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. Jack Carson and the Defender Gundams are property of CT7567Rules and not mine. 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.
Wolf's Child: They are still alive. They will show up soon enough. :3
CT7567Rules: I need to determine when is the best place to put your OC in... ^^' And the investigation is starting off slow and easy, but it will become much more soon enough... ;3
KentLinuxStadfelt: Yes, the Surge, Duel, Neo Blitz and Buster were decommissioned. But they may see a comeback~! :3
Titanic X: Glad you like it. :3
Guest DCDGojira: Thanks! :D
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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 once more on the path of stability.
Phase Nine: Bared Fangs
The Gondwana
In one of the large hangers of the Gondwana, crewmen rushed to finish prepping the mobile suits for launch. ZAKUs and GuAIZ were quickly lined up in front of the many catapults of the super carrier.
"This is it everyone. We're going into battle." Yzak said over the com-system to his team. "I don't know what's going to happen out there, but we are not going to let anything happen to the PLANTs."
"We know Yzak." Dearka said.
"Saul, Nicol are you two ready for this?" Yzak asked as his ZAKU was placed onto one of the Gondwana's catapults.
"Don't worry about us. We might be rusty, but we're good to go." Nicol replied, his own ZAKU waiting behind Yzak's.
"Yeah. It'd be damn humiliating for us after all we've been through, to get shot down in these tin cans." Saul added as he powered up his ZAKU, waiting to be launched from another catapult.
"Well just remember, these aren't like our old machines." Dearka said.
"We know. This isn't our first time in a mobile suit, remember. The four of us fought together for a good chuck of the last war. So stop treating us like kids already." Nicol said in an annoyed tone.
"Alright, alright." Dearka replied as the catapult doors opened up across the mammoth ship. "Let's do this."
Yzak nodded. "Yzak Joule. Joule Team launching." With that, the catapult activated, launching the ZAKU Duel into space.
"Joule Team…" Saul cringed. "I was right, that does sound terrible." He shook his head. "No matter. Saul Kessel. ZAKU Surge taking off."
The ZAKU was launched, joining Yzak and growing number of mobile suits that had already launched from the Gondwana. Nicol and Dearka were set onto the now open catapults.
"Dearka Elsmen. ZAKU Buster moving out."
"Nicol Amalfi. ZAKU Blitz launching."
The two ZAKU were launched, joining their comrades. Within a few minutes, numerous teams of ZAKU mobile suits were racing towards the Earth Alliance forces.
The Voltaire's Hanger
"Listen up everyone. We're at war again. And the last time the PLANTs were attacked like this they were nearly destroyed by nuclear warheads." The Commander of the Voltaire's mobile suit team said to his pilots. "So keep your eyes open for anything. I don't want anything getting near the PLANTs. Stick together and watch each other's backs. I want us all to come back home when this is all over. Am I clear?"
"Sir, yes sir."
He nodded his head. "Alright. Lock and load. We're moving out."
Truthfully, he knew that it was unlikely that they were all coming after the battle. That was just how combat was. He put his helmet on, locking it in place. He climbed into his ZAKU as his second-in-command climbed into his orange ZAKU. The commander put on his helmet and powered up his machine. He was the first to step onto the catapult. "Do you have the same feeling of déjà vu that I'm getting?" Westenfluss asked over a private channel.
"Depends. Are you talking about the whole situation or this particular battle?"
"Both."
"Yes to both. This situation is a lot like how the last war started. And this battle feels a lot like the Battle at Jachin Due." the Commander paused. "Keep your guard up at all times."
"Don't worry. I will."
A moment later the duo launched.
The battle between the forces of ZAFT and the Earth Alliance was brutal. Alliance Dagger Ls clashed with ZAFT GuAIZs and ZAKUs while Nazca-class and Laurasia-class warships slugged it out with Agamemnon-class, Nelson-class and Drake-class warships. A Gunner ZAKU Warrior fired its Orthros rifle, piecing the bridge of a Drake-class. As the Alliance ship started to drift, a pair of Daggers fired their beam rifles at the ZAKU, destroying it. A pair of Doppelhorn Daggers fired their beam rifles and twin cannons at a group of GuAIZs. Two ZAFT mobile suits exploded while a third lost its head. But before they could finish the rest of the ZAFT machines off, a ZAKU Phantom shot the two of them from behind, destroying them. A pair of Nazca-classes fired on a Nelson-class, their combined bombardment overwhelming the Alliance warship. Explosions ripped through its hull, consuming the battleship. Three GINN High Maneuver Type IIs raced across the battlefield, gunning down Daggers before they could get a clear shot on them. A dying Drake-class rammed into the Nazca-class, taking both ships out in a huge fireball.
"Damn… This is getting dicey." Ajay Cortez commented as he dodged the incoming fire from a pair of Daggers.
"That doesn't matter. They are attacking the PLANTs." Diana said, drawing a beam saber from her ZAKU Panther's shield. "It's our duty to defend our homeland. We're not going to take one step back." Diana shot forward, slicing through a Dagger with her saber as she shot down another with her assault rifle. "Am I clear?"
"Crystal, ma'am." Ajay replied, driving one of his arm mounted beam sabers into a Dagger.
At that moment, an Agamemnon-class fired its cannons. The beams pieced a Nazca-class and the warship exploded. Nearby, Lucius fired beam assault rifle. His well-aimed shots took down a trio of Daggers in rapid succession. "Ma'am, perhaps we should deal with that ship." He said as he pulled out a grenade, primed it and threw it at a fourth Dagger.
Diana nodded. "Form up gentlemen, we're taking down that ship." she ordered.
Her squad formed up and surged towards the Agamemnon-class. A wing of Daggers moved up, blocking their path. The ZAKUs just tore through them, gunning them down with their assault rifles as they raced towards the Alliance battleship. The ship's point defenses opened up, firing upon them. But they were too fast and agile for the guns to hit them. The ZAKU High Maneuver Types started firing upon the ship. Lucius fired on one of the twin cannon, destroying it. Ajay took out the other with his beam sabers. Diana fired the fatal shot, taking out the ship's bridge. The ship was effectively dead.
Near Solomon Base
As the two fleets battled, two smaller Alliance battle groups were moving into position, one heading for Solomon, the other heading for the PLANTs. But they didn't escape notice. Hidden ZAFT scouts observed their movements and reported their positions. One group consisted of eight Agamemnon-class battleships, while the other was just a group of four Agamemnon-class ships and the Girty Lue. Neo rose from his seat. "It's time to show them our plan. Launch the mobile suits. Let them clear the path for the ships." he ordered.
The Girty Lue's hangers opened. The Specter and the Chaos were on the catapults, ready to launch. One by one, the Extended pilots launched, heading for the Solomon Base with several squads of Doppelhorn-equipped Windams from three of the four Agamemnon-class ships close behind.
"Spread out and destroy them all." Treize said to his comrades. "Not a single Coordinator survives."
With that, Treize pushed the Specter's boosters to their maximum, propelling the machine far ahead of the rest of the Alliance forces. GuAIZs, GuAIZ Rs and ZAKUs opened fire on the Specter as it approached, but it was too fast, always being where their beams weren't. "Too slow, Coordinators." Treize said as he continued to dodge their shots.
He drew the Specter's beam revolvers and started firing. Everyone of his shots were dead on, the beams tore through the bodies of many mobile suits as the survivors continued to fruitlessly fire on him. "Impossible… He's too fast!" one panicking pilot shouted just before a beam pierced his cockpit.
"This guy can't be human! He's moving way too fast!" a ZAFT commander exclaimed as more of his men were cut down. "Keeping firing! We need to try to pin him down!"
"It's no good! He's too-AAAAAGH!"
"Can't get a lock on him. He's just too-"
Pilots were beginning to panic. The Specter was living up to its name, its speed turning the machine into phantom. There one second, gone the next, taking out several of their own in process. The commander kept on firing at the Specter, wondering how a Natural, or anyone for that matter, could pilot a mobile suit so well at those speeds. It seemed inhuman for anyone to be able to do that. Suddenly, his rifle battery ran dry. He swore as pulled out the dead battery. Treize grinned, swapping one of revolvers for his sword. As the man was about to load a battery onto his rifle, Treize lunged at the ZAKU Phantom with his sword. The commander threw his rifle up as he backed off. Treize's sword sliced through the rifle, but missed the ZAKU. The Commander drew his beam tomahawk and roared as he lunged forward. He brought his axe downward but Treize block it with his shield and thrust his sword into the ZAKU's cockpit, crushing the man inside. Treize pulled his sword out and the ZAKU exploded.
Nearby, Gyunei fired off his Scylla cannon. A trio of curving beams through a closely packed cluster of GuAIZs and GuAIZ Rs, destroying most of them. The Extended laughed at sliced a survivor in two with a beam saber. Then the Rosso Aegis transformed and ensnared a GuAIZ in its limbs and crushed it. "Such flimsy machines. Do they really think that they can win with these things?"
A pair of ZAKU charged toward the Chaos, firing their rifles. Sting dodged the shots, but didn't fire back with his rifle. His weapon pods did instead. A beam pieced one ZAKU from behind while the other mobile suit was hit from above. Sting smirked as his weapon pods reattached themselves.
A pair of GuAIZs fired their arrestors at the Z.A.M. Gundam. Before they could reach him, Gai slice through them with his beam sabers. "How rude. If you wanted to dance up close, you should have asked first." he said to the pilots.
Gai let go of his beam sabers and fired out the Z.A.M. Gundam's shoulder missiles at the two ZAFT machines. The missiles hit dead on. Gai smirked at his work. This was going to be a thrill.
Xander fired the Verde Buster's beam cannon and gun launcher at a Nazca-class, obliterating its bridge and sparking a chain reaction that destroyed the entire ship. A pair of GuAIZ Rs fired their rifles at him, but Xander evaded the beams and fired back with his own rifles, blowing the head and arm off one while destroying the other. The crippled mobile suit turned and started fleeing. "Oh no, you don't!" Xander called out as he chased after the GuAIZ.
The bayonets within his rifles extended. Xander took aim, carefully picking his target before he fired. Beams tore through the GuAIZ's legs. The legless mobile suit stumbled and as the pilot tried to right himself, Xander thrust his bayonets into the GuAIZ's back. The Verde Buster pulled back, leaving the GuAIZ floating there for few seconds before it exploded.
Auel swung his halberd in wide arc, cutting through the chests of two GuAIZs before ramming it into the chest of a ZAKU Warrior. A ZAKU Phantom and pair of ZAKU Warriors fired on the Abyss. Auel jumped back, pulling his halberd out of the ZAKU. The beams miss Auel, and a stray shot even hit the ZAKU he had just taken out. Auel fired his twin triple cannons and chest mounted cannon at the trio. His shots tore through the ZAKUs, destroying them.
Reccoa fired her twin beam guns at an incoming wing of ZAFT mobile suits. Like Treize, she earned spectacular results. Heads and limbs were blown off. Mobile suits exploded. One GuAIZ's leg was severed, causing its pilot to lose control and crashed into another GuAIZ. But as the surviving ZAFT machines drew closer, the switched to their close-quarters weapons. Reccoa pulled back her beam guns and drew her beam sabers. A pair of ZAKUs rushed her, swinging their tomahawks at her. The Blu Duel ducked down and impaled them both on its sabers.
A ZAKU gunned down a pair of Daggers from behind. The ZAFT pilot sneered. "You Naturals aren't so tough. You're nothing but a pack of wild dogs. We should put all of-AAAAAGH!"
The blade of a beam saber erupted from its chest. "Arrogant Coordinator." the Alliance pilot said as the ZAKU exploded.
Suddenly, something caught his eye. Another ZAKU, moving much faster and was heading towards him. The pilot fired on the ZAKU, but it dodged his shots and threw a claw weapon at him. The claw tore through the Dagger's torso.
Two more Daggers appeared, firing on the ZAKU. The green mobile suit sidestepped their beams, racing towards them as it drew a pair of swords. Before the Daggers move to counter him, the ZAKU's swords sliced the Daggers in two.
"Not bad, considering I'm rusty." Saul commented.
But at that moment, a Dagger ambushed him, a beam saber in its hand. However, the Dagger didn't get a change to hit him. The Gleipnir anchor hit the Dagger's arm, severing it. Saul spun around, slicing through the Alliance mobile suit with his long sword. "Guess you're a little rustier than you thought." Nicol said.
More Daggers approached them, firing their rifles. "Looks like we got more company." he added, firing back with his own rifle.
The pair fired at the approaching mobile suits, alongside their fellow ZAFT soldiers. Shiho fired her rifle and thermal cannons, taking out three Daggers and crippling a fourth. Nearby, a GuAIZ took a hit, losing its left leg. Shiho pulled her machine in front of her damaged comrade and shot down the Dagger that crippled the machine. "Fall back." she said to the pilot.
"Yes ma'am." the younger pilot replied, pulling back.
Elsewhere, Yzak swung his axe, slicing through a Dagger while Dearka fired his cannons at trio of Daggers, destroying them all. Suddenly, a fourth Dagger rose up behind Dearka. "Dearka! Look out!" Yzak yelled.
The Dagger was about to fire on the ZAKU, when a beam saber tore through its chest. The Dagger exploded, leaving a familiar machine in its place. The Wing Gundam. Before Dearka or Yzak could raise the pilot on the com-line, the machine turned on the other Daggers in the area.
"Was that Akira?" Yzak asked.
There had been no contact from Akira or the other 7th Fleet members after they had defected, so it was only natural for the two to be surprised at his appearance.
"I think so. That was definitely the Wing." Dearka replied.
It was just too much for him at that moment.
Yzak shook his head. "This is getting too weird."
At that moment, more Daggers appeared, firing at the pair, forcing them to focus back on the battle at hand.
As the battle raged in space, a special detachment of the Earth Forces new Windam mobile suits, equipped with a special Striker Pack, headed towards PLANTs. A GuAIZ pilot spotted the group, his main camera zooming in on them. He paled in horror as he spotted the nuclear warning symbol on the mobile suits. "Nukes!
Word quickly spread across the ZAFT forces. ZAFT mobile suits broke away from their battles, racing towards the Windams. "Come on!" Yzak shouted, his voice filled with desperation. "We have to stop them!"
Aboard the Gondwana, men and women were rushing to move everything they could into the path of the Windams. "Calm down everyone. We've prepared for this." Admiral Kessel said. "Move Defender-1 into position immediately. We only have one shot. We need to make count."
In front of the PLANTs themselves was a small flotilla Nazca-class ships with a special Nazca-class fitted with a large array. The Neutron Stampeder. The specially equipped warship moved into the path of the Alliance mobile suits. The crew aboard the ship rushed to power up the weapon, knowing just how important this was.
"Dammit!" Saul swore as they raced towards the Windams. "We're not going to make it!"
"We'll make it!" Yzak yelled back, pushing his machine's thrusters as fast as they could go. "Push your thrusters into the red zone! We're not going to let those missiles hit the PLANTs!"
At that moment, the Windams fired their missiles. The warheads streaked towards the PLANTs. ZAKUs and GuAIZs vainly fired at the missiles, but they were just too far.
Defender-1 was position, its Neutron Stampeder powering up, the large array glowing with energy. Once it reached full power, Defender-1 fired the Stampeder. The massive beam streaked towards the missiles, frying the array in the process. In a matter of seconds, it tore through the missiles and mobile suits and straight on through to the small fleet of ships they had come from. The missiles exploded as did the ships. But then more Windams appeared and continued towards the PLANTs.
"Ma'am! There's a second wave of missiles!" an operator aboard the Gondwana shouted in horror.
Everyone was stunned. That shouldn't have happened. "Impossible…that can't be true." Rebecca said in complete disbelief.
The Stampeder was designed to prematurely detonate nuke weapons, destroying them before they reached the PLANTs. While it had succeeded, more missiles were revealed with the Windams and their ships.
As the missile-carrying ships and mobile suits continued on their course, another surprise was in store.
New Juneau
The colony was on high alert as nuclear missiles were picked up, heading towards the PLANTs. At least, the first wave was. The data was sent down to Earth, where it was picked up and received by the missile launch silos in the United States.
NASA missile silos
Steam hissed as the twin missiles rose out of their silos. The gleaming metal was revealed in the lights that were shining on them. People in the silo command centers knew what to do as they turned the twin keys that ignited the launch sequence.
They could see the flashes of the first missile wave being taken out, but the techs knew that there was a second wave on the way. Now was the time to take them out. The keys were turned, and the missile engines ignited.
In a roar of fire and heat, the two ICBMs were launched, and they sped up into space. With the nuclear fusion reactor engines, it would take no time at all for the missiles to reach their intended targets.
PLANTs
The Peacemaker Force continued towards the PLANTs, missiles armed for launch. As they began to reach the boundaries of the colonies, twin pinpricks of light were picked up, but they were ignored by the approaching units.
The commander of the fleet grinned. It was time. "Prepare to fire nuclear missiles!" he ordered.
Around the fleet, the Windams and ships began to aim their missiles at the PLANTs. The colonies were soon to be wiped out.
He began to laugh as the targeters locked on. This was it!
His radarman looked at the radar, picking up twin blips that were fast incoming. The radarman turned to face his superior officer, and opened his mouth. But that was as far as he got.
The second he did that, twin flashes of light ignited below the ships and Windams, the heat and energy igniting the rest of the missiles as well. The impact was never seen, but the results certainly were. Everyone knew those flashes.
ICBMs…
And they had just been used once more…
The Gondwana
The crew of the Gondwana was stunned at the multitude of explosions that were occurring in one location. The initial twin flashes had been what started the whole chain of nuclear explosions within that area.
Rebecca Kessel was shocked by the fact that such missiles had been used once more. "NASA…" she murmured. Why had they done that?
"The attack fleet… it's… it's just… gone…" another member of the ship's crew said as he stared at the radar. The nuclear radiation was blocking the signals, but judging by the amount of explosions, it was safe to say that the attack had been completely stopped.
Girty Lue
Neo scowled as he looked to his captain. "Fire the retreat flares. We failed." He growled. The captain nodded, following the order.
As the Extended and EA officers came back, Neo could not help but feel that NASA was getting in the way on purpose. They had not only fired ICBMs once, but they had had the guts to go and do it TWICE as well. It messed with the plans that Blue Cosmos had for the world!
How DARE NASA defy LOGOs! Lord Djibril was not going to be happy with this, that was for sure. And if NASA defied LOGOs, then they could prompt them back into action as well.
And that had to be avoided, no matter what it took!
PLANTs
Chairman Durandal looked out, stunned that NASA had used its ICBMs twice, once to blow up Junius Seven's remains, and once more in defense of the PLANTs. They were not afraid to use them, that was for sure.
He watched the explosions occurring, the fleet no more.
Just how far was NASA willing to go to defend the PLANTs? Or could it be just how far were they willing to go to defend the Naturals? He was not sure. NASA seemed to be a contradictory alliance. On one hand, they were willing to blow up a war memorial that was sacred to the Coordinators, but they were willing to take out an entire nuclear fleet in their defense on the other.
Just what was NASA up to?
He was not sure, but he did know that he had to meet with someone, one Alex Dino, soon.
Aprilius One
Athrun turned the facet on. He cupped his hands together under the pouring water, gathering the water in his hands. He splashed face with the cold water, jolting him awake. He had been waiting for hours to see Chairman Durandal. Given the situation, he wasn't all that surprised that the Chairman was running late. Athrun glanced at his watch. It had been several hours since the battle ended. He had hoped that the Chairman would have been able to see him by now, even if it was only for a few minutes.
Athrun left the men's room, heading back to where the ORB ambassador was waiting, when overheard someone ask, "How much longer will it be?"
He froze. Athrun knew that voice. But it couldn't be. She was still in ORB. Wasn't she? Athrun had to find out. He rushed towards the sounds of the voices. Turning a corner, he spotted her. At the top of a flight of stairs, was a group of men and a lone woman. The woman's back was to him, but Athrun could clearly see her long flowing pink hair. "Lacus?" he said, much longer than he realized.
The girl turned around and stared at him. A big smile spread across face. "Athrun!" she gleefully called out as she rushed down the stairs.
The girl quickly embraced Athrun in a hug. He quickly realized that despite how she looked, this was not Lacus. She was far too giddy. While Lacus was a fairly cheerful person, this girl was far beyond Lacus's normal cheerful demeanor, especially given the situation the world was in right now. Secondly, there were her clothes. Lacus always dressed modestly, showing off at best, a moderate amount of skin. This girl on the other hand, was wearing clothes that were on the line of inappropriate to wear in public. Then there was the girl's bust. Which were noticeably bigger than Lacus's. Not that Athrun paid attention to that sort of thing.
"I'm so happy to see you Athrun!" the girl said, breaking the hug.
That was other thing Athrun noticed about this girl. Her eyes. While they looked like Lacus's eyes, there was something those eyes that screamed 'not Lacus' to Athrun. What that something was, Athrun couldn't place. But he knew this girl wasn't Lacus. So then why did she look like Lacus?
Athrun opened his mouth, intending to ask the girl who she was, when a voice cut him off. "Alex?"
Both Athrun and the girl turned to voice. It was Chairman Durandal and his entourage. "That's right. I have a meeting with you. I'm terribly sorry about forgetting about you."
"Alex? Isn't this Athrun?" the pink haired girl asked.
"Publicly speaking, no. His name is Alex Dino. However privately, he's Athrun Zala." Durandal explained. "Miss Clyne, don't you have somewhere to be right now?"
The girl flashed an embarrassed grin. "Sorry, Chairman Durandal. I was distracted. After all, I haven't seen my fiancée in a long time."
'Fiancée? Just who is this girl? The arranged marriage between Lacus and me was called off 2 years ago.' a very confused Athrun thought.
"Don't worry. I'm sure you'll be able to see him again once we've finished talking and once you've finished up." Durandal replied.
The girl nodded. "Good bye Athrun! Good bye Chairman Durandal!" she called out as she climbed back up the stairs.
Durandal turned to Athrun. "Now I believe that we have much to discuss Athrun. Shall we head to my office?"
Athrun nodded. There was indeed much they had to discuss.
New Juneau
Akira yanked his helmet off as he drifted out of the Wing's cockpit. His black hair floated free from his pilot suit back, where it had been tucked in so he could put his helmet on.
Tao exited the Diver, her own helmet off. The battle had worn them both out, along with the rest of the NAZAFT pilots.
He looked back at where the Peacemaker Force had been earlier. The outside was shown via a screen, only debris remaining. There was no remnant of the force that had nearly wiped out the PLANTs.
Two ICBMs…
Just what would it take to get the world to realize that all this fighting was not worth it?
He did not know…
Pentagon
John Keller looked over the data from the ICBM impact on the nuclear fleet. There were no survivors, and almost all the physical evidence had been wiped out. Only two Black Boxes of ship type were recovered, and the data they held had been copied and sent to him.
He sighed. Of the two ships, one had been carrying EA soldiers that were to have captured any surviving Coordinators and brought them back to Earth for enslavement. The other ship was carrying nuclear missiles, but not of the ICBM caliber.
That was the only good thing that had been found.
Unlike NASA, the rest of the world had dismantled their ICBMs, leading to the United States being the only one who had them left. And while that had been a good thing, it also meant that the knowledge used to build them had been lost over three hundred years ago.
Keller looked over the data again.
Of the five ships in the nuclear fleet, all had been crewed to maximum capacity. The crew list for each had been topped at maximum, leading to about 1500 lives lost for the ships, while with the Windams, that had been 120 lives lost. So in all, 1620 lives had been lost. And that was not counting the first nuclear fleet. With them included, about 3000 lives had been lost in total. It was just like that day…
He shuddered as he suppressed those memories. The comparison was uncanny, but it was not civilians that had been lost this time. Rather, it had been all military personnel.
Keller was not sure if he should be grateful for that, or if he should be sick with horror.
Looking over the data before him once more, the defense secretary could only wonder how much it would take before they got involved in world affairs once more. Judging by what he had seen, it seemed like the Break the World Attempt would get them involved once more, but it had not. Rather, the old United Nations had retreated even further from world events to date.
He sighed. "Just when it seems like it cannot get any worse, it does…" he murmured as he put the report down.
Lives lost, and lives saved.
That was what war was, or so he had thought. Now it seemed that war was about glory, and fame. How many enemies could one kill? How many opponents could one take captive?
How many ships could be taken down? How many lives could be claimed?
All it was about was glory now. Glory and fame. He could recall a time when war never seemed to happen, and when it did happen, it was always what lives were lost, and how attack maneuvers could be improved if lives lost were civilian lives. It was always about the least number of lives lost, and the most lives spared.
Now it was the opposite.
It made Keller sick as he shuddered. How could any soldier sleep at night knowing how many lives they took, he would never know.
Lives taken for fun during combat, people acting cruelly towards one another for reasons that made no sense, real or otherwise, it did not make any sense!
Keller put his head in his hands, wondering how much more he could take. His job was not worth the stress he knew. And he was right…
White House
President Hilson looked over the data that had been sent from the Pentagon to her office. The report mentioned the 3000 lives lost, making her rub her head in weariness. 3000 lives… all lost in an attempt to try and wipe out the PLANTs, and they were not the only ones who would be under fire this time. The PLANTs would be under scrutiny for simply defending themselves, but NASA, on the other hand, would be under even more scrutiny for firing ICBMs at the second wave of the nuclear fleet. And that was in addition to the scrutiny that they were already under for the decision to blow up the remains of Junius Seven.
Lives lost was not what the president reveled in. In fact, she hated it and wished to try and end it so that no more lives would be lost. But of course, there were those who wanted to take lives and that, in turn, led to more lives being lost when those attacked tried to defend their homes.
As the President of the United States, she was in command of one of the most powerful military forces in the world, and she expected the soldiers of the nation to lay down their lives to defend it. But at the same time, they were to do so with the fewest number of soldiers possible. Unlike the rest of the Earth Alliance, NASA actually cared about those who were serving in the armed forces, and tried to keep their soldier deaths down to a minimum, just like with the civilian deaths in war-related retaliations. And NASA could not afford to waste lives like the rest of the EA could. The alliance was not that large.
President Hilson sighed as she stood up, setting the report down on her desk. She walked over to the windows of the Oval Office where she seemed to be spending a lot of her time lately.
The flag of her home nation was flying strongly, but it was only one flag of many that existed around the world. And yet no one was willing to fly their nation's flag with the flag of another nation that was not their own. The leaders of many other nations only seemed to care about what profits they could make for their countries and nothing more. They could care less about other nations and what they needed.
And it did not help that Blue Cosmos, or LOGOs to be honest, pretty much had the economies of every nation in a sleeper hold, or controlled much of the production in other words. The nations who had their economies under the control of the group had no real way of saying what could be produced and what could not be produced, or any real power at all.
The leaders were dependent on LOGOs for profits, and as a result, the leaders of LOGOs could control how much money the other nations received. That much the president knew, mainly from the experience of throwing out every Blue Cosmos/LOGOs supporter/member from the United States government and governmental structure. Not to mention all those who were in high places in all the big businesses of the nation and in the armed forces. President Hilson had pretty much knocked out the group's biggest and best hope from their control with those actions alone.
She smirked, recalling how many of them had been so shocked and enraged by her actions that they had tried to defend their rights to attacking Coordinators and controlling the whole U.S. economy. Using their own knowledge against them had been fun to say the least. And many Americans had been laughing and cheering as the last of the Blue Cosmos/LOGOs members/supporters had been kicked out of the country, their citizenship revoked. But those were only the ones who had been a real threat to the nation's stability and security. Everyone else who supported the group she could care less about. If they were just civilians, then she left them alone. It was those who held a lot of power that she had kicked out, and just them, no one else.
The president did not regret what she did, even if she had been under political fire for it. And she would do it again too.
The United States was now back in control of its own economy once more, and there were no plans to change that any time soon she knew. But as long as most of the other nations continued to have Blue Cosmos hold their economies in a sleeper hold, then the group could get away with whatever they wanted.
It seemed that no nation could try a member unless that member was caught in the United States, Canada, or Mexico.
Then the Blue Cosmos/LOGOs member or supporter would lose all immunity from being held on trial and be tried according to the crime that was committed.
As she was reflecting on the world situation, the door opened, only for her to duck to the ground on instinct as a gun went off. Pulling her own firearm, the president fired once, hitting the assassin in the arm. His gun went clattering to the floor, which also got the attention of her guard and several other Secret Service members.
"Are you alright, ma'am?" Agent Williams asked.
President Hilson nodded. "Yes, I'm fine." She replied. Looking back at the assassin, she frowned. "It seems that Blue Cosmos was willing to risk it all to kill me. And they must be getting desperate if they are willing to pull such a brazen move." She noted.
"Agreed. We need to make sure that you are unharmed though." Agent Williams pressed.
"I told you, I am fine. His bullet missed me anyway." She snapped back.
"So, should we have him tried?" another agent asked.
The president nodded, taking note of the assassin's fear at those words. "Yes… yes, we should. But we need to know who he is first."
"No… I have immunity from being tried!" the assassin cried. Clearly he was a high-ranking member of Blue Cosmos if he claimed to have that.
The president looked at her guard and the Secret Service agents in the room before looking back at the assassin. "Well, too bad for you. Your immunity does not apply here, so that means that you're just like everyone else now. And just like everyone else, you will be tried by a court of law, whether you have so-called 'immunity' or not!" President Hilson snapped back.
The man cried as he was hauled away by Secret Service members.
President Hilson showed no emotion as the man pleaded with her, no doubt willing to bribe her to keep him from the law. But she was not like that, and she would never accept a bribe if it meant no justice was done.
The group would fall… and her parents and brother would be avenged…
That much she could be sure of…
Two Days later
"The defendant has pleaded not guilty on the grounds of being immune from any and all trials." The defense attorney said as he faced the judge.
"While that may be true in the Earth Alliance, it is not true here. Therefore, we find the defendant guilty of attempted assassination of the President of the United States." The lead juror replied.
Washington D.C.
While the trial was taking place, the president was observing the proceedings. She was pleased that the man had been found guilty of attempted murder of the President of the United States, unlike in his home alliance of course.
She frowned as she reflected on how the AEU treated the members and supporters of Blue Cosmos/LOGOs. In the alliance, those members were unable to be tried in a court of law, and even then, there were no convictions. That was why many people were becoming unhappy with the leaders of the AEU.
In NASA though, those high privileges, as they were known, did not exist, and so the people could be tried in a court of law. The so-called 'immunity of law' concept did not exist, and was therefore not supported by the NASA leadership. And with the current laws in place, there was no way that the 'immunity' could be used, even if they tried to bribe the judges and juries into letting them go.
President Hilson could only shake her head in exasperation at the AEU's current ideals and system of government.
"Why would anyone want to live in an alliance where the rights of the people to get justice for their families in crimes are not allowed?" she murmured.
"It's just the current policy ma'am." Her guard replied.
The president nodded curtly before looking back at the screen.
The assassin was being led away in cuffs, tears running down his cheeks as his whole body shook with fear. Served him right, believing that he was above the law in NASA.
She frowned again, wondering what the United Nations would make of this if they were not so adamant on being neutral. They would obviously be disappointed, but what would they be able to do? They had no real power, or so she had been taught.
But in reality, the United Nations had once held far more power than they now showed. All that was needed was to draw that power out of its current slumber…
And that would be a lot easier said than done.
'Just what will it take for the United Nations to stop being so adamant on being neutral?' she thought bitterly.
The answer was a lot harder to find than it seemed.
And that she knew from personal experience.
Still, NASA had to try to bring the UN out of retirement so to speak, and then they could deal with the repercussions later.
That made the president recall one of her special ops missions she had once been on. She smirked, recalling what had happened during the mission's aftermath.
-Flashback-
"Hey, get back here!" a female voice called as a Blue Cosmos member ran from her. The woman tried to escape Lieutenant Marie Hilson, but she failed to get far before she was stopped by another member of the special ops unit that the lieutenant was a part of.
"Oh no you don't." the man growled as he pulled the Blue Cosmos member back towards the Army base camp. "You're going to be brought back to the United States to face charges of kidnapping and murder of a Coordinator, whether you like it or not."
"NO! I won't go! That Space-Monster deserved it! Let me go!" the woman snarled as she tried to kick the stronger man with one of her heels. Lieutenant Hilson walked up and removed the heels before she could make contact.
"Sorry, but these can count as weapons. I'll just take them for now." The lieutenant replied as she walked off.
Once inside one of the tents, she shook her head. "Man… we had to leave the U.S. just to find her? What a waste of government money." She sighed as she sat down with the other woman's heels beside her.
"Hey, she fled the country and had to be captured before she reached the AEU. Not to mention she is wanted on several other charges as well, one of which is a bombing threat." Her superior officer replied.
"I know that, but still, sending the special ops after one woman is a bit much to be honest." Lieutenant Hilson exclaimed.
The higher ranking soldier just looked at her. "We also have evidence that she might be involved in a rumored project of the Earth Alliance, and that she is a high-ranking member of it. That is why we were sent."
Lieutenant Hilson just looked away. The older man just sighed. "Look. I know what you are saying, and I agree. But you need to know that it is either do things to protect the country, or let the country suffer for your inactions." He explained.
"Protect the country by sending special ops after only one woman? That is not protecting the country really."
"It is if she knows where there is a whole cell of Blue Cosmos members."
That got Lieutenant Hilson. "She what?"
"She knows where there is a whole cell of Blue Cosmos members outside the U.S. borders." Her superior replied.
"Now you are talking." The lieutenant said as she leaned in, a smirk on her face.
-End Flashback-
The capture of the cell had been a success, making President Hilson smile at the memory.
Perhaps there was hope yet, she figured.
Perhaps there was hope yet…
And if the NASA alliance could pull off this trick, then the UN would return…
ORB
Yuna sat in his father's room that night, waiting for the older man to enter. The click of the door opening told him who it was. "I see you arrived on time, father." Yuna said.
"Yes, but it was a bit of a drive, considering the location of the Attha Estate." Unato replied as he sat down in front of his son. "But that aside, the assassin has been paid. Once we get rid of him, then we can proceed with the plan."
Yuna grinned before squealing like a little girl. "Oh, father! I am so happy!" he giggled. The young man clapped his hands together in front of his face in joy.
"Now settle down, you are a grown man. Act like it." Unato scolded him.
A blush came to Yuna's cheeks. "Sorry, father." He replied.
Unato nodded before continuing. "Yes, well, either way, we will soon have control of ORB. The House of Attha will fall, allowing us to take control and get rid of the Coordinators here as well. But that all rests on the assassin. If he can pull off this job, then that money will have been worth it."
The older man looked out the window. "What I am worried about though, is NASA. They seem to put a dent, or wrench, in every plan that Blue Cosmos has put out there thus far. The alliance is bothersome, but their power is what worries me the most. If an alliance of their power is not put in check, then we will not be able to claim power over ORB." Unato added as he faced his son.
Yuna just scoffed. "Why would NASA bother attacking us? Aren't we allies?"
"While we may be allies, if NASA gets word of the attack on him, then they will cut all ties with us. And if they decide to declare war on us, then it is all over for us, as they have the power to take us over quickly." Unato replied.
Yuna gulped. Defeating NASA was one thing that not even ORB could do. The nation was just a small island when compared to the massive continent of NASA. And the military and economic power difference between both was just too great to overcome even on NASA's worst day and ORB's best day combined together.
It was just that bad for ORB…
Now, how were they going to break the news of the ORB leader's death to the world…
Cagalli entered her father's office that same day, wondering why he had called her down to his room.
The older Natural was sitting at his desk when the door opened. Lord Uzumi looked back, only to see his daughter entering the room. She closed the door behind her. "You wanted to see me father?"
"Yes. I wanted to talk about a few things, mainly your feelings for Athrun Zala." Lord Uzumi replied.
Cagalli gulped. "Is this about my marriage to Yuna? Do you disapprove of Athrun?"
"No, not at all. In fact, I was wondering if you had been talked to about marriage yet." Uzumi replied. "At least, to Yuna, because he has been coming to me about marrying you, yet you do not seem interested in him."
"He… he just wants to marry me to keep me from Athrun. But I love Athrun! I can't marry Yuna when all he wants is my power! If he marries me, then I will be nothing but a figurehead!" Cagalli protested. "I do not like this arranged marriage!"
Lord Uzumi nodded. "I can tell. But do not worry about it. If you do not wish to marry Yuna, then you do not have to."
"But it's not just that! He is trying to force me to ally with the AEU, even though I pulled that clause on him and the rest of the council!" Cagalli cried. "What can I do?!"
Lord Uzumi looked at his daughter. "Look, Cagalli. What you have to do is decide what is best for ORB. While the Council is there for advice, only you can make the decision that affects ORB's future. That is all you can do. In addition, that clause is there only for support if the Council appears to be taking ORB in a direction that is against the best interests of the nation. It is not intended to be the supreme law of the land."
Now the young leader had seemed to have calmed down. That was good for many reasons, most of all his own worries.
New Juneau
Colonists went about their normal lives as the debris from the nuclear attack fleet was picked up by NAZAFT officers. The colony's defense group, also the space branch of America's military, had been at it for the last ten hours, and the debris picked up included pods that were empty as well as bodies that were now being sent back to Earth on shuttles bound for the home nations of each member of that fleet.
True, the colony commander noted, the remains could be destroyed on the colony itself, but that would deny those families closure. This way, NASA could atone for its decision, and say they were sorry for their losses. It was doubtful that the families of the deceased would be so accepting of the apology, given what NASA had done. Using two ICBMs had been overkill, but it had done the job as well. After all, NASA was not going to let the PLANTs be wiped out when the Coordinators had done nothing wrong, well, save for the nearly wiping out Earth's life part in the last war, but even then not all Coordinators had agreed with the idea. In fact, many had been against it; a large 75-80% of the population had been against the idea in the first place.
What was a victory when most of the human race was wiped out? Then it would have been genocide, not a war victory. No lives would have been worth such a price for victory. War did not mean wiping out the entire other side. It was about defense of one's home, and achieving victory with the fewest lives, both soldier and otherwise, lost. That was how the U.S. waged war in both the past and present.
'We wage war to defend our home, and even then, we try to do it with the fewest lives lost. If civilians get caught in the crossfire, we will try and see if there had been another way to achieve the victory or accomplish the mission with fewer lives lost. In short, we, as a nation and people, are trying to perfect the art of war, literally. If there was something done right with lives lost, we will try to improve on that to take even fewer lives.' The colony commander recalled as she looked out the window of her office.
No war was without lives lost, but a war with the fewest lives lost was what mattered. Yet, even in the day and age of Mobile Suits and Coordinators, there were still large amounts of lives being lost. The wars being waged had no regard for civilian lives, both Natural and Coordinator alike. The Earth Alliance did not care if Naturals were caught in the crossfire and celebrated Coordinators getting caught in the same crossfire. ZAFT on the other hand, cared about both being caught in the crossfire and regretted each life lost as a result, but they did not bother to try and improve to see what they did wrong and how they could do better in the same situation later on.
It was not like NASA, where they actually tried to reduce the number of lives lost each time. Coordinators and Naturals were able to be saved because of how NASA fought and tried to improve if something went wrong. In short, America and the rest of NASA put themselves under intense self-scrutiny and tried to improve themselves when it came to war if even a few civilians were lost in combat.
That was how NASA was, and it would be how they always were. Nothing would change that, and it was going to be how they fought for as long as the alliance existed.
But, while the alliance was practically a paradise, there were still those Coordinators who hated the Naturals, even in the government. In fact, the most recent incident involved a Representative from Congress and how his anti-Natural policies had nearly taken the Natural Senators and Representatives out of office.
The man had been so against Naturals holding public office in the Congress that he had tried to have them all declared traitors to the United States on false grounds he himself had fabricated. It had been by pure chance that a young freshman senator had caught the wording's exact meaning in time, and had filibustered the bill. And now the man who had written the bill in the first place was facing charges of conspiracy to frame Naturals as well as other serious crimes as well.
That just showed that not all Coordinators in NASA liked Naturals. And some were still in public office to boot. No one was perfect, and NASA was still far from it. In fact, no nation was perfect.
'Many nations were thought to be invincible, among them Rome, Egypt, Greece, China, and The Nazi Empire. Even the Aztecs, the Inca, and the Maya though themselves to be invincible. America, while it was brief, thought the same until the nation realized the running an empire was not its destiny.' The NAZAFT commander mused as she looked back at the flag. 'The AEU of today believes the same thing. That was why they were so willing to risk an invasion of our home territory. But we showed them that they are not invincible. And yet they STILL believe that! They are fools indeed…'
The Nile drifted into New Juneau's boundaries, the pieces of the GINNs onboard as well as the coveted 'Black Pizza Boxes'. In the main bridge was a young 20-year-old man, name Jack Carson. He had left the Earth Alliance after the end of the First Bloody Valentine War, returning to his home of Puerto Rico, which was a US Commonwealth; his decision was influenced by the fact that the leaders of Blue Cosmos had been killed. There had been rumors of a new MS in development when he had been in the EA forces and thus had been sent to find that machine by the late Admiral Halberton, but those had proven to be unfounded. However, based on those rumors, a new MS was in development alongside the new Raptor Gundams.
Jack, upon returning to the US, had enlisted in the NASA armed forces and was now a Corporal in the military. He ran a hand through his black hair, wondering what the plan was now. As far as he knew, the ship was to dock at New Juneau and offload its cargo, including the 'black boxes' that were now standard in every Mobile Suit.
"You doing okay, Corporal Carson?" Another soldier asked as Jack looked back at her.
"Yeah... Just wondering what the heck the plan is. I mean, sure, we are doing an investigation and all into how Junius Seven fell, but gathering up random pieces of GINN debris? What is the reason for that? The only things that can be of use are the 'black boxes' of each GINN." Jack replied as he sighed.
His companion shrugged. "What can I say? We just do the work the higher-ups tell us to do."
Jack frowned, but agreed she had a point. Looking back at the debris of a GINN, Jack narrowed his brown eyes. "But what is odd is that the GINNs are missing the 'Pizza Plates', or their Manufacturer ID Plates, also known as MIDPs."
The female soldier ran a hand through her dark green hair, a sign of her Coordinator heritage. "Yeah... it's been bothering me too, and not just me. The rest of us have been bothered by this development."
Jack glanced back at where the GM he had been piloting was. Hoping to distract himself and his companion from the issue at hand, he changed the subject. "So... did you hear that the Raptor Gundams are about to be deployed to combat soon?"
"I did. There is also rumor of a new aerial Gundam-type MS in the works as well." The soldier, Sergeant Casy Manson, noted.
Jack looked back at her. "A new aerial MS in addition to the Raptor Gundams?"
Casy grinned. "Yeah. It's supposed to be based off of the F-14 Tomcat fighter jet from the AD era, or so the rumors go."
The corporal couldn't help bit return her grin. "You mean that sexy, mean, lean machine?" He teased as the two of them began to laugh at his comment.
"That thing just oozes sexy~!" The sergeant sang as both cracked up even more.
However, before Jack could retort, the ship's alarm sounded, signaling they were back at New Juneau and about to dock. "All personnel, report to your landing stations. We are about to dock. All crews involved in the recovery of debris, board your machines to transport the parts to the main hanger."
Jack sighed. "Well... that's our song, Casy. I'm gonna board my machine now."
Casy sighed. "So much for having some fun..."
Britain
The new Prime Minister of Britain, Henry Churchill, looked back at where there were Blue Cosmos supporters and members being rounded up. All the members had once been government officials until he had rooted them out and revoked their citizenship, similar to NASA, although it was not as severe. The members and supporters would not be arrested on reentry into the country.
So far things had been going well, but there had been opposition to his plan from many in the beginning. And on top of that, he had managed to get the landmark bill of the UK passed. That bill had made all anti-Coordinator laws invalid and made all Coordinators declared human. But the passage had been by only three votes, unlike in NASA where it had been by more than the 2/3 vote needed to make it law.
Churchill looked back at the Union Jack, the flag of his home nation. Once, it had been the most feared flag in the world, now, it was just another flag. How he longed for Britain to reclaim the power it once had! And to do that, the nation needed to change at home first. If that happened, then the road to regaining power could begin. NASA might be the most feared, but it would be Britain who would be a world power soon enough!
His nation had once been the feared nation of the seas, and unlike many sea-faring nations of the time, Britain had been the powerhouse of the world. But now, his home was just a weak power.
Reflecting on his nation's relationship with NASA, Churchill could recall when the close alliance with the United States had fallen apart. It had been when George Glenn had revealed his secret to the world. When NASA had declared that they had rejected the ban on genetic enhancement, Britain had broken the alliance. That had been the end of the close alliance and the two powers had become enemies once more.
Now though, Britain had begun to reform, and as a result, NASA had taken notice. So there was hope in restoring the close alliance yet!
New Juneau
The debris from the GINNs was brought out, along with the black boxes of the GINNs themselves. There were tech crews standing by to receive the 'black boxes', which would hold all the data that they could need and use.
Of course, deciphering the data of the Flight Data Recorder, or FDR, of each GINN would take time. However, the Cockpit Voice Recorder, or CVR, would be just as useful if not deciphered a bit earlier.
The tech crews put the orange CVR and FDR devices into trucks that would take them to the nearest facility that could decipher the data on the systems inside the casing. As soon as the orange-cased devices were secured in the truck containers, one of the techs waved for the doors on the back to be shut. Once those were shut and secured, the truck drivers were waved on by yet another tech and the trucks drove off to the facility in question.
While this was going on, a man observed this and raised up his phone as if making a call. "What is it?"
"There were these orange containers that were loaded into trucks." The man replied to his superior. "The crews here seem to think those containers are of some importance."
"Orange containers you say?" The male voice asked in curiosity.
"Yeah. The containers are a bright orange and were handled delicately, as if fragile." The spy reported.
"Hmm... sounds like the fuel cells were found." The spy's superior noted.
"I doubt it. No fuel cell looks like those casings." The spy retorted.
"I see. Keep an eye on things. If those containers are indeed important, then find a way to remove them before anything important gets found out." The male voice instructed.
The spy nodded and shut his phone before going back to his job he had as a cover.
"Well, the devices have been shipped off to be analyzed." A NASA soldier commented.
"Did you get all the Black Pizza Boxes then?" Another asked as she looked at her companion.
The first soldier grunted. "I wouldn't say all of them, but we got quite a few of them." She replied as she looked back at what looked like black plates that were about the size of a pizza box, if not as flat as well.
The spy perked up, wondering if those black pieces of debris were indeed the mysterious 'Black Pizza Boxes' he had been hearing about.
"Think the techs here can figure anything out from them? I mean, the GINNs were missing their MIDPs." The second soldier asked.
"I wouldn't put it past them to find something." The first soldier reassured her friend. "The Black Pizza Boxes were there in case the MIDPs were removed."
A smirk crossed the spy's face. It seemed those orange containers were not of any importance after all. In fact, the containers seemed to be the least of his worries. All he had to do was get rid of those Black Pizza Boxes and then no one would be able to trace down who was behind the Junius Seven drop.
Washington D.C.
President Hilson looked over the data on the AEU and Earth Alliance movements, which was showing that the ZAFT bases on Earth were in danger of falling. With ZAFT forces on Earth aiding in the recovery, the forces left to defend both bases were very thin at best. She frowned. This did not look good.
Already the war was off to a bad start, and ZAFT was in danger of losing its presence on Earth. If that presence was lost, that would leave the PLANTs open to attack. She glanced back at the machine she now called hers, only to look away again. NASA would have to intervene in the attack on the ZAFT bases.
"Vice President Young." She said, making her vice-president look over at her. "Yes?"
"I will need you to get Warson and Gonzalez down here as soon as possible. We have much to discuss." President Hilson replied. "And get the 7th Phantom Squadron down here to Earth as well. ZAFT will need the help. Alert the squadrons with the new machines to prepare for battle. This is one fight that ZAFT cannot lose!"
"Yes ma'am!"
The fleets with the new Raptor MS were alerted to the situation and briefed. ZAFT was in need of help, and NASA was going to give it, even if they were not exactly allies anymore.
The new Dax units were prepped for combat, as were the Raptors. And with a second aerial unit in the works, NASA would have a bigger advantage as well. This was going to be the combat debut of the new units, and the Earth Alliance was going to learn why NASA was not some nation that backed down after an invasion!
After the Invasion of NASA, the new units had been created to be an advantage against the EA units, which had been deadly to even the more advanced Traverse Gundams. Now though, NASA had a reason the alliance should fear them, and it was not just the new units either. It was the fact that NASA had learned from the last attack.
And now, NASA was more than ready to take on the EA once more…
New Juneau
The spy got to work, creeping up to the Black Pizza Boxes before he looked one over. There was indeed writing on the debris, but most of it was scorched off by the battle and subsequent failed re-entry to the planet's atmosphere.
Still, figuring it was better to be safe rather than sorry, the spy took out a bottle that held an acid that would dissolve the writing on the debris before him. The spy poured the acidic compound over the writing on the Black Pizza Box he was in front of. While the acid did its work, he did the same with the next, and then the next. This was done on all five of the Black Pizza Boxes, which rendered their contents unreadable.
His work done, the spy put the bottle back into his lunch box and closed it before walking off. Luckily for him, the security camera that had been watching the boxes had been offline for repairs and maintenance, so no footage of his act of sabotage had been recorded.
As the spy walked off, confident in his mission being a success, he didn't realize he had overlooked one little detail; the 'black pizza boxes' were not really black at all...
PLANTs
Chairman Durandal had finished his announcement to the Council, which had been that NASA had been willing to help in Operation Reclaimer, which was good because ZAFT would need all the help they could get in the endeavor.
While a few Council members had been shocked, the group had been willing to accept the help, which meant that fewer lives would be lost.
But he hoped that it would be enough to protect the bases, otherwise, ZAFT would be in a bad spot indeed...
Chapter is complete. Athrun returns to the PLANTs while a battle in space between ZAFT and the EA takes place. A nuclear attack fleet is defeated while NASA agrees to help the PLANTs with Operation Reclaimer, and the President survives an attempt on her life.
Anyway, constructive criticism is appreciated as are reviews. Flames, AKA, hate-filled/spamming reviews as well as out-right hatred of the story, WILL be reported and/or deleted depending on if they are signed or not.
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