New chapter is up is up! Note: I do not own Chris, Liz, or Johanna Dante, Ian, Saul, or Diana Kessel, John Alaric, the 11th Fleet, Treize Zabiarov, Gyunei Ridden, Reccoa Schnieder, or the machines listed for the remaining members of the Le Creuset team, as they are Akatsuki_Leader13's and are used with his permission as such. I also do not own Xander Alexis, as he belongs to Mordalfus Grae. Nor do I own Matrin Nightengale, as he is Meteorthunder3's OC. I only own Tao White, Akira, Nishikama, Nisha and Taikyu Itsuno, Preisdent Marie Hilson, Gai Tatsuni, NASA/NAZAFT, the Presidential Murasame, the Raptor, the Dax, Wing, Traverse, and Z.A.M. Gundams, and the colony of New Juneau.
KentLinuxStadfelt: Yes, yes, it is.
CT7567Rules: I will try to work in the wedding, but we will see.
BnK - Inconsistent Guest: You obviously won't stick with a single guest name, so I will just call you 'inconsistent guest' from now on.
Just a Crazy Man: Next arc begins now. :3
A0930: Trust me, Heero has his reasons, and no it is not for any reasons that are bad. You will see down the road as the story goes on.
Note to all readers: I am going to ask those who have an account to sign in and 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 and 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 do not have an account, then feel free to leave a review anyway. Just no outright hatred of the story please.
Cosmic Era 72. One and half years of grim war between Earth and PLANTs ended following the space battle at Jachin Due. The two sides forged a peace treaty amid the ruins of Junius Seven, a place of unprecedented tragedy during the war. The former enemies pledged themselves to work for mutual understanding and to make every effort possible to maintain peace. As a result, the world is once more on the path of stability.
Phase One: Angry Eyes
A family of four ran through the woods, trying to reach the boats that were evacuating the civilians of ORB. Shinn Asuka looked up at the mobile suits fighting above them. The white one and light blue one were shrugging against the other four. Shinn really wasn't sure which ones were fighting for ORB and which ones were with the Earth Forces.
Suddenly, the light blue one and the black one, which had transformed into a bird-like mode, raced dangerously close overhead, forcing Shinn and his family to brace themselves as a strong gust of wind slammed into them.
"My phone!" Mayu cried out as her phone flew out of her pocket and fell down the side of the hit.
Mayu headed for her cell phone, but their mother grabbed her arm. "Forget about it. We have to go Mayu."
"But my phone!"
"Don't worry. I'll get it." Shinn said, running down the side of the hill.
Shinn had found Mayu's phone and picked it up when he heard Mayu scream. He ran up the hill, only for his father to slam into him, tossing him down the rest of the hill. By some small miracle, the only injuries he had sustain were some scrapes and bruises, and having the wind knocked out of him. He slowly got to his feet, still clutching Mayu's cell phone. "Mom! Dad! Where are you? Mayu!" Shinn called out, as started to search for his family. "Mom! Dad! Ma-"
He looked over, only to see his father and mother running towards him wih Mayu. Earth Alliance officers were behind them. "Oh no! MAYU!" he cried. Running towards them, Shinn was more than anxious for his family's sake.
An Earth Forces soldier fired on his family, hitting his mother in the back. Shinn was staring in shock and horror as she fell, dead from shattered lungs. "No…Mom…Mom! MMMOOOMMM!"
His father ran towards Shinn, his sister in their father's grasp. "We're almost there. Just hang on, Mayu!" their father exclaimed.
"Come on. The boat will be leaving soon." An ORB officer said, half dragging Shinn to the boat.
As they left for the boat, Shinn looked back. His father ran towards Shinn, his sister in their father's grasp. "We're almost there. Just hang on, Mayu!" their father exclaimed.
But before the duo could reach the boat, the Earth Forces got them first. Their father was grabbed, unable to fight off the trained soldiers. "MAYU! Just keep going!" he cried, Mayu already heeding his words.
Shinn reached out just as the boat began to pull away. "Mayu!" he cried. Mayu saw this and ran for her brother. "Shinn!"
The two siblings reached out their hands, hoping to make contact. Her hand was so close to Shinn's as the boat began to move faster. The end of the dock was getting closer, but so was Mayu. Then, the Earth Forces shattered the moment. Mayu cried out as she was pulled back from her brother by the enemy.
"Mayu!" Shinn cried. But it was too late. The boat was out of range and too far from the dock. His sister looked back in his direction, a plea for help visible on her face. "SHINN!"
"MMMAAAYYYUUU!"
Shinn shot up from his bed, breathing heavily. The nightmare had returned again. He hated it. He hated reliving that moment, the moment that his family had been taken from him, because of the stubborn ORB government and the Atthas for not surrendering to the Earth Forces, even though they allowed him and the others to get away to safety, because of the Earth Alliance for attacking his former home.
"Shinn... Shinn, what's wrong?" Shinn's roommate, Rey asked as he yawned.
"Nothing. Just a bad dream. Go back to sleep."
Rey didn't say anything and returned to sleep. Shinn reached out to his dresser, slowly opening a drawer. He reached in and pulled out Mayu's pink cellphone. He held it closely. He would have played Mayu's call back message, but he didn't want to wake Rey. So he just lay there, holding the phone until he fell asleep.
Armory One Spaceport
October 2, C.E. 73
Cagalli Yula Attha, Uzumi Nara Attha, Athrun Zala and Flay Allster moved through the corridor from their shuttle, heading into the spaceport terminal. "Are you sure that outfit is appropriate?" Athrun asked. "Tell me you at least brought a dress."
"Why does it matter what I'm wearing?" Cagalli replied, clad in the standard attire of an ORB Government official. "Isn't this fine?"
"For a situation like this, a little bit of acting never hurts." he replied. "You know this. Don't try to be someone you're not. You don't want them to think you're an amateur. Though is an unofficial visit, never forget that you are now a ruler of ORB."
"Lighten up a little." Flay said. "We're just here asking some questions about the ORB refugees from the war and our technology they're using."
"Well, I still rule ORB, so that means that Cagalli is not the ruler just yet." Lord Uzumi reminded Athrun, who just flinched slightly.
Flay paused for a moment. She noticed something unusual. She glanced out the corridor window at the spaceport terminal below. Her eyes were drawn to a group of four. A ditzy-looking blond haired girl, a younger boy with blue hair, and an older green haired male, briefly drew her attention. But it was the fourth that she herself drawn to. He wore a black trench-coat with a high collar, obscuring the lower half of his face. A pair of sunglasses further masked his face. Making it impossible for her to determine what he looked like or how old he was. He had white hair of about medium length. But it was wild, like he cared nothing for his appearance. Something about him unsettled her. He had an aura of violence and something else she could barely pick up. But she couldn't identify it.
The white haired person suddenly glanced around, looking for someone. Had he sensed her? Flay wasn't sure and after a moment, he stopped searching, having not spotted her.
Flay's hand reached up around her neck, grabbing a locket that rested next to a dog tag. It was simple silver locket. Inside it was a picture of her son Alexander, taken shortly after his birth, and a picture of Alexander's father, Chris Dante, who fought during the final battle of the war.
After Alexander had been born, something had changed in Flay, more than just the emergence of her maternal instincts. It was an awareness that she had never had before, the same as Kira's., though nowhere as strong as his.
And Flay had taken the job of one of Cagalli's assistants after Alex had been born. She didn't need the money she was paid. Her family had been wealthy enough that she could have lived out her life comfortably. But the spoiled girl she had been died a long time ago. Now all she cared about was protecting her son. As a result, she learned to fight, to shoot and to pilot a mobile suit.
"Are you alright Flay?" Athrun asked, jarring her from her thoughts.
"Yeah. I'm fine. Just lost in thought for a moment there."
They soon reached one of the large lifts that would take them into the heart of the colony. There waiting for them was Ian Kessel, the National Defense Committee Chairman of ZAFT. "Hello. It's been awhile." he greeted.
"Hello National Defense Committee Chairman Kessel." Cagalli replied.
"Please Cagalli, just Ian. How have you all been?"
"I've been good." Lord Uzumi replied.
"Fine." Athrun answered. "How are Saul and the others?"
"Saul's been working as a programmer at one of the PLANTs' largest technology firms, IDB. As for Nicol, he's still performing his concerts and has been something of a celebrity. Though nowhere near as big as Lacus. Yzak's now one of the Commanders of the 11th Fleet. And of course, Dearka's still his right hand man." Ian said, turning to the window of the elevator. "But that's not why you're here, is it?"
Athrun shook his head. "No."
"You're here about the ORB refugees from the war and the tech we've gained from ORB." Ian sighed. "Personally, I don't like this whole affair. It's complicated and there's no clear cut right and wrong here. On the one hand, we're basically stealing ORB tech. But on the other, they're ORB citizens that have chosen to live in the PLANTs and need to earn a living with the skills they have. It's a mess. Worse, the Chairman has handled it poorly." Ian turned to Cagalli. "But maybe you and the Chairman can come to an agreement about this."
"What's your impression of Chairman Durandal?" Cagalli asked.
"He's complicated. But he's a good man, brilliant, driven and passionate." Ian said. "However, the man has a silver tongue. So be careful when dealing with him."
A ZAFT Hanger
Crews were rushing to finish the remaining Second Stage Gundams. While the Impulse had been finished the day before and loaded onto the Minerva. The remaining four units were being finished up and prepared to be loaded onto the Minerva. If the crews would ever manage to hurry up and finish the suits up.
"Come on! The Minerva is supposed to be launching tomorrow! Let's hurry up and get the Specter and the other machines ready for transport to the Minerva!" Suiren Kyusai shouted.
She put a hand through her blond hair. At the rate they were going, those mobile suits wouldn't be ready until next week. The mobile suit team of the Minerva was supposed to be her first command. And she would not have it ruined because the crews couldn't get their asses in gear and get these machines ready for transport.
She turned to her own machine, the ZGMF-X44S Specter. It was a beauty. She knew everyone was going on about the Impulse as the top of the line mobile suit of the new series. But personally she preferred her Specter.
One of the technicians approached her with a handheld computer. "We've finished updating the programming. But you should get in the cockpit and check it over."
Suiren nodded, heading for her machine. She climbed into her machine and pulled out the keyboard. She started typing away, her mismatched green and red eyes scanning the screen before her.
The Minerva
"Well...I'll raise." Dale Helbrecht said, adding chips to the pile.
"I'm out. This is getting too rich for me." Shawn Anderson said.
Tristan Palleon put a hand through his slicked back blond hair. Tristan had aristocratic features, making him quite pleasing to the eye. Something his fellow Green Coats regularly joked about. Often calling him 'Pretty Boy Palleon' and the future poster boy of ZAFT's military. While he came from a wealthy family, Tristan was about as far as one could get from the rich spoiled upper class types, one of the reasons why he was a Green Coat and not a higher ranked officer. He wished to earn his rank on his merits, not because of his family's reputation. His green eyes stared at Dale for a moment, then at his cards, then back at Dale. Dale's poker face was too good. "I fold." he said.
Hiro Yukai glanced at his cards. The brown haired and blue eyed young man had earned a less than pleasant reputation at the Academy. Prone to being emotionless and almost never trusting anyone, he was never the less an excellent pilot, more than worthy of being a Red Coat, which he graduated as. Some say that the instructors hated him so much that they tried to purposely lower his marks, though others say it was because they were afraid of giving a higher rank to someone with no past. Regardless, Hiro was fiercely loyal to those few people he called friend. Hiro grunted. "You're bluffing. I call." he said, placing his hand on the table.
Two nines and two jacks. Two pair.
Dale grinned. "Not this time." he said, laying his hand on the table.
Four kings. Four of a kind.
Hiro let out an annoyed grunt and slapped his forehead as Dale grabbed the pile and added it to his own, already large pile. "I'm going break that poker face of yours." Hiro said. "Just you wait. I'll get all those winnings back."
Dale chuckled. "Just you try, my friend. Just you try."
"Ah, Princess, Lord Uzumi. Welcome." Durandal politely said, greeting Cagalli, her father and their entourage. "I apologize for having to have you come all the way here."
"I should be the one to apologize for making you take time out of your busy schedule to meet with me, Chairman Durandal." Lord Uzumi said as the two shook hands.
"How are things in your country?" Durandal asked as the group of them moved towards the couches in the room. "I understand that ever since you've become their Chief Representative, many of the problems that ORB has been experiencing since the war, have been resolved. As the head of a friendly nation, I am happy for you. And a little envious."
"I still have a lot to learn." Cagalli admitted, taking her seat as her father took his.
"Now. What could this urgent matter be, that would require you to come here in secret?" Durandal asked, ending the small talk. "From what I've heard from our ambassadors, it's a complicated matter that you wish to discuss. Am I correct?"
"It doesn't seem to be a complicated matter to me. But we've yet to receive a clear response from you administration on this matter." Lord Uzumi answered. "My nation has made repeated requests that you cease the use of ORB's technology and human resources for your own military purposes."
The Girty Lue
The two remaining Third Generation Extended waited in the pilot's lounge with the two EA officers that were assigned to them as well. All were clad in their flightsuits.
Xander Alexis looked around, his red eyes scanning the group he was with. Having grown up in NASA, mainly Canada, he hated Coordinators and those who worked to protect them. His mother was convicted of having killed his father 7 years ago, and got life in prison for her deed. As a result, he hated those who protected the space monsters. He loved to kill Coordinators, no matter who they were, which was probably why he had been assigned the Verde Buster as his mobile suit. With its firepower, he could wipe out many Coordinators.
Gai Tatsuni sat bored as he waited for the mission to begin. His red hair hid his brown eyes somewhat, and he had a scar on his face that was right on his right cheek. He had no real past or any memories of his previous life, just that he had been nearly killed by Coordinators, or so he was told.
The next male of group, Gyunei Ridden, sat impatiently next to the door. His flightsuit was red and black. He had short dark brown hair and red eyes. Like Gai, he always craved action. He hated to be sitting around doing nothing. It drove him nuts, making him dangerous to be around at times. But never the less, he was a deadly pilot in combat.
Rounding out the group was a lone girl. Reccoa Schnyder was a cold and focused girl, clad in a dark blue and black flightsuit. Her white hair was cut short. She rarely displayed emotions. Like all of them, she followed orders to the letter. She commanded the team in the field whenever Treize was unable to.
There was something unusual about the Extended. All of them wore cloth masks, matching their flightsuits, over their faces. It was due to a glitch in their programming that the doctors had yet to solve. If they saw their face uncovered, they descended into a violent insanity. Attacking anyone and anything they could see, including themselves.
"Attention. Pilots report to your mobile suits for preparation to sortie." a voice over the intercom said.
"Finally!" Gyunei grumbled, jumping to his feet as Xander stopped pacing. "It's almost time to begin."
The Extended reached for devices strapped to their left wrists. They were connected to devices on their chests that pumped a cocktail of combat drugs and the drugs responsible for maintaining them, directly into their bodies. Pushing a button on the watch-like device, they increased the feed of combat drugs into their systems. They then grabbed their helmets and headed for the hanger.
Armory One
Their talks didn't seem to be going anywhere. So Durandal had decided to continue them as they toured the Armory One Base. As Cagalli, Lord Uzumi, and Durandal talked, Athrun couldn't help but notice the large number of new mobile suits, including brand new ZAKUs. He couldn't help but wonder how close ZAFT was to violating the Treaty of Junius Seven.
"You, Representative, are a courageous woman. You fought in a mobile suit during the last war." Durandal complimented. "And you are also the successor to the Lion of Orb, Lord Uzumi. The man who holds onto his country's ideal until the very end, without giving in to pressure. What do you believe we should do with the condition the world is in now? I'm sure you already know the answer."
"We will protect our nation and our ideals. It's as simple as that." Cagalli replied.
"We will not attack another nation, will not allow another nation to attack us, and will not intervene in the conflicts of other nations, correct?"
Lord Uzumi nodded his head. "Yes."
"Naturally, we feel the same way. If possible, that would be the best way. But it is not possible without power. Even you, Princess...No, you of all people should understand that best. Isn't that why ORB maintains full military facilities?"
"Please do me a favor and stop calling me Princess."
"Representative Attha. Forgive me." he said with a slight bow. "However, I must wonder, what are you afraid of? Is it because of the pressure from the Advanced European Union? They believe that ORB is providing military aid to us regardless of the treaty."
Cagalli clenched her fist. The relations between ORB and the AEU had reached a delicate stage. She had hoped that she could convince Durandal to stop using ORB technology for military purposes, which would get the AEU off their back.
"But it is no truth to that." Durandal continued. "Although we did welcome refugees from the Battle of ORB, it's only natural that those people would wish to make a living here with the skills they have."
"But excessive power will only bring about more conflicts!" Cagalli argued.
"No Princess. Power is necessary because there will always be conflict."
Cagalli opened her mouth to say something when the base's alarms suddenly went off.
A FAITH operative and a ZAFT soldier had picked up them at designated meeting spot. They were taking them to the hanger with the mobile suits they going to steal. Treize Zabiarov didn't like it. They were supposed to trust these filthy Coordinators when they were betraying their own people. Who's to say they won't betray them? If it were up to him, he'd put a bullet in both their heads. But it wasn't.
He didn't like that FAITH operative. There was something about the man that he hated, something beyond just being a Coordinator. It was like that feeling he had in spaceport.
The FAITH operative opened a side door to the hanger. The ZAFT soldier unzipped the bag and passed out the weapons inside. Sting and Auel armed themselves with a pair of submachine guns, while Stella took a knife and a ZAFT handgun with an extended clip. Treize grabbed a submachine gun and several grenades. He also touched his wristwatch, increasing his combat drugs.
"I believe you know what to do." the FAITH operative said.
A grin spread across Treize's face. They knew. And personally, he was going to enjoy this. "We know what to do." he said. "If you don't want the same fate, leave."
"Very well then. Get to it." the FAITH operative said, before the two ZAFT soldiers left.
"For the preservation of our blue and pure world!" Treize shouted, throwing a grenade.
The FAITH operative and his comrade returned to their jeep. "I wonder. What did those men and women that loaded the nuclear warhead that would spark the Bloody Valentine War thought just before they fired it?" the FAITH operative mused as he sat down in the jeep. "Did they know they were going to start a war that nearly destroyed everything? Or did they realize that they were just parts in the never ending machine of war? And that no matter what they did, war would come."
"I do not know sir." the soldier replied.
The operative chuckled as the jeep sped off. "No one does. They died in the battle. Though I do know what Sato and his soldiers are thinking. Deep down they know they are gears in the machinery. They know they will bring about another war. And they want it. Tell me, who do you think will win the war?"
"Durandal sir." the soldier replied. "Durandal's plan is nearly flawless."
"Perhaps, though I feel that the Clyne Faction will surprise us all. Lacus Clyne is someone that should not be underestimated. Wu, Azrael, and Creuset did. And ended up losing to them." he said. "If they should win, the fools will not do anything to change the world. They will maintain the status quo, which will only bring about more wars. Because of that stupidity, I truly despise that group. They could have changed everything after the last war. Instead, they did nothing and let the world side back to its path of war. But we shall shatter the machine known as war, even if it takes a war to do so."
"Everything checks out." Suiren said to one of the technicians.
Suddenly, she grabbed her head. She felt something... Something wrong. Her eyes widened. "Intruders!" she shouted.
"For the preservation of our blue and pure world!"
A grenade landed next to a group of workers. Before they could run, it exploded. Four armed people rushed into the hanger, firing on the ZAFT soldiers and workers. The ZAFT soldiers and workers never stood a chance. The four were fast, brutal and efficient. Stella leapt into the air as String and Auel fired on the Coordinators. Auel gunned down a pair of armed soldiers atop one of the mobile suits. Stella landed, slashing one soldier's throat and shooting several others. One soldier rushed to the alarm. But before he could reach it, bullets tore through his legs and he fell to the ground. Suiren swore as she ducked behind the Specter's leg.
A soldier rushed over to her position, firing his assault rifle as he ran. "Here." he said, handing her his sidearm.
The two inched over to the edge of the Specter's foot. A moment later, the two moved from their cover and fired their fire arms, the soldier crouching down, Suiren firing above him. But Treize fired as they moved around the corner. Hitting the soldier in the head and forcing Suiren to duck behind her cover again.
"You bastard!" Suiren shouted as more ZAFT personnel died around her. "You murdering terrorists! I don't why you're doing this or what the hell you believe in but you'll never get away with this!"
"Terrorists? This isn't about fear. Nor are we terrorists. We're soldiers." Treize replied, approaching the Specter. "As to what I believe in. I believe that every one of you filthy Patchworkers must be cast out into the void of space!"
Treize rolled past the Specter's foot, his gun locked on the area where Suiren had been standing. But she wasn't there. He cautiously took a step forward, searching for her. Suddenly, Suiren jumped down from the Specter's leg, landing of Treize, knocking him to the ground. Suiren tried to pin him to the ground. But to her surprise, Treize slowly started to get to his feet with her still on top of him. She pulled out the handgun she had tucked into her belt. "Stop or I'll-"
Treize slammed his elbow into her stomach, knocking her off his back. Suiren crashed to ground, dropping her gun. Treize grabbed his weapon and pointed it at her. He smirked. Treize fired off a burst at her, killing her by a shot in the head.
Suddenly, a wounded ZAFT soldier hit an alarm. Treize turned to the man and gunned him down. But it was too late for Suiren.
"Get into the machines." Treize ordered, climbing onto one of the four machines. "Deactivate the self-destruct first."
Treize climbed into the cockpit of his machine, removing his sunglasses and replaced them with his black and red cloth mask, momentarily revealing his mismatched eyes. He activated the mobile suit. The black screens in the cockpit lit up.
MOBILE SUIT NEO OPERATION SYSTEM
Generation
Unrestricted
Network
Drive
Assault
Module
G.U.N.D.A.M
_Ver.2.5.3 Rev.07_
Z.A.F.T
Treize quickly deactivated the mobile suit's self-destruct as his team mates did the same. One by one, the Specter, the Gaia, the Chaos and the Abyss rose to their feet.
A ZAFT soldier reached the outside of the hanger. Confusion was reining among the ZAFT personnel in the base. "Intruders!" the man screamed, trying to warn everyone. "I think they're trying to steal the new machines!"
A moment later, the hanger exploded. The force of the blast threw her to ground. Emerging from the flaming wreckage was the Specter, the Gaia, the Chaos and the Abyss. "Go. Destroy the mobile suits before the pilots can get in them." Treize ordered.
The four mobile suits fired on the nearby hangers, destroying them. Many mobile suits were destroyed in an instant, along with dozens of ZAFT personnel.
Durandal, Cagalli, Lord Uzumi, and everyone else could only watch in horror as the hangers exploded. Athrun and Flay pulled Cagalli and Lord Uzumi to the ground as a group of ZAFT soldiers did the same for Chairman Durandal. Shielding them from the force of the blast and flying debris.
"It's the new models! Someone's stolen them!" a soldier shouted.
"Scramble all mobile suits! We need to recapture them!"
"New models?" Cagalli asked as she and everyone else climbed back to their feet.
At that moment, she got her answer. The Abyss appeared, firing its cannons at a hanger, destroying the mobile suits inside.
"That's a..." Cagalli stammered.
"Gundam..." Athrun finished.
GuAIZ Rs and old GINNs rushed to intercept the stolen machines. But many were quickly shot down by these new mobile suits. Treize fired the fired the Specter's beam revolvers at a wing of DINNs, shooting down the airborne mobile suits before they could get a shot off. The Gaia, in its mobile armor mode, ran between the rows of hangers and warehouses, firing at the buildings and mobile suits. The Chaos gunned down a pair of GuAIZ Rs and a GAZuOOT.
"Quickly. Get the Princess and Lord Uzumi to a shelter." Durandal ordered.
A soldier nodded. "This way." he said to Cagalli and her group.
They raced towards the shelters. But as they ran behind a hanger, Flay tripped. Athrun, Lord Uzumi, and Cagalli both stopped to help her, when at that moment, there was an explosion. The hanger had sheltered the three from the blast, but their guide hadn't been so lucky. He had been caught in the blast and killed.
Overhead, a DINN fired on the Gaia, but missed. Allowing the Gaia to leap into the air and slice the mobile suit in two. The DINN's upper half crashed into a nearby hanger. It exploded, tossing a ZAKU Warrior to the ground.
Athrun, who was holding Cagalli tightly, knew they weren't going to survive out in the open like this. There was only one option. "Come on!" he said, pulling Cagalli towards the ZAKU.
The quad quickly climbed into the green mobile suit. Athrun was at the controls, as he was the only one that could pilot the ZAKU with its Coordinator OS, while Cagalli and Flay were on either side of him with Lord Uzumi behind the seat. Athrun powered up the ZAKU and it rose to its feet. "Hold on. This is going to get rough." he warned.
It didn't take long for Stella to spot them. She fired at the ZAKU. But Athrun nimbly dodged her shots and tackled the Gaia, ramming the ZAKU's shield into it. The Gaia stumbled back, losing its rifle in the process. Stella drew a beam saber as Athrun drew the ZAKU's beam tomahawk. The two clashed, hitting the other's shield. Stella knocked Athrun back and lunged at him. However, Athrun dodged her swing and slammed his shield into her again. As Stella stumbled back, Sting landed behind the ZAKU, a beam saber drawn. He rushed the ZAKU, hoping to catch Athrun off guard. Athrun spun, trying to raise his shield in time. But he wasn't fast enough and the Chaos sliced through the ZAKU's left forearm.
Suddenly, several missiles hit the Chaos's back. Everyone turned to the newcomer. It was a small fighter. It flew past them, the legs and upper body of a mobile suit following close behind. To everyone's surprise. The fighter folded up and docked with the legs and then docked with the upper body, becoming a whole mobile suit. Then a third flier appeared before it attached itself to the machine's back, mounting a pair of anti-ship swords on the mobile suit. The red and white phase shift activated and the suit landed before them.
"Why is this happening?" Shinn Asuka asked. "Are trying to start another one? Another war?!"
Hiro Yukai was running to a secluded hanger, his teammates unaware of where he was going. He yanked out a special access card and swiped it through the reader. The doors slid open, revealing a mobile-armor-like shape.
The Red Coat ran over to it and hopped in the open cockpit. The hatch closed as he powered up the machine. Twin green optics flared to life as the machine turned from its mobile armor form to its original mobile suit form.
Outside the hanger, the battle had just begun to rage when the doors were blown open. A machine stepped out into the light as the doors smoked. The new machine had a blue chest with a green orb in the center, a V-shaped chevron, white arms and legs with red feet bottoms, and a red and white shield. In its right hand was the infamous Twin Buster Rifle. Cagalli gasped as she recognized the machine, as did Athrun and Flay. Lord Uzumi was also in shock.
"That's…" Cagalli whispered.
"Wing Zero…" Athrun murmured.
"The Berserker of JOSH-A…" Lord Uzumi muttered.
"Heero…" Flay murmured.
The twin wings were revealed on the back as the engines opened up, the thrust pushing Wing Zero into the air.
"Heero Yuy in Wing Zero, this is Athrun Zala. Do you read me?" Athrun tried to raise the pilot of the legendary machine on the radio.
Silence came in for a few seconds before a familiar face came on the screen. "I read you." He said in that emotionless tone that the four knew all too well. "I did not expect you to have arrived in the PLANTs after that defection stunt you pulled."
Athrun just rubbed his head in an embarrassed manner.
Washington D.C.
President Marie Hilson looked over the new machine she had received only a few days prior from an ORB ship that had arrived off the coast of the United States.
The new machine was a Murasame if she recalled correctly. But if the specs were right, then the cockpit would allow her to escape from the inside instead of relying on help from the outside. That would be useful if she was to ever get involved in combat anyway.
Her eyes gazed at the machine, which was red, white, and blue. And unlike the normal Murasame, the cockpit was reinforced as well, giving her a higher chance of survival than normal.
The U.S. president could only smile at the gift Lord Uzumi had sent her as his way of saying thanks when it came to protecting the ORB refugees that were being chased by the Earth Forces. It was the least that NASA could do for ORB, given that the two nations were allies after all.
New Juneau
Akira drifted into the main hub of the colony, his hair flowing out from behind him as he made his way to the center of the PLANT.
All around him, he could see other NAZAFT officers working on machines, the ICBM launchers, the missiles themselves, and the newest ship class, the Liberty class ships.
Many Naturals and Coordinators were working hard at their jobs, but to the people who lived in the colony, they were all humans, not Naturals or Coordinators. They never saw genetic classes or divisions, which was how the rest of the U.S. saw the two groups as well.
Akira just sighed as he pushed off of the colony's floor and headed into a hanger, where his machine was being serviced. Looking up at the Wing, Aki' could see the past battles he fought in his mind. Tears came to his mind as he recalled his cousin Nisha's machine blowing up in space in front of him. Unconsciously, he reached up and touched the scar he had across his left eye, a reminder of that battle and what he lost.
He clenched his fist that was holding the necklace that his sister had given him so long ago, sadness and frustration rising within him. He had been unable to get back at the AEU for what they did to her, even when he had left ZAFT two years ago.
Akira looked up at the Wing once more, just hoping for any chance to get back at Blue Cosmos/LOGOs for what they had done to his family all those years ago.
Tao glanced back at where the workers were welding am armored plate into place. Soon, her new ship would be complete and would see action. It was not too long now. She smirked, thinking about how the EA would react to a ship that they could not see unless they got in a lucky shot. That would be sure to surprise them, that were for sure.
She sighed before looking back at where the colony's hanger opened into space. If it ever came down to it, she would be able to deploy at a moment's notice. Still, the chances of that happening were slim given who ran the PLANTs now.
The new Chairman, Durandal, seemed to be a nice guy, and he appeared to have the best interest of the PLANTs at heart. While that was good, his tendency to have a silver tongue really disturbed her.
Tao knew that anyone who had such a good skill at speaking had to be watched, even if it was not what it seemed to be.
That she much she knew from experience alone…
NASA missile silos
Former ZAFT engineers entered the first missile silo they came across, unaware that it was already in use. The first engineer looked around, spotting tools on the floor as well as open missile warheads.
"Well, it seems that this one is already in use." He mused as his eyes locked onto a computer that was on, but locked.
"Can you hack it?" another engineer asked, her voice a bit shaky from what they were about to do. Her companion grinned.
"Of course I can. This is a Natural-based firewall. I can hack it in no time." He bragged.
"Then I would not even try it." A voice echoed. The two engineers looked around before seeing a whole group of scientists and engineers as well as soldiers emerge from the darkness that hid the rest of the missile stockpile.
"What?! How did…How can this place even be used still?!" the first ZAFT engineer stammered out.
"This is our missile silo, so we have continuous access to it as well as the rest of the silos in the nation." The male Natural in front replied.
"We just want to work for you!" the female ZAFT engineer replied.
The male Natural just grunted once. "Yeah, right."
With that, both ZAFT officers ran out when they saw the soldiers aiming guns at them.
"Contact the president and tell her that we had two ZAFT engineers sneak into one of our silos. This cannot be good."
"Yes, sir…"
Pentagon
Defense Secretary John Keller looked over the data of the missiles that were now completed. The project was now complete.
He smiled to himself, glad that the NJCs had finally paid off. Now NASA had its whole nuclear arsenal back, and the EA couldn't do anything about it.
The Natural leaned back in his chair, pleased with what the nation had pulled off. They had done what most had said they could not do, and now NASA had the right to rub their faces in it. It was at that point the door slid open to reveal a contractor from the AEU.
Keller frowned at the sight of the man. He had read the man's profile and he was a member of Blue Cosmos/LOGOs. He was no doubt there for the NJC mineral that NASA had access to.
"Ah. Defense Secretary Keller. What a nice surprise." The man gushed. Keller just glared at him. "I suppose you know why I am here?"
"No, why?" Keller asked, playing dumb.
"I am here to see if you could give us some of the mineral that is needed to make the NJCs work. You have a large amount of it, and I believe that you would be more than willing to hand it over. After all, with such a large amount, surely you would not be as affected as others claim?" the other man purred.
'Of course. Typical of Blue Cosmos. Always wanting some means to try and wipe out Coordinators.' Keller thought as he formulated his response.
"I'm sorry to say this, but no. We can't just hand over the mineral to anyone who wants it. You see, there is a very strict ruling that we have in place, and anyone who wants the mineral have to undergo a background check, and most of those who undergo the check are found to have connections to groups that hate Coordinators and vice versa." He replied. 'Of course, most of those who want the mineral are of Blue Cosmos membership and/or supporters, so that would explain why no one has ever obtained the mineral, even though several NJCs were stolen in the last war.' He added mentally. Like he was going to say it anyway…
The man just frowned before speaking again. "Well, surely you could spare just a little bit then?"
"NO!" Keller shouted back. "I read your profile, and you are just like the rest of those Blue Cosmos/LOGOs supporters and members! You just want the mineral to make NJCs to install on your missiles that you have left and fire those at the PLANTs!"
The man just stared before gulping and shakily speaking. "W-well, y-y-you s-s-see…"
"GET OUT!" Keller yelled at the top of his lungs, making the defense contractor from the AEU run out, crying like a little girl.
"Hmph…what wimps those guys are…" Keller growled as he sat down at his desk.
The man just sighed and put his head down on his desk. Those guys were a real pain…
Just how would they be able to try and unite the world if the AEU and the rest of the Earth Alliance followed Blue Cosmos?
White House
President Hilson looked over the reports that she had been handed by an aide.
The first mentioned the infiltration by two former ZAFT engineers while the second was a report on the most recent attempt to obtain the mineral needed for the NJCs, although some had recently been stolen by the AEU anyway.
"So they tried the legal method to cover up their theft they pulled off…" she mused as she set the reports down.
Looking back at the massive American flag flying outside the White House, she could only sigh and shake her head at the moves of the AEU and Blue Cosmos/LOGOs.
'Why must they always attack Coordinators? And why do they hate them so much to the point of nearly wiping out the PLANTs two years ago?' she wondered.
She knew that it was human nature to be afraid of things that were not known of, but Coordinators were human too. That did not mean that they were aliens from another world, like oh say, Mars, did it? No, it didn't. They were from Earth just as Naturals were.
The president could not help but smirk at the thought. Coordinators and Naturals were alike in more ways than they even knew. Yet both tried to deny it. Naturals tried to claim that they were far different from Coordinators because Coordinators were 'manufactured' so to speak, while Coordinators tried to claim that Naturals were far less intelligent than they were, and that the normal humans were only cavemen to be studied. And yet, both were far more alike than they liked to admit, even in NASA.
Coordinators and Naturals in NASA knew that they both were the same, even if they were different genetically. And that was what made NASA the ideal place for Coordinators to live, even if it was not perfect.
The AEU liked to call NASA the 'incubator of the new species', but they were not. They were far from it, in fact, and the NASA knew it. The AEU hated NASA's policies of accepting both groups of humans as humans, and that was the main source of the rivalry between the two alliances.
One discriminated against Coordinators while the other accepted them. One hated them while one did not. Both alliances did not trust one another, but only one of the two had the means to wipe out the cities of the other.
President Hilson shook her head, bringing herself back to the present.
The time for reflecting would come later.
New Juneau
The NAZAFT commander looked over the data that one of their spies in Armory One had sent, and it was not looking good.
There had been a theft at the colony, and of some new machines from what she read. That made her growl slightly. ZAFT had produced new Gundams, and violated the treaty no less!
How could the chairman of the PLANTs have done such a thing? And after what had happened to Heliopolis no less! That disturbed her greatly, as well as a number of NAZAFT officers. She looked out at where Armory One was located, but even the powerful cameras on the outside of New Juneau could not see what was going on inside the colony.
While NAZAFT was able to see what was going on inside the other PLANTs thanks to the powerful telescopic cameras located on the exterior of the colony, they could not see what was going on in Armory One. But the NAZAFT commander knew that it was only natural that ZAFT would want to keep the colony base closed off from even them. Still, she did not like it, even if ZAFT was entitled to such a right.
It was the same with their colony. ZAFT could see the outside only, but the inside was not visible thanks to the one-way reflective glass that served as the false day and night. Of course, their colony's reason for the glass surface was entirely different. They were a military base that had nuclear ICBM missiles.
Many ZAFT officers and radical faction Supreme Council leaders had said that New Juneau was hiding something in the past due to the reflective glass, but they had not been able to prove any of their theories true.
The NAZAFT commander smirked as she recalled what the late Hong Fa Wu had claimed was hidden in the colony. He had claimed that there had been a weapon that was capable of wiping out Naturals hidden in the colony, but there had been no proof of that.
Of course, that had not been as…obscure…as some of the other claims.
Still, the PLANTs could not do anything about New Juneau's decision to keep the interior hidden from the rest of the PLANTs. It was their right as a colony and as a US State no less.
Hanger
The lead ship of the new Liberty-class was nearly finished as the new armor was being placed onto the exterior. True to its form, the ship seemed to vanish under the armor as it was locked into place. The only thing keeping the crew aware that the ship was in its berth was strobe lights all around the berth.
NAZAFT officers moved the last bit of armor into place, the crew locking it into place. Tao smirked as she watched the ship she commanded vanish completely. The mere thought of such a ship existing out there was going to put some real fear into the Earth Alliance and ZAFT should they decide to intervene again.
Now the only open places on the ship were the hangers and the doors that were not covered by the armor yet. A smile graced her face as she watched those spaces also get covered with the armor. This was going to be interesting to say the least…
The colony was now on high alert for a possible battle, which meant that the ship would be deployed for the first time in two years. With the new upgrades and the recent overhaul, the ship would be much more powerful than it was in the last war.
Hopefully that would be enough to prevent another possible attack on the PLANTs and another war. But something like that would not be enough to avert such a thing, Tao knew. If anything, it would make ZAFT a much bigger target because the ship would be classified as a ZAFT ship, even though it was now a NAZAFT ship, and their first one since the Celestial Being conflicts.
The Virginia-class ships NAZAFT currently used were old, much older than most ships in the current space fleets, and NASA was behind on spacecraft design. Yet, they had managed to create the first new spacecraft in sixteen years, a spacecraft that used the most advanced tech ever created and that would surpass even the Gondwana in flexibility.
'And with the new Nile-class ships in the works, the alliance should be able to gain an edge over even the AEU and their powerful ships.' Tao thought as she looked over the data one last time.
This was not going to be the first time the ship had seen combat, but it would be the first as the new ship of NAZAFT.
Unknown Location
A patch of ground stood empty as several buildings soared over it. Dozens and dozens of empty poles stood, the sentinels of the large complex, but only one pole was occupied. The blue and white flag waved in the breeze, the lone resident of the large array of poles.
Once, there had been many flags flying, all of different colors, shapes, and sizes. But all that had changed when the residents of the complex had decided to stop leading the world and resolving disputes between nations. Now the many poles were barren and empty, giving off an air of emptiness and coldness towards the rest of the world.
There were no guards or foreign representatives wandering the complex, nor any soldiers that remained in the once great planetary army. The many vehicles used by them were now abandoned in their stations and parking spots, never to be used again.
The parking lots were overgrown with vegetation and cracked in the parts still visible. A few cars remained, but they were now out of use, only used when food was needed for all the occupants still living there.
The complex's residents never ventured outside beyond the doors that separated them from the rest of the world, but that was fine by them. They were neutral after all.
Washington D.C.
President Hilson snarled as she pounded her fist into the table before her. Why did those fools have to be so insistent on being neutral when the world needed them most?!
"Damn it…" she muttered.
So far, NASA had the only three remaining members of the old United Nations still active in world affairs, but the rest of the world didn't. And that was what made her so mad. The rest of the world could care less about the suffering inhabitants of the PLANTs and other impoverished nations.
She looked back at the flag of the United States before closing her eyes.
Why couldn't they just see that they were not doing the world any good by being neutral on all issues?
She did not know…
Ottawa
Prime Minister Warson looked over at his own nation's flag, wondering why the once well-respected group was no longer caring about world affairs. It did not make any sense. They had just one day, out of the blue, declared that they would be neutral on all world affairs and never intervene in anything again.
Of course, when the Copernicus Tragedy had happened, it seemed justified that they would be neutral from then on out. But they had done that way before the attack had even happened.
Had they been expecting to be attacked for some reason, or had they just chosen to take that path and leave the world to its fate? The latter seemed more likely than the former.
The idea of them being neutral even in the face of a tense peace was beyond disturbing. But there was little the world could do about it.
In the past, several nations had tried to get the United Nations to stop being so neutral, but all had failed when the UN had said no and kicked the people out of the UN complex. But that had not stopped the newspapers, news stations, and the press from doing stories and reports on the actions. Even in the face of action by the rest of the world, the UN had not said a word on the issue, so it had faded from the minds of the rest of the population.
While the rest of the world had all but forgotten the United Nations, they knew that it was still around. The rest of the world just refused to acknowledge the fact that group still existed. Oh, the population was aware the UN was still around; they just like to think otherwise.
That made Warson so mad he pounded his fist against the wall of his office.
What would it take to get the UN to come back into the leadership role they had once held?!
Mexico City
President Diego Gonzalez glanced back at the flag of Mexico, which was on a lone flag pole.
Like the other two leaders of NASA, he too was wondering why the United Nations no longer took its position at the forefront of the human race's leadership. It was no right to him. And based on current intel from the old UN complex, it did not seem that they were going to change their minds anytime soon.
After the UN had gone into hiding, so to speak, one of his nation's top intel gatherers had slipped in in order to gain info on what the UN was doing at the moment. While the data had not changed for the last 63 years, there were signs of false hope that had been shot down. Now he was expecting another burst of that false hope, but he was unsure as well.
Last he had heard, President Hilson had planned to go and talk to the UN in a week or so. Given what she had done in the past, there was a good chance that she would succeed. But there was also the potential for failure as well.
But who knew? Who knew?
Pentagon
Keller looked back at the Traverse Gundams that were on station outside the Pentagon, standing guard in case of a potential attack.
The man shook his head before he glanced over at the reports for the new machines that had just been accepted and completed as new weapons of NASA's armed forces. One was an aerial unit while one was an underwater ambush unit. If all the testing went well, then there would be nothing that held NASA back. With new machines that stood up to and surpassed the current generation of mobile suits, NASA would be ahead in the arms race once more.
The new machine revealed currently was the NAS-X112-A Dax, a one-person submarine that could take out several ZAFT and EA subs and ships should the need arise. There were still things to be tested yet, but it held lots of potential for NASA's Naval Forces.
The man smirked. ZAFT would not be top dog for long…
Looking out the window up at space, Keller could only wonder how ZAFT was able to defy the treaty. They had recently been creating new machines, but he did not know how many were built or if ZAFT had designed anymore units that would be considered weapons of war.
The fact that Earth was digging out the N-Jammers was a good sign so far, but there were still facts that bothered him. Many of the governments on Earth still had not put the rest of their nations before anything else, and on top of it, Blue Cosmos/LOGOs still existed and held influence still.
But even then, there were some pleasing signs so far. The pro-Blue Cosmos/LOGOs Prime Minister of Great Britain had been kicked out of office and a more moderate Prime Minister had been chosen to take his place. And the SAF had declared Blue Cosmos a terrorist group, thereby making the foothold in the nation far less powerful than they had been originally.
Maybe, just maybe, things were looking up…
A new war is about to begin, but will the world be able to survive this one so soon after the last one nearly wiped out humanity? And will NASA be able to help bring an end to the war before it gets to that point?
Anyway, you all know this, but I will put it anyway. Constructive criticism is appreciated as are reviews. Flames, AKA, hate-filled/spamming reviews, WILL be reported and/or deleted depending on if they are signed or not.
Anyway, read and review! ^^
