Milliardo checked his pistol, empty. His company of a hundred dwindled to a handful of men hiding in the shadows of the narrow alley with him, too proud to surrender and too stubborn to die. None but the rifleman still had ammo.
All afternoon, they ran circles around the ESUN forces, but eventually succumbed to the superior firepower of the enemy. Milliardo looked up at the Sanc Kingdom Institute, it's distinct bell tower stood forebodingly bleak against the evening sky as early winter sunset cast the hills of New Port City into darkness, electricity and communications cut off by the ESUN. The hole in his right thigh stung and bled, even after he plugged and wrapped it tight.
"When this is over, I'm proposing," The men were chattering quietly to keep up morale.
Another man countered, "Yeah that's what you said in the last war." The group laughed.
"This girl's different, she don't fancy no trinkets, and never chew me out for my long trips away." The first man insisted, Milliardo tuned out of the conversation.
Had Noin made the retreat? He trusted her with his life, but it took another level of faith for her to abandon him as he ordered. Bullets wizzed past the townhouse corner behind which he hid, bricks chipped and pulverized into dust that hung in the air. Milliardo refocused himself, scanned the street and spotted a case of ammunition beside a fallen comrade.
Making eye contact with his only remaining rifleman, Milliardo nodded, threw his last flashbang toward the enemy lines and dove out into the street. The rifleman leaned out with a burst of cover fire. Ammo box in hand, Milliardo limped back to the alleyway half crouched. The men crowded around him, reloading their firearms.
They heard the electrical hum a split second before an armed drone rounded the corner and opened fire. Milliardo cursed as the rifleman fell to the ground with a bloody gurgle, he raised his pistol and shot two rounds at the abominable thing which zigzagged in the air. The drone ceased fire and hovered indecisively, Milliardo emptied his magazine into it, the bot dropped in a sparking heap of plastic and metal.
He looked at the wet, red ruin around him, almost black in the dim light, every one of his men was shot dead, good men. Feeling the familiar cold loneliness roll in his gut, Milliardo spit on the puttering wreck of a drone, and stomped to crush its memory chip. Judging by the speed and the way it hesitated from firing at him, that drone was an automated bot with facial recognition, someone wanted to capture him alive.
"Predictable," Milliardo muttered and inched toward the street corner, took out a scope from his jacket and squinted through the lens. He counted four, five, six battlegroups advancing up the hill in alternating formation, all equipped with night vision.
Picking up rifles from the dead bodies, Milliardo lined up the weapons for easy access, made sure they were all loaded, and pulled out a flare from his belt pouch. His chest constricted at the thought of Noin, the flare was their signal to abandon the city and collapse the base, cutting him off from all hope of reinforcements. If she could make it through the night with the remnant of their forces, his sacrifice would be more than worthwhile.
Milliardo shielded his eyes as the flare cartridge ignited with a crackle, burning red it shot into the skies above and ended in a white hot explosion that lit up the night. Milliardo smirked mirthlessly, that should overload the night vision tech, they'll be fire blind for a good while. With the crosshairs on the rifle and his naked eye, he picked off the two nearest battlegroups still fumbling with their goggles. The rest abandoned their positions and made hasty retreats behind buildings.
As poetic as it would be to die in his birthplace, alongside his countrymen, he was not one to throw his life away for a romantic notion, not when so many were relying on him. Milliardo wetted his throat with the last few drops in his flask, and resolved to surrender himself as soon as Noin drops the building.
In the distance down the hill, he heard mechanical thumpings not dissimilar to the footsteps of mobile suits, but these units were magnitudes lighter if his ears were to be believed. Bright beams with the appearance of headlights shone toward where Milliardo hid, the buildings bleached white under the harsh light.
Those were too short to be proper suits, and too heavy for normal police armour. Milliardo squinted at the black shapes on the horizon marching ever closer, one unit fell behind the formation and backlit the rest of its team.
Construction mechanoids no more than three metres tall, mounted with heavy artillery, Milliardo was almost flattered by the realization. So they mobilized the cavalry for him, well he wasn't going to make this easy for them, there was enough C4 in the ammo box to total a Leo.
Slinging a pair of rifles over one shoulder, he picked up the ammo box and made his way up hill through back alleys, hugging the shadows for cover. The cumbersome mechs followed predictably uphill to Milliardo's last known location, as they paused to clear the site, the explosives detonated with devastating force, Milliardo could feel the heat on his cheeks from half a kilometer away. He craned his neck to assess the damage, but was jolted forward by a sudden pressure on his back. Confused, he spun around to return fire, or rather, he tried to turn, but found his body oddly unresponsive.
Milliardo fell face down on the cobblestones, and felt more hits on his back, bullets, he realized belatedly. Strange, there wasn't much pain, and as the darkness closed in on his consciousness, a distant boom told him Noin had finally collapsed the Sanc Kingdom Institute.
.
Noin tilted her head to glance at the boy lying on the bunk next to her's, Relena finished fretting over him and had gone to do her rounds with the other wounded. They set up in the electrical room to give Noin and Relena some privacy from the other soldiers, and thought it prudent to house Heero in there as well.
Aside from the bruising on his ribs and a broken leg which had since been set, there weren't any detectable injuries on the Gundam pilot. The only word they got out of him was a gravelly "Sorry," before he completely shut down. The medic assured them it was only heatstroke and sheer exhaustion, with some sleep and water and the boy would be fine.
Heero's face was stubborn even in his sleep, much like Milliardo. What a curse it was to love such men, accepting every goodbye to be the last yet having to keep faith for their safe return.
Had she made the right call to obey Milliardo's order? Should she have waited longer for his retreat? Was he even still alive? She effectively left Milliardo and all the men who were with him for dead when she brought down the building last night. Noin squeezed her eyes shut and swallowed the saltiness of uncertainty and regret. Now was not the time to lose her wits, she needed to be a soldier, not a woman. It was her turn to sleep and she should get what little rest she could before the evacuation.
.
Mariemaia anxiously watched the shuttle dock, unsure why her stomach was in knots. It's been over twenty four hours since she was attacked, and by all accounts she handled herself with exemplary poise. Yet she counted the seconds as the shuttle depressurized, and when the hatch finally opened and she caught the first glimpse of Lady Une's warm chestnut hair, her throat seized up and all the hurt threatened to burst out.
Dorothy put a hand between Mariemaia's shoulder blades in an uncharacteristic gesture of familial support. Mariemaia stood glued to the spot and waited the whole time as Une disembarked, this was not the appropriate place for an emotional reunion with her mother, she knew, Lady Une was all business and Mariemaia would not disappoint. After a brief greeting of handshakes, the three of them headed to Quatre's office. Mariemaia updated her mother on the progress of the colony-based communications reflectors, not once did she mention the ugly event from the day before that almost took her life.
"The Colonies are fully committed to this," Quatre said as they settled around his desk, "We remember what it was like to be completely cut off from the world."
"You'll be directly violating the information embargo imposed by the ESUN," Une cautioned, "Are you fully prepared to accept the consequences?"
"They have no choice, once the ESUN is finished extinguishing the secessionist nations on earth, the Colonies will be its next target." Dorothy said, "It's less of a principled stance and more a matter of self preservation."
"Latvia is still holding strong, as are Estonia, Kosovës, and New South Yemen; Moldova is teetering but the invasion triggered a massive movement of ex-pats returning to the country, it will not collapse easily." Quatre continued his report on the conflict regions, then swallowed worriedly, "The status of the Sanc Kingdom is currently unknown."
The room fell into an apprehensive silence, Une asked, "Did Heero make it to New Port?"
"Trowa says the last sighting of the Gundam was when it crashed into the forest east of the city around twenty one hundred hours Greenwich, the ESUN is sending a decommissioning team there at noon tomorrow." Quatre said, "It's being guarded right now, no sign of the pilot."
"Thanks to Miss Relena and Heero's war memoir, a lot of the public sees the Gundam as a symbol of their romance," Dorothy remarked, "The enemy is desperate to paint us as terrorists."
"Then we should expedite the construction of the space antennas,"Une said, "The sooner we can restore telecommunications on earth, the less time the ESUN will have a monopoly on the media coverage of the conflicts."
Quatre smiled at that, "Duo's way ahead of you."
The meeting concluded, Une deposited her single item of luggage on the spare bed in Mariemaia's small apartment. Une turned to regard her daughter, tears threatened to overflow in the eyes of the girl and her little shoulders tensed up in an effort to hold in the sobs. Une put her arms around Mariemaia, who was almost as tall as herself now, but being tucked in the nook of her neck, Mariemaia seemed as small as the day they first met.
.
Milliardo awoke, that in itself was remarkable enough that he marveled for a moment before sitting up with a groan, back muscles screaming in protest. So they used shock studs instead of real bullets, inflicting injuries without breaking the skin. His hands and feet were bound in heavy magnetized cuffs, his uniform was stripped and replaced with a bright orange jumpsuit that chafed when he moved. His thigh was numbed with anesthetics, it felt like someone else's skin.
Cold air from the ceiling vent raised goosebumps on the back of his neck, Milliardo felt a chill on his scalp, and awkwardly touched his crudely sheered head with cuffed hands. The room was bare and the light was pacifyingly dim, walls a nondescript grey-beige that made him think he was staring into nothingness.
The door slid open with a quiet hiss, a woman in her late forties entered the room, tailed by a tall, silent guard with a sidearm clearly displayed on his belt. Milliardo gave no indication he recognized Trowa, and instead side-eyed the woman, trying to place her face. A private, or perhaps an officer in post-Treize OZ under Romefeller, youngest niece of the Count of Lyon, always insecure.
"Milliardo Peacecraft, or should I say, Zechs Marquis?" The woman sniffed at him down her nose, "You've been charged with Crimes against Humanity by the ESUN High Court."
A dramatic show trial at prime time to convince the populace of the ESUN's legitimacy, Milliardo could not allow the Peacecraft name to be dragged through such a circus.
"You've done well for yourself, for an ankle biter," Milliardo said lightly, "Kissed enough rings to climb into Davos' inner circle?"
She bristled, "As the Minister of Defence, I bow to no one. Unlike the blind leaders of the defeated OZ, the ESUN appreciates my talents."
Milliardo let her see his smirk, "Your talents were as useful as bowties are in battle."
"An attorney was assigned to represent you," The woman held in her anger, "Your rights as the accused has been upheld." She turned to leave.
"I'll be making my own defence." Milliardo was satisfied to see the woman stop dead in her tracks, "The public will be very interested in what I have to say about the current conflict...and about the sordid past of their ministers."
"The People aren't foolish enough to believe the words of a madman."
"Not all, enough will begin to doubt, and your fiat regime will come tumbling down when the numbers reach critical mass," Milliardo leaned back on the hard bed casually, "Judging by your dirty tactics, that time is desperately close."
"The world is at peace, and we at the ESUN are the guardians."
"A false peace, imposed by autocrats with imperial ambitions masquerading as public servants."
"You Peacecrafts are always a thorn in the side of world unification, refusing to fight in wartime, and now taking up arms during peacetime." The Defence Minister sneered and loomed over him, "You would damn your people to war?"
"The war came to us."
.
"Retreat into the mountains?" Heero squinted as he mentally mapped out the route, "But that'll give the ESUN an excuse to attack the civilians hiding there."
"This base will not hold forever, Noin says we have to evacuate before the exits are discovered." Relena said quietly, sitting distractingly close to him on the bunk, picking at the scratchy wool blanket laid over his legs.
"Zechs means to use guerrilla tactics then, but with my Gundam out there, useless..." Heero passed a hand through his itchy hair, greasy from days of neglect. They expected a resurgence in mobile suits, but so far the ESUN only deployed conventional weapons, to retaliate with the Gundam would seem like an overreaction on the Sanc Kingdom's part. "We can't afford to give the liars more fodder."
"We've not been able to get a message out to Lady Une, much less affect the public," Relena said, looking down at her lap.
"Don't despair, there's no time for it," He reached to tuck some hair behind her ear, knowing it comforted her.
"The selfish part of me wishes you never have to fight again," she turned introspective, and leaned into his hand.
Heero sighed, "I've decided to accept my role in life, will you respect my decision?"
Relena was silent, unwilling to concede but having no rebuttal. This point of contention came up often in their times together, with no obvious resolution.
A commotion outside the small room caught their attention and Relena stood up in time to see Simeon burst through the door, "Milliardo is..." He struggled to form words, "Come and see."
With one arm over Relena's shoulder, Heero hobbled out to the vast underground hangar, a scratchy radio signal echoed unintelligible in the cavernous space. It came from a corner of the hangar where soldiers crowded around a comm. unit. The men parted a path for Heero and Relena as they made their way to the console where Noin was listening intently.
"-eacekeepers liberated New Port City from violent extremists, the people celebrates the victory of the humanitarian war effort, and the brave ESUN Peacekeepers who risked their lives. But some have paid the ultimate price."
"As if we haven't lost people!" A soldier shouted in anger, and was quickly hushed by another.
"The extremists indiscriminately attacked our medics, these despicable acts of brutality were committed under orders from a disgraced member of the Peacecraft family, Milliardo Peacecraft."
A wave of indignation rolled through the huddled men, Noin quieted them with a sharp motion of the hand.
"Charged with crimes against humanity for his role in the death of more than thirty innocent children in Brussels, and for fomenting rebellions in various member states, Milliardo Peacecraft will be tried publicly in the High Court of the Earth Sphere Unified Nations today at four PM Greenwich Time, and we hope that after justice is served, the region can finally return to peace."
Heero looked to Noin sharply, "It's a trap."
"I know, but I can't leave Milliardo at the mercy of Romefeller." Noin glanced around the group of soldiers who hung their breath on her decision, "We'll attempt an extraction."
"Who will lead the militia in your absence?" Relena asked.
Noin hesitated, the soldiers looked expectantly between the two women.
"I will." Heero said, "If you men will follow."
.
"I can't guarantee the food, but I swapped out the water for you," Trowa pushed the food tray through the slot in the cell door, and leaned against the doorframe, the hall now empty of other guards, he had a chance to converse. "They're gonna pin all this trouble on the Sanc Region, though you're far from the only insurrection."
Zechs grunted in acknowledgement, "I had reasons to believe a plot was hatched to drive out or eliminate the inhabitants of the Sanc Kingdom."
"The easy solution to problem regions is carving them up to be annexed by surrounding states, not a genocide."
"My people will never accept the legitimacy of bureaucratic rule, fealty to the Royal Family is in their blood."
Trowa hummed, "So to tame the territory they'll simply replace the population?"
"That is my understanding."
"It's easier to just kill you and Relena, no royalty, no monarchy."
Zechs scoffed, "And create a martyr? That's not to their advantage."
"Not the ESUN, I meant Romefeller. They're spooked about you speaking in court. You can't be allowed to air their dirt on public record."
"They'll think twice before killing me, or it'll be open season on Blue Bloods."
Trowa pushed himself off the wall, "Be careful."
.
Davos latched the heavy oak doors to his office, he picked up the comm. unit receiver, punched in the code, and hesitated. Perhaps there was still a role for the Peacecrafts in this theater, the brother was doomed, but Relena was such a pretty little thing.
Davos connected the call and licked his lips in anticipation, he would make the girl an irresistible offer, saving both Relena and her little nation.
"This is the President of the ESUN, Ernst Davos."
"We know who you are," the soldier on the other end of the line replied insolently, Davos suppressed his annoyance and insisted he talk to the Princess.
"Hello Mr. President," Relena appeared in the dark staticky screen, "I want to negotiate Milliardo's release."
Davos laughed inwardly. The girl was being naive, but perhaps this was to his advantage, "Miss Relena, do not ask the impossible of me. I can barely guarantee your own life, and that still contingent on your cooperation."
"You want us to surrender? What will happen to the men who defended their home town?"
"The terrorists will be tried in the ESUN high court, of course," Davos dismissed the silly notion, "But peace will return to the city and your position as ruler of the country will be reestablished."
Relena's brow furrowed, "You're proposing I betray my own people so I can be your puppet government?"
"Be reasonable, Relena, you're still a symbol of peace in the hearts of the public, imagine the lives you can save by supporting unification under the ESUN, like you once did for Romefeller." Davos prompted amicably.
"No," Relena shook her head, "I will not be used as the figurehead of a false peace again."
Davos sighed, "Do you really think a little backwater country like yours can stand on its own? That the powerhouses of the ESUN, Germany, France, and Russia, who paid for all of the expenses of this Union, will just let you leave without paying back what you owe?"
"What we owe?"
"The Sanc region has racked up quite the deficit, we gave you new roads, new housing, new infrastructure."
"The reconstruction funds from the ESUN were grants, not loans." Relena looked indignant, narrowing her eyes.
"There is no free lunch, Princess, do you think it's fair for the taxpayers of other countries to pay for all your expenses?"
"This is insanity. You sent men to kill and die for money!" She recoiled from the monitor.
"And many more will die still if you continue down the separatist path." Davos appealed to her compassion.
"And you'll be responsible for their deaths." Relena replied, and ended the transmission.
"Foolish girl," Davos spat at the black screen, his own dim reflection mocked him through the dark glass. He sneered at it and strode to the window of his office, overlooking the courtyard of the ring-shaped ESUN Headquarters, "By consent or by conquest, we will tame this country."
.
"Was that long enough?" Relena asked.
"We sent a message to the Colonies with time to spare." Simeon grinned at her, "I don't know how Agent Yuy knew Davos was gonna try to turn you, but I'm glad we were ready." He patted the patch gear.
"Davos has pride and appetite." Heero held up a heavy parka for her, "It just started snowing, we'll evacuate now."
.
Trowa sped down the alleys of Old Brussels, the suspension squealed on his motorbike as the tires bounced rigidly off the speed bumps. He traced a suspicious payout in the ESUN internal network, and found a neutralization order. A sniper had been called-in to terminate Zechs. Distracted by his haste, the Defence Minister cornered Trowa just as he tried to slip off duty unnoticed. It took all his discipline to refrain from accosting the woman as she ogled at him openly and made countless advances.
It was almost dusk when Trowa finally freed himself. The cold early winter air rushed against his helmet, freezing rain splattered his visor and the road was building up a layer of slush.
A man leapt in front of him, Trowa swerved and used the momentum from the bike to cushion his own landing. The motorbike slid on its side and the man jumped over it lightly, and punched Trowa straight in the gut.
"That was for Sally." Wufei stood in front of him in a rage, clothes and hair soaked through.
Trowa looked up grimacing, and wheezed, "I didn't know."
Wufei nodded, calming down, "Let's go save Zechs then, you're headed to the courthouse yes?" He righted the motorbike and hopped on, waiting for Trowa to climb on behind him.
As they approached the courthouse, a sizable media blockade came into view. News station vehicles and journalists crowded the long flights of stairs at the entrance of the building
"This is bad," Wufei stopped at the mouth of the alleyway overlooking the chaotic scene, "We can't get close and any of those buffoons could be a hitman."
"I caught wind of a sniper," Trowa swung his leg over and off the bike, "You keep an eye on things down here."
.
Noin crouched in the back service road across from the entrance to the courthouse, they were unsuccessful at intercepting the motorcade en-route. She motioned for the two soldiers with her to stay put, and scanned the crowd of reporters for anyone with a military bearing, ready to eliminate any threat to Milliardo. The motorcade of police cars preceded the white court service escort van, and cleared a path through the crowd, the van stopped and officers disembarked first.
"Our only chance now is to wait for the trial to finish, and extract him on his way out." She whispered, wiping away the rain dripping down her cheek. The two men nodded in acknowledgment.
The back door on the van opened and a guard dragged out Milliardo. Noin gasped at his appearance, head shaved bare, eyes hollow and leg limping. He still walked tall and regal as best he could, and maintained an expression of serenity. Noin rose to her feet, drawn toward him by an invisible tug.
Several things happened in that moment.
A black electric car appeared silently out from the underground garage of the courthouse, Noin saw a muzzle flash from the driver seat window before she heard the gunshot. Milliardo dropped to the ground, Noin stumbled, as if hit by the same bullet. Another shot rang out from overhead and the driver of the black car slumped on the steering wheel, the car blared a long horn.
The press mob scattered like flies, hiding behind the marble ledges of the front steps, cameras flashing intermittently. The guards took cover around the court vehicles, one of them dragged Milliardo with him, leaving a dark trail on the ground.
Noin ran out into the street, rain blurred her vision. A familiar figure blocked her path, she blinked and recognized Wufei with a start, and tried to go around him. Wufei wrestled her back into the service road, muttering in her ear , "He's gone, you can't help him."
.
tbc...