I don't own anything except Ken DiFalco, his team, and Sophia DiFalco
Arkbird, Hangar, June 20th, C.E. 71
Murrue Ramius had originally suggested that the captains of the three new arrivals come to the Archangel, but Ken had diffidently pointed out the Arkbird had a dedicated war room... and, given that their small organization was now functioning as much as a high command as a task force, she had to agree the idea had merit.
So the Archangel's launch had delivered them to the smaller ship's hangar, which already contained shuttles from Kusanagi, Eternal, and Asmodeus. From the former Earth Forces ship came Murrue, Ken, Kira, Cagalli, Mu, Sophia, and their other ZAFT pilots, Leanne, Athrun, Dearka, and Yzak. Also accompanying them was Alicia Cateau, their resident expert on Earth Forces' secret projects.
Before Ken could even get a word out to his subordinates, Yzak, Dearka, and Athrun caught sight of a familiar face. "Nicol!" Yzak called. "So you really are alive!"
Nicol Amalfi, a jagged scar on his left cheek, grinned. "That's right, guys. What, don't tell me you didn't believe Commander DiFalco?"
"Being told you're alive is one thing, Nicol," Dearka informed him. "Besides, Falcon's been known to... stretch the truth, from time to time. Even when I do believe him, I can't help feeling kind of like he isn't telling the whole truth, you know?"
"Probably because he usually isn't," Athrun muttered. "It's good to see you, Nicol... but, ah, where's Lacus?"
The question answered itself almost immediately. "Athrun!" the "pink princess" called. She was at the entrance to the hangar when she started the word, but by the time she'd finished, she'd catapulted herself across the deck, and slammed into the pilot. "It's so good to see you, Athrun!"
"Well," Murrue said with a chuckle, "I guess one introduction is pretty superfluous, hm?" She looked back toward the hatch, where are a large man in ZAFT white was arriving. "So you'd be Captain Cooper, I take it? Ken's said a lot about you."
Sparky smiled, and held out a hand. "I'm sure he has; I can tell that just by how you refer to him. I don't think I've ever heard anyone call him that before." He jerked his head toward the gray-haired youth in red, who entered just behind him. "This is Captain Tom Delaney, former Gray Demon, and Captain of the Asmodeus. As the Boss has probably told you by now, he did the heavy lifting with the constructing both these ships and the Preybird."
"He has," Mu confirmed. "So, ah... who's the captain of that other ship? The Eternal, I think you called it? I haven't seen..."
"That would be me, Commander La Flaga," a new voice responded... and every eye from Archangel and Kusanagi turned to stare in shock.
"Andrew Waltfeld?" Kira said, in a strangled whisper.
"And I'm Aisha," the black-haired woman behind the one-armed, one-eyed man introduced; she had a scar of her own, across the bridge of her nose, but it was much fainter. "Good to see you again, Mr. Yamato."
"But..." Ken cleared his throat, bestowing a brief glare on his subordinates. "But you, ah, died, if you'll pardon a statement of the obvious."
"Very nearly," the woman agreed. "But I guess Andy here is just too stubborn to die, and I couldn't let him go on without me, now could I?"
"Remember this, kid," Waltfeld told Kira. "Drink the right blend of coffee, and you can survive anything. You might lose an arm and a leg, but at least you'll be alive."
Murrue shook her head. "It appears," she said, feeling slightly bewildered, "that we have much to discuss. Ken, I believe you said this ship has a dedicated war room?"
The ace nodded. "Right; follow me."
Arkbird, War Room
"It's hard to believe," Tom mused a few minutes later, "that we're all together now. After all the time it took to get here... it's like a dream."
"You had an advantage over us, believe me, Captain Delaney," Murrue assured him. "At least you people knew from the start what Ken was up to. We didn't have the slightest idea until after Alaska. He wouldn't tell anyone... and he almost didn't tell us about GENESIS even after we joined his crazy scheme."
"Don't feel bad, Captain Ramius," Waltfeld told her. "I didn't know about it right away, either."
"No one did," Siegel Clyne put in; he'd been waiting for them when they arrived in the large compartment, along with Yuri Amalfi. "I gather that, until after Spit Break, only the Gray Demons themselves knew. A security precaution, I suppose."
"That's exactly what it was," Ken agreed. "Partly, anyway; I must confess that I don't like talking about my blunders... particularly when they have the potential to wipe out the entire human race."
"We've noticed," Cagalli said with a chuckle; and then she frowned. "Say... aren't we missing some people?"
"Yzak, Dearka, and Athrun went off to catch up with Nicol... and, in Athrun's case, Miss Lacus," Amalfi assured her. "They probably have a lot to talk about. As for Commanders La Flaga and DiFalco -er, I guess that would be Mu and Sophia now; True ZAFT doesn't use ranks- they went to the Asmodeus, to pick up the Hyperion."
"Though, of course," Tom said with a smile, "nobody's told them what it is yet."
"They don't care," Sparky rumbled. "They will, when they see it; but for now I think they just want to be as far away from the planning as possible. Something about letting us do the heavy thinking, I think."
Ken shrugged. "Fine; I can discuss it with them later, make sure I didn't miss anything, but for now, why don't we get started."
"Why don't we," Murrue agreed. "You know, you've been awfully vague about how exactly you intend to pull off this mission, even after you finally explained what it was in the first place. Care to enlighten us, now that all the pieces have arrived?"
"I didn't go into detail because even I was unsure of the details until now; there were too many variables in the strategic equation." The ace moved to the aft bulkhead, and tapped out commands on a control panel. Instantly, a circle in the center of the largely unadorned compartment lit up, projecting a holographic map of Earth nearspace. "All right. The first problem, as you might expect, is where to take ourselves. We obviously can't stay at Ame-no-Mihashira -I don't trust Sahaku not to try anything; though if he were removed from the equation, I have some hope for his sister- so we've mapped out two alternate sites. Sparky?"
The big captain nodded, and reached into the hologram. "First," he rumbled, "is Lagrange point Four; specifically, this colony group." Motion sensors registered his movement, and the image zoomed in on a colony cluster. "What we have here are several colonies ZAFT surveyed recently; what we -and that includes our own, private efforts- discovered was that quite a few of the L4 colonies still have functioning life-support systems. Plenty of air for us, and even some remaining rotation, giving us artificial gravity. Also, given the haste with which they were abandoned during the Yggdrasil battles last year, many of their resources remain intact; sufficient water to last us months, and even preserved food. Can't say the diet would be very interesting, but at least we wouldn't starve."
"Actually," Cagalli offered, "Leanne's a pretty good cook; if you can believe her, she can make an edible meal even out of emergency rations."
Sparky raised an eyebrow. "I knew she could cook, but she must use black magic to make e-rats palatable. Brr."
Murrue frowned thoughtfully. "So, you're saying that we could scavenge the L4 colonies effectively for the duration of the war, and use them as shelter? I guess it makes sense; there are enough of them, and they're large enough, that it would take the combined efforts of the Alliance and ZAFT to effectively search them. We could remain hidden for months, if we had to."
"Right," Ken agreed. "And our Alpha Site is right here: the Mendel colony."
"But Mendel was abandoned due to a biohazard threat," Kisaka protested. "I would think going there would be too dangerous."
The ace shook his head. "No; the X-ray bombardment that was used to sterilize it was successful. I suspect the only reason it was never repopulated was the growing threat of war between Earth and the colonies. Assuming, that is, that Leanne's survey was correct."
Sparky and Tom exchanged indecipherable glances, before the bigger man nodded reluctantly. "It was," he confirmed. "But there's one additional complication: according to more recent data, the Serpent Tail mercenary organization is holed up there right now, which could make things... difficult."
"Hmm..." Ken rubbed his eyepatch. "Perhaps so; but I think I can handle that, when the situation arises. I've never met Gai Murakumo, but I suspect we would understand each other. He may be a mercenary, but he understands people like me." He shrugged. "In any case, we can cross that bridge when we come to it. Meanwhile... Bring up the Beta Site."
Sparky nodded, and the image zoomed out again. This time, it settled on a location on the Moon itself... on the dark side, in fact, within a canyon perhaps a hundred kilometers from the former ZAFT base in Lorentz Crater.
Murrue frowned. "I don't recognize that location; and wouldn't that be too close to Alliance territory? They've had complete control of the Moon ever since..."
"Ever since the Battle of Endymion," Ken confirmed. "But they don't pay much attention to the dark side anymore... and even if they ever knew the location to begin with, they'd have every reason to believe this place is unusable."
Kira inhaled sharply, realizing just which canyon that was. "Hey, isn't that...?"
"The location of the Gray Demons' Eyrie," Ken said quietly. "Where we were stationed until the Battle of Endymion."
"But that base was destroyed," Cagalli protested. "You told me you set the self-destruct charges yourself, didn't you?"
"I did," he agreed. "But the purpose wasn't to completely eradicate all traces of the base. All we needed to do was destroy the equipment we couldn't move out, and any records we might've missed. The base's internal structure is still sound, and it would be a relatively simple matter to repair and re-pressurize it."
"That still leaves the problem of the ships," Murrue pointed out. "They're a little harder to hide... especially since there's five of them."
"If need be, we could split our forces," Ken answered, "and deploy both to the Alpha and Beta locations. That would actually have one advantage: fewer nuclear reactors concentrated in one place; the thermo-patterns from those have concerned me from the start. In fact, if it weren't for the enormous endurance and firepower advantage it gives us, I probably wouldn't have used them in anything besides the three ZGMF-X units. As it is..." He shrugged. "In any case, it shouldn't come to that in this case. The Eyrie had an attached harbor, which should still be largely intact; if memory serves, there's sufficient room for two, possibly three of the ships. Also, the canyon itself would probably suffice to hide the others. As I said, the Earth Forces don't pay much attention to the dark side of the Moon these days."
She nodded thoughtfully. "So at least we have somewhere to go; that just leaves our objective. Your Shiva Option is aimed at ending the war, right?"
"Indirectly, yes," he agreed. "But really, ending the war is a side effect; something that will almost certainly happen in the course of completely the primary objective. Sparky," he said, "call up the updated specs for GENESIS. I haven't yet had time to examine them myself."
"Got it, Boss." Sparky tapped in commands, and the now-familiar dish shape appeared, replacing the space map. "Here it is."
Ken nodded. "All right," he mused, examining both the image and the structural details outlined in glowing letters alongside it. "Gamma Emission by Nuclear Explosion Stimulus Induction System; the weapon originally intended as a Fleet Action Countermeasure, and now being constructed as doomsday machine..."
"Ominous looking thing," Cagalli remarked. "For a giant mirror, it looks... evil, somehow. No offense," she added hastily, remembering just who had designed the thing in the first place.
"None taken," he assured her. "I realized long ago what I'd done; all I can do now is try to rectify my mistake. Hm... Oh, that's not good." He sighed, fist clenching unconsciously, as he noted an aspect of the design he wasn't responsible for. "Not that I'm surprised."
Waltfeld tilted his head. "What is it, Commander?"
"They've added phase-shift armor," Ken answered. "I can't say I'm surprised, but... this is even worse than I expected."
"How so?" Aisha asked. "Not even PSA's invincible. You could pierce it even with the positron cannon on Preybird, if you had to."
He shook his head. "It's not that simple, Aisha. They've added multiple layers of phase-shift; I could penetrate the first with ease, but it would require combined bombardment from at least two of the ships to get all the way through, and there's no way we'd be left alone long enough to pour on that kind of sustained firepower." He sighed. "As I thought, Preybird is the only option."
Murrue frowned. "What about the weak spot you engineered into it? Couldn't we target that location, without involving Preybird at all?" An unnerving thought struck her. "Or... are you saying they found the weakness, and removed it?"
"No," Ken assured her. "It's possible they found it -though unlikely; I made sure to disguise it behind what looks like proper structural materials- but even if they did, they wouldn't be able to get rid of it unless they wanted to start completely from scratch. That part of construction was already complete before I even left the PLANTs."
"But why does it have to be Preybird?" Kira questioned. "If we could just get one of the ships into range..."
"No," the ace said again. "Take a look: this is the path that would have to be taken to reach the target area." He reached into the hologram, tracing a route into GENESIS itself. "You need to blow through this hatch here, and follow this maintenance shaft deep into the weapon's interior, until you reach this point here. Not even the Kusanagi is small enough to enter that shaft; only a mobile suit can." He met his protégé's eyes grimly. "And, since I could only weaken it so much without it being noticed, only Preybird has sufficient firepower to destroy the target area."
An icy tingle crept down Murrue's spine. "And just what, exactly, lies beyond that wall?"
Ken glanced at her. "The storage for the nuclear cartridges used to create the gamma radiation stream. Hit those just right -at this location, in other words- and the energy release from the Nataraja will set off the chemical explosives within the cartridges, and so trigger the nuclear fission reaction. And, if any of them are fusion -unlikely; the stresses would test even GENESIS' design tolerances, but still possible- that will trigger the fusion reaction."
Cagalli shivered. "I can't imagine what that would be like..."
"It would make even the nuclear attack on Orb look like a firecracker," he said solemnly. "The energy release would be on a level not seen since the Reconstruction War, seventy years ago."
The silence following that statement was truly profound.
It was, in the end, Murrue who first found her voice. "That... sounds very dangerous," she said softly. "Ken... you're not thinking of some kind of suicide mission, are you?"
Ken shook his head. "Not if I can help it, Murrue. I have no more of a death wish than you do; I'm just explaining what's going to happen when I set off the satellite cannon in there. Like it or not, there is going to be a tremendous energy release, all in one place... and you're right, it will be very dangerous."
"What will happen to Preybird, if that happens?" Cagalli asked. "Will it... will it just...?"
"I don't know," he admitted. "I don't think anyone has ever tried what I'm proposing, so no empirical data exists; all we have are a number of theories. Preybird's defenses and speed may be enough, thy may not be. The only way to know for sure is to try it." His serious gaze swept the compartment, finally settling on Murrue's eyes. "I don't like it... but this has to be done. None of our theoretical models have been able to come up with any other workable course of action."
There was another, shorter silence; this war broken by Aisha, who pointed out, "This all depends on our ability to get there in the first place. How about you explain just what we're supposed to be doing in the meantime; I'm still not too clear on that point."
"Well, that partly depends on the Intelligence updates you guys brought with you. Sparky, show me the- Sparky?" Ken frowned. "What is it?"
Sparky had abruptly stiffened, and cupped an earpiece with his hand. "Bad news, Boss," he said at last. "According to an update we just received from one of our power/recon sats, the Earth Forces launched an attack on Victoria Spaceport yesterday... and succeeded in recapturing the mass driver intact."
Ken stifled an incredulous curse. "I'm not surprised they launched the attack... but how on earth did they manage to pull it off so fast? Even ZAFT should've been able to hold them off longer than that; Victoria is -well, was- one of their greatest strategic assets."
"Apparently, they launched a diversion two hours before the true attack." The bigger man grimaced. "A rather large diversion... and we're lucky the N-jammers practically kill radiation fallout."
Murrue closed her eyes. "They dropped another nuclear weapon."
"Exactly. They nuked an uninhabited area to the south, then attacked from the north while ZAFT was still responding to the diversion. It appears they also had an infiltration team, who successfully shut down most of the spaceport's fixed defenses, leaving them wide open."
Waltfeld shook his head. "You know, those people seem awfully willing to use nuclear weapons on their own planet; it's incredible that they can still talk about their 'blue and pure world' with a straight face, after all this. How can they keep this up?"
"They can't," Ken murmured, an arrested expression on his face. "They can justify it against Orb, perhaps, and against Victoria -since it was a critical target, essential to continuing the war in space- but as a standard tactic? No; even Azrael has to listen to public opinion, and continued use of nuclear weapons against terrestrial targets will hurt him very badly on the home front."
Cagalli blinked, then slowly nodded. "Yeah... I guess you're right." She sighed in relief. "So they can't just roll over Gibraltar and Carpentaria, then we should have at least a little more time."
"Yes..." the ace said slowly. "But we can't waste any time. We need to send an exploratory mission to Mendel, so that we can begin operations as soon as possible."
"What kind of operations?" Murrue asked. "And who do we send to Mendel?"
"To answer your first question: we begin ambushing isolated ZAFT and Earth Alliance forces, taking down small groups and then vanishing back into hiding. And as for who goes to Mendel? I'd have thought that would be obvious." Ken idly stroked Griever's hilt. "That'll be me."
Asmodeus, Hangar
"Quite the ship our little brother had built, huh?" Sophia murmured to Mu, as they climbed out of the shuttle in the Archangel-class ship's hangar. "Just like the Archangel... except nastier."
"Well, you know Falcon," Mu replied, "he doesn't believe in overkill." Actually, that was probably an understatement; the young pilot was so determined to avoid failing his self-appointed mission that he tended to arm his units with every piece of deadly hardware he could think of... and, being a weaponry engineer by training, he could think of quite a few. "So," he went on after a moment, "what exactly are we here to pick up? Falcon was awfully vague about it; and I get nervous when he gets vague."
"Ah, you're just sore over finding out he was trying to take on the entire world," Sophia teased, "and dragged us all along with him. Anyway," she went on, in a more serious tone, "apparently, the Gray Demons managed to construct that big zweihander for the Buster, so we're supposed to bring that back with us to the Archangel. Also, he tells me there's a custom-built mobile suit here for me; something he stole from the Eurasians, when he got the data to construct Preybird's light-wave barrier. And..." She frowned, thinking. "He said something about new Striker packs for your machine. He wasn't very specific, but he said he thought at least one of them would come in handy."
"A design he stole from the Earth Forces," Shiho Hahnenfuss told them, walking over; she'd transferred over earlier, to prepare the gear for transport. "One of them is called the Lightning Striker; uses an electromagnetic pulse cannon to knock out enemy electronics... usually fatally. Some kind of selective, targeted variant of ZAFT's Gungnirs. The other," she went on, nodding at a familiar shape in one corner of the hangar, "is that."
Mu whistled in surprise. "That looks like a Moebius Zero; what's one of those doing here?"
She smiled. "It's not a Zero, Commander; though apparently the Earth Forces did use your old mobile armor as a basis for it. No, what it is, is a new Striker pack; called the Gunbarrel pack. The original version, as designed by the Alliance, used rapid-fire railguns, but when the Boss sent us the design, we tweaked it, replacing them with energy weapons."
The Hawk smiled slowly. "Sounds like the old Raptor's Death Blossom system... I could get to like that..."
"We thought so," Shiho agreed.
Sophia glanced around, noting six GuAIZ units against one bulkhead, along with what looked suspiciously like Rondo Sahaku's Astray Gold Frame AMATU. "So... where's the machine I'm supposed to be picking up? It's hard to see anything in this crowded place."
"Right over there." Housenka pointed; and the Kestrel felt her eyebrows go up in surprise.
"Just what is that?" she asked. "It... it looks like a G-weapon of some kind, but... I don't recognize the design." She frowned. "It does look Eurasian, though."
"That would be the CAT1-X4/4 Hyperion," the other pilot answered. "I think your captain has already been briefed on it; but, since the Boss has obviously decided you needed a surprise, let me outline it for you." She took a breath; and Mu was instantly reminded of Ken, going into lecture mode. "A Eurasian attempt at a next-generation mobile suit, it was apparently begun because Eurasia doesn't like having to rely on the Atlantic Federation; and they did a pretty good job with it. This model is, per the Boss's instructions, equipped with a Neutron-jammer canceler, nuclear reactor, and PSA, and, of course, the standard weapons for the type: a single beam submachine gun, delivering heavy firepower with a high rate of fire; six close-in beam knives; two shoulder-mounted beam cannons; two back-mounted beam cannons, installed as part of the light-wave shield; and, of course, the light-wave barriers themselves. There are two arm-mounted units, virtually identical to Preybird's single unit, and a back-mounted system that provides full, three-hundred-sixty-degree coverage, protecting the machine from all angles. On one of the original Hyperion units, the system could only be used for very brief periods, because the energy drain would leave the machine helpless very quickly; this, while being nuclear powered, also has a time limit, but not because of energy drain per se."
Sophia, ever the engineer, nodded in understanding. "Use that much power for too long, and you've got a core meltdown."
"Exactly," Shiho agreed. "And nuclear meltdowns tend not to be very healthy for the pilot." She smiled. "So what do you say, Kestrel? Want to take it for a spin?"
Arkbird, Observation Deck
When Falcon builds a ship, Dearka mused, he does it with style; only he would remember even soldiers like to have a place to look out at the stars. He snorted to himself. Of course, he designed this thing before Endymion and GENESIS drove him over the edge into obsession...
"So just how did you get involved with the Commander's misfits, anyway, Nicol?" Yzak asked of the younger pilot. "I mean, I know your cousin's involved, but I wouldn't think that alone would be enough to get you to desert; let alone your father."
Nicol shrugged. "Well, for one thing, they did save my life, Yzak. After Kira took down the Blitz, I was hurt pretty bad; it was only because Hades was there that I survived at all. Then they got me up to the PLANTs, where I started to recover... and they told me about GENESIS." He gazed moodily through the bulkhead-to-bulkhead viewport. "I knew they had to be telling the truth; even if I didn't know Leanne as well as I do, the plans they showed me were too detailed to be fabrications. My father thought the same thing, when they approached him... and that's how we got wrapped up in the Commander's conspiracy."
"Both Nicol and his father have been of great help to us," Lacus added. "Nicol defended us valiantly during our escape from the PLANTs; and his father's influence -since he wasn't under suspicion until we left- was instrumental in getting us the resources we needed to finish the ships. Even with Commander DiFalco's network of sleepers within ZAFT, we were beginning to have supply problems."
"That doesn't surprise me," Athrun remarked. "This must have been a mammoth undertaking; a lesser group couldn't have pulled it off at all."
"Commander DiFalco's brain, and our hard work," Nicol agreed. "He did the thinking, we did the lifting. Equitable trade, if you ask me."
"And you've been right in the thick of it." Yzak shook his head. "I gotta admit it, Nicol; going right back into battle after being nearly killed by the Strike pilot, and then actually forgiving him for it... I guess I was wrong," he admitted at last. "You're a lot of things, Nicol, but a coward isn't one of them."
"Seriously," Dearka agreed, shaking his head. "Man; when all this started, on Heliopolis, we were all part of the same team; then, one by one, we got split up. First Nicol, outside Orb, then me, in the Marshall Islands... and Athrun, with the transfer to the Special Forces. And now, here we all are again, back on the same side... and under the command of ZAFT's first great traitor."
Athrun chuckled. "Just goes to show you how the whole world can be turned upside down, I guess." His amusement faded, though, as he remembered what had brought him to this pass; how his faith in his father had been shaken, and finally shattered by the knowledge of the Neutron-jammer cancellers, and the words of his fiancé, Lacus Clyne, and the cool, calculating ace, Ken DiFalco.
Lacus sensed what he was thinking, and squeezed his shoulder. "I'm sorry, Athrun," she said quietly. "I can't imagine what you must be going through, with your own father leading the group you have no choice but to fight..."
He took a deep breath. "He's... not really my father anymore," he said, with difficulty. "He hasn't been... since the Bloody Valentine." The blue-haired pilot clenched a fist. "Commander DiFalco lost just as much as my father did, but he didn't lose it; why...?"
Dearka shot him a glance. "Look, Athrun, if you keep thinking like that, you'll tear yourself apart. Take it from me: trying to understand 'why' a pain from the past happened will never get you anywhere. You'll be in an endless cycle; you have to let it go, and deal with the effects, not the causes."
Athrun looked at him sharply. "You're speaking from experience."
The Buster's pilot nodded. "That's right. My sister died in the Bloody Valentine."
Yzak's eyes widened, and Nicol gasped. "You never said you had a sister, Dearka!" the younger pilot said in surprise. "Why didn't you tell us?"
Dearka shrugged uncomfortably. "Because that's a pain... that we agreed should remain between the two of us. It's... not something either of us likes to talk about."
Lacus looked at him shrewdly. "'Us'... The other person wouldn't happen to be Commander DiFalco, would it? What was your sister to him?"
"That's not for me to say," he answered quietly. "If you want to know any more, you'll have to get it from him; it's not my place."
There was an uncomfortable silence after that, until Nicol cleared his throat. "Hey, come on, guys; now's now the time to be talking about things like that. We're alive, aren't we, despite all the odds against us? Let's forget about past battlefields for awhile, and just relax."
Athrun smiled slowly. "Yeah, Nicol. Yeah, you're right. We're finally all back together again; and, for once, not even arguing. Let's treasure the peace we have... since you know it won't be long before the Commander drags us into another crazy scheme."
Archangel, Hangar, June 22nd, C.E. 71
Within less than twenty-four hours of the Arkbird, Asmodeus, and Eternal arriving at Ame-no-Mihashira, the five vessels of the True ZAFT faction had gotten underway again, and were now moving toward Lagrange point Four at a cautious pace. The Orb station had been deemed a... less than ideal place to spend time, under the circumstances, so Ken, after consulting with Murrue and the other captains, had chosen to set course for Mendel, before sending out his solo mission.
To Murrue's surprise, Ken had chosen to remain with the Archangel, despite the Arkbird's superior command/control facilities (as befitted a vessel that had been specifically intended as a flagship). When she'd questioned his logic, he'd simply said that, while his original intention had been to fly his flag from the Arkbird, he'd spent so long with the Archangel that he had a battle-tested, well-honed command team already in place there. To hear him tell it, to change the arrangements now -despite Sparky being his XO for so long- would greatly reduce efficiency, and, consequently, survivability.
Now the ace floated into the hangar, checking his flightsuit, helmet tucked under one arm as he prepared for launch. After two days of frantic work, Preybird's repairs were still incomplete, so Mu had offered him the use of the Strike for this mission; fortunately, the differences between Kira's former machine and his own, destroyed Raptor were mostly superficial, so he would have little trouble navigating to his destination.
Though I'm going to miss Preybird's cockpit, he thought to himself. The GAT-series seats just aren't very comfortable on long flights...
He was brought up short by a call from behind him. "Commander!"
Ken turned, surprised to see Athrun Zala approaching. "What is it, Athrun? And I thought I told you guys not to call me that."
"There's just one thing I need to ask you," Athrun said quietly, his gaze as somber as his voice. "You've said all along that my father is behind this; that he's the reason you left ZAFT, and chose to fight for the PLANTs on your own. And," he admitted, "I believe you. But..." He took a deep breath. "Are you going to kill my father?"
The ace paused, his mono-eyed gaze meeting Athrun's. "If it comes down to it," he said evenly, "probably." He laid a hand on the younger pilot's shoulder. "Understand me, Athrun. I don't want to; your father was a good friend of mine once, and I honestly don't believe the Bloody Valentine sent him instantly over the edge. But grief for your mother weighed on him, and finally pushed him into madness. I know; I was in a position to watch it happen to him. So..." He sighed. "Athrun, I don't think your father is the man who raised your anymore... and if he persists on this course, I will do what I must. I don't intend to cause any more of an upheaval in the PLANTs than I have to -even in a best-case scenario, the Earth Forces likely will have the combat power remaining to defeat our homeland, if it's in chaos- but you have to know that in the event of a battle such as what we're trying to force, Patrick will almost certainly be directing the defense from Jachin Due itself... and Jachin is one of our prime targets."
"I know," Athrun murmured, looking down at the deck. "And I wish you were wrong... but you're not. My father hasn't been the same since my mom died, and he's been getting worse all the time..."
"I'm sorry," Ken said simply; it wasn't adequate, and he knew it, but those were the only words he had. His study was of human psychology in battle, not in times of grief. With his parents gone -and never very close to him- the only personal experience he had with such feelings had been at the Bloody Valentine...
"It's not your fault, Commander... I mean, Falcon." Athrun took another deep breath. "But... if it can be arranged without disrupting the plan, I'd like to talk with him, one more time."
The ace nodded. "I think we can manage that," he answered. "It might only be from a mobile suit's radio, but it can be done."
"Thank you." With that, Justice's pilot withdrew, and Ken continued on to the Strike.
Gaah, the ace thought to himself. What a crazy world. Join ZAFT at fifteen, and by the time I'm eighteen I'm leading a force of five ships and thirty-six mobile suits against the entire world... and dealing with the inevitable problems of one of our top pilots being the son of the man I'm trying to stop before he can destroy the entire world...
Shaking his head, Ken drew himself into Strike's cockpit, and begin the preflight checklist. Regrettably, the machine wasn't set up for the power connection to his flightsuit that he had installed in his own mobile suits, but he wasn't expecting to get into any combat; and if he did, he still had a number of portable power packs with him.
And, in the unlikely event he ran into trouble after he landed, Griever was perfectly capable of cutting through anything in his way, be it doors... or people.
He was just about to seal the cockpit hatch when he heard someone tapping on it. Hm? Curious, he unstrapped, and pulled himself back to the hatch.
"Wasn't sure I'd make it in time," Murrue told the ace, when he appeared.
Ken raised an eyebrow. "In time for what? Just what are you doing down here, anyway? Shouldn't you be on the Bridge?"
She smiled. "Doing what?" she riposted. "As Natarle was quick to remind me, this is one of those situations where it's more the exec's job to run the ship than me; all there is right now is administrative details. There won't be much for me to do until you get back and tell us whether or not we can use Mendel. Anyway, I came to see you off, seeing as you'll be gone a couple days, at least."
He smiled slightly (even now, he wasn't given to effusive expressions). "Thanks; though if this a case of better to say goodbye now, because I maybe dead soon, I think you're worrying overmuch. Like I said, I've never met Gai Murakumo, but I think we'll understand each other. Besides, we have a friend in common."
Murrue tilted her head. "Who? Oh, you mean the Junk Guilders?"
"Right; Lowe Guele in particular. If nothing else, Murakumo should at least know my name." Ken chuckled quietly. "Actually, we have met once before; just not face to face. The Earth Forces hired Serpent Tail last year, during the Nova battles. I fought his custom GINN there -along with Mikhail Coast, a pilot I despise- and was successful in driving him off."
"Better hope he doesn't hold a grudge," she remarked.
He shrugged. "He's a mercenary; things like that come with the territory. Win some, lose some. At least he got his pay; that's all that will matter to him."
Murrue raised and eyebrow. "You sound almost like you admire him."
"Maybe I do, a little; I don't know about fighting for both sides, the way he's done, but he actually has considerably more freedom than I do." The ace's voice had turned almost... wistful. "His loyalty is only to his own people; no ideology holds him to his course. I, on the other hand, am trapped in this path, committed to one goal and unable to stray from it..." He shook himself. "But it was my own choice, so I've no business brooding about it."
"I don't think most other people would be that sanguine about the matter, if put in your position."
"I don't think many other people have been put in my position," he retorted. "It's not often a soldier is forced to rebel against his nation in order to save it, you know."
"True," she acknowledged. "Though I'd say you're doing a fine job of it so far."
"I thought that, too... until Orb got nuked for my sins."
Murrue sighed. "You're not still blaming yourself for that, are you? Even Cagalli says it's not your fault, and if anyone has a right to blame you -assuming there was any reason to- it would be her. Let it rest, Ken."
"I can't do that," he said quietly. "Not until everything is over."
"It'll tear you apart," she said firmly. "And if you go and become a martyr, instead of living to see the fruits of your labor, I'll..."
"Relax, Murrue," Ken told her, raising a hand. "I don't intend to get myself killed. If nothing else, ZAFT is going to be experiencing a major upheaval, when all this is over, and I may well be needed to help pick up the pieces; and I can't very well do that if I die. You don't have to worry about me launching a suicide mission if it can possibly be avoided."
"Good." Murrue smiled. "But you'll excuse me if I don't think you should be the one making judgments about whether or not a suicide mission is necessary, right?"
"I don't intend to run this operation alone," he agreed. "I told you that before. I don't run my units as democracies, either, but I'm not prepared to reject the judgment of others out of hand. For one thing, I know I'm fallible; relying just on my skill would get me killed."
"Good," she said again, and gently squeezed his shoulder. "Now, you should probably be going; the sooner you go, the sooner you get back."
"Agreed."
Archangel, Observation Deck
Well, there he goes, Mir thought, watching as the Strike accelerated away from the Archangel. She was off-duty, and had decided to watch Ken's departure from the ship's forward observation deck. Good luck, Ken; you may need it...
Just as Strike vanished into the velvety black distance, a voice intruded into her thoughts. "So he's on his way, huh? Figures he'd go alone."
She looked up quickly. "Dearka? What are you doing here?"
Dearka smiled, coming up next to her. "About the same thing I've been doing ever since I got here, I guess; running into you. Uh, not that I mind or anything," he added hastily.
Mir couldn't help but smile back. "Relax, Dearka. I only tried to kill you once; if I haven't done it by now, I think you can assume I'm not going to." She raised an eyebrow. "But what I meant was, what are you doing on the Archangel? I thought you'd still be on one of the other ships, catching up with your friend."
He shrugged. "Nah; there's only so many times you can exchange accounts of near-death experiences before the topic gets stale. Besides, Nicol's got his own job over there, smoothing the rough edges on those GuAIZ pilots." Buster's pilot shook his head. "Would you believe that, compared to them, Nicol's a veteran? He was fifteen the first time he went into battle, and yet now..."
"He grew up, I guess," she suggested. "That tends to happen, when you've been in close proximity with Ken after awhile. Those who get caught up in his schemes tend to get a lot of experience, really fast."
"Maybe so." Dearka looked at her sidelong. "Speaking of Falcon, there's something I've been wondering about ever since I got onboard. I talked to Sai, and some of the regular crew -even Mu- and a lot of them seemed to think there was something going on between you two, awhile back."
Mir blushed. "It's nothing like that," she informed him quickly. "I mean, yeah, we're close, but it was never anything like that. It's just... back at Heliopolis, he was always so cool, almost cold, but I could tell there was an actual human being in there, deep down, and I was determined to get some kind of reaction out of him. And he seemed... I don't know, almost sad about something; he seemed like a nice guy, too, so I wanted to help him." She smiled sheepishly. "Of course, I had no idea he was trying to stay out of a war that he'd already played a major role in, but..."
"Yeah," he agreed. "Well, none of us really had any idea of what he was up to back then; least of all me. But," he went on with a slight smile, "you're sure it was nothing more than that?"
"You're asking me that, after seeing how he is with the Captain?" She grinned, shaking her head. "Come on, Dearka; you have to know what's really going on there. Or do you think she personally goes down to the hangar to see off every pilot whenever they launch?"
"Guess you've got a point, at that," Dearka admitted with a chuckle. "But before the Captain entered the picture...?"
"No way; it just wasn't like that, Dearka. Besides, with Tolle..." Mir trailed off, her face falling at the memories the mere name brought to mind.
"Sorry," he said quickly. "I... I didn't mean to bring up bad memories..."
"No," she told him quietly, "it's okay, Dearka. You... you didn't kill him; none of this is your fault. Every once in a while, something brings it to mind again, and I..." She looked up, meeting his eyes. "Dearka... how did he die?"
Dearka froze for an instant, surprised by the unexpected question. "I... uh..." He cleared his throat. "I... don't really know," he said slowly. "Right around then, Falcon and I were fighting... and then we knocked each other down, and I got taken aboard the Archangel..." He shrugged helplessly. "I'm sorry, Miriallia. Falcon probably knows... or Kira." He hesitated. "Or you... could ask Athrun."
"Kira won't say a word about it," Mir said quietly, her mood beginning to recover a little. "I think he's ashamed he couldn't save Tolle; and he probably doesn't like to think about the one time he truly lost a fight. As for Ken... He doesn't like to talk about it, either; and prying information out of him is usually more trouble than it's worth. And Athrun..." She slowly shook her head. "I think I've forgiven him, Dearka, but I just can't bring myself to ask him about this."
He nodded. "I understand. And, uh... I might be able to find out for you," he offered. "Falcon might talk to me about it..."
"Thanks," she replied, "but... maybe it's better this way. Not knowing, I mean. If I did know, I... I don't know how I'd feel."
"Ignorance is bliss," Dearka said fervently. "I understand; I've seen how my sister died, in the Bloody Valentine... so maybe you're right. Maybe it is better this way."
Mir nodded; and the two of them hung silently before the viewport, each remembering their own pain... and supported by each other's presence.
Lagrange Point Four, Outside Mendel Colony, June 24th, C.E. 71
Nearing the abandoned colony, Ken flew cautiously, examining his surroundings with care; despite his words to Murrue, he was a touch nervous, and he wasn't flying the machine he preferred. Not only was Strike far less capable than Preybird, but he was also unused to it. It had been months now since his Raptor fell apart around him, and even had it not been so long, Strike's handling characteristics weren't quite the same.
No matter, though; if Gai Murakumo isn't feeling talkative today, I'll still have ample opportunity to escape. Besides, I expect the man will at least be curious.
As he came closer to Mendel, he grew increasingly curious. For some reason, both Sophia and his own Gray Demons had seemed very reluctant to see him head off; almost as though they were afraid he'd find something at Mendel that he shouldn't. But that didn't make any sense... did it? Was there something here that they knew about, and he didn't? But if so, why hide it? Sophia wasn't really a surprise in that regard, but it wasn't like his old teammates to keep things from him like that.
Forget it, he told himself. Concentrate on the mission for now; and break out the thumbscrews when you get back to the fleet.
It didn't take long for Strike's presence to be noticed. A heavily-customized GINN, equipped with additional armor and a peculiar head crest, exited the colony's main harbor, and approached Ken's machine. "This is Elijah Kiel," the GINN's pilot identified himself. "Identify yourself."
"I'm an emissary from the True ZAFT forces," Ken replied, unwilling to use his name at this point. "I wish to speak to Gai Murakumo; my weapons are powered down," he added.
Within the GINN's cockpit, Elijah Kiel lifted an eyebrow. "True ZAFT... the ZAFT splinter faction we've been hearing so much about lately?" His eyes narrowed. "What would your group want here? Mendel's been an abandoned wreck since the Yggdrasil battles last year."
"I know," Ken said dryly. "I was there. Look, Kiel, all I want is to talk; and I can assure you that neither I nor my people have any intention of attacking."
Kiel thought about that for a moment. This guy's got guts, whoever he is... Well, I guess Gai won't mind talking to him. True ZAFT was allied with Orb before the attack, and he's had a soft spot for Orb ever since they fixed the Blue Frame for him.
"All right," he said finally. "I'll guide you in. Follow me close, and don't arm your weapons; you'd probably be vaporized before you could do anything else."
"I'd expect no less from the Serpent Tail," Ken assured him. "Don't worry."
Mendel, Colony Interior
Gai Murakumo watched with interest as his wingman Elijah escorted the Strike pilot to his makeshift office. Whoever he was, he obviously intended to convey a specific impression, because he'd taken the time to pull on a uniform before leaving his machine; a red ZAFT elite uniform, with an open gray trench coat over it, and a red-handled katana in a matching scabbard tied to his belt.
The young pilot also wore a patch over his left eye, with a long scar angling down through it; apparently the remnants of a sword wound, from the look of it.
And, on his collar, there was a pair of gray feathers...
"So," Gai began, without preamble, "you're the pilot who just arrived unannounced? Elijah tells me you want to talk."
"That's right, Mister Murakumo," the pilot acknowledged. "But first, may I say that's good to meet you again, off the battlefield."
The mercenary frowned. "Again? Have we met before?"
The pilot nodded. "Once. On the battlefield. It was during the battle for the East Asian resource satellite Nova; you were flying a deep blue, heavily-customized GINN. I was in a CGUE. You gave me quite a run for my money, I'll give you that."
"A CGUE... a slate-gray CGUE, right?"
"That was me." The stranger grimaced. "Along with a GINN High Maneuver, piloted by a man I despise; I confess I would've preferred it if you'd managed to eliminate Doctor Coast. The man gives me the creeps. Anyway," he went on, "you very nearly wrecked my plans that day; the operation I'd planned against Nova hadn't included Serpent Tail in its parameters."
Gai nodded in sudden understanding. "You're Ken DiFalco; the legendary Grimaldi Falcon. I should've realized that the moment I saw those feathers."
"The mark of those who have flown with the Gray Demons," Ken acknowledged. "And I was the only member of the team ever to wear an eyepatch... or have a scar from where Victor Tempest tried to cut me to pieces."
The mercenary nodded again. "Well, you've succeeded in convincing me you're serious about talking," he remarked. "Though what the leader of True ZAFT would be doing here, I don't know. I'd think you'd be busy planning your next sortie."
Ken shook his head. "No. Before we can begin operations, we need a secure base from which to operate; and while I have a backup site selected, Mendel would be preferable, at least for the time being."
"So why come here alone?"
"Because according to a survey conducted by one of my subordinates, this colony was -and, obviously, is- being occupied by your group." The ace smiled slightly. "I thought it only polite to ask your permission before we moved in; for one thing, despite our numbers, I'm not at all sure we could fend off your group. I recall how dangerous you were in a modified GINN. What you could accomplish with one of the Astray prototypes doesn't bear thinking on."
"I don't know about that," Gai said thoughtfully. "Against most of your units, you're correct; but I've seen the reports of what your own personal machine is capable of, Commander."
"My personal machine isn't designed with the Blue Frame in mind," Ken said dryly. "Against the configurations I have data on, sure; but you've been known to change its weapons loadout considerably, so I wouldn't count on Preybird's superiority. Especially not against a pilot of your caliber. Besides," he added ruefully, "Preybird isn't in any shape to shoot down a sparrow. During the battle of Orb, I had a close encounter with a nuclear-tipped TLAM-Five; Preybird's still being repaired. That's why I came here in the Strike." He shook his head. "No, Murakumo; I respect you -and your abilities- too much to try and take this place by force."
The merc raised an eyebrow. "I find that surprising. I'd expect you to be disgusted with my line of work; you don't seem the type to tolerate mercenaries."
"You have your path, and I have mine," the ace said quietly. "I may question the wisdom of taking assignments from both sides, considering how the Earth Forces used you -yes, I know all about the Combat Coordinator project; one of my Intel advisors used to be an Earth Forces agent- but if you've chosen to be a mercenary, I have no problem with that. Unlike me, you have no reason to be bound to either side; you have no close ties to the Alliance or ZAFT. Where I am fighting for my homeland, you fight for money, as a way of making a living. You're loyal not to any government or organization, but to your own people. I respect that."
Gai nodded to himself. "So it's true what they say: you are perceptive. I guess it comes with the territory, when the lives of your people ride on your ability to out-think the enemy." He smiled. "If you weren't so committed to your cause, Commander, you'd make a fine mercenary."
"I'll take that as a compliment... I think." Ken cleared his throat. "Back to the topic that brought me here: all we're interested in is using a portion of the Mendel colony as a base, without interfering with or being shot at by your people. Is that acceptable?"
The merc exchanged glances with Elijah, then nodded slowly. "I think we can work with that," he agreed, and shook the ace's hand. "And if you ever need a hand, just have your pocketbook handy."
"Thanks," the ace said dryly, "but for now, I think we can rely on our own strength. I don't expect to run into anyone I hate enough to set you on."
Nacht Jaeger, Bridge, June 25th, C.E. 71
Captain Kyle Kreitzman was brooding -a lesser-known habit of his; one he had for reasons few people knew- when his comm officer looked up. "Captain, we have a message from the homeland, marked Urgent."
He shook himself, and stood. "Indeed? Let me see it." Taking a piece of hardcopy printout from the green-uniformed man, he scanned it with interest. In fact, this is the most interesting news we've gotten since we were chasing the legged ship, back in February...
Behind him, Commander Victor Tempest, a.k.a Huckebein, glanced his way. "What is it, Captain? From your expression, it must be important."
Kreitzman nodded. "It is, Sir. We have new orders from the homeland; it seems we may have a lead on the Eternal's intended destination. We still don't know where the so-called 'True ZAFT' fleet is, but one of their mobile suits was spotted heading for one of the L4 colony groups; Command speculates the Mendel colony is their most likely destination."
Huckebein's remaining eye widened behind his mask. "The Mendel colony? Well, well, well... that's interesting. And... appropriate. I take it our orders are to pursue the Eternal and her accompanying ships?"
"Yes, Sir; and we're not to go alone."
Tempest nodded. "That makes sense; we could probably handle the Eternal, but not all five of the ships DiFalco's faction is supposed to have. Who are our escorts?"
"Three other Nazcas; the Helderton, Hoisengert, and the Vesalius. Also, one Laurasia, the Ziegler."
"Hmph; the Le Creuset team, eh? Well, can't say I'm surprised." Huckebein nodded to himself. "Very well, Captain. Set course for Mendel, immediately."
"Yes, Sir," Kreitzman acknowledged, and turned to bark orders to the helmsman.
Meanwhile, his boss was feeling curiously at peace. The Mendel colony... the place where it all began, for Falcon, for Le Creuset... for me. And, perhaps... the place where it will finally end. Please, old friend... kill me...
Vesalius, Bridge
"We have new orders from the homeland, Commander," Fredrik Ades called. "There's evidence that DiFalco's splinter faction is on the move."
Rau Le Creuset looked up, interested. "Falcon's people have been located? That's interesting; where does the homeland think they're going?"
"According to the report none of DiFalco's ships have been spotted," the Captain said, going over the message again, "so this information is considered tentative. But one of their mobile suits, the rebuilt Strike, was seen at Lagrange point Four, near this colony group." He brought up a space map on the tabletop display. "It's believed that this is the machine's destination; and the homeland's belief is that the Strike is operating as an advanced scout, in preparation for moving their entire fleet to this location."
Le Creuset nodded, very interested indeed. "The Mendel colony... It makes sense. No one's bothered with that place since the biohazard incident three years ago; with the decontamination complete -and the surrounding colonies similarly abandoned- it would make an ideal base for them. Just the sort of thing Falcon would think of, knowing that man." He glanced at Ades. "I do hope we're not going alone? I have the utmost confidence in our pilots, but all we have are GINNs, a GuAIZ, and my old CGUE; whereas Falcon's faction has somewhere between thirty and forty mobile suits, according to our best estimate, including a number of X models."
"We won't be alone, Sir," Ades assured him. "We're to rendezvous with the Helderton, Hoisengert, and Nacht Jaeger, as well as the Ziegler."
The commander nodded thoughtfully. "That will even the odds a little; I believe Nacht Jaeger's complement consists entirely of GuAIZ units, as well as Huckebein's new machine. Then an additional six each of various types on the Helderton and Hoisengert, and another six on the Ziegler... which gives us thirty mobile suits, comparable to Falcon's complement." He glanced up. "Make a note for when we return to the homeland: we need to expedite GuAIZ production, and perhaps even revive the DEEP Arms program. Whatever Falcon's eventual intentions, they will eventually lead him to the PLANTs, and frankly, I've heard unpleasant things about his new personal machine. According to Huckebein and the other survivors of Spit Break, almost nothing we have can even touch it."
"A pity we weren't able to recover intact battle data on it," Ades remarked.
"Well, that happens when a Cyclops goes off in the vicinity." Le Creuset shrugged. "Very well. Set course for Mendel immediately."
"Yes, Sir."
As Ades went back to his duties, Rau Le Creuset smiled to himself. The Mendel colony... oh, what a delightful coincidence. Perhaps now Mu will finally learn the truth... and perhaps I will finally learn why Falcon and I have a similar connection... Oh, yes, I can hardly wait...
Author's note: With True ZAFT united at last, Ken DiFalco's plans are finally nearing fruition; and now, as they make their way to the Mendel colony, two of his old adversaries are planning another attack... which may be the last thing one of them ever does...
And here, at last, comes an update written at my old pace. Just six days since my last update; let's see if I can make that a habit again. The story is getting close to its conclusion, so I'd rather not slow down now. In the meantime, though, let me know how the chapter itself was. -Solid Shark