Phase Eight: Fading Light

I do not own Chris, Liz, or Johanna Dante, Saul, Ian, or Diana Kessel, John Alaric, the 11th Fleet, the Raven, or the Surge Gundams. They all belong to Akatsuki_Leader13. Nor do I own Gundam. I only own Akira, Tao, Nisha, NASA/NAZAFT, the 7th Fleet, the Wing, Z.A.M., and Diver Gundams.

Note to all readers: I am going to ask those who have an account to sign in to leave a review in order to know who is leaving it, or at least to put their account name on the review so I know who is sending it. If you want to sign in to leave a review, then feel free to do so. But if not, then at least put your account name at the top so I can see who you are.

Anyway, read and review! ^^


C.E. 71 – War has been raging for 11 months between the Earth Alliance and the PLANTs. With their superior numbers, it seemed inevitable the Earth Forces would win. But the PLANTs unveiled new technology and began to gain the upper hand. Now, 10 months after the initial conflict began, the war is at a stalemate…


Vesalius…

Athrun sat in the cockpit of the Aegis, preparing it for combat. Around him, the GINNs were equipping heavy weapons. Save for the blood red one standing across from the Aegis, Zane Scirocco's GINN.

There was something about Zane that unsettled him. Athrun had no idea what it was. But there was definitely something about him that made him uncomfortable.

Athrun opened up the comm to Zane's GINN. "Zane, why aren't you equipping your GINN with heavy weapons, like the others?"

"I don't need such weapons." Zane said. "This rifle and sword are more than enough for these weaklings."

"Weaklings?"

"Yes. Those pathetic Naturals are all weak. Even if they could come up with a mobile suit for Naturals, none could ever hope to match the skill of a Coordinator." Zane said nonchalantly. "They're like lambs to the slaughter."


Constitution hanger…

Tao White had a look of frustration on her face as she got ready to launch. She had overheard her father talking about Le Creuset, and had learned that he was observing the fleet. She hated the man as much as he did, yet she was better at hiding her dislike of Le Creuset.

"Alright, here I go! Tao White, Diver, launching!" she cried as the catapult drove the Diver to the opening and out into space. All of the Mobile Suits of her ship followed swiftly.


Outer Space…

"Alright guys, you know the drill." Hilda said to her comrades as they approached the EA warships. "Cripple and paint."

"Man. This won't be any fun. They don't stand a chance against us." Mars said.

"But it'd be disrespectful to them to hold back." Herbert replied.

"Ha ha ha ha...You got that right."

"Cut the chatter you two. We got work to do." Hilda said, silencing her comrades.

The trio descended on the Earth Forces. No doubt, the mobile armor pilots of this fleet thought that they could take three GINNs. But that would change when they saw their black and purple colors. Then the fear would come. Fear was the greatest weapon of the 11th Fleet. The Black Hawk had gathered them all, the mavericks and undesirables of ZAFT's armed forces. And he molded them into an elite fighting force. The best and most feared fighting force in ZAFT.

Next to them, one of the stolen G-Weapons was on guard. It was the Diver, piloted by Tao White of the 7th Fleet.

They didn't bother slowing down. Speed was their second greatest weapon. Beside them, the Diver also kept pace, but just barely.

"For the Black Hawk!" Hilda shouted, firing on the incoming mobile armors.

"For the Black Hawk!" Mars and Herbert shouted as they too opened fire.


Archangel…

"Three silhouettes detected at long range. It is the Montgomery, the Bernard, and the Law." Romero said as he confirmed the three ships.

"It appears that we have made it…" Murrue said, sighing with relief.

"Ma'am! The radar's being jammed!"

"What?" Murrue was shocked. A bad feeling began to form in her gut.

"We're detecting heat signatures from the advance fleet. A battle has broken out!" Jackie called from the CIC.

"Ma'am. A message from the Montgomery just came through. 'Cancel rendezvous. Continue on to 8th Fleet alone.'" Romero had a slight tremor in his voice as he read off the message.

"How many enemies are there right now?" Murrue asked.

"Eight Nazca-class warship readings are near the advance fleet. Three GINNS are engaging the fleet." He replied.

"Your orders, Captain?" Badgiruel asked.

"Our luck has run out again. There is no guarantee that we will escape alive, considering how we are up against the 11th Fleet, the 7th Fleet and the Creuset team we are up against too." Murrue muttered as she sighed. "All hands, Level One battle stations! We are going to aid the advance fleet!"


"All hands, report to level one battle stations! I repeat…"

"Figures as much…" Chris muttered to himself. "We finally get some time to relax, and the enemy shows up again just to cut it short…"

He left his room as Kira left his, which was right across the hall from him. Nisha met up with them as they headed off. The three Coordinators sprinted towards the hanger. Deep inside, Nisha was shaking though. He was going to be encountering his cousin out there, and he was not sure if he could handle it.

"I though we would be free from those guys. It appears that our pursuers are much more stubborn than we thought." Chris said to Kira as the three ran down the hall.

"I just wish that they would leave us alone…" Kira muttered.

Suddenly, to their surprise, the door to Miss Clyne's room opened and she poked her head out. "My. What is all the noise out here about?" Lacus asked.

"Don't tell me that my sister has been talking to you and forgot to lock the door." Chris said in an annoyed tone.

"Actually, both she and Mr. Yamato have been visiting me, as has Mr. Taikyu." Lacus replied.

'Kira has been talking to Lacus? That's odd. I wonder why.'

"The ship is going into battle and we have to report to our battle stations." Kira said. "You should probably stay in your room."

"Are you going to be fighting, Mr. Yamato, Mr. Dante, Mr. Itsuno?" Lacus asked.

"Yes." Chris growled. "Now I suggest you listen to Kira and get back into your room NOW!"

"I don't wanna! I don't wanna!" the little annoying Haro squawked as it bounced around in the hall.

"Too bad!" Chris snapped as he grabbed the little robot. "You're going back in!"

He tossed the little pink ball into the room, but not too hard. He did not want to damage it, even if he did hate it. Lacus followed it in, shutting the door behind her.

The three boys continued their run to the hanger until they bumped into Flay.

"Kira! Chris! Nisha!" she cried. The three boys turned to face her. "Are we going into battle? Is the ship my dad on going to be okay?!"

"Don't worry, Flay. We will do everything to make sure that the ship your dad is on is protected." Kira said. "I promise."

Chris was not so optimistic. "We will do our best, Flay. There are no guarantees that your dad will be alright, but we will try our hardest."

Nisha nodded. "We'll all do what we can. We'll try to protect him. That much we can promise."

Flay just looked on as the boys continued to the hanger. She hoped that they would protect her dad, even if they were Coordinators…


Outer Space…

Hilda opened fire on the Law's engines, crippling the vessel. A trio of mobile armors opened fire on her. But her GINN was too fast. She dodged their shots and started to circle the Law. Her GINN's head was always facing the Law, its red monoeye glowing brighter than normal, painting the warship for the warships of the 11th Fleet.

A green light blinked on her console, signaling that the Odin and the other warships had received the coordinates of the Law.

The beacon planted had done its job of leading her and her team to the ship.

"This one's painted." Herbert said. "All we got left is the flagship."

"Good. Let's finish this up guys." Hilda said.

The Archangel entered the battlefield, firing its Valiants as the Moebius Zero, the Strike, the Z.A.M. Gundam and the Raven launched from the ship.

Unfortunately, that was what the three Commanders of the ZAFT fleet were waiting for.


"Sir. The legged ship has entered the battle."

Diana Kessel smiled. She had hoped that they would fall for the trap. "Recall the Speartip Team. Deploy all mobile suits. Have the Odin, the Valkyrie and the Einherjar fire their main batteries on the painted warships." she said from the cockpit of her CGUE. "And everyone, leave the Moebius Zero to me."

"But sir, we haven't received the coordinates of Nelson-class."

"Then we will bring you the coordinates or destroy it ourselves."

"Yes sir."

"Diana Kessel. Panther Mk II launching." She said as the catapult launched her CGUE.

All of the remaining mobile suits of the 11th Fleet followed.


Vesalius bridge…

Rau smirked as the legged ship and her Mobile Suits arrived at the battle site. The targets were now in sight. "Well, the stars of our little show have arrived. Let's give them a…warm welcome. Deploy all Mobile Suits!"

The Aegis launched first, followed by Zane's GINN and the remaining GINNs. It was time to end this.


Kira fired on one of the fleeing purple and black GINNs, but the shots missed as the pilot flew away. The machine opened fire with an RPG, yet Kira was able to dodge using the Strike. The shots from the Strike's rifle missed, and the GINN left the battlefield.

Many of the surviving Moebius pilots cheered. "You chased them off!" one pilot exclaimed.

"No, we didn't. Those guys were just the Speartip team. The actual attack is coming…" Mu replied grimly.

"Incoming Mobile Suits!" Ensign Badgiruel cried over the com-line. "The Aegis, the Wing, a single CGUE, and the rest are 15 GINNs! That is a total of 18 suits!"

Kira stared at the number said. How could they beat that many machines?!

"18 machines!? We'll all be killed before we can even damage one of the ships! How can we be expected to beat that many Mobile Suits?!" Chris cried.

Nisha swore over the radio, letting out several swears before he spoke. "Taking on that many machines is suicide!" he cried. "We can't win with our numbers!"

Mu sighed at the sight of the ZAFT machines. "We have no choice. If we are to survive, then we have to fight. Get ready, they're coming!"

But before anyone could move, eight beams destroyed the Law and the Bernard. Both ships exploded in a fiery blast.

Kira stared as he gripped the controls of the Strike tightly. He had to protect the Montgomery! He had to!


Battle site…

"So Athrun, which one do you want? The Strike or the Raven?" Zane asked as the two reached the battlefield.

Zane already knew what Athrun was going to say. He was going to go after his traitor friend piloting the Strike. No doubt Athrun would try to disarm and disable the Strike so he could take his friend. It was pathetic. The traitor had clearly made his choice. Only thing that should be done is destroy the Strike and the traitor pilot.

"I'll go after the Strike." Athrun replied.

'Pathetic fool. You're just as predictable as your father.'

Zane turned his attention to the remaining mobile suit, the Raven. There was an odd feeling in the back of his mind. But he brushed it aside. Now wasn't the time for such things.


Constitution hanger…

Aki' sat in the Wing as he finished up several minor adjustments. 'Nisha is out there. I have to show him how wrong it is to fight for the Earth Alliance!' he reminded himself as the Wing was loaded into the catapult.

"Akira Nishikama, Wing, launching!"

The Wing emerged into the depths of space, just as the Z.A.M. Gundam caught sight of his machine. Akira snarled in anger.

It was payback time…

Firing on the other machine, Aki' let loose several Hellfire mini-missiles. To counter, the Z.A.M. Gundam fired off several chest missiles, the two sets of warheads exploding in a bright flash of heat and energy.

Akira snarled as he felt the rage of his cousin's ignorance coming back to him. 'How can he be so damn stubborn?!' In a single move, the Wing grabbed a beam saber from its left side and ignited the blade at the same time. Nisha, in return, did the same thing.

Both machines met in a clash of heat and energy, the gold and pink blades meeting in the middle.


"Time for our rematch, Mu La Flaga." a woman's voice said, as the CGUE firing on his Moebius Zero.

Mu barely managed to make a sharp right turn, dodging the incoming bullets. He recognized the CGUE's colors. It was same one as that last GINN he shot down at Endymion. Apparently, this woman was the pilot and she had survived and now wanted a rematch.

'Figures. This must be payback for all the skirts I chased when I was a kid.'

Mu dove as she opened fire on him. The CGUE closely followed, firing off well aimed burst as it chased him. This was going to one difficult battle.

The Raven, in its mobile armor mode, dove as the blood red GINN opened fire on him. A few rounds struck the Raven, but had little impact on its phase-shift armor. This pilot was good, very good. But this mobile suit had some tricks up its sleeve.


The Raven spun as it transformed back into its mobile suit mode and fired its railguns. Zane barely dodged the twin high-velocity rounds.

"Tricky bastard." Zane said. "Take this!"

Zane fired on the Raven while dodging more of the Raven's shots. To his annoyance, his rounds had little effect on its armor. Zane discarded the useless rifle and drew his sword. He moved in close to the Raven, preventing it from firing its railguns. He swung his sword at the mobile suit. Chris brought the Raven's shield up, blocking the strike. Chris drew a beam saber and attacked. The GINN sidestepped the attack.

"Not bad. But not good enough!" Zane said as he drove the GINN's left fist into the Raven's head.

"Damn. This guy's good. Better than I am." Chris said.

The Raven swung its beam saber at the GINN. The GINN turned, bring its shield in front of the saber's path, blocking the attack.


Nisha pulled back from the beam saber duel, just as Aki' tried to fire the missiles once more. Several of the small warheads impacted the Z.A.M. Gundam's shield, burning the metal slightly.

He snarled as he tried the shoulder cannons, but the Wing, using its superior speed, dodged the attack. The speeding mobile suit then fired on Nisha with the beam rifle. The beams impacted the Z.A.M. Gundam, making Nisha grunt as he tried to keep his machine stable.

"Now do you see what you are doing?! You are just helping the ones who killed my sister!" Aki' cried over the radio. Nisha looked up, his cousin unable to see the pain in his eyes.

"Please…just stop this…" he pleaded.

In response, the Wing just slammed into the Z.A.M. Gundam's shield, beam saber ignited once more.

"NO! Not until the ones responsible have paid!" Aki' roared.


Constitution bridge…

Commander White felt fury flood his veins at the destruction he was forced to cause. It went against all of his team's ideals if they were forced to destroy battleships. He wanted to wring Le Creuset's neck for that, yet he knew that he could not, for orders were orders.

"Commander, the 11th Fleet has the coordinates of the Nelson class…" Aisha said solemnly.

"So they are going to fire…" Commander White trailed off, hesitating to give the command. Maybe if he turned around and fired on Le Creuset, this whole war would be closer to ending, and he would be able to relax once more…

He shook his head. 'No. That would make us an enemy of ZAFT and make it seem like we are not supportive of Coordinator rights. We have to follow orders.' He reminded himself.

"Let them fire…" Commander White cried. He was going to regret this…


Outer Space…

"Captain. We've gotten coordinates for the Nelson-class."

"Alert our forces." Captain Lee said. "Once they've acknowledged, open fire."

A few minutes later, the main cannons of the Odin fired. Twin beams streaked through space. No one could stop the beams from hitting their target, the Montgomery. The beams pierced the battleship's hull near the engines. The Montgomery exploded in a massive fireball.

"No…" Chris whispered.

Things were now officially going from bad to worse. No, scratch that. Beyond worse. The Archangel was now outnumbered and outgunned. The GINNs of the 'Maverick Fleet' moved in, ready for the kill. With the Z.A.M. Gundam, the Raven, the Strike, and the Moebius Zero busy with their own battles, the ship was defenseless. Then, the most unexpected thing happened…

"Attention ZAFT forces." Badgiruel's voice came on over the com-line, making the fighting stop for the moment. "This is the Earth Alliance warship, the Archangel. We have the daughter of Supreme Chairman Siegel Clyne, Lacus Clyne, onboard. If any of you attempt to shoot us down, you will be declaring that your nation does not care about their leader's kin. You will forfeit Lacus's rights as a prisoner humanely treated. Then we will be forced to take more drastic actions. Repeat, we will be forced to use Lacus as nothing more than a human shield. We wish to avoid this, so head this warning now."

"Damn…that won't go over well…" Chris muttered.

"Who gives a damn about the Pink Princess anyway?! Our mission is more important than her anyway!" Zane said.


Constitution…

"This is unexpected. Using Lacus Clyne as a means of escape. Clever, if not desperate." Commander White mused. "All forces, we are withdrawing at once."

"Yes, sir!" the 7th Fleet cried.

"Who gives a damn about the Pink Princess?" Zane said.

"This is unexpected." Diana said. "All forces, withdraw immediately!"

"WHAT?" Zane shouted.

Rau stared out at the battlefield. This changed everything. "I agree." Rau said. "We must withdraw for the time being."

The ZAFT Forces immediately started leaving the battlefield.

"Gah!" Zane shouted, punching his main screen, before he too withdrew from the battlefield.

Aki glanced back one last time at his cousin before retreating as well. The Wing flew off, followed by the Diver.


Archangel Hanger…

The Raven's cockpit hatch opened. Chris pulled off his helmet and sighed. Things were really screwed up. He hated what Badgiruel did. But at the same time, it saved them from certain death. The question was what now?

"Chirs!" Liz shouted, floating up to him.

"What?"

"Something happened." Liz said. "Flay dragged Lacus onto the bridge and demanded that we tell the ZAFT Forces to stop attacking or she'd kill Lacus."

Chris sighed. He was gonna have to talk to her about that.

But what happened now? That was the main question that he did not know the answer to…


Vesalius hanger…

Zane was angry, not at the order of the retreat, but the Raven and the legged ship. They were a wild card while the Raven was a much better machine than his.

"Sir, would you like us to equip a heavy-weapons unit to your GINN?" a mechanic asked.

"No, I need something else." Zane grunted.

"What about a new rifle?"

"NO!" Zane snapped at the man. The mechanic cowered in fear at Zane's outburst. He did not like it when people beneath him questioned his orders.

"W-w-what do y-y-you n-need t-t-then?" the man stammered out. A punch to his head was his response.

"I need a weapon that is perfect!" Zane snarled out loud. The poor man that he was beating up cried out, getting the attention of the 7th Fleet pilot Akira who was visiting and headed past the hanger anyway

The other boy poked his head in and saw Zane hitting the mechanic, who was on the ground curled in a ball to protect his head.

"HEY!" Akira snarled. "What are you doing to him?!"

Zane glanced over at Akira and sneered. "This pathetic mortal was not listening to me and getting me the perfect weapon when I needed it."

"And that is your reason for hitting him? How pathetic can you be?!" Akira snarled.

A punch to the face was not what Akira had been expecting. The ZAFT red went flying backwards and landed on his back, holding the side of his face. "What was that?!" Aki' asked as he sat up.

"Nothing that you would understand…" Zane said, his voice a mere growl before he looked away. Aki' stood up and ran at the other boy, tackling him to the ground from behind. Zane felt cold metal smack into his face as he fell onto his stomach. He looked back, his face as cold as ice.

The grey-eyed boy lashed out and kicked Akira in the side, but the boy rolled using the momentum and came up onto one knee. Zane stood up and ran at him, but Akira, being a black belt in martial arts, punched the other boy in the chest, knocking the wind out of his lungs.

As the boys fought, the mechanic cowered behind a machine's foot. Zane glared at the man before Akira caught him in a right hook on the jaw. Then, in a martial arts move, the black-haired Coordinator flipped Zane over his head and onto his back on the floor. Zane gasped as Akira put his booted foot on the other boy's chest. "Hopefully that will teach you to never look down on others…" Aki' snarled.

Then, the other boy left as Zane stood up. "Check our inventory as well as that of the 'Maverick Fleet' and the 11th Fleet. I want to find the perfect weapon. One that does not sacrifice power for weight and weight for power." He said, addressing the mechanic.

"Y-y-yes, sir!" the mechanic replied.

"Next time, I will destroy that machine…"


Archangel

"LIAR!" Flay shouted as Chris entered her quarters.

Kira, Nisha, Sai, Liz, and Mir were there as well. Flay was shouting at Kira for what he had done out there.

As soon as she heard the door though, Flay was instantly on Chris. "AND YOU! You're a liar too!" Flay shouted at Chris. "You all promised to protect my father! But you didn't even try! It's because you're all Coordinators!"

By now, Chris had had enough.

"That is ENOUGH!" Chris shouted. "We fought as hard as we could! But even our best actions weren't enough! Claiming that we didn't even try is an insult in itself! More people than just your father were lost today! Don't believe that you are the only one who has lost someone! This is war! People die in war! Quit being so selfish and grow up! If you really want to take out your anger on someone, take it out on me, not Kira or Nisha!"

Flay slapped him on the cheek. "C'mon! I thought that you were angry!"

She just hit Chris harder with another slap. "Come on! Hit me with more than just a slap! If you were truly angry, you would do more than just slap!"

"Stop this!" Kira shouted. "This is pointless!"

"Leave me alone!" Chris shouted at the other boy. "I know what I am doing!"

As he faced Flay, however, he was not expecting to be hit with a punch to the jaw. "I thought you would do better than that!"

"Please, Chris, stop!" Kira begged. "You don't have to do this!" Nisha added. Chris glared at the other Coordinators.

"I said stay out of-"

WHAM!

Chris stood there for w few moments. "Ow…" was all he said before the boy collapsed to the floor.

Flay stood there, holding a now-bent food tray, tears still running down her face and breathing heavily.


Later…

Chris groaned as he slowly opened his eyes. "What hit me?"

"Flay." Liz said.

"Damn." Chris said, rubbing his head. "I wouldn't have antagonized her if I knew she hit that hard."

"She hit you with a food tray."

"Oh. That explains things. I thought I was getting weak there for a moment."

"So, besides the tray to your head, did that accomplish?"

"We'll have to see. Maybe nothing. Maybe something." Chris said. "So how long was I out?"

"About forty-five minutes." Liz replied. "You're lucky your skull's as thick as it is."

Chris shrugged. "Anything changed?"

"Nah. We're still pretty much in the same situation." his sister replied. "Kira's getting ready to take Miss Clyne to the ZAFT Fleet."

"Really? Aren't we using her as a hostage?"

"Yeah...Well...The Captain doesn't know."

"Should have known." Chris said, getting up off the bunk. "Well, I can't let him go something so reckless by himself."

It didn't take him long to find Kira. He, along with Sai, Nisha, and Miri, had just reached Lacus's quarters.

"Taking Lacus back to the ZAFT Forces?" he asked.

"Yes." Kira replied. "Are going to try to stop us?"

"Yes and no."

"What?"

"I'll take Miss Clyne to the ZAFT Fleet." Chris explained. "You and the Strike are far more valuable to the Archangel. The same goes for Nisha and the Z.A.M. Gundam."

"That's not true." Kira said.

"It is. The Strike is far more versatile than the Raven is. And you're a far better pilot than I am. Plus, the Z.A.M. Gundam has more firepower than the Raven. If things go bad, it's better that you stay with the Archangel, to protect it."

"Alright."


Chris zipped up the flight suit and grabbed his helmet. Lacus was across the hall, putting on her own spacesuit. So far, things were running smoothly. Mir and Liz were on look-out duty while Sai, Kira, and Nisha were making sure that the hanger was clear.

He stepped out into the hallway, cautious. "Any sign of people coming?"

Mir looked back at him. "No one so far…" she replied. Liz nodded in confirmation.

"We're clear right now." Nisha added from the hanger.

"Good."

The door to the room across the hall opened up and Lacus stepped out.

"Ready?" Chris asked.

"Yes, Mr. Dante." Lacus replied.

"Good. Let's get going then."

"Haro! Leaving! Haro!" Haro chirped.

Chris sighed. At least he was not going to miss that thing. "Can you keep that thing quiet?"

When the two of them reached the hanger, Kira and Sai were already waiting.

"We'll open up the hanger doors while you two get to the Raven." Kira explained.

"Right. Hurry up, Lacus!" Chris called.

The two of them reached the cockpit of the Raven and climbed in quickly. Once inside, Chris powered up the machine and headed for the doors. The hanger crew was unsure of what was going on and began to freak out when they realized that one of the machines was moving.

The inner door opened up and the Raven stepped onto the launch catapult.

Chris looked at Lacus. "This is about to get rough here, so hang on tight!"

The catapult activated, propelling the machine out into space, where the Raven's thrusters activated and the machine left for the ZAFT fleet…


Vesalius bridge…

"The problem we have is that with Miss Clyne on board, we cannot take any action!" Rau hissed out. "But at the same time, we cannot allow that ship to meet up with the rest of the Earth Alliance Fleet.

"That may not be necessary. We could attack them in an ambush, which you know is our ship's specialty. Then we could pull off a commando raid and rescue Miss Clyne. We may even be able to capture the ship in one move…" Commander White mused from the ship's main screen.

Rau considered the other commander's plan, but realized one thing. If the 7th was to succeed, it would make him look bad. That would make them the heroes of ZAFT and make him the laughing stock. However, if the famed 'Maverick Fleet' failed, then it would work out for him and Patrick Zala, since the squadron would be wiped out. But the chances of that were slim. Unless their ships were somehow damaged…then it would work out in their favor.

Suddenly, the siren alarms went off. "Sir! Incoming Mobile Suit!"

"What?! Identify it!" Captain Ades ordered.

"It's the X305!"

"It's hailing us!"

"Let us hear it out…" Rau ordered.

"ZAFT vessels, this is the pilot of the Raven. Do not fire. I have on board, Miss Lacus Clyne." The 'Natural' pilot said. "I am only here to send her back. Send out only the Aegis and its pilot and I will hand her over to you unharmed."

"Well, this is interesting. Very well, then." Rau replied. "We will send out the Aegis."

They cut the com-line. "You heard that boy, Athrun. Deploy in the Aegis and recover Miss Clyne." Rau ordered.

"Commander! Allow me to deploy in the Aegis!" Zane cut in, catching Athrun by surprise.

Rau had not been expecting this. Zane was not interested in saving Miss Clyne. He only wanted to eliminate the Raven. If the Raven was destroyed, then Miss Clyne would also be killed, and he wanted to avoid any punishment the Council would instill on him, Wu, and Patrick Zala.

"No. He asked for Athrun, and that is who he will receive." Rau snarled back.


Zane watched the Aegis take off from the hanger, rage evident in his face. He not only hated the commander, but he also hated the 7th for not allowing him to go out. That famed reputation of theirs was the only thing that could stop him, and he hated the fact that the ships were so hard to beat.

"What is the status on the new railgun?" he asked a mechanic.

"Well, sir, we have mounted the new unit on the GINN and calibrated the GINN's systems to handle the recoil and weight of the railgun. We also have yet to recalibrate the aiming systems." The mechanic replied.

"Leave that last part alone. I'll do it when I am in the field. I am launching." Zane snarled at the man.

"S-s-sir?"

"You heard me. I am heading out." Zane snarled again. He kicked off of the hanger's floor and floated into the cockpit of his GINN.

He was going to end this here and now, once and for all!


The Raven approached the Aegis. When the two Mobile Suits were face to face, their cockpits both opened. Behind the Aegis were the ships of the 7th and 11th Fleets.

"Why did you ask for me only?" Athrun asked.

"I figured that if anyone would allow me to escape, it would be you. You had the chance to blow both me and Kira away at the battle of Artemis Base, yet you refused to." Chris replied.

Then he looked at Lacus. "Well, this is where we part ways, Miss Clyne." He said, giving Lacus a gentle shove out of the Raven's cockpit.

"Good-bye…" Lacus replied, waving gently. She floated to Athrun and the Aegis, ready to return. Athrun grabbed her and pulled Lacus into the Aegis's cockpit gently. Chris was about to close the cockpit on his machine when Athrun called back.

"Wait!"

Chris looked back. "What?"

"You're a Coordinator, right?"

"Yes."

"Then come back with us. You, the other pilot, and Kira do not belong with the Earth Forces!"

"No."

"But-"

"The Archangel is behind me. I will not abandon her. My friends and family are on that ship."

"CHRIS!"

A high-velocity round tore past the Raven's head, missing the mobile suit by only a few feet.

It was the blood red GINN, its rifle replaced with railgun. The weapon was mounted on its right shoulder. But that wasn't what truly caught Chris off guard. It was the voice that shouted at him.

-Flashback-

Chris walked up to the battered boy lying on the ground. "You okay?" he asked, kneeling down.

"Yeah..." the boy said. "You didn't have to help me."

"True. But it was three against one and I wasn't about to let a bunch of spineless bullies beat up somebody." he replied, extending his hand. "Here."

The boy took his hand and Chris helped him get back up to his feet. The boy was in pretty rough shape. He had a number of bruises and cuts but nothing appeared to be broken. "C'mon, I'll take you to my parents. They're doctors." he said, helping the injured boy walk to his house. "My name's Chris, Chris Dante."

"I'm Zane Scirocco."

-End Flashback-

"No...It can't be..." he whispered.

"It's been quite a while, Chris." Zane said, aiming the GINN's railgun at the Raven.

Chris froze. "But how...Junius Seven was destroyed..."

"Isn't it obvious? Like you, I wasn't there." he replied. "Why did you betray your own kind? Why are you fighting for those bastards?"

Chris shook his head. This wasn't the Zane he knew. The Zane he knew was a pacifist, who hated violence in all its forms. "What happened to you Zane? Once, you hated the idea of wars. So why are you in the cockpit of that GINN?"

"The Zane you knew died alongside Junius Seven!" Zane shouted. "Now die traitor!"

The railgun fired again. But the shot went wide. "Dammit!" Zane cursed as he tried to properly calibrate the weapon. "You stupid weapon!"

Chris brought the Raven's own railguns to bear. But...He just couldn't bring himself to fire. Zane on the other hand, was more than able to fire again.

This time, the round hit its target, tearing through the left side of the Raven's head. Fortunately, it didn't destroy the Raven's head. Instead, it tore up the armor of left side of the head and damaged the camera in the left eye.

"Stop!" Lacus shouted. "Are you trying to start a battle in the presence of a War Memorial Representative?"

"Are you joking? Are you that stupid?" Zane said. "This is war! There are no rules, but to wipe out your opponent! It doesn't stop because of some prissy, weak, pink haired brat wants it to!"

"That's enough Zane." Rau said over the comm. "You disobeyed my orders and engaged a mobile suit with a civilian practically standing right next to it. Return to the Vesalius."

"But sir-"

"Return. Or your punishment will be worse."

"Yes sir."

The GINN and the Aegis took off, heading back for the Vesalius. While the Raven left for the Archangel.

Chris didn't say anything as the Raven entered the Archangel's hanger. He didn't say anything as armed guards pulled him from the cockpit. Nor did he say anything as they threw him in the brig.

His entire thoughts were on Zane. How could he become so consumed by anger and hatred? How could he just turn his back to everything he believed in?

Most of all, he wondered if he'd ever see the friend he once knew again.


Unknown to the two sides, something unusual was happening on the dark side of the moon. Unseen and undetected by all sensors at this far a range, the particles that began to gather remained well concealed. But these particles were no ordinary particles. Scientists hadn't even begun to fully understand the mystery behind these little guys, but what they did know was that they had very unusual properties when gathered in groups. These properties varied greatly, but one of them, at least according to generalized theory, was that they could allow a dimensional gateway to open up anywhere in any reality. This was one mystery that baffled even the scientists at ZAFT, although NASA was conducting its own studies on the phenomenon.

Situated in a lab located within the central sector of NASA, the studies discovered that as the particles coalesced into a large cluster, an orb usually took shape and somehow wound up burrowing through the space-time continuum and thus creating a gateway to any world at any place, any time. The scientists at NASA therefore concluded that this means of travel was very risky, and resigned themselves to merely studying it further. The particles, they also discovered, had to be created under the right conditions. And the only way to do that was to as closely mimic them as possible.

Copying the exact conditions was next to impossible. But out in the vast reaches of space, the conditions were perfect for the formation.

After clustering into the orb, the tunnel to another universe was torn open and the person traveling through the tunnel emerged from it right into a new conflict.

He shook his head as he struggled to get his bearings. All he really recalled after the battle was a wormhole somehow forming and sucking in his machine and himself, taking him to who knew where.

His training kicked in and he activated the exterior cameras, his eyes taking in the location displayed.

He knew just from looking that he had arrived in the middle of a battle. The high-range cameras picked up the lights and flashes of laser fire and explosions. He also noted tiny dots—ships—slugging it out with one another. And in the middle of them all was a mobile suit, but one he wasn't familiar with.

The area around him seemed to have free floating atoms, which alerted him to the energy behind it. It was there to scramble surrounding neutrons, and disrupt nuclear reactions. Concern flooded his body and be brought up the nuclear reactor display. It was fully functional. The Gundanium seemed to be blocking the energy he noted, which was good in case he needed to fight.

His eyes narrowed and he realized that there was only one thing he could do right now. He had to bide his time and wait…


A newcomer has arrived, and will play a major role in the coming fights. Can you guess as to who it is? Please read and review! Note: any flames will be reported and/or deleted, depending on if the one sending it has signed in or not. Constructive criticism is appreciated as well! Keep up the reviews! ^^