be primed and ready for blood within ten minutes. What troubled Trowa was Heero. He was sure that Heero would have contacted them by now. It was unusual for him to wait so long to bring the others into the fold. Sure, Heero preferred to look alone, but he also understood that completing a mission meant having allies. Trowa was certain that Heero would infiltrate and make contact. But there had been only silence on all channels.

Heero missing, Duo clinging to life, Quatre anxious and heartsick over his fiancé, Wufei agitated over the capture of his commander; all of it made for a disorderly attack. But what choice did they have? Time was against them. Trowa knew better than any that one cannot wait for the enemy to make the decisions in a battle.

"How long do we have?" Mathius asked his cousin as he spooned ice into his cup and filled it with rum. They were alone together in the privacy of her apartments. Kateline reclined on her couch, smoking a long cigarette and staring up at the ceiling.

"I have an arrangement with the evening guard. They should be changing in another ten minutes. He will let you pass." Kateline blew rings with the smoke as Mathius handed her the drink and sat down next to her. He smiled with wicked jubilation.

"I can hardly believe it. Twenty minutes and I will halfway to Eldest child." He sipped his own drink and put his hand on Kateline's knee. She snickered after a long gulp and put down the cigarette in the ashtray nearby. She leaned forward.

"What do you suppose I have in my pocket?" She asked Mathius with a sultry tone, leaning into him. Mathius returned her gaze and let his hand move over her breast and into the inside of her jacket pocket. Curiously he lifted the small case from the pocket and opened it. Wrapped carefully in plastic was a small syringe. He held it up to the light and examined it.

"Just inject that into her IV. She'll never know what happened." Kateline picked up her cigarette and stood. Mathius looked in wonder at the tiny needle, his eyebrows coming together "Painless, eh? Far too good for her." He muttered. Kateline took another long drag.

"Think of it as easy prey. It's Aria that will be tough. She doesn't trust us and she has Gabriel on her side. I've tried to sway him, but the man has turned into an android. We'll likely have to remove him if he makes things difficult."

Mathius placed the syringe back in its case and pocketed it, giving his cousin a warning look. "I'd be careful if I were you. They say he can see the future." Mathius hated Gabriel and would love to see the Khushrenada scum die. But he was optimistic that the man would be too preoccupied with Zechs to do much about their plans, even if he did know about them.

"All the more reason we should get a move on." Kateline checked her watch and put out the cigarette. "It's nearly time for the guard change now, get a move on."

Mathius downed his drink and smiling, headed for the door. He stopped at the threshold, went back to Kateline and kissed her roughly on the mouth. Kateline returned the kiss and smacked his rear to send him on his way. With a last smirk, Mathius left to dispatch his sister.

Shireen was just finishing up the new sentry detail list with Aria when the soldier came rushing in with the report. He was out of breath from running but gave his report swiftly.

"Lady, there's been commotion in your sister's room. The evening guard says he arrived to find no one watching over her. When he went inside to inspect he found the guard dead inside and your sister gone."

Shireen's eyes widened and looked quickly to Aria, who looked startled but not collected. Aria wasted no time in acting.

"Gather all the in house to search for her. First I want my brother and cousin found and brought to me. I don't want either of them going near that room or even that part of the house." The captain obeyed immediately and was on his radio ordering his men to gather in selected areas. Shireen couldn't help but feel the fear rise in her throat. What if Mathius and Kateline had killed Leecy? What if they knew of Shireen's involvement with her? How would she ever get out if they did? If Leecy was dead, all her hope was dashed. No, she would not think that. Shireen had risked much to aid Analicia before all this. She would not think the worst.

When the captain had finished giving his orders, he saluted Aria. "Anything else, my Lady?"

Aria was in the process of loading the pistol she kept on her hip. "How was the guard killed, Captain? Shot?" she asked him, shoving the clip.

"No, my lady. It was odd, but he had a large red bulge at his neck, like someone had tried to tear out his throat. I think he must have suffocated."

Shireen watched Aria ponder this without expression. It obviously meant something to her as she shook her head curtly.

"One more thing, Captain. I want you to find Gabriel Khushrenada and bring him to me." The captain saluted her again and left to dispatch his orders. Aria handed a second gun to Shireen who holstered it immediately.

"Come on" Aria said. They left the room together to join the search.

Gabriel watched her slide into the darkness of the hanger. He was standing a few feet away from Epyon when the side door opened. Normally this sound of the door wouldn't have garnered attention, but the way it was opened, quietly with a lot of hesitation. These were the hallmarks of a sneak. With the lights off he could keep to the shadows and surprise the intruder. Zero told him nothing, which was odd. All the more reason to stay hidden and be sure of the advantage.

A strange sensation passed through his temples and through his face when he realized it was her. Gabriel had trouble recognizing her at first. She wore an Isle jacket that was many sizes too big for her, and her long hair was stuffed down into the color. Anne was barefoot and wore a white dressing gown beneath the jacket. She kept her hand inside the coat pocket and Gabriel thought it likely that she was armed. The tingling sensation in his face spread to his chest and he felt hot. His breathing picked up and sweat began to form on his brow. Gradually he realized he could barely move. His organs were gripped with fury. In the back of his mind he could hear the sounds of his supposed son crying, the events of the night he took her from his brother's estate. She stayed against the wall, slinking her way toward Epyon like a well-trained saboteur. In his mind he saw her the day they took him from Brussels, after he had quarreled with her, what she said while they fought, and the moments before. Each moment, down the line presented itself in an electric flash of memory, like a film being played in reverse. He remembered seeing his niece for the first time, kissing Anne for the first time in her office, crossing the path of Zechs after so many years, finding her at his brother's grave. Gabriel could only manage to put his hand over his mouth as the sights, sounds and smells of his brother came alive in his mind. He watched himself fleeing earth for the colonies during the war even as he watched Anne climbing the ladder towards Epyon's cockpit, knowing he should stop her her. He was able to manage a few steps forward. She didn't hear him and made careful progress toward her goal. Gabriel stood both in the hanger and in his brother's office, now at the Academy, now at their home in Lyon.

Now again staring one-eyed into his son's crib.

Gabriel felt an ache in his eye socket and grabbed it, almost surprised to find the eye missing. Sweat was pouring off of him. Dimly he thought in the back of his mind that this shouldn't be happening. Where was his Sight? Where was Zero? Why was it silent? Anne reached the top of the ladder and the cockpit access panel. Gabriel continued forward, staring up at her.

As if she felt him suddenly, Anne turned rapidly with her pistol drawn. She aimed it perfectly with no emotion on her face. He couldn't have reached for his gun if he wanted to. Anne had him right in her sights and they both knew her aim was impeccable, a former Oz Sure Shot. It was a quiet standoff while Zero waited in the cockpit. Gabriel could only continue to look up at her while his memory and every sentiment attached to them came flooding back to his consciousness.

"Why Zero? Why now?" he whispered, almost a whimper. Anne looked down on him dangerously, reaching behind her and opened the cockpit, her aim still trained on the spot between Gabriel's eyes. He didn't try to stop her, but stared in astonishment at what this cockpit system had done to him. When the door was finally open, Anne put her gun away and her gaze on him softened slightly. It seemed to him that she was apprehensive about going inside. He understood what she was doing and how she felt. Everything inside him was swarming but he managed a few words.

"It won't lie to you. It may hurt you, frighten you, but it won't lie."

For the first time, Anne took her eyes off Gabriel and looked inside the cockpit anxiously. But she seemed to stiffen and moved toward it. She looked back at him once and he saw in her eyes a bit of the old warmth that had been lost in his memory.

"Thank you, Gabriel" she answered and disappeared inside the cockpit.

It was pitch black on the inside when she first sat down. The cockpit door closed slowly and she kept watch on Gabriel's beguiled face until it locked into place. The lights did not turn on for a few seconds and it was silent on the inside. The Epyon was different from any suit she had ever been in and this gap between familiar and foreign felt accurately like Treize to her. He had designed the original Epyon and entrusted it to Heero's keeping, which then passed it to Zechs. The Zero system within the original was not automatic and required the program to be booted by the pilot; Treize had also designed that feature. However, the Isle engineers must have felt differently. A moment in darkness gave way to an electric hissing and a slow illumination of the cockpit. In the screen before her, Anne saw the word ZERO in large bold letters flashing out at her. She gripped the handles of the machine, not intent on piloting, but of merely holding on. She was frightened, but sure that this was the wisest step. Heero Yuy of all people would not advise her poorly, unless he meant to kill her. Not that was impossibility, as Heero's history showed he was willing to sacrifice others. Still, she felt that this was correct. Answers were needed. But she neither heard nor felt anything. The words kept blinking on the screen before her but no profound message was bestowed. The tiny cockpit was dead silent save for the sounds of the machine. Anne sat motionless, waiting tremulously at first, then with increasing worry that she was somehow being judged unworthy.

Of course! Zero spoke to true warriors, Heero, Gabriel, and Zechs. She couldn't hope to compete with them. Nobody was on their level. So what now? Would she walk out of this cockpit with no answers, nothing to go on but her instinct? Perhaps that was the lesson. It could be. I made sense, did it not? What did these three men, three 'children of Zero' as they could be called, have in common? What made these men perfect soldiers? They followed their instincts, sometimes to their peril but they were true to them. It didn't take much for them to know their true enemy. But Anne, she couldn't so easily decide that. There were so many options; so many that wished her harm. Who might she trust? Whom should she raise arms against? Treize's words of so long ago came back to her "What do you want?" That was the crux of it, wasn't it? What she wanted would determine who her enemy would be. Perhaps it would be everyone. Again she thought on the question. After years and scores of dead in her wake the answer was the same.

Anne exhaled and laid her head down on the dash of the cockpit and whispered "I want to live"

All around her the cockpit came to life. The word ZERO disappeared from the screen and was replaced by a flickering that started at the edges of the screen like a dripping energy, increasing in speed and finally moving toward the center. There, it collided with itself and swirled like a kaleidoscope, streamlined, smoothing at the edges, becoming defined and finally taking form. A voice like the melding of electrical streams and waves articulated and swept through the small space of the cockpit, emanating from all four corners, echoing off itself to become coherent. Anne slowly raised her head to see the electrical specter on the screen, an image Zero had customized just for her, something she would trust. In the back of her mind she wondered how the program had known.

"My dear Lady" Zero whispered in the ghostly voice of Treize. His image gazed back at her from the screen like a shade cast in heat sensor colors, here blue, there violet, there rainbowed and hollowed, but still him. Anne sat upright and felt the polarized crackle wiring through her, a voltaic whisper, and a thrill in her corneas. Her ears hummed with the wisdom of the machine. She released her grip on the Mobile Suit's handle and relaxed, fully opening her mind to Zero.

Heero gasped awake in Relena's arms. He had been in and out of consciousness several times the last hour. Now he pitched forward, sitting bolt upright despite his wound and convulsed. A small trickle of blood began out of his nose. Relena shrieked at his seizure and tried to hold him down. She was sure this was the beginning of death throes. He had already lost so much blood and he would surely be bleeding inside. Her clothes were soaked with crimson now turning brown as it dried. Grasping at his shoulders, Relena used her might to shove Heero back down. The noise awake Okami from her torpor in the corner. Heero seemed to gag and strangle on a hidden pain. He shut his eyes tightly and scrunched up his face in exertion. Relena began crying again, feeling totally helpless. Finally, at the height of his seizing, he released a despairing howl and dropped deathly still, eyes staring upwards. Okami stayed in her corner, knees drawn up in the agony of being awake and witnessing Heero's suffering. Relena shook his limp body. His mouth was slack and the blood from his nose flowed over his lips into the cavern of his mouth, splashing against his teeth. He seemed dead. But just as Relena felt her heart expanding in her throat, Heero blinked and closed his mouth. He was still physically pained but was no longer in any mortal throe. He turned his head and his chest expanded in search for air. Relena moved his face to look at her, frantically calling his name. Eventually he focused on her and his hand stretched to reach for something. Across the room lay the small communicator. It had been dashed from his hands when the seizure took him. Relena saw his reaching and skittered across the floor to retrieve it. Heero felt the small device in his hands, turning it carefully, flicking it on. In seconds there was the sound of connection and a metallic voice crackled through the wired mesh of the device.

"Okami?" asked Quatre frantically on the other end of the communication.

"Quatre, Trowa." Heero rasped out with effort "10,271,980. Mid-way frequency. Set exactly. 10,271,980 hertz"

Zechs put his daughter down when the phone rang. She had fallen asleep in his arms and didn't object to being placed more comfortably on the couch. Elizabeth foster curled up easily in the spot her father had occupied, warmed by his body. Zechs gave a few seconds to look at her and then picked up the telephone. He did not bother saying hello as he knew it would be Trowa.

"Zechs, we have the frequency. The Preventers are preparing to deploy. The need their general"

"Understood" he answered and placed the receiver on its cradle. He turned and looked at his child sleeping. Going down on his knees, he stroked her dark hair and rested his cheek against the softness. His mind was focused on the task to come, but he understood this sentimentality was necessary. He kissed her little exposed cheek and rose to leave.

"I'll be back" he whispered to her sleeping form. He left the room then and went to the third floor nursery where Dorothy sat reading as Treize Alexander napped. He ignored Dorothy and the indignant cries of the baby as he woke him and held him a moment. Zechs regarded the child of his enemy a moment, a boy with a powerful name, born from a powerful man and even more powerful woman. Within the next twenty four hours, he might be an orphan. Barren of expression, Zechs replaced the child, kicking and crying in his crib. Dorothy rose to address him, but seemed unable to speak. Perhaps she recognized something of Milliardo Peacecraft in him and felt it dangerous to speak. She acted uncharacteristically timid, as though she had much to say but no heart to say it. Zechs understood it was not the time. He raised a commanding finger at her and spoke clearly.

"You are responsible"

Dorothy nodded and sat back down. Zechs was satisfied with this and left the room.

Trowa put down the phone and nodded to Wufei and Ten. "He is on his way. I will call Sally". But Sally beat him to the punch as the phone rang before he dialed the number. Hildre was nearby organizing the squadrons with Quatre. Everyone was rushing to expedite the deployment. There was a strong sense of excitement and aggression in the room as soldiers finished up prepping their Scorpio suits for battle.

Trowa told Sally about the contact with Heero and the subsequent deployment before she was able to say anything. She might be remaining at HQ but it was important for that order to come from Zechs. They would need her down at the Hanger. Sally agreed but then briefed him on the purpose of her call. As she spoke, Trowa's eyes went to Hildre. When Sally finished, she assured him she would be at the Hanger soon. They hung up together. Wufei looked at Trowa curiously and Ten followed his line of vision to Hildre. Trowa did not enlighten them to what Sally had said but walked over to Hildre who was buzzing back and forth helping with the squadrons and individual soldiers. She was flushed in effort, working herself with exuberance. Somehow, this seemed very natural to her. Trowa thought she must be a born soldier or a naïve fool to be so enthusiastic. She flitted back and forth like a hummingbird until Trowa caught her arm. Hildre was so preoccupied with her duties that she almost shrugged him off. But the look on his face stopped her. She put down the piece of machinery she was holding, handing it off to subordinate. Trowa said nothing but put both hands on her arms as if to steady her. She looked at him curiously at first but the profundity of his expression made her suddenly fearful. Hildre's eyes widened suddenly as she realized.

"He's dead, isn't he? Duo's dead!" her eyes welled up and her voice cracked. Trowa shook his head.

"He's awake, Hildre. He's awake and asking for you."

Neither of them had time to say anything more. Zechs had arrived and the soldiers were running to line themselves up at attention for the Lighting Count's inspection. Hildre looked from Trowa, to the Scorpio suits and running soldiers, to Zechs and back to Trowa who was still looking at her with his hands on her arms. She could tell from the look he gave her that she had a hard choice. Hildre might not survive this battle. Duo was awake and asking for her. Did she go to him now when he needed her or go to war with Zechs where she was also much needed? That was the choice his eyes presented her with. A thousand thoughts and emotions passed through her mind all at once.

Hildre gulped and took a deep breath. She raised her chin in resolve and Trowa released her arms. Tight-lipped and rigid, Hildre joined the ranks of the Preventers lining up before Zechs, the Gundam pilots standing behind him.

Aria and Shireen entered the hanger together with their large retinue of soldiers. Kateline and Mathius were in the middle of the group, both looking furious. Aria watched them carefully. There was suspicion of course that they would make a move to dispatch her incapacitated sister, but she couldn't find evidence of foul play. It was more likely that Leecy had moved herself. She couldn't escape the property, everyone knew that. Security was too tight even for one who knew the grounds, even for one such as Lady Une. If we pride ourselves so much on security why was there only one soldier guarding her room? An oversight and a stupid one at that. Aria knew there were vipers in her midst and the risk to Leecy was high. However, she couldn't assign too much blame or malice to her family. It was their way, their tradition. Whatever is humanly possible is also perfectly moral, including murder. That was the Arian philosophy that she put her name to in order to advance it. It was what had kept them strong in the face of the world. It was what they all believed.

All but Leecy.

They found Gabriel standing in front of Epyon, staring up at it. Aria could see the rigid set of his shoulders and noticed the Eypon's eyes glowed green. The cockpit was occupied. She told her men to hang back and stood next to Gabriel who was breathing hard. She placed her hand on his shoulder but he continued to stare. At his foot was a small puddle of blood and Aria caught sight of the drops as they fell off his chin, originating from both his nose and ears. Shireen came forward as well. More boldly than Aria would have thought, Shireen grabbed his face and forced him to look away from Eypon and at her. They looked each other in the eye for a moment. Mathius and Kateline emerged from the retinue and stood a few feet behind them. Aria noted how they did not look at each other and it spoke of guilt like nothing else. They would be dealt with in time. Gabriel and Shireen continued to stare each other down. Shireen's hand still held Gabriel's chin and was becoming bloody. After a time he closed his eye and bowed his head, breathing deeply.

"They will be coming here now" he whispered.

The cockpit door opened then and the men instinctively took out their weapons. Shireen released Gabriel and everyone focused their attention on the figure within the cockpit. She came out slowly, her head bowed. The Isle coat had been discarded and she stood at the edge of the cockpit like a ghost in a white dressing gown, her hair falling and hiding her bowed face. Slowly she raised her head but was much quicker with the gun. Before any of the men could react she had fired a single shot that went through Kateline's forehead and took off the back of her skull. She dropped dead with the cloud of blood still hanging in the air. Mathius leapt back and Aria had to put her hand up quickly to prevent any of her soldiers from opening fire. Loudly so as not to be misunderstood, she ordered their weapons down. Everyone stared at Analicia, with her gun still pointed at the spot where Kateline had been. Mathius was half covered in blood, breathing hard and looking at the mess that had been his cousin, then up at his oldest sister. Aria glanced at Shireen and saw the unmistakable mark of pride on the girl's face. Analicia dropped her aim and stood regally.

"As I am Eldest Child, I will permit no vipers in my house. This IS my house." Her voice deep and accented rang across the hanger. She looked down at everyone from a height that was greater than where she stood. Mathius was increasingly upset and his twin sister took hold of his arm and forced him to stand beside her in composure. Leecy gazed at the company dangerously.

"Our enemy is coming. Any moment now, Zechs Merquise will lead an army of Preventers and Gundam Pilots to attack our stronghold. They know the Calypso. They are well armed against it. Hiding in the shadows will not avail us this time. We must meet them head on. The Preventers are the best pilots in the world and space, and they are backed by faith in what they believe they are preserving. Zechs would do more than destroy us. He would obliterate us and our memory from the Earth Sphere. We must meet him on even ground in this. We MUST show him that we are our own nation and our own people. We will not allow the mistakes of the past to repeat! We must obliterate Zechs as he would us! He is the last threat in a government that would take our freedom and our right to independence, the last incarnation of the enemy we have long sought to destroy. We must destroy the Preventers and anyone else who challenges our independence! This is MY house, and I will show you how best to defend it against Zechs Merquise."

"This is our home and we were born for dying!" She raised her arm then like a Cleric imparting the inspiration of the Gospel. Shireen went down on her knees immediately in allegiance, pulling Mathius with her. Aria felt her knees following suit, her mind swimming with the long sought victory of bringing the true Eldest Child home. She could tell her entire troop was on their knees too. They began to cheer and chant behind her in acceptance of their new leader. Gabriel was the last to go down, but only on one knee. He did not bow his head but kept his eye fixed on Analicia as the Isle swore allegiance to the First Lady of War.

To Be Continued in Of Saints and Soldiers: Book III

Coming soon

(I promise!)