Act I
Episode IV: The Restless Dogs of War
Duo breezed down a cobblestone path, his fingers interlocked behind his head, and his braid swayed back and forth slightly as he went. The walkway was lined with rows of cherry trees on either side, each just beginning to grow heavy with rosy pink blossoms. It was certainly a rare sight for a space colony, normally drab and gray from concrete and utilitarian construction. He had arrived at the space port not just a short hour ago, and was greeted by an attendant who walked alongside him now. Duo glanced sideways to catch her eye, and she smiled back at him respectfully. She wore a mandarin long blouse colored a soft red that complemented her form very well. The silk dress had a tall collar and short sleeves. The hem of the skirt just reached her knees. Her hair was black, cropped above her shoulders, and she wore a dragonfly hairclip made of gold and crystal. She must have been a year or so younger than him, and perhaps quite a good catch, Duo thought.
"'Mao,' is it?" Duo inquired again.
"That's right, Mr. Maxwell. But everyone here calls me 'Bubbles'—well, except for my brother and Lord Wufei," she answered cheerfully.
"…That so…?" Duo wondered aloud to himself, but he got no sort of reply. "And just 'Duo' is good," he asserted coolly. She nodded to oblige him. He began to speak again. "It's strange. I thought Wufei was doing pretty well with the Preventers. What's he doing way the heck out here?"
She laughed charmingly. "He's retired early and decided to build his estate close to where his home colony used to be," Mao replied. "We're coming close to the entrance now."
That jogged Duo's memory. "That's right. That colony was destroyed way back when…." His mouth was set in a hard line. Wufei's entire home and family was destroyed in the blink of an eye. Duo could sympathize with such hardships, but he went on further. "I understand being homesick and all, but what's he doing with himself? I mean, retiring already? We're all still awfully young!"
She tried to look serious for a moment, but cracked under pressure. "I don't know!" Mao admitted apologetically. "I haven't been here very long." Duo looked at her in surprise. "There's so much going on around me…!" She began to scratch her head a bit in thought. "But last I heard it, Lord Wufei has been trying to revive his Dragon Clam…."
"'Dragon Clam'!" Duo exclaimed, perplexed. "What the heck is that!?" He scratched his head, trying to construct what it could be, but could only rough a sketch of what appeared to be a large bivalve with frilly lips and two pronged horns.
Mao's eyebrows were knitted as she racked her brain to figure it out also, but all there was to offer was what looked like a crude crayon drawing of a serpent-like creature with a shellfish for a head. It flicked its pronged tongue out lewdly like a snake. "I can't really say," she frowned dejectedly.
"She means 'Dragon Clan,'" someone cut in with a rather serious voice. A man had come to meet them at the entrance of the estate. With the knuckle of one hand, he knocked once on Mao's skull to see if it was as hollow as it seemed. "As its head, Master Chang is here to revive the Dragon Clan to its former prominence. Don't confuse our guests, Mao."
She took the small blow as if nothing had happened. There must not be any feeling up there. Mao perked up, showing her surprise by throwing her hand out. "Brother! What are you doing here? I thought Lord Wufei sent me instead. (And, Fong, I keep saying you can call me 'Bubbles' like anyone else!)"
"…'Bubbles,'" he mutters at length. Though he was dreary and sarcastic with Mao, Fong's voice was deep and commanding. He was tall and thin, and he carried himself very well. His eyes were narrow and calculating, accentuated further by his eyeglasses. He was exceptionally well-groomed, with his black hair pulled back into a small pony tail. Fong was a prime example of intelligence and gentry, and seemed almost like the leader of a wolf pack. Duo was beginning to wonder how these two could possibly be of the same family when Fong suddenly turned to him, causing him to jump a bit. "Duo Maxwell? Master Chang has been expecting you. You should head on in."
Duo was about to comply, but a small curiosity stopped him. "Hey, Fong. This might seem somewhat strange, but why do you refer to him as 'Master' while Bubbles calls him 'Lord'?"
Fong fixed his glasses, pushing them up some with his finger, and gave a straight-forward reply. "Our family has had ties with the Dragon Clan for many decades. The two clans merged not long ago. The terms are almost interchangeable, but I call him 'Master' as the clan leader. Wufei is my brother-in-law."
"Really? And that means—"
"Yeah!" Mao interjected. "He's my husband!"
Duo immediately recoiled, alarmed by his earlier intentions. A married woman! How would Wufei react? He might kill me! Duo froze, and a look of terror on his face betrayed his thoughts. He pictured the powerful martial artist delivering a fatal karate chop to the side of his neck; an obvious cracking noise resounded on impact. Duo's knees shook a bit underneath him, and there was a distinct twitching pain in his neck from the imaginary blow.
Fong raised an eyebrow at Duo, not being sure why the man's teeth were suddenly chattering. "We've dawdled for long enough. Let's not keep the master waiting."
"I don't know," Duo began to protest, "I—OOF!"
Mao pushed him along into the gates. "Hurry up!" she urged with a laugh.
He stumbled past the outer walls of the estate and regained his footing. Upon looking up, Duo was caught speechless. The Dragon Clan estate was vast beyond his imagining. Enclosed by the outer walls were a dozen giant buildings styled in Chinese architecture. The courtyard was very expansive, plotted with soft grass and intricate cobblestone walkways. There were many trees and massive stone sculptures of mythical figures and beasts. Duo could see that the estate was relatively new, as well. Many of the buildings were still under construction, with a few men moving to and fro to work on their completion.
In the distance ahead, a group of martial artists trained together. The practitioners moved in unison, hitting stances and making strikes, their combined shouts giving power to their movement. Duo squinted, able to make out Wufei who happened to be observing the group from the side. He jogged on ahead to greet his old acquaintance when Mao and Fong nodded their approval.
Wufei turned around, noticing Duo's approach. His hair had since grown a bit in length, and he was dressed in a long robe threaded from white silk. He wore a welcoming smile and motioned for the students behind him to cease their practice. "You're looking well."
Duo blinked a bit, seeing Wufei's relaxed attitude. It was such a stark contrast from all the time he spent with the man on the Peacemillion. Tense and strong, if troubled, was how he knew him back then, but now he no longer seemed to carry that bad energy about him. Not openly, anyway. The man in black jogged to a stop, putting those thoughts aside. "And you're one to talk!" Duo retorted with a laugh. "Look at this place!"
He nodded in agreement. "Well, it has been a long couple of years…."
Duo's eye looked about, and then passed over the group of students behind Wufei. It was an assemblage of a dozen or so people—mostly men, but notably a few women among them as well. They ranged from young to middle-aged, and looked like a gathering of serious and dedicated practitioners, all vibrant and healthy. "Interesting lot of people you have here," he commented to his host.
Wufei beamed proudly, "These are all students who have come to study our clan's unique style. I was one of the few remaining who could teach it, so it's important to spread our technique! Here, let us demonstrate…."
Duo did not want to trouble them. "No, that's not—"
"Liao!" the master called.
"SiFu!" A young boy stepped forward from the group. He couldn't have been older than 7 or 8 years of age. Duo was surprised at the child's intense demeanor.
"Demonstrate the set from this morning," Wufei commanded. Too late to stop them, Duo supposed.
"SiFu!" the youth acknowledged. Everyone stepped back on cue to give the boy room. Liao started into his routine. The form utilized very low stances and far-reaching strikes, calling for much balance and strength. He made potent shouts where necessary. His timing and technique was immaculate, but his movements were somewhat slow and flaccid, lacking the snap and intensity that an older and more powerful student would have. Duo was very well impressed, but, unable to appreciate the form fully. He was more distracted by the boy's small stature and how serious he was in spite of it. Liao finished his demonstration, bringing his hands together and bowing before his observers. Everyone else nodded approvingly.
"That was adorable," Duo gushed with some laughter. The others gasped, not knowing how Liao might react to the stranger's comment. They could only watch.
The boy's fist was clenched into a tight ball, his eyes closed. Duo was unsure why everyone around him had fallen silent. Wufei looked on carefully. Without warning, the boy turned around and launched himself into the air. Duo could hardly react, "Holy s—" before Liao's foot came crashing directly into where Duo's pelvis met his thigh. Being hit in his center of balance by the child's surprise attack, the grown man tumbled backward violently onto his butt, his world sent into a whirl.
The others were in a state of shock, but a moment later Master Wufei spoke out in a calm yet proud manner, "Very good, Liao. The strong must not be underestimated!" He seemed more enthused about the lesson at hand than for the wellbeing of his fallen comrade.
"Yeah, I'll remember that…," Duo grimaced from off the ground. Mao came to help their guest to his feet, dusting him off carefully. Meanwhile, another of the students, a young woman, came forward in a concerned manner and put her hand on Liao's head. She was quite striking; her hair was put up to keep it out of the way while she practiced, and her eyes were youthful and full of vigor. She was dressed in a loose-fitting robe like the other students. It was quite comfortable for practice.
"That was a very rude thing to do, Liao. What self control that was! Go wash yourself off and come back once you've calmed down," she ordered. The child stuck up his chin, indignant, and marched away into one of the buildings. She couldn't help but sigh at his behavior. Turning to address Wufei, she said, "SiFu. I think it would be best if you see to your guest now. I can take over in the meanwhile."
She and Wufei seemed to share a strong bond of respect. "Yes, you're quite right, Lin," Wufei answered. "Please do." Lin nodded firmly in turn. Wufei casually stepped away from the gathering and began making his way into the main hall. "Come this way, Duo." Duo hobbled after him, having to walk off the hurt, though his host was not giving him much choice. Mao followed them into the hall while Fong stayed to observe Lin and the class.
Inside the entrance of the main hall was a heavy air of burning incense. The ambient atmosphere was profound and quieting. There was a magnificent altar on the far side of the room that took up almost the entire wall. Before it, a woman stood in prayer, eyes closed, two incense sticks pressed between her hands. Notably, she did not look like the others. She wore a blazer with a business skirt, and her hair was long and elegant. Curiously, a long blue ribbon was wrapped around one of her graceful locks. She did not stir from the entrance of the other three, occupied by her prayer, wishing for good luck and fortune to come in the future. Wufei stopped in front of the altar to let Duo observe, knowing that his friend would not often encounter such glimpses into this part of his culture. It was decorated with reds and golds, and many candles, incense holders, and offerings lay upon it. There were photos and statuettes of deities and saints, one or two of which Duo thought looked familiar.
On the center of the altar were a few black and white photos placed in frames. They were Wufei's predecessors and ancestors, many of which had passed away in the tragedy several years ago. The event was so sudden that Wufei could not recover enough items for everyone, and not every person he had wanted to honor had even had such a photo taken. It was a shameful loss he regretted deeply. Front and center was a photograph of a young girl that stood out from the others who had otherwise lived long and fulfilling lives. Duo was quite taken aback by her presence at the altar and wondered at her identity. In the photo, she appeared stoic, but peaceful and beautiful.
Wufei knew Duo might want to ask. "That is Nataku," he offered, his voice quieted by a sense of profoundness that overcame him. "She is the reason I became a Gundam pilot." He stood silent for a moment, letting his guest understand his words. Duo never expected such a story from the other man, but there wasn't anything he could say at the time. Wufei supplied no further explanation and continued on to leave into a hallway. Duo and Mao followed him shortly, leaving the other woman to pray at the altar in solitude. Perhaps it could be something they could discuss in the future.
The hallway was very long, connecting many large rooms together. There hung in the air the distant sounds of a piano, and it grew as the three of them drew nearer. The piece was soft and sweeping, full of heart and emotion. The notes came with a light touch and danced upon on the air to one's ear. It was music that enraptured both the musician and the listener. Coming across the room containing the instrument, Duo found a simple beauty seated at the piano. Her hair was short and graceful, and she wore a simple dress that complemented her elegance. She took notice of the three out in the hallway, but her hands continued to move upon the keys. Wufei smiled upon her approvingly, and she closed her eyes happily, accepting his silent praise. He moved on, not wanting to interrupt her, and the piano grew quiet as he paced onward. Duo wanted to listen longer, but hurried forward to keep up with Wufei. He pulled Mao along with them who also marveled at the melody.
At the end of the hallway was a library. Before they entered, Wufei turned to Mao, saying, "Bring some tea for our guest, please." She obliged and went off in another direction.
It was probably one of the largest rooms in the main hall. Bookshelves covered up all of its walls, and they were filled top to bottom with texts, documents, and binders. There were large and heavy wooden tables set up in the center of the room. Wufei and Duo entered the library, finding another occupant inside with them. A woman stood at the far shelf with her back turned to them, breezing through a set of binders. Her hair was long and wavy, reaching down past her hips, and she wore a white laboratory coat. The two men approached, but Duo jumped when she turned around to meet them. She was an older woman in her mid to late twenties, and under her lab coat she wore a leather miniskirt and a top that she left partly unzipped. The sight of her dazzling figure surprised Duo greatly.
"Whoa!"
She crossed her arms, offended, and removed her eyeglasses to look at him. "Who the hell are you?" Duo realized the rudeness of his outburst and averted his eyes apologetically when Wufei came forward.
"Ah, Chi Fong. This is Duo Maxwell, a guest of mine. He was a pilot like myself, and we've fought a number of battles together. All that should make him interested in what we're doing here." He turned to introduce her. "Chi Fong is an engineer sponsored by the clan. She and I often collaborate on projects. She's an excellent worker with a resourceful mind."
"Charmed…," she greeted him, still somewhat detached.
"No, pleasure's mine," Duo answered, still with some embarrassment from before. Wufei gestured for him to have a seat at one of the tables, so he pulled out a chair, and the two sat together. Chi Fong chose to remain standing aside Wufei. Mao stumbled into the room, hurrying with their tea. Duo stopped himself from laughing at her near-mishap. She set the pottery in front of the two men and poured a cup for each. Duo offered his thanks before taking a sip, being careful not to burn himself. After finishing his drink, he picked up the conversation again. "You sure have a lot going on here, Wufei. It's surprising how well you're doing after all that's happened."
"Well, I'll have to agree with you. I enjoyed my work with the Preventers, but things quickly grew quiet as ESUN's policy made progress. I suppose I decided to pick up where I left off before the war, and of course there's the matter of reviving the fallen clan!" Wufei's answer seemed simple, but these past years had been complex and burdensome on him. He was a man carrying a lot of internal conflict, especially during the war. Torn by visions of a past filled with destruction and tragedy, he had only begun to pick up the pieces. But now, what he sought was change. Real change. To make amends for his terrible memories, Wufei worked to cultivate and support everything and everyone around him. He did not put his past behind him, but carried it along, strengthening himself with that burden. It was this hope of progress that calmed him and gave him strength.
Believe in the world we live in today. Those very words Wufei did his best to honor.
"No kidding!" Duo retorted. "It looks like you've got a lot of interesting people around you, too. Not a bad looking bunch, if I might add. And Bubbles is quite a lucky girl, being your choice of all of them. You must be very happy!" He smiled genuinely at the two of them.
Wufei looked somewhat surprised. "Oh? Has no one told him?" Mao shrugged in response. He began to answer, "Well, Mao is not the only wife."
Duo gave him a weird look, incredulous. "What? Come off it!"
Chi Fong spoke, "Bubbles is only Lord Wufei's most recent marriage. He and I were wed more than a year ago."
"You…?!" Duo questioned, jaw dropped.
"Then there's Xia Mei whom you saw in the hall," Wufei began. "Lien Hua was the one at the altar. And Tao Lin in the courtyard earlier."
"FIVE!" he exclaimed, bug-eyed. Mao laughed, amused at Duo's shock. Recomposing himself somewhat, Duo clarified, "You're not hiding any more around here, right?"
Wufei laughed and answered him, "No. No one else. It's actually kind of odd that you came at a time when everyone is here at once. It's pretty rare." He went on further to explain. "I know it's highly unorthodox for this day and age, but reviving a clan alone would be impossible to do. It's a highly complicated matter, you see: there's establishing ties to other clans with Mao, teaching the Dragon Clan technique where Lin is my best student and assistant, and having financial ties with Lien Hua's family. Then Xia Mei is a renowned musician whose family approached me to establish bonds with the clan. Chi Fong and I share interests in our research, and I personally fund our work when possible. And I suppose there's the matter of bearing sons to continue the clan…." Wufei trailed off.
Chi Fong broke the ice. "I don't think any of us mind so much," she offered with a wink. Duo laughed, feeling more comfortable, and Mao smiled absently.
"Unbelievable…." Duo mumbled, shaking his head. Christ, Wufei. All of them?! Then there's that oddball Heero and his little lady…. Am I the only one that's not mackin' the honeys? Duo sighed roughly, "Well, now since that's out of the way…." Wufei and the other two chuckled. "…what's this stuff you keep mentioning? What kinds of projects do you and Chi Fong have going on here, Wufei?"
"Yes, that's right!" Wufei recalled. He turned to Chi Fong, "Bring us the binder for the project from two months ago, if you would." She paced away, putting on her glasses again, and found her way to one of the bookshelves. She looked over the documents until she fingered the binder she was searching for and removed it casually. She crossed her arms again after handing it to Wufei. He reached into a pocket and withdrew a pair of reading glasses. Wufei looked unusually natural in them. He smiled, pressing a palm on the document proudly. "You might be surprised to know, but before I became a Gundam pilot, I was somewhat of a scholar. I guess I'm more versed in research and theory, so Chi Fong acts as my engineer."
"And I thought us Gundam pilots all had a little know-how just from playing the part. I never imagined…." Duo related. After checking the files himself, Wufei handed over the document. It was enormously heavy, being a five-inch binder with nearly all of its space used up.
Wufei addressed Mao and Chi Fong pleasantly, "Thank you both for everything. Can we be left to talk alone?" Mao obliged, leaving the tea for them, and exited with the carrying tray. She waved goodbye to Duo who waved back. Chi Fong whispered something into the master's ear with another wink and left soon after with a book in hand. Wufei gestured for his guest to go ahead and look through the documents. Duo in turn opened the binder curiously, reading the titles methodically, and then breezed through the reports and diagrams. His grin grew ever wider the further he went.
Duo began to shake his head. "Wufei…you crazy son of a bitch…." He made a kind of pretend wince, playing that he didn't know. "Miniaturized a particle drive for a mobile suit? Now what kind of crazy person would have a use for that?"
Wufei grinned knowingly, but also played along. "I don't know, Duo. But if someone ever wanted to…."
"Really!" Duo exclaimed. "Can you even picture how fast that thing would move?!" They both began to laugh as their imaginations ran wild with the idea. Duo casually flipped through the pages again, still tickled and shaking his head, just to verify that what he saw there was true. His laughter eased off, but his smile was still there. "You know," Duo started, "this actually reminds me a lot of Heero."
"Is that so?" Wufei questioned, more seriously.
Duo still wore a soft smile, but his eyes looked conflicted. He was terribly pained inside. "Yeah, it does. You would think he is trying to move on like anybody else…but if you really look, you can tell he's stuck." Wufei was silent, understanding the grave nature of Duo's insight. "But I suppose we're all a lot alike. It's hard to live so harshly for a purpose like that and then suddenly have it gone. We hardly have any idea what to do with ourselves."
"So, even he is still fighting. We all are…." Wufei realized.
"Yeah," Duo agreed. "We can try to outgrow it, and live and build ourselves up as much as we want. I would like to think that we've come very far—that we're doing well for ourselves. But the world is changing again…or should I say, it will stay the same as it always has."
Wufei nodded solemnly, able to foresee the purpose of Duo's visit.
Duo spoke once more, "I hate to depend on him again…, but he's the only one we can trust to be prepared for it…."
The Vice Foreign Minister put up a hand to shield her eyes from the sunlight. Despite her close ties to the area, she did not often visit the Sanc Kingdom, usually having to make frequent flights between the Earth and colonies as part of her work instead. New Port City was especially beautiful this time of year, with the invigorating sea air being carried on the wind. Relena stood at the steps of the Peacecraft palace, now a dedicated school and a center of government activity. Though she was invited several times to take her place as ruler of the country, she turned down the offers, and the Sanc Kingdom was now overseen by a democratically elected prime minister (who happened to be plenty qualified, she supposed). Relena thought back to several years ago, recalling that this city was a battleground many times, twice burned down.
Lady Une came up the steps behind Relena, glad to be outside for a change, and in such beautiful weather! Being a high-rank officer in the Preventers, she was normally stuck behind a desk coordinating people and paperwork. And of all things she could be doing, it had been arranged for her to escort the Vice Foreign Minister. It would also be a chance to visit Mariemaia, who had since enrolled into the boarding school at the prestigious Peacecraft Academy. Relena had arrived to give a lecture on the development of pacifism to the students at the academy. It was rare for her to be among people so young; most of the attendees were women around her age and younger. Today would not be the usual conference on policy while being outnumbered by tired old men.
"Are you ready for today's lecture, Princess?" Lady Une asked endearingly.
Relena laughed quietly. "Of course," she answered with energy. "But I am more worried about other things."
She was certainly right to be. This lecture was only a small affair she had promised to friends in the school's administration, and she held on to her agreement in spite of other matters. Lately she had been very concerned about ESUN's Mars Terraformation project. Representatives from Martian space had been behaving strangely in the past month. Though they spoke of cooperation and aid, they never held up their end of the bargain, and then feigned innocence and negligence. Communication was difficult to begin with due to the extreme distances, but those men on the other side could not be counted on to answer seriously. Just in the past two days, talks seemed to have ceased completely, with no response of any kind from Martian delegates. What could possibly be going on over there? Though she had others investigating, Relena was just about ready to hop onto an interplanetary shuttle to get her hands on some answers.
Lady Une faced difficult situations of her own. Some months ago came that bombing inside the Preventers' mobile suit facilities. They were a puny force to begin with, numbering no more than eight units, but the sudden attack left them completely crippled, and the ESUN had no units outside of that small squad. She had been petitioning for funds to reconstruct the facility and its mobile suits, but she was turned down time and again. The administration saw it as a chance to further dissolve any military presence, even if it was in their own hands. They were too hopeful, and did not care to see the dangers it presented. Relena was personally conflicted on the issue, but generally supported Lady Une's call for self defense. Worst of all, did the administration really mean to let the terrorists have their way? Perhaps they were far too eager to forget about the wars of yesterday.
She was just opening the front doors for the Vice Foreign Minister when they both heard it. The sound was faint, but it was undeniable: the distant searing hiss of thermonuclear jets. The world seemed to have gone into slow motion when they both turned around in horror only to witness the stuff of nightmares. A mobile suit approached the quiet capital from the air, armed with a rifle. They both watched apprehensively as the machine made a recklessly hard landing on the outskirts of the city, destroying layers of concrete underneath. It was not a model Lady Une had ever seen before, and its design principle was highly unusual compared to anything she had studied in the past. It was lightly built and colored completely grey. The fuselage was lined with thruster rockets in the shoulders and skirt areas. Large diamond-shaped plates made up the armor for its shoulders. Most unusually, the unit had no feet, and it stood on small pedestals that extended from the ends of its legs. She looked fearfully into its face, an emotionless and enormous camera eye.
To their shock, the unit began to pace through the streets, and a voice resounded from it. The speech was pre-recorded, spoken in the voice of a young man who sounded ambitious and strong.
"This is a declaration of war…." Those very first words were devastating, and the Vice Foreign Minister nearly fell to her knees. It continued, every word sharper and more painful than the last, "The people of the Earth Sphere have grown pompous and complacent. You speak of policies of peace, calling it a victory for all mankind. Yet you trample over and neglect those you find insignificant. You seek control over all of space without considering the rights of others. We cannot allow such tyranny, and hereby declare the formation of the Mars Space Republic…."
"A new republic! Mars!?" Relena exclaimed in disbelief. "How did this happen…?"
"Mars is our planet—pure and untouched by the corruption of the people of Earth. This is a direct challenge to the Earth Sphere United Nations: in a year's time, Mars and Earth shall come close enough for us to send our mobile forces to your planet. We shall be the ones to lead mankind into the future of space. We will not be swayed by talk. Be prepared. This is a declaration of war…."
With those words, the mobile suit lifted its rifle and fired into a nearby building. The entire structure was leveled, killing nearly all the people inside. Horrified, she held back a scream and tears began to fall from Relena's eyes. The heartless machine moved the gun again in another direction and fired, destroying two more buildings. And another time—again and again. It was firing indiscriminately upon the citizenry of New Port City.
Lady Une wasted no time, grabbing Relena and rushing inside the doors of the palace. She shouted for everyone within earshot to go into the basement. Une whipped out her phone and dialed the emergency line at Preventers HQ. She called for an evacuation order: everyone far enough should escape the city, and others should move underground or seek battle shelters. All vessels and transports approaching by land or water should turn away. Suddenly Relena tried to pry herself free from her escort, frantic.
"We have to do something! Let me go!" Her voice was desperate and pained. Une only hugged her close until she stopped struggling.
"Relena, keep calm. We have to make it through this. My priority is that both you and I survive to do what we can. There is nothing you and I can do to stop that monster outside…." The Vice Foreign Minister nodded at length, feeling defeated. Everyone around them was already rushing downstairs. They followed suit, while Une stayed in contact with headquarters.
On the surface, the mobile suit continued its rampage. A half an hour had passed and it had stopped firing its rifle, conserving the rounds. Instead, it casually strolled through the streets, running its hands through the buildings as they crumbled like ash under its touch. As it went, the recording of the voice played, repeating the message over and over. Casualties still grew, but were limited with the people securely sheltered. News teams came to film the monster in its childlike rampage, and their copters flew over the city. Those that came too close were shot down. Outdated attack helicopters had scrambled into the Sanc Kingdom from nearby nations, but they were too few in number, and were picked off easily by the mobile suit's rifle. Its thunderous footsteps shook those who hid underground.
At last, the mobile suit raised its rifle again, training it upon the palace of the Peacecraft family. Its giant camera eye glowed softly, lifeless and remorseless. Its hand began to pull back on the trigger when a missile suddenly shot up from below and blew the weapon out from the mobile suit's grip. The rifle crashed to the ground below as a piece of twisted metal, rendered useless as a weapon. The suit's computer quickly triangulated the path of the missile and found its point of origin. The main camera turned and set its gaze upon the assailant, a lone man sitting upon a motorcycle, a spent one-use anti-MS rocket launcher pressed in his hands. Trowa Barton stared back at the monster with a calm but fiercely determined look in his eyes. He tossed the spent launcher tube aside and revved the engine on his bike. With a terrible screech, the motorcycle charged straight for the mobile suit at incredible speed. Trowa slipped underneath the giant machine, driving between its legs, and disappeared from sight as the suit turned around trying to keep track of him.
Trowa sped through the streets, weaving between buildings quite easily. It was simple, considering that everyone else in the city was hidden indoors. He kept one eye trained on the suit, able to see it as he zipped past gaps between buildings. It was wandering quite hurriedly, looking left and right in search of him. He had one more anti-MS rocket launcher strapped to his back. It was the most he could manage with such short notice. He would have to make the most of it, and hope he could disable the entire mobile suit with a single shot. He only had one chance. Trowa throttled the bike, tearing his way through the streets with even greater speed.
The mobile suit stepped into the large clearing of a wide street. Not since it first disappeared has that motorcycle been spotted again. The suit was wide open, standing in such a large space. Trowa skidded in on his bike, stopping directly in front of the mobile suit. In a fraction of a second, he had steadied the launcher and fired the missile directly at the suit's main camera. To his shock, the machine reacted and turned its waist, blocking the missile with one of the large diamond-shaped plates on its shoulders. When the smoke cleared, Trowa found the mobile suit's head undamaged, and its shoulder barely had a scratch. The armor was surprisingly resilient for such a frail looking mobile suit, and he had not expected the machine to be able to react so quickly.
That's when the machine lifted its arm and reached for a weapon bolted onto its back. It drew forward what looked like a long cylindrical rod with a handle. The shaft suddenly grew red-hot, searing the air around it with immense temperature. It was a heat saber—effectively, a hot stick—that made for a crude but effective armor cutting weapon that had not been seen since the early years of mobile suit combat. Though it was vastly inferior to a beam saber, Trowa knew that it was more than enough to completely incinerate him and everything else in this city. He recoiled in panic as the machine drew its arm back to strike.
Suddenly, there was the sound of shearing metal and an earth-shaking crash, followed by an enormous rush of wind that almost picked Trowa off the ground. The mobile suit's arm had been separated at the joint that connected it to the main body, and the severed limb crashed to the pavement below. The immense energy of the still burning heat saber melted the cement as it hit, causing the stony gray soup to simmer and pop. The weapon eventually de-rezzed, being detached from its main power source, and cooled back down until the blade became a charred gray color.
Hardly one to believe in a miracle that caused the mobile suit's arm to come off on its own, Trowa whirled about to find a white Leo crouched a distance away, a razor-sharp curved blade extended forward from its hand. Attached to its back was an immensely large rocket system that was a long-range flight pack that had carried the mobile suit here. It came from outside the country, propelled here at impossible speeds. The still ignited jets eventually died out, and the pack was ejected, shaking the ground terribly as it hit. The grand machine stood up and about-faced, its splendid white armor glistening obscenely in the sunlight. It was the Leo-G, and it had cut through the mobile suit's shoulder from behind as it passed by for its high speed landing.
The Leo-G's combat computer quickly scanned the enemy mobile suit, evaluating its entire performance potential with a single look at its frame. It was definitely a new model, but its weapons were all low cost production types. Notably, the computer analyzed a low-heat signature for the unit.
"A mobile doll…," Heero realized. He quickly checked for any signs of Trowa, but the man had long since sped away on his motorcycle, quite smartly. Heero turned his attention on the main matter at hand. The Leo-G stood its ground and thrust its blade forward with one powerful arm, training the point directly toward the mobile doll, promising absolute destruction. The other suit stared back menacingly with that giant eye, and a part of the recording played again as a final message.
"Be prepared," the voice warned ominously. "This is a declaration of war…."
The mobile doll's fuselage began to glow threateningly, and Heero saw a spike in its temperature readings. It was going to self-detonate. He reacted without an instant of hesitation. The Leo-G dashed forward and, in a single fluid motion, cut off both of the doll's legs in one slash and caught the frame by its face using the Leo's free arm. With a great lunge, the Leo-G leapt into the air with the other suit in tow, and fired off its rockets at full power, hurtling them both towards the bay. In an instant they crossed the beach, and Heero attacked the frame again with the blade. With intricate flicks and turns of the wrist, the Leo-G made a series of mid-air slashes that cut away at the mobile doll until all that was mostly left was the core and reactor, now beginning to reach its critical state. With the mass other mobile suit mostly sliced away, Heero then threw his mobile suit into a powerful twist, lending momentum to an earth-shattering kick that sent the reactor sailing into the air over the water where it finally exploded.
The Leo-G retreated as an intense light bathed the area, shielding its main camera with one arm and shutting the protective visor. An intense fireball roared as it burned the air, creating a fierce wind. Shockwaves hit the water, causing violent waves to crash against the beach. After a few intense moments, Heero had the Leo lower its arm once the light subsided. If he had let that reactor go critical in the middle of the city, there would be no telling what damage it could have done. He could not stop the reaction, but could only do what he could to limit the damage done by the explosion. Thankfully, there were no ships in the harbor, credit going to Lady Une's earlier evacuation order. Still he found it strange that the reactor did not make a larger explosion. Were all Martian reactors of that low caliber, or was it only because it was a mobile doll reactor? There was no telling at this point. Heero sighed roughly with that ordeal settled. He knew things were far from over, however. Now onto the hard part.
An hour passed by. Heero had left the Leo-G to rest before the palace, down on one knee, and with its one blade secured into the holster on its hip. The sun was setting, throwing a warm glow over the white frame that awed those who beheld it. He had long since taken the data on the mobile doll created by the Leo's combat computer and handed it over to Preventers intelligence. As soon as the doll was destroyed, emergency and rescue teams scrambled through New Port City in search of the fallen. News teams worldwide were in a frenzy. They rushed the palace, learning what they could, getting video of the white mobile suit, though they were kept distanced by lines of policemen. Most desirable was an interview with the pilot, but he was nowhere to be seen, and no one had access to the palace.
Heero entered a private room in the palace where he found a gathering that consisted of a few posted guards, their administrator Lady Une, Trowa Barton, and Vice Foreign Minister Darlian, the three of which were seated at a large table. He traded glances with everyone, but did not say a word. Relena stood up, anxious to address him, "Heero…"
But he shook his head, stopping her. "Don't even say it, Relena. If I had gotten here sooner, I could have stopped the attack. If we had gotten word out sooner, we could have prevented all this damage. If we had known sooner, everything that happened could have been avoided entirely…." He closed his eyes, regrettably, angrily. His words were harsh, but they were true. Though the Gundam pilots were the main force that stopped the mobile doll's attack, they had moved too slowly. The Preventers had their defense squad destroyed, and let their detection networks fall out of working order. Then there was the Earth Sphere United Nations itself, which had somehow allowed the establishment of the Mars Space Republic occur right under its nose. Heero continued, even more indignant. "And then there's the hypocrisy of my even being here!" Everyone else looked on in shock. "For all these years I've turned my back on the pacifism that saved this world. All I can do is fight, hanging on desperately to these weapons. What I've done is a contradiction of the world you want to build, Relena. It's criminal."
Perhaps it was something that could have been left unsaid, but talking about it was something that Heero needed desperately. It had been eating away at him for years. She looked him right in the eye, and spoke very honestly. "You did everything you could to protect us. That is more than I could ever hope for, Heero." With those words, she hoped to reach out to the conflicted man, but he still seemed dissatisfied. A feeling of dissonance hung in the air. That was when the video-phone at the center of the desk began to sound. Lady Une answered the call, and the cherubic visage of Quatre Winner appeared on the screen.
He addressed them curtly, "I'm sorry to keep everyone waiting. We should get started right away."
Lady Une moved immediately onto her report on what the Preventers were able to learn. The biggest matter lay in the message carried by the mobile doll. The declaration was actually broadcast worldwide, and even through the colonies via a network of orbital satellites. And the transmission carried not only the audio that they all heard, but video footage as well. Une put on a recording for those who had not seen it. In it, they saw a person in a spacesuit planting a flag into dusty red soil. Apparently, the MSR (Mars Space Republic) had already sent their first man down to the red planet, claiming it as their own. Other parts of the feed demonstrated mobile suit assembly lines controlled by the MSR. Shockingly, the video evidenced that they had already produced hundreds and hundreds of units. It was needed to back up their claims of attack in the coming year. And such productivity was feasible, since Mars had ready access to the resources of the asteroid belt. Though considering the weak economy of the Martian space colonies, they would have had to retool their entire work force as a war machine.
"That's pretty much all the footage there was to the message broadcast from the Leolion," Une summarized. "The feed just keeps looping after that. We've managed to identify at least three different models present in their mobile suit line. We can also be pretty sure now that the attack on Preventers Mobile Ops would somehow be coordinated with this plan in order to give mobile doll a chance to attack without resistance."
"Hold on," Heero interrupted with a raised eyebrow. "'Leolion?' Who decided to call it that?"
"It's a strange name, but that's what Duo called it when he contacted me," Trowa offered. "I figured it could keep us consistent."
"Maxwell." Heero rolled his eyes a bit.
Lady Une assured him, "It's just a codename, Heero. We'll figure out the unit's real name once we learn more." He simply shrugged in response.
A patrolman from outside the room stepped in and approached Lady Une. "Lady, there is a matter you should see to outside."
She scolded him, "Can't it wait? We are in the middle of this…."
He apologized, "I'm sorry, Lady. We need you specifically."
Lady Une sighed, a bit flustered. "Please excuse me." She left with the guard, and they shut the door behind them.
Even with her gone, Trowa carried on the discussion. "So we know that much. What shall be done?"
Relena came forward quite forcibly, "We have to reason with them, of course! What could possibly cause them to want a war so suddenly? We have to go there and figure out what is going on!"
The others were quiet at first, but Quatre offered his opinion. "Relena, we would love nothing more than if that was possible, but the Republic has already shown hostile intentions, even telling us directly that they would not accept talk. Why do you think they chose to attack the Sanc Kingdom directly instead of the ESUN capitol?"
"This country is the symbol of peaceful relations in the Earth Sphere, and so by attacking it, they challenged our ideals directly," Heero filled in. "And besides, Mars would obviously be in a state of war right now. Anyone who approached would probably be killed without a second guess."
"So that begs the question," Trowa began. "Shall we meet their challenge?"
"We may not have much choice," Quatre answered bleakly. This set off alarms for Relena. But the discussion hurried along before she could speak.
"Suppose we do actually have an entire year. Is that enough time?" Heero wondered.
Relena tried to interject, "Hold on…," but her voice was too weak for the others to hear.
"I don't see it happening," Quatre shook his head. "The entire infrastructure for developing mobile suits was deconstructed by ESUN."
"But…," she tried again.
"And we have no Gundanium," Trowa added.
"No, that's…."
"Will the people be willing to fight again after all that's happened?" Heero questioned seriously.
"I…."
"That's a really important matter," Quatre recognized. "What will you do, Heero?"
"Can't you…."
"What I'll do…?" Heero wondered profoundly. He answered, giving the same answer he's given all his life. "I'll do the only thing I can do…." Those words were heartbreaking for Relena, and it was the last straw.
"PLEASE!" she cried out to them, red-faced. The other three turned to her, aghast. Relena could feel angry tears welling up in her eyes, but she ignored them and continued, "How can you brush us aside so easily? Is fighting all you can think of?! Are there really no peaceful solutions? How can you know without even trying?! There is always more we can do!"
The former Gundam pilots were mauled by her words. They were quiet, put to shame by the Vice Foreign Minister. She looked at each of them indignantly, waiting for a proper response to her call, but they had none. Suddenly, Heero stood up from his seat. When the others looked up at him, the expression on his face was like if he had just seen a ghost. They had never witnessed him in such a state. That was when they realized he was looking at the doorway. When they all turned in that direction, they saw a red-headed girl that had opened the door.
She saw Heero, too, and her eyes flared up once she recognized him. "You…!" Mariemaia forcibly pushed the door completely open, letting it strike against the wall with a crash. She was a part taller, having aged two years since last seen, and her hair had grown out longer. She entered the room, supported by a cane, and walked straight for Heero. Her injuries from the incident still have not completely healed. Lady Une rushed into the room again after her.
"Mariemaia! I told you that you should wait outside. What are you thinking to barge in like this!" She put a hand on the girl's shoulder, but Mariemaia pushed her back with her free arm.
"Don't stop me," the girl ordered quite seriously. She had taken shelter in the palace like many of the other students in the boarding school, expecting to see the Vice Minister's lecture. She came to this room when she heard her guardian Lady Une was present.
"Who do you think you are to show your face around here?" Mariemaia questioned, directing an attack at Heero. He was shocked to see her because he always thought she had died two years ago. In his delirium during the incident, he believed he had really taken her life, and wanting to forget the affair, he avoided any mention of Mariemaia, never learning that she survived. She continued her assault, saying, "You're just a dangerous maniac! Running around with those weapons and beam cannons! Why, back then you nearly killed Miss Darlian here, and you certainly meant to kill me! How is it that someone like you is running loose?"
Heero turned away with a hard look on his face, his own guilt growing quite apparent. She got right up to him and stared keenly. He was unable to meet her eye. But Mariemaia's face suddenly brightened into a smile. She had only been teasing the poor man, but the feeling was quite real for him. Taking his hand into her own, she smiled at him genuinely, catching him off guard.
"Thank you," she said. "I never got to thank you! Thank you for stopping me when I lost my way. I don't know what would have happened without you there for all of us." Heero was taken aback by her words, having lived a hard and thankless life up until now. The others were moved by her gratitude. Mariemaia looked to each one of them, knowing that in spite of their differences they each would be important to the coming future. In their own way, they each had something vital to contribute. "Don't worry," she told Heero, looking him in the eye with an encouraging smile. "I know we're in good hands."
Heero squeezed her hand back, grateful for her words. He could only nod firmly, assuring her that she was right to depend on them, returning her confidence in full.
By Seraphic
Named one of them Bubbles just like Zap asked. Codename "Leolion" credited to Ascension.