Phase Twenty-Six: Into the Dawn Skies
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. Nor do I own Martin Nightengale, as he is Meteorthunder3's OC. I only own Akira, Tao, Nisha, NASA/NAZAFT, the 7th Fleet, the Wing, Z.A.M., and Diver Gundams.
CT7567Rules: I chose not to use them because the fic was getting too long for each chapter. ^^' And I may do the dogfight thing, sadly there won't be. :( And yes, it does have the guns the original Blitz was lacking. :)
Titanic X: Glad you like it. :)
A0930: Ok, as for Shinn, I have some character development planned for him in the next arc. :) So you will like how he develops as a person. :3 And I can only assure you Mayu will be saved eventually, and no, she is not an Extended. ;) As for Marie, she is not a Coordinator. She is a Natural. In this story, even Naturals can tap into the SEED. :)
Vgc: PLEASE use a consistent guest name! Geez... But I am glad you still like it. But I want to know WHAT you love about it, not just that you like it, even though I like hearing that as well.
Note to all readers: I am going to ask those with an account to sign in to leave a review in order to know who is leaving it, or at least 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. If you are a guest without an account, PLEASE put a CONSISTENT guest name. Thanks!
Kira's eyes widened as he stared at the red mobile suit before him. "Athrun?"
"Dammit! Who the hell are you?" Clotho shouted, transforming the Raider and charging at the pair.
"Wow... Another one of these funny looking mobile suits." Shani commented before he too charged the Freedom and the Justice.
Both Earth Forces machines fired. The Freedom and the Justice flew up, dodging the shots.
"What are you doing here?" Kira demanded. "Has ZAFT decided to stick its nose in this battle too?"
"I haven't received any specific orders regrading this battle. This intervention is my decision alone!" Athrun said, firing on the two mobile suits as they passed.
The Raider transformed back and spun around. "I don't know who you are, but you're going to be a fatality too!" Clotho shouted as he threw his hammer at the Justice.
Athrun dodged the hammer, when suddenly Martin appeared behind the Justice, roaring as he swung the Massacre's saber down on the Justice. Athrun swung and blocked it with one of his own. Suddenly, Martin pulled up his remaining beam Gatling gun and squeezed the trigger.
But nothing happened. The gun's battery had been depleted. Martin swore, cursing his weapon's failure to fire. He slammed the useless weapon into the Justice's chest, destroying the gun and knocking Athrun back. "I'm gonna tear you apart!" Martin shouted, drawing his other saber and charging the Justice.
But Athrun recovered and fired the Fatum-00 subflight pack at the Massacre. It slammed into the mobile suit's chest, knocking it back. The Forbidden lunged at the Freedom, swinging its scythe. Kira jumped back, avoiding the attack and unfolding the Freedom's railguns. Kira fired, but Shani managed to block the shots with its shields.
"Finishing move!" Clotho roared, firing his beam cannon at the Justice.
Athrun blocked the beam with his shield. He then drew his other saber and combined them into one dual-bladed saber. He charged the black machine. Clotho blocked his attack with the shield on the Raider's railgun. But the Massacre had returned and hell-bent getting some payback.
However, at that very moment, the Calamity fired again into the group. Its beams coming perilously close to the Justice, the Massacre and the Raider. "Orga!" an enraged Clotho shouted.
"You're bugging me!" Orga shouted back, the Calamity once again leaping into the air and firing at the group, more specifically the Massacre and the Raider.
Suddenly, he turned to the Forbidden and fired at it. "The same goes for you Shani!"
Shani deflected the beams with his shields. One of the beams flew past the Freedom and the Justice. "These guys don't give a damn about each other." a stunned Athrun said.
The Raider aimed it's railgun at the Calamity. "You're bugging me Org-GAAAAAAAAH!"
At that moment, the Gamma Glipheptin in their bodies ran out and the four Biological CPUs started to go through withdrawal. Their bodies were engulfed in agony and they all screamed out in pain. "Aw crap... We're out of time!" Orga shouted. "Clotho!"
The Raider transformed into its mobile armor mode and grabbed the Calamity's shoulder with its claws, pulling it to the Powell, the Forbidden and the Massacre close behind.
The Powell
"The Calamity, the Forbidden, the Massacre and the Raider are returning sir."
Everyone on the bridge was stunned. "They're what?" Captain Oswald shouted.
Azrael scowled. They hadn't last as long as they were supposed to. Nor had they defeated those machines. It was completely unacceptable. He'd have to talk to the doctors about increasing the dosages they were being given, after they were properly punished for their failure of course. And then there were those two machines, the white one and the red one that had just arrived. There was some odd about them. The amount of power those machines were displaying didn't seem possible with normal batteries, same with that machine, the one with the powerful rifle, or the Berserker of JOSH-A as it was known. He briefly wondered if...
Oswald turned to him. "Do you have an explanation for this?" he demanded.
Azrael stood up. "Well then Captain, I think it's time we took a break from this battle. Recall all you're forces." he said with a smirk. "Don't worry it's only temporary."
"What?"
"Face it. We're not going to get anywhere with just the Strike Daggers. It simply means ORB had some hidden strengths we weren't quite ready for. We wouldn't stand a chance without the new machines."
Bowing to his logic, Oswald gave the order.
The Powell fired up a signal flare, signaling a temporary retreat for the Earth Forces. The defenders of ORB all collectively breathed out a sigh of relief. It was over...for now.
"They're retreating for now. Have all forces switched to standby." a weary Samuel Dante ordered as Cagalli left the command room. "Have all surviving forces meet at rally points Bravo, Charlie, and Zulu. Get all available personal to repair and resupply the surviving units. And send out teams of medics to search for any wounded. I want a full status report on our remaining forces within the hour."
The Raider's cockpit hatch opened and Clotho fell out, ripping off his helmet. "It hurts! IT HURTS!" he screamed as his fellow Extended cried out in pain as well.
Withdrawal was always pure hell. And no matter how many times they went through it, they were never use to it. Every ounce of their bodies was hit with pain. It felt like every inch of their insides were on fire. They all cried out, almost pleading for some kind of relief from the agony.
But they got none from the doctors. The doctors simply scribbled down notes on their clipboards and watched them flail around in pain.
Onogoro
"Thanks for the backup." Kira said. "But I'm still wondering, what exactly are your true intentions?"
"I'm under orders from the homeland to either recapture or destroy the machine you're flying right now." Athrun explained. "But I have no intention, at least for now, of fighting you or your allies. I just want to talk."
Kira nodded. "Okay."
A few minutes later, both machines set down on the edge of one of the gatherings of tired ORB soldiers. This particular one was centered on the Archangel. And all of the other Gundams had already arrived there as well. As they landed, a group gathered around the machines. Among the group were Cagalli, Mu, Chris, Dearka, Saul, Nicol, Heero, Nisha, Liz, Murrue and the rest of the Archangel crew. They all watched as Kira and Athrun left their mobile suits and walked towards each other. Both Kira and Athrun found themselves looking back at everything that had happened, from before Heliopolis to their most recent encounters with Lacus Clyne. Out of nowhere, Birdie appeared and landed on Kira's shoulder. Kira smiled. "Hi, Athrun."
Athrun nodded. "Kira."
"Oh you guys!" Cagalli shouted, running towards the pair. When she reached them, she hugged them, her eyes watering slightly. "You guys are such idiots!"
Kira and Athrun couldn't help but chuckle as she held them.
"Well now. If only Yzak were here, then we'd have a full-fledged reunion." a familiar voice said.
Athrun broke away from the hug and turned to the voice. Standing in front of the group was Nicol, Dearka and Saul. "It's good to see you Athrun." Nicol said with smile.
Athrun returned the smile. "Same here Nicol."
Later That Night
A Heli soared over the damaged areas of ORB. Lord Uzumi Nara Athha stared out at the devastation below them. "With our surviving strength, it's unlikely that we will last more than a few hours after resume they're attack." Samuel said from pilot's seat
"I know." Uzumi replied. "Was the civilian evacuation successful?"
"For the most part. We've estimated that approximately eighty-five percent of the civilian population has been evacuated. The rest have been moved to the far side of Onogoro. Hopefully they'll be safe there."
Uzumi nodded. "Thank you for all that you've done. I have one more thing I needed for you to do for me."
"You're going through it then?"
"Yes. It is the only way for ORB to achieve a meaningful victory."
Samuel nodded. "I know."
But fate had different plans for Lord Uzumi, plans that he did not count on…
An ORB Hanger
The hanger was abuzz with activity. Technicians rushed to resupply and repair the Astrays and other mobile suits. Kira and Athrun were sitting together in front of the Freedom and the Justice, explaining what had happened. Chris, Saul, Nicol, Dearka, Miri, Liz, Nisha, and many of the other Archangel Crew members all stood nearby. Heero stood off to the side, listening in as well. As Kira neared the end of his explanation, Cagalli came by with cups of water to give the two and pass them along before taking a seat across from them.
"I know that it's the most difficult path for ORB to have taken." Kira explained. "But I also believe that it cannot be helped. I believe that Cagalli's father is right. If ORB sided with the Earth Forces, then the Advanced European Union would use its resources to attack the PLANTs, but the same is true if ORB sided with ZAFT. The only difference would be who was designated the enemy. But there would be no real change for the better. I can't let it go on like that."
He stopped, choosing his next words carefully. "I know I nearly killed your comrade, a close friend. But I never knew him or actually met him before that." He paused again. "The same was true when you killed Tolle. You never knew him or even met him. And it's not like you wanted to kill him."
Athrun averted his glance. He couldn't look Kira in the eye after that. "No, I didn't." he admitted. "But I really wanted to kill you and tried my hardest to do so."
"As did I." Kira said, looking up towards the Freedom and Justice. "It'd be great if we lived in a world where we never had to fight. And that if we could stay in that world forever. But this war is only getting worse every day. If it continues like this, eventually Earth and the PLANTs will have no choice but to wipe each other out. And that's why I'm fighting." He paused to take a drink. "When I started fighting, I did to protect others. But having pulled a trigger, it's too late to go back. Are you and I will have to fight each other again?"
Athrun couldn't find an answer. The words of his father's former friend and Lacus were stuck on a constant loop in his mind. He didn't know what he should do anymore. Before, everything had been so simple. Obey the orders of your superiors in the military and the government, and fight the enemy. But now everything had become so complicated.
Kira turned to Chris. "I'm curious, why do you fight Chris?" he asked.
Chris shrugged. "Well nothing as noble as you. I guess I'm simply watching your back so you live long enough to change the world for the better. That, and keep everyone else alive."
"I have to agree. I fight to protect my father and friends, but mainly to try and get Aki' to see reason." Nisha added. "But, having pulled that trigger, I can't just go back to being a civilian so easily anymore."
Heero just grunted once. "I fought to protect the freedom of the oppressed once, and I will continue to do so, no matter what. As I said once before, a Gundam means two things to me. And I will fight to uphold those two meanings."
Kira smiled as he stood up. "Well, I should get back to my duties now." he said before leaving.
"I have one question Kira." Athrun said, stopping him. "The Freedom has the N-Jammer Canceler. What if someone tried to acquire the data for their own purposes?"
"I'd shoot them." Kira said instantly. "And if needed, I'd destroy the Freedom to safeguard it."
And with that, Kira left. Chris let out a whistle. "Whatever Miss Clyne said to him in PLANTs, it sure was effective." he commented. "Well, I better go see that the Exia's been resupplied."
He left as well. And one by one, the others left to get back to work. Though, Miri got into a bad argument with Dearka about Tolle's death at Athrun's hands before she ran off with Dearka chasing after her. In the end, only Athrun and Cagalli were left.
The Powell
"So Captain, when will we be able to resume the attack?" Azrael asked.
"ORB has been repeatedly sending requests to open negotiations." Oswald said.
"No. It's far too late for that." Azrael replied. "We could never hope to control a nation like that. It'd be in our best interest if they... disappeared."
"We'll be ready to resume the attack in the morning. The main concern is with your people."
"Sorry about that. But things are being taken care of as we speak. There won't be a repeat of what happened earlier."
"Oh, and by the way, the fleet that attacked NASA has returned."
Azrael smirked. "Have they accomplished their mission?"
Captain Oswald gulped before shaking his head nervously. "No sir…"
The pure anger on the other man's face was indescribable. Oswald fervently wished that he would just disappear so Azrael would not harm him.
"WWWWWWHHHHAAAAAAAATTTTT!?"
Azrael was fuming. The NASA attack fleet had failed?! But how?! NASA had succeeded in driving off one of the largest attack fleets in history?!
This was not good for his plans. They needed ORB's Mass Driver now!
The Hanger
Athrun sat beside the Justice, thinking on everything that had happened since this whole mess began. But he noticed that Cagalli was standing nearby and watching him. "Why are you sticking so close to me anyway?" he asked.
"No reason." Cagalli answered. "I just wanted to keep an eye on you."
While he didn't laugh, he did get her little joke. After all that had happened the two previous times they'd been together, he wasn't surprised the she'd stick close to him for a while.
"You must be relieved to see that Kira's alive." she commented.
Athrun wasn't sure what exactly to say to that. "Yeah." He paused and added. "I never got to thank you for before."
"What? Of course you did. Well, kind of. After all, in your state of mind at the time, you might not remember."
She, of course, was lying.
"Mm... Yeah." an unconvinced Athrun said.
Cagalli wanted to change the subject, and fast. "Kira's really changed, hasn't he?"
"Not really."
Cagalli twisted her head back to him. "No?"
"He's pretty much the same as he's always been." He replied, standing up.
"So, what you plan to do about everything?" she asked with a hint of nervousness. She was worried about his answer to her question.
"I really don't know." He told her. "But maybe the answer is right in front of me and I just haven't seen it yet. This is going to be a tough choice."
As he walked away, Cagalli had to agree with him. Everyone at ORB, she, her father, her friends, and the crew of the Archangel faced a daunting path ahead of them.
NASA, Great Lakes Naval Base
People looked over the readings of the N-Jammer, trying to figure out what canceled out the radiation emitted. They had already gone through three different materials that could be used, and yet there was still nothing! A man walked over, carrying a small amount of the material that was used in the construction of the N-Jammer. Putting it down, he looked over the readings that were being picked up.
The readings of the material matched those of the radiation that the N-Jammer emitted. Looking back at the small lump, he turned to another material, one that was useful in only the nuclear fusion reactors.
He put a hand under his chin in thought, but shook his head. There was no way that nuclear fusion materials could be used to cancel out an N-Jammer. The man then walked away, just as another scientist put down a radio-wave/radiation analyzer.
The analyzer, being computerized to find and analyze radio and radiation waves, set to work almost instantly before the readings began to show up on the computer screens. The scientists looked over the data before more readings came up. It seemed to be impossible to find the right frequency that would cancel out the N-Jammer, but they were going to try.
As the analyzer ran over the countless frequencies, the odds of success seemed to be down to none, until someone made a small adjustment on a small radiation transmitter that was letting out several other frequencies. That small adjustment was picked up by the analyzer as was the radiation that was being emitted. To the astonishment of the scientist monitoring the analyzer, the readings from the N-Jammer began to plummet drastically. She looked over the readouts from the N-Jammer, but they were still high. Looking back at the analyzer, she wondered what was causing such a drop.
A hunch in mind, she walked over to a nuclear warhead that was opened, and placed the transmitter inside it. Then, bringing over the analyzer, she put the device down next to the transmitter inside the warhead. The N-Jammer readings inside then began to drop at a dramatic rate. Startled, she yanked out the transmitter, only for the readings from the N-Jammer to rise once more. Looking back at the device in her hands, the scientist placed it back inside the warhead once more. Again the readings dropped. The scientist placed one hand on her hip and the other on her head in confusion.
"What is causing the drop in N-Jammer readings?"
Another officer walked over and looked at the readouts on the computer. "Hey, are the N-Jammer readings inside the warhead supposed to be down to zero?"
Looking back at him in shock, the scientist whirled around. "What?! They're WHAT?!"
"The readings are zero."
Stunned, she fell back into her chair. "No way…we…did we find the method of blocking the N-Jammers?"
"Well, further testing is required, but so far, the results are promising." The officer replied.
"Then get the news to the Pentagon and have them study this!" the scientist shouted.
"Yes, ma'am!"
The Powell
The Next Morning
"We've increased the Gamma Glipheptin by ten units." the doctor coldly explained to them as they writhed on the ground in pain. "It should work for at least two hours. If you don't want to feel that kind of pain again, then you better improve your performance."
Clotho, Martin, Orga, and Shani grabbed the vials they were given and greedily drank the drug. In a matter of seconds, the drug flooded their systems, bringing sweet relief from the pain. Their pain-induced spasms subsided as their cries of pain turned to labored, heavy gasps for air.
"Thank you...for stopping the pain..." Clotho weakly said.
Of course, none of them felt any shred of gratitude towards the doctors who administered the drugs. They hated them and desired to inflict pain the same pain they felt on them. But they couldn't. They needed the drugs the doctors had to survive, whether it was the Gamma Glipheptin or the other medicine that made going through withdrawal bearable.
"Now get going." the doctor ordered.
The four pilots left the room, heading for the hanger. There was no need for them to change as they hadn't changed out of their flightsuits. All they needed was to get their helmets, which were still in the hanger.
A few minutes later, they were in their machines, powering them up. If they couldn't take their anger out on the doctors for letting them suffer through the night, then they were gonna take their anger out on something else. Those mobile suits they fought the day before. In their minds, it was because of them that they suffered.
"Those funny machines..." Shani said with a scowl.
"Let's rip them apart." Martin purred.
"Yeah. They're gonna pay." Clotho added.
"That's a promise." Orga said, agreeing with his teammates.
Today was going to be about revenge.
The Earth Forces renewed their attack, launching countless Strike Daggers and Spearhead fighters. But the surviving ORB defenders fought like they were possessed. The Farsight fired into the air, hitting Daggers and Spearheads every time. Dearka fired off his cannons and missiles into the air as well, taking out more invaders.
Elsewhere, an Astray and Dagger dueled when a second Dagger moved into the attack the Astray from behind. Suddenly, the Neo Blitz fired its pincer claw at the mobile suit. The claw grabbed the Dagger's waist and squeezed. The claws cut into the machine's sides until it exploded. At the same time, the Astray overpowered the Dagger and sliced it in two. "Thanks." Juri said.
"Don't mention it." Nicol replied.
Nearby, the Surge fired off its claw, which tore through a Dagger while he gunned down another with his rifle. Three more Daggers fired at him. The Surge leaped out of the way, firing its rifle at them. The shots found their marks, destroying the Daggers.
Overhead, the Freedom, the Justice and the Exia all fired down on the mobile suits. Kira's shots stripped the Daggers of their weapons, limbs and heads, while Chris's and Athrun's shots destroyed Daggers.
An ORB battleship suddenly exploded. From the fire and smoke, the Forbidden emerged. The Massacre appeared, firing its repaired beam cannon at another ORB vessel, piercing its hull at the water level. Then the Calamity and the Raider joined in. Their combined firepower sank two more ORB warships. "Dammit! Where are they?" Clotho shouted. "Where are those bastards from yesterday?"
"It looks like those guys from yesterday are back." Chris said as he stared out at the harbor where they were fighting. "This is gonna be trouble."
"Are you sure you be able to fight them with us?" Kira asked, concerned for his friend.
"Hey! The Exia may not be like your machines or theirs but we can still kick ass together!" Chris shot back in an annoyed tone.
"Sorry. Just asking."
"There they are!" Orga shouted.
All four Earth Forces mobile suits raced towards the trio. It was time for payback.
The Dynames' GN Beam Saber sliced through a trio of Strike Daggers as Mu gunned down two more. But more Strike Daggers appeared, pressing the attack. "Man... This is getting crazy." Liz said, firing one of her GN Pistols at the advancing Daggers. "No matter how many we destroy, more just keep on coming. Is the entire Earth Alliance military attacking ORB or something?"
"I doubt it." Mu replied as he and a group of Astrays fired at the Daggers as well. "If the entire military was brought against ORB, we would have been finished after a few hours yesterday."
At that moment, a barrage of missiles and beams tore through the Daggers. "Numbers won't help you out here!" Dearka shouted as he, Nicol and Saul fired into the group.
"Yeah! Quality trumps quantity!" Saul added.
"Damn you copycat! Just die already!" Clotho shouted, firing at the Exia.
Chris dove dodging the shots. "Come on copycat, is that the best you can do?" he taunted, racing away from the Raider.
"Get back here you bastard!" Clotho roared, chasing after the Exia.
'I don't why those machines have so much power, but if I can get him to use it up quickly, I'll be able to beat this punk.' Chris thought as he dodged shots from Raider.
Elsewhere, Kira fired at the Forbidden with his beam rifle. But again, it bounced off the Geschmeidig Panzer system. Suddenly, the Calamity fired at him, forcing him to dodge the beam, giving Shani an opening. He fired several shots from his plasma induction cannon. The Freedom, like a graceful dancer, moved around the arcing beams. Kira switched the Freedom to HiMAT mode and fired at the Forbidden. Hitting its deflectors with everything he had. However, the Forbidden's shields held out against the onslaught. But Kira figured that if he couldn't overpower the deflector, he try to drain as much of the machine's power as possible.
Nearby, the Massacre and the Justice were going at it. Martin was firing wildly, but made up for his lack of aim with pure firepower. Athrun was struggling just to avoid the machine's firepower. He had to try something to disrupt the Massacre. He grabbed one of the Justice's beam boomerangs and threw it near the Massacre. Martin didn't even pause as the boomerang flew past him. He did stop however, when the boomerang came back, heading straight for him. The Massacre sidestepped the weapon, giving Athrun an opening. He caught the boomerang and charged forward, using it as a beam knife. The Massacre's right arm shot up on reflex, trying to block the beam. The boomerang's blade sliced through the twin barrels of his right Gatling gun, rendering it useless. Martin let out an angry whine. "I'm gonna tear you apart!"
He drew a beam saber and swung at the Justice. Athrun barely managed to parry the swing with his boomerang. He quickly kicked the Massacre, knocking it back and allowing him to switch to his own beam saber. Both swung, locking their blades in a contest of strength.
"Die! Die! Die!" Martin repeated over and over as he tried to overpower the Justice.
But in the end, the Justice started to overpower the Massacre. Suddenly, the Massacre's chest plate opened. "DIE!" Martin cheered, firing the chest Gatling guns.
Athrun, caught off guard, broke from the contest as bullets impacted the Justice. They had little effect on the Justice, but they had achieved the desired result. Martin lunged forward, swinging his saber again. Athrun pulled up his shield, blocking the strike.
Heero flew into the fray between the Freedom and the other two machines, firing the Twin Buster Rifle at a low setting, but getting the attention of one of them nonetheless.
The Calamity flew at him, firing its ranged weapons. Dodging, Heero opened fire with the Buster Rifle once again. The beam missed Orga, who flew upwards to avoid getting hit. "Ha! You can't hit me, Coordinator scum!" he crowed. A beam saber to the shield was his response.
"You act on emotion. That can lead to mistakes on the battlefield, and to your demise." Heero snarled back. He slashed at the Calamity, only to dodge a beam shot from the beam rifle. The shield took the blast with no trouble, but Heero was now on the defensive.
Nisha, seeing this, fired his machine's missiles at the Calamity. The warheads impacted the machine, forcing it away from Wing Zero. Using the opening provided to him, Heero flew at the Calamity and sliced the right arm off.
Orga cried out, making both Nisha and Heero smirk.
"Nice teamwork, eh Heero?" Nisha asked.
"Yes, it was," Heero replied.
The battle raged on across ORB. While the ORB defenders fought valiantly, chipping away at the might of the Earth Forces, they couldn't stand against the numbers of the Earth Alliance forever. Sooner or later, ORB would fall. Lord Uzumi and General Dante grimly watched the battle play out in command room when an officer approached. "Lord Uzumi, General Dante, preparations are complete."
Both men nodded. "Inform our forces, we're abandoning Onogoro." Uzumi ordered. "We're regrouping at Kaguya."
Nisha looked back at the enemy as the ORB forces began to fall back. The Earth Forces were still coming strong, making the retreat almost impossible. Only a machine with high speed would be able to get through so many Daggers without getting harmed. And considering that the Earth Forces were now beginning to block off the retreat route, that was what they needed, not just the Surge.
He growled slightly, frustrated with the way the battle was going. It seemed that there was no way to turn the tide of battle. Suddenly, a golden beam of energy lanced through the air and impacted a Dagger that had been sneaking up on him. The Dagger exploded in a fireball, making Nisha look back in shock.
Flying down from above was a black, white, gold, and blue machine that he knew all too well: the Wing Gundam! He stared in shock as the Wing released several missiles, impacting a wide range and several Daggers all at once. The damaged Daggers either fell to the ground missing limbs or exploded due to massive damage.
The Wing flew around and turned into its mobile suit form, pulling out its golden beam sabers and slicing four Daggers in half as it flew low to the ground. Landing, the machine then opened fire with the missiles once again, hitting three Daggers that tried to avoid the mini-warheads. Two blew up while the third fell to the ground, damaged beyond repair.
Nisha shook his head, finally regaining the ability to speak. "Aki'…?"
"Hey, Nisha." The voice he had never expected to hear again came over the com-line, startling him.
"What are you doing here? Did ZAFT send you?"
A laugh came over the channel. "Man, Nisha! If you can't understand why I am here, then you really are slow!" Aki' replied. "I left ZAFT because they hid the circumstances under which my sister died and did not get my family the justice they deserved. In other words, I defected."
Nisha gasped as he realized what his cousin was saying. "So, you no longer work for them because of that?"
"Well, that and the fact that I would have been killed as a traitor because I was captured by NAZAFT. Apparently Wu claims that all ZAFT pilots captured by NAZAFT are to be treated as traitors and killed as such. So, by leaving ZAFT and joining NAZAFT I saved myself that fate." Aki' replied.
"You work for this NAZAFT now?"
"Yes."
"Are they like ZAFT?" Nisha asked.
Aki' laughed once again, making Nisha raise an eyebrow. "NAZAFT is America's military space arm! The name means No Attack-Zone, America Firma Terra!"
Nisha gasped, shock at the fact that his cousin was now with the United States armed forces filling his body with both relief and fear. Relief at the fact his cousin had seen reason, but fear at his revelation. Even though Nisha was a citizen off the U.S., he still felt fear at the power they held, which was why he was fearful of Aki's new position.
"So, ya need a hand?" Aki' asked.
"Yes, any help would be appreciated." He replied.
Aki' turned the Wing into its fighter form and flew down into a group of Daggers in the air. The NAZAFT pilot opened fire with the wing-mounted Gatling guns, impacting the Daggers. While the bullets did little against the armor, the joints were hit, making a few lose limbs.
A Dagger tried to fire on the Wing, but Aki' pulled hard on the controls, making his machine fly upwards to avoid getting hit. Turning to mobile suit form, Aki' took out one of the Wing's beam sabers and ignited the blade. He then slashed at the Dagger, taking it out in a fireball.
Turning around, he then grabbed another Dagger by the shield and yanked the defensive piece of equipment away. He then ran at another Dagger and impacted the shield against it. The Dagger pushed back against Aki's stolen shield, but the Coordinator used the beam saber to his advantage, slicing off the Dagger's legs. The machine fell to the ground, unable to move forwards.
"Nice, Aki'…" Nisha murmured as he got back to the battle at hand.
Chris grimaced as his machine took another hit. He wouldn't be able to last much longer. And his black double seemed to be able to continue going on for a while yet. How could these machines have that much power? They couldn't be nuclear powered, so then what was giving these machines all this power?
But he was the only one who was not running out of power. Orga noticed that his machine was starting to run low. He went to fire the Calamity's Schlag cannons at the winged machine, but nothing happened. It was then he saw the flashing alarms showing that the energy supply was running dangerously low. "Damn! You stupid mobile suit!" he cursed. "How can you be out of power already?"
"It's 'cause you're firing all over the place dumbass." Clotho jeered.
"Shut up!" Orga shouted back.
"If you're leaving, then go." Clotho smugly said as chased after the Exia. "But you're on your own."
But that momentary distraction was all Chris needed. He drew one of Exia's GN beam sabers and turned around. Clotho narrowly managed to back away from the descending saber. But in the process, Chris's saber sliced through the Raider spherical break, destroying it. Clotho transformed the Raider and fled from the Exia, unaware that its saber deactivated.
"Hey! You're the dumbass!" Orga called out.
Before Clotho could respond, the Calamity jumped onto the back of the Raider.
"Who the hell said you could get on?" Clotho demanded.
"Shut up! We're returning to recharge." Orga responded. "You're low on juice as well. So quit complaining!"
Clotho gritted his teeth and finally steered his mobile suit back towards the carrier, carrying Orga. Kira fired at the Forbidden, which raised its deflector shields again. But this time, the shots hit the shields rather than be deflected. "No more?" Shani said as his power meter read low power.
Kevin roared, firing his Gatling guns and beam cannon at the Freedom. Kira pulled the Freedom up, evading the fire. Suddenly, the Massacre's guns stopped. "Fire! Fire!" Martin howled as the low power alarms went off in his cockpit. "GAAAAAAH!"
Both pilots, seeing no other choice, followed their teammates, heading for the Powell.
Mass Driver Control Room
Kaguya
A Short While Later
"Leave ORB?" Murrue asked. "You're telling us to just run away?"
"I'm sure that you've realized that ORB has already lost." Uzumi grimly replied. "It's only a matter of time before it completely falls."
"What are you saying, father?" Cagalli asked.
Uzumi turned to her. "The citizens have all been evacuated and they'll be taken care of elsewhere. From here on, we will be the ones to take care of the responsibilities." he turned to the rest of the group and continued. "The Earth Forces' present actions are being guided by the leader of Blue Cosmos, Muruta Azrael. To make matters worse, the PLANTs are led by someone who believes Coordinators are a new species, for Hong Fa Wu rules them now. The way things are developing, the world will soon be trapped between two forces that refuse to accept each other's existence. Is this the future you want to see? If you desire a different world, take this small light of hope we've kindled and use it to set a course for a new future. It means a hard road again, but I'm sure you understand why it's necessary, Murrue Ramius."
Murrue nodded. "That light may be small, but it burns brightly. We believe in it as well."
"Then I suggest that you get ready."
Murrue and the rest of the Archangel's bridge crew left the room, returning to the Archangel. Samuel turned from the screen he was staring to the gathered mobile suit pilots. "I suggest you all quickly decide whether you're going with them or not before it's too late."
A Short While Later
Kira, Athrun, Chris, Dearka, Saul, Nisha, Aki', Heero, Liz, and Nicol all stood outside the Mass Driver with their mobile suits. The ZAFT pilots were trying to decide what they were going to do next while Kira and Chris waited to board the Archangel. Nisha and Aki' were getting caught up while Heero stood by himself. Everyone had been shocked at Aki's return, but relieved at the same time. "You know, there is still a chance that Carpentaria will welcome us back. After all, we have been fighting the Earth Forces all this time." Dearka suggested.
Saul snorted. "Bah! We'll probably be labeled as deserters at best and traitors at worst." he said. "I have to admit, it felt good fighting because I wanted to rather than because I was ordered to."
"Then what are you suggesting?"
"Well, maybe we should stay with the Archangel and fight with them."
Athrun absently listened to the discussion. His mind focused on his encounter with Lacus. "She called me a soldier of ZAFT. She knew all along what I had become." He said, interrupting the conversation. "Since this war started, I thought you just had to follow the orders of your nation no matter what and defeat the enemy to bring a quick end to the war. But now…Now I'm just not sure anymore. What is it that we should really be fighting against?"
"Come with us, Athrun." Kira said. "We'll try to find the answers together."
Athrun smiled and looked back at the line of M1s that were boarding the Kusanagi. He knew Kira had a valid point. Maybe together, they could find what they should really be fighting against and bring this war to an end.
The Powell
"They're gathering at Kaguya?"
"Yes, it looks like they're getting ready to make their last stand." Oswald answered.
Azrael smirked. "Attha still is insisting to drag this out to the bitter end. Actually I find this quite amusing. It'll be more satisfying when we crush them all into the dust."
"Director." An officer said. "The machines have been resupplied and are ready. Shall I give the order to launch?"
"Of course, you dolt!" Azrael barked. "Send them out immediately!" Moments later, he watched as the Raider, the Forbidden, the Calamity, and the Massacre took off.
Mass Driver Control Room
"Sir! Incoming mobile suits! It's those four!"
Samuel swore. The Archangel's launch was about to begin. They couldn't let those four interfere. There was only one thing they could to buy time. "Remaining ORB forces. This is General Dante. Those four new Earth Forces machines are heading for the Mass Driver. You must stop them for as long as you can so we can launch the Archangel and the Kusanagi." he said over the comm. "But don't be heroes. Just buy us some time."
"Don't worry sir! We won't let those bastards reach Kaguya!"
He closed the comm line and saluted the men and women he had just sent to their deaths. "Initiate the final launch sequence! Get the Archangel into space now!"
"It's those four again." Kira said as the Freedom and the other mobile suits powered up. "We'll cover your launch, Archangel."
"Dearka, Nicol, Saul, return to the Archangel. Your machines aren't equipped for an aerial battle." Athrun ordered.
"Fine." Deakra grumbled as the three of them headed for the Archangel. "But you guys better watch your backs out there."
"We will."
"You better go too Chris." Kira added. "We may have to make a sudden escape and the Exia may not have the power to make it."
"Right. Just make sure you guys catch the last bus out of here." Chris said, joining the others heading for the Archangel.
"Don't worry. We will." Kira replied as they headed towards the incoming mobile suits.
"Nisha, you had best get on as well. Your machine will not be able to reach orbit, even when on my machine." Aki' instructed his cousin.
"You be careful. I don't want to lose you again." Nisha replied.
"You got it."
Once the last of the mobile suits boarded the Archangel and were secured in its hanger, the ship started its launch. Once it was up in the air, the Archangel fired its Lohengrin cannons, creating a Positronic Interference Effect as it activated the additional boosters from the Kusanagi that had been mounted on the ship, propelling the white warship into the atmosphere.
Inside the control room, Uzumi and Samuel watched the Archangel heading into space. Next to them was Cagalli, pleading with her father. "Father, please! There's no reason for you to stay here! We can escape together!"
Uzumi turned to his daughter. She was wrong. There was one final thing for him to do. "What are you still doing here, Cagalli?" he said, grabbing her arm and started to drag her away from the control room. Samuel followed them. "We have our responsibilities, as you have yours! All will be lost if no one is left to carry out our hopes!"
"The Kusanagi has been fully loaded and all components are configured for launch." one of the members of the government called over the intercom. The facility shook as the battle outside drew closer. At last, Uzumi, Samuel, and his daughter reached the ship as Kisaka waved to them. "Lord Uzumi! General Dante! Cagalli! Hurry!" he called out.
Uzumi shoved Cagalli towards Kisaka, but remained on the platform. "Hurry, Kisaka. And please take care of my foolish daughter."
"No father!" Cagalli pleaded, her eyes watering.
Uzumi looked to her and his hardened expression became softer. He wiped tears that dripped from her eyes. "Stop giving me that look. It doesn't suit the daughter of the Lion of ORB." He said, comforting her. "You may be losing your father, but you won't be alone." He then handed her photo of a young woman cradling two newborns in her arms. "You'll be with your brother."
Cagalli was shocked by what he had just said and looked on the back of the photo. In the lower corner, two names were scribbled on the photo. 'Kira' and 'Cagalli'. She gasped, overwhelmed by this sudden revelation. She looked up at her father, who nodded, confirming the truth of the matter.
Uzumi turned to Samuel. "You as well Samuel." he said to the aging general.
Samuel was visibly stunned by this request. "But-"
"Go. My daughter will need someone to help her and guide her in the years to come."
Samuel sighed and nodded. "It has been a privilege and an honor." he said as they shook hands for the last time.
"Indeed it has. For the both of us."
Samuel turned around and boarded the Kusanagi as well. Uzumi turned to his daughter for the last time and smiled. "I feel very fortunate to have been your father." He did not even see the form behind him.
A THUNK on the back of the neck and small needle prick made Uzumi glance back, his body suddenly weak. He could barely stand up. The one who had hit him was Hali.
"Hali…but…why…" With those few words, he passed out. Lord Uzumi was loaded into the Kusanagi, a stunned Cagalli looking at her father's aid.
"I'm sorry, Uzumi, but your daughter needs you. I cannot allow a family to be torn apart when it is preventable."
At that moment, the hull door was sealed shut, separating them, and the catwalk pulled away. "Go now. Everything rests on you all from here on!" He called before retreating back to the command center.
The Kusanagi's bridge crew performed the final systems check as did those in the Mass Driver Control Room. Everything was ready to go.
"Departure of all personnel except those in Division C is confirmed."
"All systems are a go."
"Launch the Kusanagi." Hali ordered as he reached the control room.
The Mass Driver activated as the Kusanagi's engines ignited. The vessel started to slide across the Driver ramp. Slow at first. But steadily gaining speed as it went. But this did not go unnoticed. The eight mobile suit pilots battling near the Mass Driver noticed it. All four Extended pilots turned to the Kusanagi. They failed to stop the white ship, so they weren't gonna let this one get away. While for Kira, Aki', Heero, and Athrun, it was their last chance to get into space.
All of them headed for the Kusanagi, with the Freedom and the Justice in front. Kira reached the ship first, landing on the Kusanagi and grabbing a hold of its side. Kira turned to Athrun, who was struggling to reach the ship. Kira extended the Freedom's hand to the Justice as the Earth Forces machines started firing at them. But all of their shots went wide, missing the ship and the mobile suits.
Athrun finally managed to grab the Freedom's hand and Kira pulled him in. Once the Justice was secure, both of them turned around to face their attacks and let loose a barrage. The shots hit the water, sending up a huge geyser in the path of the Extended, stopping them.
Aki' landed on the Kusanagi, Heero right beside him. The two joined in on the barrage, which helped to stop the attacks even further.
At that moment, the Kusanagi cleared the ramp, rocketing into the heavens.
Mass Driver Control Room
Lord Halii and most of Orb's government were gathered, watching the Kusanagi fly into space with the Freedom, the Wing, Wing Zero, and the Justice on it. "We've done it. The seeds have flown." Hali said as his hand reached for a single, large red button on the console, his expression hardening. "We can't leave ORB or this world in the hands of those bastards."
His finger pushed the button...
The bombs that had been planted went off. A massive fireball consumed Morgenroete as explosions traveled along ORB's Mass Diver, destroying both and robbing the Alliance of its sole reasons for invading ORB. Aboard the Powell, Azrael watched in horror as everything they had worked for went up in flames. Those damn Biological CPUs had completely failed him! He'd make sure the doctors held off giving them their medicine for half a day at least, as punishment for their failure. He slammed his fists into the armrests of his chair. "Damn you Uzumi Nara Athha!" he screamed.
Aboard the Kusanagi, Cagalli cried out for her father's aid as the fireball consumed the entire Mass Driver facility.
Washington D.C…
President Hilson stared at the news feed, which was showing the Kaguya Mass Driver exploding in a large ball of fire. It had been only one day since they had driven off the Earth Forces attack force, and yet ORB had not had such a success. It had been a loss.
She could only stare in shock at the fireball, wondering if Lord Uzumi even made it out alive. Tears shimmered in her eyes, falling onto her desk. "Uzumi…you…you…couldn't have…"
Images of her family, her father, mother, and adopted brother, came into her mind: Flames leaping about as their charred forms lay on the floor of her house. Her pain, all over her body, searing pain so bad she passed out; the whine of the ambulance, the heart monitor beeping; her cries at losing her family she had loved so very much.
She shook her head, bringing herself out of her shock. There was no denying it, even if she wanted to. Even though the politician in her told her that Lord Uzumi had just been a means to an end, the soldier, the person inside her said otherwise. That part of her told her a person closest to being a friend had been lost.
And she finally let out a primal cry that was one of loss…
7th Fleet
Tao watched the live feed that was being broadcasted from ORB into space. The Mass Driver had been destroyed. Ever since she and her fleet had left Earth for space, she had been following the news feeds being sent up from Earth. And this was just the latest feed she had seen.
"So, ORB blew up their Mass Driver, eh?" Heidi asked.
Tao just looked back at her. "Hey, it does not help that ORB was attacked by the Earth Forces. If anything, they did what they had to do to prevent them from getting it."
Heidi snorted once. "Heh. The Earth Forces tried to gain something the hard way. Reminds me of the Second World War when the Swedish people tricked the Nazis into letting them stay independent. They gained the iron ore, but lost the nation. If the Nazis had conquered the country, they would have gained the country, but lost the ore, due to the Swedes rigging their mines to blow if they were ever invaded. ORB pulled a Sweden here, by blowing up the Mass Driver."
Commander Wolfe just smirked. "A very effective tactic, if you ask me."
"Yeah, considering that ORB is a small island nation, they would have fallen to the Earth Forces anyway. So, by destroying the one thing that the Earth Alliance wanted more than anything, it became a hollow victory."
Tao smirked in response. "Very true."
Commander Wolfe looked back at the feed again. "I heard that there was a second attack taking place at the same time, in some nation known as the United States."
Tao looked at her fellow commander in shock, Heidi also stunned. Both females could hardly believe it. Aisha, her communications officer, was also in surprise. "W-w-what?"
"You heard me. The nation known as the United States was also attacked." Commander Wolfe replied.
Shock filled Tao's body as she began to shake. Her homeland-no, her country, her home NATION- had been attacked?! The Earth Forces had attacked the UNITED STATES?! She began to feel weak, slipping back into her seat.
"The United States…was attacked?!"
Commander Wolfe nodded, confirming Tao's worst fears. She felt limp, unable to move. "No…there is no way…they can't have fallen…"
"Well, ZAFT is saying that they did."
Tears began to well up in the commander's eyes, her feelings of discomfort becoming more pronounced. Heidi then spoke up. "Well, if NASA really did fall, then why is their flag still flying, and why are the Earth Forces leaving with fewer mobile suits than when they arrived?"
Tao looked up, disbelief on her face. "Huh?"
Heidi just spoke again. "NASA could not have fallen. Only a small nation like ORB would have fallen so soon. The United States is a big nation, not to mention they have more power than anyone else."
Tao realized Heidi was right. "The U.S…it does have more power than any other nation! There is no way that they could have fallen. It's just not possible!"
Looking back at the PLANT homeland, Tao felt disgust. "If ZAFT wants to claim that even the United States is weak, then I feel that we don't belong here."
Heidi nodded. "I agree. After Panama, there is no way that I will continue to serve with such nutjobs."
Commander Wolfe also agreed. "Yes. If this is the road ZAFT wants to take, then we should leave."
"Then it is agreed. We will defect from ZAFT." Tao ordered. "Head towards New Juneau! We have a nation to defend!"
The Battle of ORB ends with the retreat of everyone vital, and that includes Lord Uzumi and now Akira, who arrives to aid in the battle. As ORB falls, the 7th Fleet prepares to defect. What will happen next? Read on to find out what happens next~! :3
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