I don't own anything except Ken DiFalco, his team, and Sophia DiFalco

Mu and Murrue stared at Sophia in disbelief. "Are you telling me," the Hawk of Endymion said incredulously, "that Falcon is my little brother?"

She nodded. "That's exactly what I'm telling you, Lieutenant."

Mu shook his head almost violently. "That's not possible," he insisted. "It's impossible. Falcon's only seventeen, right? By the time he was born, my parents were dead."

Sophia nodded again, soberly. "I know that, Lieutenant. Fact is, Falcon wasn't born naturally. I don't know all the details-" which was true enough, though she did know far more than she would admit "-but I do know he was created using preserved genetic material; though whether he is truly your sibling or a clone of your father, I don't know. There was weird talk about some kind of prototype artificial womb, among other things. I'm not sure why he was created, but the project never got very far." She frowned. "There was some kind of disaster at the lab, and in the aftermath, Falcon got separated and wound up in an orphanage, which is how he came to be my adopted brother."

"Did you ever find out what caused the disaster?" Murrue asked, while Mu digested the stunning revelation.

"Blue Cosmos, probably." Sophia's frown deepened, as she considered how much she could safely reveal. "The man behind the project was Doctor Heinrich Metzinger," she said finally. "I doubt you've heard of him; he was -or is; he may still be alive- a pioneer in genetic engineering, but not a very well-known one. Exactly what he was trying to accomplish is unclear, but apparently he got wind of the Lieutenant's kinesthesia test scores -though this was long before he joined the military- and thought the La Flaga family line would be ideal for his purposes."

"Obviously, he was right," Mu mused. "No wonder I had so much trouble with Falcon when we were fighting on the Grimaldi Front." And maybe this is part of why Le Creuset was trying find out who he really was...

"What happened to Metzinger?" Murrue asked.

Her friend shrugged. "Your guess is as good as mine. The good doctor never tried to claim custody, so I assume he was either killed in the incident, or he found some other way of continuing his experiments."

The captain started to speak again, but Mu interrupted, looking down at Natarle. "Get Falcon up here, right away," he ordered.

She complied without hesitation, as stunned as any of them. "Commander DiFalco to the Bridge," she said into the intercom. "Repeat, Commander DiFalco to the Bridge."

He turned to Sophia. "Somehow, Lieutenant," he said quietly, "I don't think Falcon is going to be very pleased with you, after holding out on him for so long."

She winced. "Somehow, Lieutenant, I think you're right."

When Falcon arrived, he listened in silence as Mu filled him in. Then he turned to his sister, non-expression seeming somehow menacing now. "And why, exactly," he said icily, "was this kept from me for seventeen years? Well?"

Sophia seemed to wilt for a moment. "Look, Falcon, Mom and Dad never even knew who your real parents were; I uncovered that information myself, a few years ago. I never told them because I didn't want them to worry... and I didn't tell you because you were still too young."

His eye narrowed. "So why didn't you tell me later?"

"Because we hardly ever saw each other," she fired back. "You never seemed to care that much about seeing me, so-"

"That kind of secretiveness is one of the reasons I didn't care that you stayed away, sister," he said coldly. "Maybe if you'd come right out and told me, a lot of this could have been avoided."

Sophia looked away. "Maybe," she admitted. "But there are other factors..." She trailed off, unwilling to reveal what she knew of Der Schreckick Eins.

Mu rolled his eyes, but decided things had gone far enough. "What matters is that now we know," he said, laying a hand on Falcon's shoulder. "Although I certainly never expected this!"

The one-eyed pilot nodded. "Neither did I. But it does explain certain things, doesn't it? Such as how similar our talents are."

"Yeah; though I don't know if I could pull that beam-deflection stunt you used against the Blitz." Mu shrugged. "Of course, I can't pilot a mobile suit, either."

"That's because he's a Coordinator, and you aren't," Sophia put in. "On the other hand, according to your test scores and battle data, Lieutenant, your skills are about as close to Coordinator level as a Natural can get."

"I'm sure I would have found that very reassuring if my Coordinator brother had blown me to space dust at Endymion," he said dryly.

Murrue shook her head. "The Hawk of Endymion and the Falcon of Grimaldi; mortal enemies and blood brothers. It's like something out of a book."

"One with far too many clichés," Falcon murmured. He glanced at Sophia. "One thing, sister: don't ever hold out on me like that again. Understand?"

She nodded, wincing. "Oh, yeah." Man, there's going to be one major explosion if he ever finds out about Der Schreckick Eins...

Archangel, Bridge, February 2nd, C.E. 71

Days after the Archangel escaped from Artemis, it was time to determine the ship's next move. They'd had a number of problems before Artemis, and none of them had been resolved.

"We're starting to run a little low on food," Mu mused, sitting in the copilot's seat (Tolle being off-duty). "Worse, we've only got enough water for a few more days."

Murrue nodded. "I know. I've been worried about that ever since Heliopolis collapsed. I'd hoped Artemis could remedy that situation, but..."

"Maybe if we plotted a course closer to Earth?" Natarle suggested. "If we can fly a tighter course across the orbital path, we might be able to reach Earth Alliance territory with the supplies we have."

Neumann shook his head. "I'm afraid not, Ma'am. Remember, there's the Debris Belt to consider; and if we chart our course any closer, we will have to pass through it."

Murrue frowned. "Why don't we do that?"

Falcon, standing at the rear of the Bridge, shook his head. "Negative. With that much debris floating around, we'd end up as part of it, more than likely."

"True enough," Mu agreed; more evidence that they were brothers was the fact that they usually thought alike. "Unless... Hey, wait a second!" He turned in his seat, an arrested expression on his face. "Are you thinking what I'm thinking?"

The ex-ZAFT pilot nodded thoughtfully. "Could be, Mu. There's a lot of junk out there..." He trailed off. "I think we should get Kira and the others in on this," he said after a moment. "We'll need their assistance to pull it off, more than likely."

Sophia looked up at her brother. "Just what are you two thinking of?"

"Patience, sister," he said calmly. "Patience. All shall be revealed at the proper time."

That's another thing that's starting to get on my nerves, she thought. He can toss off all those sarcastic remarks... without any more emotion than a shark tearing into a school of fish.

"You might say we're thinking of a way to make the impossible possible," Mu told her with a smile... thus irritating her even more.

Archangel, Cafeteria

Kira sat at a table, staring blankly at a bulkhead, while he ate in an absentminded fashion. He was depressed, which wasn't too surprising; Athrun was with the enemy, and now he was a traitor to his own kind... or so some said.

He was reminded of something Falcon had told him the day before, quoting one his "Lessons of War". "If you get to feeling down, Kira, just remember Lesson Thirty-three: War is ninety-seven percent boredom, two percent depression, and one percent sheer, howling terror. So far, you've experienced the one percent of terror, and you'll probably soon be in the two percent of depression. But cheer up: you're almost to the ninety-seven percent boredom phase."

As far as Kira could tell, Falcon was telling the literal truth as he saw it.

And when he got to thinking about Garcia's last words, he took comfort in what Falcon had told him the day Heliopolis was shattered, about how one's genes didn't determine who one's "kind" was. And, of course, there was Lesson Twenty-six: One man's traitor is another man's patriot. Kira supposed Falcon fell into that category, and so did he, after a fashion.

"Hey, Earth to Kira," Tolle said, waving a fork. "You alive over there?"

Kira twitched, having more or less lost track of the outside world. "Huh? What's up, Tolle?"

"I was just saying that I was wondering what we were going to do about the supplies," his friend said. "We're nearly out of water, in case you didn't notice."

He had, actually; and now a part of him wondered if Falcon had any "lessons" that covered this situation. Probably; the man seemed to be a modern Sun Tzu... though with more sarcastic phrasing.

"I'm sure it'll be okay," Kira said after a moment. "The officers all know about it, so they're probably trying to figure that out right now."

"Trying, yes," Flay said nervously. "But will they think of something in time?"

Sai laid a reassuring hand on her shoulder. "Of course they will, Flay. We haven't come this far to fail because of some little thing like that."

"And Falcon's up there too," Mir pointed out. "With him and the Lieutenant -I still can't believe they're brothers- they'll find the solution without a problem."

Tolle looked at her strangely. "You really like the guy, don't you?"

She glared at him. "Don't look at me like that, Tolle! I just think that, beneath that exterior of his, he's a nice guy; and nobody else, except maybe Lieutenant La Flaga, is willing to treat him like a human being."

"Now wait a minute, Mir," Sai protested. "That's not really-"

"Think about it," Mir challenged. "All of you; especially you, Kuzzey. Ever since Heliopolis, you've all thought of him just as 'that ZAFT pilot', haven't you? Just another guy who's famous for making the impossible possible, all the while overlooking the guy himself. There's more to him that just the ace pilot, you know; he has feelings."

"But his sister says-" Kuzzey began.

"That he has all the warm feelings of a dead fish?" She snorted. "Notice Lieutenant DiFalco's barely even seen him in almost ten years. Frankly, I think she doesn't know she's talking about."

"Miriallia's right," Kira said, standing. "I don't know how much 'warm feeling' he has, but he's really not that different from us. Except..." He trailed off. "Except he's feeling guilty about something."

Sai tilted his head. "What do you mean, Kira?"

"I don't know... but there's more to his desertion than just a disagreement with ZAFT policy," Kira pointed out. "There has to be. I think there's something he knows, or did, that's eating him."

Mir nodded. "I noticed that, too. But every time somebody brings up why he deserted, Falcon just says it's none of their business or that it's classified. It looks to me, though, that he's scared of something, and it scared him badly enough to make him leave ZAFT, and even fight them."

"But he seems pleased ZAFT stole four of the new mobile suits," Flay noted. "Why...?"

Kira thought about that. "He said he's fighting for a balance," he said slowly. "I think he would have preferred it if Archangel had kept three, to achieve parity; but since we only have two, he has to compensate by going out there himself."

"I'd call that compensating," Tolle agreed. "ZAFT's Ace of Aces is worth three other pilots."

"But could that goal make him fight the Archangel?" Flay said worriedly.

"No way, Flay," Mir told her. "I don't think that's how it works for him. Maybe there'll come a time when turning on the Archangel will be the best way to carry out his goal... but I think he'll find another way. It's not in him to betray someone he's fought alongside unless there's no other option, and I don't think that's the case here."

"But how much can one guy do all by himself?" Kuzzey said plaintively. "It just doesn't make sense!"

"Yes, it does," she said quietly. "According to Lieutenant La Flaga, though one of them died later, there were four other survivors of Endymion in Falcon's unit. Which means there are still three Gray Demons somewhere in ZAFT." Her gaze went over them all. "Don't you think he'd have left instructions for them? General guidelines, at least? His people were very loyal to him, so I don't think he's alone in this."

That thought had not occurred to any of them, but now that they thought about it, Falcon was known for being a very intelligent individual, and an excellent tactician. That didn't necessarily equate to strategic brilliance, of course, but there were some in the media and the Earth Forces who insisted the Grimaldi Falcon had played a not inconsiderable role in planning the Nova operation... and possibly had selected the target himself. There was still considerable controversy among the top brass about just how much influence he really had on ZAFT policy. Some said he was just one team commander, who happened to have a well-earned reputation as a combat pilot. Others said he was all of that, but also a man with considerable clout in ZAFT's High Command.

A small minority, however, believed Falcon had climbed very high in the ZAFT hierarchy, despite his official title of commander. This group said the Grimaldi Falcon had a role in planning several of ZAFT's most successful operations, and had likely left behind detailed plans even after his "death" (the Earth Forces had eventually decided, after his disappearance, that Falcon was KIA) at Nova; plans that even now were still valid.

And, they claimed, he had the ear of National Defense Committee Chairman Patrick Zala himself.

No one knew for sure. After a week on the Archangel, Falcon still revealed little about his last months with ZAFT. He was perfectly willing to speak of his time up to and including Endymion, but beyond that he would merely say he fought at Nova and was involved in some kind of project that had prompted his desertion; no other details were known, except that he apparently had a great deal of sensitive information in his pocket computer.

"So what do you think he's planning?" Kira said finally.

"I have no idea," Mir admitted. "Actually, I don't think he is planning anything right now, really. Anything to do with the PLANTs must have been set in motion last year; anything beyond that he must be making up as he goes along, because I don't think he expected to be dragged back into the war at Heliopolis. I think he thought his part was over, that anything else would have to be accomplished by his teammates."

"You're making him out to be some kind of Machiavellian schemer," Tolle remarked. "You think Falcon's really that devious?"

"They say he had the ear of Patrick Zala," she pointed out. "After everything I've seen, I'm inclined to believe it."

Further discussion was cut off by the ship's public address system. "Kira Yamato, Sai Argyle, Tolle Koenig, Miriallia Haw, Kuzzey Buskirk, and Flay Allster, please report to the Bridge."

The six exchanged glances. "I wonder what's up?" Sai murmured.

"Bet Falcon's up to his neck in it," Tolle opined.

Archangel, Bridge

"Supplies?" Sai said, minutes later. "There's some way we can get some?"

"You might say that," Mu agreed, nodding. "Or," he added with a raffish look, "you might say that we intend to take them."

Kira's eyes narrowed. "What do you mean, Lieutenant?"

"We're now entering the Debris Belt," Murrue informed them. "As you know, besides various things such as old tools, obsolete satellites-"

"And obsolete cosmonaughts," Mu put in under his breath, causing Falcon to have a brief coughing fit.

"-there are also a number of wrecked spacecraft," she finished, sending the Hawk a quelling look and glancing briefly at Falcon, wondering if that had been genuine coughing or a cover for actual laughter. Probably the former; he didn't look capable of levity. "According to the laws of salvage, these ships belong to no one as long as they're just floating, abandoned, in orbit."

Sai drew back, floating away. "Hold on a minute! You don't mean-"

"Yes, we do," Falcon said quietly. "We don't have much choice; and in war, people often have to do things they'd rather not."

"But that's stealing!" Kuzzey protested.

Mu shook his head. "No, it isn't. When it comes to salvage, it's finders keepers, and has been for a long time. And Falcon's right: we don't have any other choice."

"So what does that have to do with us?" Kira asked. "We don't know what to look for."

"You don't have to." Murrue looked at each of them in turn. "What we need you young people for is to man the shuttles to bring in the supplies, once we've found them. You'll be along for the search as well, of course, but Petty Officers Chandra and Pal will accompany you, as well as Falcon; I think he's competent in that area."

"You might say that." Falcon glanced out the main viewport. "Mu," he said abruptly, "I'll need a back-seater for this run."

Mu blinked. "Huh? Why?"

"Let's just say that I'm expecting to have to go EVA out there," the ace replied. "So I'll need someone to take control of Raptor while I'm at it. Don't worry, even a Natural can handle it well enough to move it around, outside of combat."

"Comforting," the Hawk said dryly. "I presume you do plan on letting me in on the secret sometime, little brother?"

Falcon didn't rise to the bait, despite the fact that whenever Sophia had called him that, he'd gotten just a mite irritated. Or, to be more precise, he threw her against a wall the one and only time she said it. Of course, she's not really my sister, is she? I'll tolerate it from Mu... if only to avoid breaking my cover.

Aloud, he said, "Yes, Mu, you'll know. But only when we get there. There's... something I'll have to do, and something all of you should see."

He did not choose to explain that remark.

PLANTs, Aprilius One, PLANT Supreme Council Chamber, February 3rd, C.E. 71
Several million kilometers away and approximately a hundred and twenty degrees around the Earth's orbit from the Archangel, Rau Le Creuset was delivering his report on the events at Heliopolis to the PLANT Supreme Council. It was not an enviable task.

"...And, as you can see from the information I've provided, the collapse of Heliopolis was unavoidable; and, in the end, due to the Earth Forces' own actions," Le Creuset concluded.

Various members of the Council, such as Chairman Siegel Clyne and Representatives Tad Elsman and Yuri Amalfi were obviously concerned by this news, but National Defense Committee Chairman Patrick Zala merely nodded thoughtfully. "Understood, Commander. However: are these new machines worth the sacrifices made by our ZAFT forces?"

Le Creuset nodded. "I believe so, Sir, and to explain their phenomenal potential, I have here one of our pilots, Athrun Zala, who flew one of the stolen machines and met the two that remain with the Earth Forces in battle. However..." He paused, debating how to present the next headache, and finally decided to be blunt. "I'm afraid I have even worse news, from our perspective, than the collapse of Heliopolis. You see, Sir, we've identified the pilot of one of the two remaining G-weapons. His name is Kenneth DiFalco."

That news was greeted with stunned silence, especially by Tad Elsman. He knew the young man well, since the Grimaldi Falcon was his son Dearka's best friend. The idea of him deserting had been hard enough to swallow, but actually defecting to the Earth Alliance? Preposterous!

But Patrick Zala had even more reason to be shocked... and very, very concerned.

After the silence had faded, to be replaced by murmurings, Zala was still thinking furiously... or trying to, at least, in the face of that monstrous shock.

Finally, he shot to his feet. "Are you sure about that?"

Even Le Creuset winced at the volume; he also began to suspect his former teammate had risen a little higher in ZAFT's hierarchy than he'd thought. "Yes, Sir, I'm afraid so. I spoke to him personally, and his tactics matched what I recalled of him... as did his battle cry."

Zala closed his eyes. "This," he said harshly, "is a disaster!"

Clyne looked at him in concern. "Is something wrong, Representative Zala? I am, of course, aware of the implications of Commander DiFalco's defection, both in terms of his knowledge of the homeland's defenses and the effect it will undoubtedly have on morale, but you seem to be implying something more."

His one-time political ally took a deep breath. "Yes, Mr. Chairman, there's more. I would prefer not to go into too much detail in this setting, as some of it is highly sensitive military information, but yes, Commander DiFalco was far more important than his rank would suggest." Zala glanced around the chamber. "All of you know that it was the Grimaldi Falcon who suggested the attack on Nova, in addition to providing the plan that allowed us to take it and make it our own. What you may not know is that many operations we are currently planning -most, perhaps all of them- were Commander DiFalco's plans. To make matters worse, he was deeply involved in a highly classified military program, information about which could be ruinous to us should it reach Alliance hands."

There was another long silence, finally broken by Le Creuset. "I don't think it's as bad as that, Sir," he offered. "Admittedly, with his defection we can no longer be certain of it, but, having served with the man in combat, it is my professional opinion that Commander DiFalco will not give the Earth Forces any more information than absolutely necessary, and that he would not under any circumstances provide them with the knowledge necessary to pass Boaz and Jachin Due."

"Explain, please," Clyne requested.

"Of course, Sir. Your Excellencies, whatever he may have done, Ken DiFalco is a son of the PLANTs... and one that remembers the loss of Junius Seven with bitterness. Additionally, I believe him to be entirely sincere in his current objective, however much I may disagree with it."

"What objective is that?" Elsman said sharply.

Le Creuset turned to him. "According to one of my pilots, Dearka Elsman -DiFalco's best friend- DiFalco is apparently attempting to achieve a strategic victory for the PLANTs... but not an overwhelming one. He wishes us victory, but not to the extent that we dictate all terms to the Earth Alliance. You will notice that, despite his actions in combat against Vesalius and her mobile suits, DiFalco did not actually interfere in our capture of the G-weapons, and even now resorts to disabling attacks only."

"Odd activity for a traitor," Ezalia Joule observed. "Do you actually believe Elsman's reports?"

"I believe that Dearka was telling the truth, yes," he acknowledged. "If you're asking if I think DiFalco truly believes himself to be acting in the best interests of the PLANTs... then yes, I would say I do. It may sound insane, Ma'am, but even if DiFalco has snapped -which I'm not certain of- madmen can be very rational and consistent within their delusion."

"A point," Elsman murmured. "And, like you, I find it difficult to understand how Falcon could have betrayed us. I knew the young man well, even before he joined ZAFT." He ran a hand through his long brown hair, frowning. "Is there any other possible explanation for his behavior, Commander?"

Le Creuset shrugged. "Falcon is well known for his... individualistic tendencies, Sir. He is brilliant and devious; and I seem to recall he was transferred to Special Forces over his own vehement protests. It has occurred to me that, in his frustration at being taken from the frontline, Falcon may have departed to operate undercover, on his own initiative. In that scenario, his months on Heliopolis with no apparent activity could be construed as a method of building his cover."

Zala looked at him. "Just how likely do you think this theory is, Commander Le Creuset?"

"Difficult to say, Sir. Having served with him, I am disinclined to believe him capable of treason... but on the other hand, he did kill Olor and Matthew, two of my veteran pilots."

Clyne steepled his fingers, deep in thought. "Very well," he said finally. "Assuming there is no objection, our forces will be directed to capture Commander DiFalco if at all possible, preferably relatively undamaged." He glanced around the table. "Is that acceptable, Committee Chairman Zala?"

Zala frowned, but finally nodded. "Yes. It's important to remove him from the Earth Forces' reach as soon as possible, but not absolutely critical. Codes can be changed -and will be, though we'll leave an option open should this truly be some insane covert operation- and as for battle plans... well, Commander DiFalco may be privy to them, and probably has copies of them in his possession, but there's little one man can do to affect them, even if he gains access to Earth Alliance Headquarters. And I doubt they'd be inclined to believe him, anyway."

Joule nodded. "Agreed. The Grimaldi Falcon, a defector? Ha! They'd assume it was a trick, and for all anyone knows, it may be."

Clyne nodded. "Then it's settled. Commander Le Creuset?"

"I'll pass the orders on to my men," the masked commander promised.

"Good. Now, I believe you said you had information on the Alliance mobile suits?"

"Yes, Sir." Le Creuset glanced back. "Athrun?"

Athrun stepped forward, swiftly taking his commander's place before the Council table. "First," he began, showing no trace of his unease at facing the Supreme Council of the PLANTs, "I would like to present this machine, the Aegis." Holographic images of the red mobile suit appeared in the air. "One major characteristic is its transformation capability, allowing it to convert to a mobile armor for certain specialized roles. With its transforming frame, the GAT-X303 Aegis is fundamentally different from the other five machines." Combat data began streaming, and he began to point out the weapons. "In mobile suit mode, it is equipped with the CIWS Igelstellungs, four beam sabers, an anti-beam shield, and a high-energy focused beam rifle. In mobile armor form, its main weapon is the Scylla, a 580 millimeter multiphase energy cannon." A graphic was shown of it going from basic gray to its standard red. "One major technological advance used in these machines is Phase-shift armor. When in use, it puts a severe drain on the machine's energy battery, but it has compensations: this new armor is virtually impervious to physical weapons, and can only be pierced by energy weapons such as beam rifles and sabers."

The image changed, to Yzak's gray-and-blue machine. "GAT-X102: the Duel," Athrun continued. "The most basic of the six machines, this mobile suit is intended for close combat, and is believed to be the basis for the other five machines. It is the most lightly armed, having only CIWS, two beam sabers, and a beam rifle with attached grenade launcher."

He pointed out the next model, Dearka's green-and-tan unit. "GAT-X103 Buster. It possesses no close-range weapons, and appears to be intended for fire support and long-range sniper attacks. It is not equipped with a shield; however, it does have a 57 millimeter gun launcher, a high-energy focused beam rifle, and a pair of missile launchers, one in each shoulder. In the hands of an expert marksman, Buster is a lethal weapon."

The graphic switched to Nicol's menacing -black-and-red mobile suit. "GAT-X207: the Blitz. This model is equipped with a unique system known as Mirage Colloid, which covers the machine with colloid gas particles, held in place by an electromagnetic field, rendering Blitz virtually invisible radar, infrared, and even the naked eye; however, power requirements mean it cannot be used while Phase-shift is active. Blitz is also equipped with the Gleipnir piercer lock, and the Trikeros offensive shield system, which consists of a beam rifle, beam saber, and three kinetic penetrator darts."

Athrun braced himself for what he was about to explain. "And finally, the pair that got away." He altered the image, displaying Kira Yamato's machine. "GAT-X105 Strike. In the case of this model, we are limited to observational data alone, but we've already seen all of its various weapons in action. First, the machine itself is equipped with Igelstellungs, a beam rifle, and a pair of Armor Schneider combat knives, stored in the hips. Additionally, its loadout can be customized through the use of Striker packs, giving it added firepower, endurance, and maneuverability. Most versatile is the Aile package, which grants the Strike atmospheric flight capabilities and a pair of beam sabers, making it essentially an up-rated version of the Duel. The Launcher loadout, on the other hand, equips the machine with an antiship Vulcan cannon, a pair of gun launchers, and a 320 millimeter hyper-impulse cannon; as you can see from the combat data-" scenes from Heliopolis were playing "-it has power far in excess of any other mobile suit. Finally, the Sword Strike pack uses a fifteen-meter antiship sword, a rocket anchor, and a beam boomerang."

The screen changed one last time. "And last, but by no means least: GAT-X107 Raptor. At first glance, it isn't that different from the Strike. The basic frame is the same, and it's equipped with Igelstellungs, Armor Schneiders, a beam rifle, and a hardwired Aile Strike pack; and it's been observed that it can use weapons from the Strike's other modes. However, from com imagery it's evident it has space for a second crewmember, probably a gunner; additionally, it carries a pair of beam cannons on the Striker pack... and its most unique feature, the so-called Death Blossom system. Clearly inspired by the Moebius Zero's wired gunbarrels, this system isn't very different. The only substantive difference is that these are energy weapons... which means it is quite capable of bringing down even other machines of its series." Athrun faced the Council directly. "This would not be a problem, as the system can only be used by someone with exceptional powers of spatial awareness... were it not for the fact that Raptor is now Commander DiFalco's personal machine."

Heads nodded at that; the Grimaldi Falcon's skills in that area were well known to all of them, particularly Zala and Elsman. "Thank you for your report," Clyne said. "Commander Le Creuset, Mr. Zala, you're dismissed."

They saluted. "Yes, Sir," Le Creuset said respectfully, and left with Athrun.

After they were gone, Elsman nearly snapped the pencil he held. "They've manufactured these abominations?" he said through gritted teeth. "So much for Orb's claims of neutrality!"

"Surely only six machines -four of which are now in our hands- cannot be that much of a threat," Amalfi said uneasily.

"Perhaps not," Zala acknowledged. "But the next stage is obviously mass production; and that, Representative Amalfi, is a threat." He glowered at the room at large. "And the Grimaldi Falcon's defection makes the situation even worse! However," he went on, visibly getting hold of himself, "I believe I know just the man to bring in Commander DiFalco; or, if the need should arise, neutralize him. As it happens, I had already asked him to join us, to present his report on the Heliopolis situation. Shall I send him in?"

Clyne considered, then nodded. "Very well, Committee Chairman Zala."

Zala pressed an intercom button on the table. "Send in Commander Huckebein."

A few moments later, the distinctive mask came into view... and Victor Tempest walked into the Council Chamber.

Earth Orbit, Debris Belt
The Archangel, having entered the extremely hazardous Debris Belt, had finally begun its search for water supplies. Food could wait, but water was running dangerously low.

To this end, the ship launched several Mystral work shuttles, along with the Strike and the Raptor for escort purposes... as well as Falcon's mysterious errand.

"Pretty high-tech setup," Mu commented from the machine's gunner's seat. "A few gadgets I don't think even the Strike has."

"That's because my sister, for all her -many- faults, is a brilliant engineer," Falcon replied. "The Death Blossom system, for example, is obviously her work; though why she bothered, I don't know."

The Hawk nodded. "Yeah; not many pilots out there who can handle it, be they Natural or Coordinator. Still, I think we should be grateful she did it; and that she was in the project, for that matter."

"Oh, I am... but that doesn't mean I'm happy with her." Not exactly news. The entire ship knew by now that Falcon and Sophia were siblings, at least by adoption; and that they weren't speaking. "See anything like what we're looking for yet?"

Mu squinted at his displays. "Not yet. Kira?"

"Me either." Kira glanced at the shuttles. "Sai, Tolle? Find anything?"

"Not yet," Sai answered. "Wait, there's something..." They were coming up on a very large, very peculiar piece of debris, several kilometers in extent...

Tolle gasped. "No way! That's... that's..."

Of them all, only Falcon was unsurprised. "The remains of Junius Seven."

Archangel, Bridge

Murrue stared at the image on the screen in mute shock. "Are you sure?" she heard Mu ask, over the radio.

"Oh, yeah," Falcon answered. "Think I wouldn't recognize the remains of one of the worst atrocities in human history? The remains of the place where I was born? This is it, all right."

Apparently, it was their day for surprises, as the next report showed. "Mobile suit on radar!" Tonomura called out. "We're reading a CGUE atop the PLANT's remains!"

"Activate laser designator!" Natarle snapped, startled out of her own reverie. "Load missile tubes, lock Gottfrieds on-"

"Belay that," Falcon snapped. "Weapons tight, Archangel, and take a closer look."

Puzzled, but deferring to the ace, Natarle complied... and a moment later understood. "Oh. Of course; I should have known."

"We all should have," Murrue murmured, seeing the new image on the screen. It was a CGUE all right... a slate-gray CGUE, with feather markings. "After all, where else would a child of murdered Junius leave his personal machine?"

"I couldn't take it with me to Heliopolis, so I left it here, instead," Falcon explained quietly. "A silent sentinel, watching over my murdered homeland." He glanced over his shoulder. "This is why I brought you along, Mu. I'm going out there." He looked back out of the screen. "I'm bringing it aboard, Murrue. There's no need to leave it here any longer... and it has a few useful odds and ends."

The link was cut, and on the screen, Raptor's hatch opened.

Debris Belt, Ruins of Junius Seven
Mu watched the pilot push himself out of the cockpit, feeling almost as numb as the volunteers. The remains of Junius Seven... I had no idea they'd wound up here... or that Falcon was from here.

"Be careful out there, eh, Brother?" he called.

The seemingly-emotionless pilot looked back, cocked an eyebrow, and said merely, "Aren't I always?"

Falcon now crossed the short gulf to his old mobile suit, peripherally aware as he did so of his classmates and a couple of Archangel's regular crew going out to investigate the colony itself. He didn't need to; the last time he was here, he'd searched through the rubble and bodies himself... and found the one he sought, to his sorrow.

He reached the CGUE's hatch, and quickly typed 2-14-70 into the hatch controls. The date of the Bloody Valentine was the key, and the machine answered its master's call, opening the hatch in the utter silence of the vastness of space.

Falcon glanced around, noting that all was as he had left it. Most prominent was the sword that stood upright in the pilot's seat; with a scabbard and pommel of red, the katana matched the wakizashi he wore at his side. He had left it with the CGUE, months before, because it would have been much harder to conceal; and concealment had been highly desirable for the greatest traitor to ZAFT. Now, though, he had returned to the field of battle, and hiding was no longer an issue.

Tucked into a corner of the instrument panel was a carefully-protected photograph, of a teenage girl with hair as blonde as Falcon's had been, years before. The significance of that picture was known to only two living people... and neither would speak of the tragedy it represented.

Shaking off old, painful memories, Falcon settled into the pilot's seat and began powering up the CGUE's systems. ""This is the Grimaldi Falcon," he said into the now-active radio. "I'm returning to the ship."

Archangel, Bridge

"No way! You can't be serious!"

Kira was staring at Natarle in disbelief; the reason was not hard to fathom. Their explorations of Junius Seven's remains had revealed water, and lots of it... but he felt it was wrong to take it from the murdered colony.

"There's close to a hundred million tons of ice over there," Natarle pointed out. "And we're running very low on water, remember; that's the reason we came here in the first place."

"But that's a graveyard!" Kira protested. "That's where hundreds of thousands of people lost their lives, Natarle! And yet you-"

"It was two hundred forty-three thousand, seven hundred and twenty-one, to be exact," Falcon said quietly. "And I might have been one of them, had I not joined ZAFT. Yet what better purpose to put Junius' remains to than to aid the living, that they not perish, as well?"

"Aid the living? Even those who serve the organization that destroyed them all?" Mu asked. He was, of course, all in favor of taking the water from the colony; he was a very practical man. But he was interested in hearing Falcon's reasoning.

"We may yet put an end to this war, Mu," the one-eyed pilot told him. "This ship may, itself, insure that there is never another Bloody Valentine... and as that is my mission, and I am a son of Junius Seven, I think I have the right to make such a judgment."

The Hawk nodded to himself. Whatever he may choose to show the outside world, the guy does have feelings... And I think Junius Seven's destruction had another significance for him...

Even if he'd been inclined to press Falcon on the matter, the pilot didn't give him the chance. "I'll want Mr. Murdoch to look over my CGUE later," he said to Murrue. "I want to make sure it's still in proper shape, in case I should need it; and also, I'd like him to see if there's any way to modify its weapons for use on the Raptor. The sword, of course, isn't a problem; and it'll save power, using that rather than a beam saber on any mass-produced models. You'll also find that it's equipped with a particle cannon, somewhat more powerful than a standard beam rifle."

She nodded. "Right. But for now..."

"Yes. We need supplies." Falcon turned to Kira. "I know you don't like it, kid, but it has to be done. Will you assist?"

Kira sighed. "Not much choice, is there?"

"Then let's go."

Debris Belt, Ruins of Junius Seven
Within hours, the Archangel's Mystral shuttles were at work, escorted by the Strike and Raptor (this, Mu stayed behind on the ship, since Falcon was perfectly capable of operating the machine by himself). Using various cutting tools, they began to separate sections of the ice, to be carried back to the ship.

It was slow going, but Falcon didn't really mind. As a martial artist, he was a very patient man, and took the opportunity to use martial arts meditation techniques. It was something he did often... because he tended to get very little sleep.

When he did sleep, he tended to have nightmares, of the destruction of Junius Seven... and the far greater destruction he feared, the one that would be brought about by his own former comrades, should his mission fail. It was not yet possible, but Falcon knew they were working on a way to make it possible.

But for now, his mad plan still had a chance of success, so he put it out of his mind and forced himself to relax, while keeping an ear open for the radio chatter.

"How's it going?" Murrue asked, from the Bridge.

"Okay so far, Ma'am," Chandra replied. "At this rate, we should be finished in another three hours or so; but we've only got enough ammo for one more run."

"Understood; it'll be enough."

Falcon roused himself to take a look at his displays. He'd deployed the Death Blossoms to their maximum extension, and he was using them as remote sensors, to keep an eye on the area at large. At this particular moment, everything still looked green.

He keyed his radio. "Hey, Kira. Everything still okay at your end?" The Strike was patrolling on the opposite side of the colony.

"So far," Kira answered. "By the way, is this the 'ninety-seven percent boredom' part?"

Falcon nodded solemnly. "Sure is. And- Wait, I'm picking up something nearby... looks like a wrecked shuttle. Can you see it?"

Kira squinted at his displays. "Yeah, I see it. Looks like something hit it hard just recently, maybe yesterday; it says Silverwind on the hull."

The one-eyed pilot stiffened. "Did you say Silverwind?"

"Yeah, why?"

"Never mind; it's noth-" Falcon broke off mid-word, as his wired gunbarrels picked up a heat signature. "Watch it, Kira, there's something else out here."

Unlike the ace, Kira could see the source of the signature directly; and his onboard computer identified it. "A two-seater GINN? Reconnaissance type... but what's it doing way out here?" It appeared to be examining the wreckage of the Silverwind, which made no sense to Kira.

It made perfect sense to Falcon, though. "It's looking for something. Kira, if that spots us, the Archangel, or the shuttles, we can't let it leave..."

"I know." Kira stared at the recon GINN, willing it to move away before it saw anything that would require him to destroy it. "Come on, go away, please..."

As if in answer to the Strike pilot's pleas, the GINN turned and began moving away... and then a Mystral rose into view, carrying a chunk of ice directly into the GINN's field of view.

Falcon whispered a curse, and Kira stared in horror. The Strike raised its beam rifle, still unseen by the ZAFT machine, and his finger began to tighten on the trigger. "No... I... I have to..."

Kuzzey and Chandra, in the shuttle, cried out as the GINN opened fire, missing with the first shot and then striking the fragile Mystral with the second.

That was the catalyst needed to prod two pilots into action. The Strike's beam rifle opened fire, and at the same instant, all four Death Blossoms bracketed the ZAFT unit and poured energy into the relatively-unarmored recon model.

The concentrated fire from five separate sources engulfed the GINN, leaving nothing but a cloud of gas and energy behind.

Author's note: Some of Falcon's secrets have been revealed, while others remain a mystery. Soon, a certain escape pod will be found in the rubble, and more events will begin to come together…

Well, I seem to have achieved the desired effect with the revelation of the Mu/Falcon connection; kinda makes up for the relative lack of surprise when it comes to, say Kevin Walker's seizure of the Dominion.

ZGMF X-19A Infinite Justice, I will certainly try to update at least that frequently; there's something I'm trying to get to before I must begin Brothers in Arms: A Call to Arms, so I'm writing this as fast as I can while still retaining quality (and sanity).

Daniel Lynx, I think you'll find Falcon's actions with regard to Lacus interesting… as well as a certain connection between them (second hand, of course; I can hardly reuse the notion of an OC being related to her, after using it in Brothers in Arms).

Centurious, sorry for not revealing the exact nature of Falcon's relation to Mu in this chapter. Or not; after all, I could hardly be out of character and reveal things so soon, now could I?

I'll look forward to your story, of course, whenever it is finally posted.

As to your one-shot notion… let's just say I'm working on something like that.

Infinite Freedom, I must confess to initially being very startled by your perceptive comment about the DRAGOON system, until it occurred to me that Raptor's Death Blossom system was probably a dead giveaway. More than that, I shall not reveal.

Now, as to what Gundams will appear in A Call to Arms… well, that might be spoiling things. See, I've got some very intricate plans already in the works, and these will play a critical role. So just wait and see, eh?

Finally, though I'm pretty sure I said this at least twice in the course of Brothers in Arms, my reason for waiting on writing A Call to Arms is thus: I have to wait for Destiny to reach the US before I can even figure out exactly what I'll be talking about. And yes, I've heard there are ways to find it on the Net, but like I've said before, I prefer to wait for it to be properly localized and brought to America. Rest assured, though, that I'll get started as soon as I've seen a few episodes; I shouldn't need much, because episode summaries have at least given me enough of an idea of later events to make basic plans.

Arekuruu-inabikari-no-She, I'm afraid you'll have to wait a little longer to get all the answers, but this at least explains how Falcon could have come into being several years after Mu's parents were already dead.

Ominae, I see I startled you. Good; that's the effect I was trying to get with several twists in Brothers in Arms, but never quite managed. But believe me, there'll be a few more surprises down the line…

NukeDawg, I thought you might have guessed it; I wasn't exactly subtle, after all. Hope you liked this chapter.

RVD, after reading Chapter 4 you should have an idea of the reason for the hair color change now (only an idea, of course; the full truth has yet to be revealed). In case you're still a little confused, though, what I meant to suggest -though I may not have been as clear as I intended- was that Falcon changed his hair color some time after Murrue last saw him, but before his sister effectively severed all contact. That's why Murrue would be surprised, and Sophia wouldn't.

I suppose that's everything. Let me know if it was good, bad, or ugly. Solid Shark