A/n

Here's Phase 8, hope you enjoy it!

Phase 8: Paths Forward

January 26th, 71 C.E.

The Archangel, Heliopolis Debris Field

Kira and Lacus brought in both the Heliopolis lifeboats they had found onboard the Archangel once they had been given permission. Reasoning with Natarle Badgiruel that the lifeboats were damaged and if they left them floating, they would unlikely be found in time had been a chore. Lacus had been kind of shocked as had Kira when Natarle had been fully against the lifeboats coming onboard the ship. People shouldn't just be left to die, but the woman didn't seem to understand that point or even admit it. But in the end, Kira and Lacus had convinced her to allow it along with probably some of the bridge crew.

The mechanics under the direction of Chief Murdoch assisted in the opening and unloading of the shelters. Some of the non-commissioned crew also set up a station to get the people's identifying information, specifically occupation as there were some skills that were in high demand at the current moment. Thankfully, abilities such as medical knowledge and skill were among the list as there was no ship doctor. Kira and Lacus also did what they could to help the process along and for Kira, he hoped that he would see some that he recognized and yet, didn't want that at the same time. They were both distracting themselves from there being no news with Tyler yet and they were worried about him. However, both he and Lacus were surprised when they saw the blonde girl that they had gotten to a shelter before joining back up with Tyler come out of one of the lifeboats. Neither actually talked to her much, but both were glad that she was okay with all that had happened recently.

The two teens kept assisting with the unloading for a little bit before it became clear that they were just getting in the way for the time being. So, Kira and Lacus were about to leave and find a room to get some sleep in as they were both tired. Defending the Archangel had been tiring and the collapse of Heliopolis had been taxing. The situation hadn't improved much by what any said and it didn't look like that would change soon. So, the two decided they should slip away to get some sleep while things were even somewhat quiet. Yet, before they could disappear from notice, a certain blonde approached them, "Oh it's you! You're one of Sai's friends," said Flay Allster floating to be in front of Kira.

To Flay, being able to see someone that was familiar was comforting, and right now with everything that had happened any comfort was welcome. Kira was one of Sai's friends and Flay had seen him enough to know that for a fact. So, when she had suddenly embraced Kira and he wasn't quite sure how to react to the gesture from the redhead. Sure, Kira previously had a 'thing' for Flay, Tyler and Sai had called it a crush, Tolle had said Kira was tripping over himself, but Kira had to admit he had been attracted to Flay a little for a time. Kira thought Flay was nice and everything, but as she was Sai's fiancée, so Kira was being careful not to do anything that might damage relationships. Sai was a close friend, Kira didn't what that friendship to be hurt by some sort of misunderstanding. However, since Lacus had been visiting more frequently over the last year, that attraction and the feelings that had accompanied it had faded.

Lacus felt some irritation for she didn't like how Flay was hugging Kira at all and the burning in her heart made that clear. It wasn't jealousy exactly, at least she didn't see it so even if others might claim what she was feeling was that. No, Lacus was worried for Kira her friend, not thinking about separating the two from the position she wanted herself. Lacus really liked Kira, it was more than liked she knew, but saying the idea in the other way would come later. Of course, Kira hadn't gotten any of her hints, gestures, or advances, and she had been trying to figure out a way to get the message across to him. Anyways, from what Lacus had been told, Flay was already engaged to Sai so, why was she hugging Kira like she was?! Once Lacus had this thought, she took a moment and calmed down not letting her emotions show outwardly.

"Please," said Flay not really paying attention to Lacus who was next to Kira, "Tell me what happened to Heliopolis. What was going on? What happened there in the end?"

"Uh," uttered Kira uncertain how to respond to the barrage of questions. So much had happened, he really didn't know where to begin. Tyler had always been better at summarizing events than Kira was, just had a better way with words though he didn't admit it. It was yet another reminder of his friend's absence and Kira didn't like Tyler missing. Tyler always was calm during times of danger and stress, he had a knack for it and Kira really wished for that now.

Flay didn't seem to hear Kira as she continued speaking, "I was with my friends, we were," she said stumbling over her words somewhat, "I lost Jessica and Misha in a store when the crowds formed and panic took hold. I managed to run alone to the closest shelter I could get to and then everything got worse."

Lacus had stayed silent for as long as she was willing to, yet as she was about to say something but was interrupted. "Haro! Haro! I won't accept that! I won't accept that Lacus!" announced the robotic ball named Haro that Lacus had as it flapped the circular flaps it had spinning in the air towards them. Lacus swore that she had turned Haro off as she had found the switch that Athrun had installed last year.

Flay flinched as Haro made its opinion and presence known while the blonde herself finally seemed to take notice of Lacus being there. "Haro, stop that," apologized Lacus admonishingly grabbing the pink robotic ball, then turned her gaze to Flay who shrunk back just a little. "I apologize, I thought it was turned off," Lacus remarked.

The redhead shook her head slightly, looking back to Kira and doing her best to ignore Lacus. "This is a ZAFT ship, right?" she asked, her tone worried. "What's going to happen to us now? And what in the world are you doing on this ship anyway?"

"Actually," said Lacus further annoyed by Flay's behavior of intentionally ignoring her, "This vessel belongs to the Earth Alliance."

Flay wasn't liking what she was hearing, the blonde girl that was stating the facts that she was had to be a Coordinator, her appearance was too "designed" for her not to be that type of human. Plus, one glance around the area and the sight of the humanoid machines known as mobile suits proved that this couldn't be an Alliance ship. Only the ZAFT forces had mobile suits, that was a fact even if it may change in future. "You're lying," Flay said finally acknowledging Lacus's presence, "There are mobile suits onboard."

"No," said Kira waving his hands slightly noticing that Flay had glanced at the Strike and the Asuka. It was understandable, mobile suits were not something one would expect on an Alliance ship. "They actually belong to OMNI and Orb, one to each, but as things are right now the distinction isn't really needed."

Flay looked at Kira in surprise, which was followed by an awkward silence following Kira's explanation. He rubbed the back of his head and smiled a bit, "Well, it's good to know you're okay at least," he said attempting to break the ice, but shook his head when he didn't get the results he had been going for. "Hey, guess what Flay? Sai and Miriallia are here too, you're going to be just fine."

Flay moved along with the rest of the refugees that were on the lifeboats from Heliopolis. Meanwhile, Kira and Lacus returned to their intended hunt for a room that they could get some sleep without being disturbed for a while. Once they had found a set of quarters that fit what they wanted, they wasted no more time and fell asleep next to one another on one of the beds. The pair were soon found by their friends who didn't want to disturb them as they looked exhausted. So, they quietly left them be and went to the mess hall to talk to each other, "Got to say, Kira and Lacus looked completely drained with the way they were sleeping," said Sai.

There were mutterings of agreement between Tolle, Miriallia, Sai, and Kuzzey. "Can't blame them, they were fighting ZAFT mobile suits to protect us. Then, with Tye disappearing without a trace just adds to this mess that we're all in." Tolle paused and hissed out with irritation, "I just wish there was something we could do to help them. Nothing against Kira or Lacus, but I'm tired of them having to defend us while we just stand around doing nothing," Tolle said with frustration in his voice.

Miriallia nodded strongly as she agreed, it wasn't fair that they three Coordinator friends do the fighting like they had. "That's right, it's not fair to them to be forced into fighting ZAFT pilots just because they have the ability to," she remarked.

"That all sounds good, but what can we do," asked Kuzzey.

The four thought about the question, what could they do? They were students, not soldiers, and still, they didn't want to just accept things as they were. Their friends had been putting their lives on the line for them and just saying thanks didn't feel like enough. It was Sai that broke the silence that hung over the group, "Hey, I think I might have an idea that could help take some pressure off Kira and Lacus, plus, give us something to do."

Miriallia, Tolle, and Kuzzey looked at Martin waiting for him to elaborate on what he was talking about. "We could go to the Captain or Ensign Badgiruel and ask either of them if we can help by volunteering to help with the ship controls. They're shorthanded right now as it pretty obvious, and we have the skills to at least operate systems and they could teach us the finer point that we would need to know. What do you all think," asked Sai.

Tolle liked the idea that Sai had suggested and it was sound like he always seemed to be. "Sai, that's one of the best ideas you've had in a while," replied Tolle.

"Yeah, none of us can pilot mobile suits, but we could help with the ship and that would help both Kira and Lacus," agreed Miriallia happy that the suggestion had been made.

Kuzzey simply nodded and with the decision made, the four friends rose and began to seek out the two women that were in charge on the Archangel. They bumped into Ensign Badgiruel first and laid out their wish to volunteer to help run the ship to the Earth Alliance officer.

Natarle was surprise and a little shocked when the teens came up to her asking to help with of the operation the ship. It was so unexpected even if these teens were of the age to be able to officially enlist, they were so young to be involved. She would have said no as having civilians helping was a problematic subject. And if not for the fact of the ship being so shorthanded refusing help is a very foolish choice and Natarle knew it. With the circumstance as they were, any help was needed to survive even to reach in mind, Natarle granted the teens their request with the understanding that they would be treated like any other member of the crew. That meant that all four of them would be expected to listen to and follow orders given to them. And even if it was temporary, they would be members of OMNI, volunteers, but still considered the same as non-commissioned officers. Sai, Tolle, Miriallia, and Kuzzey accepted the consequences and still said they would do their best to help.

With the matter settled, the next few hours for the four teens were spent being taught how the Archangel's controls worked at the stations they would be assigned to. All four were given the rank of crewman second class and with their help the ship have enough to now have an actual skeleton crew. That was an improvement from before even if only a little bit and the crew was grateful for the help.

During those hours of training, Kira and Lacus woke up from their nap and headed to the mess hall to get something to eat. Although before the pair reached the mess hall, Mu and Krystal came up to them and asked to talk to them for a moment. Kira and Lacus agreed and looked to the two mobile armor pilots wondering what they could want to talk about. Mu spoke first, "Look Kira, Lacus, for the moment, you two are the only ones that can defend this ship if it's attacked. As much as Krystal and I would love to go out with you and protect the Archangel alongside you both, we can't right now," he began.

Krystal sighed, "With our mobile armor still under repair currently, it will still take more than an hour until they're ready and ZAFT forces still could attack us during that time frame. Since the one in charge of the force that tried to take this ship down already is Rau Le Creuset, the trouble with ZAFT forces is far from over. We realize that you two aren't pilots and have been forced into the position-" she trailed off.

Kira frowned not liking that he and Lacus were being forced into the position of going out and fighting again. Tyler had a point, others forcing you to do things when they were in trouble didn't feel nice. And this was getting old really fast, "So, you two want us to go out again? Is that what you're asking," Kira inquired in a flat tone.

Lacus hugged Kira's left arm not liking the situation any more than him, but little could change it right now. Both Mu and Krystal could see the teens were unhappy about what they were telling them even as they nodded slowly. "That's pretty much what we're trying to say, we wish it weren't the case," answered Krystal warily.

Kira started to become angry at this as it wasn't fair at all to be ask and then expected to go out and fight by those on this ship. They were civilians and there were rules and agreements between all three factions that cohering a civilian into the war was more than just frowned down upon. "You know, what Tyler said about the Earth Alliance and its members is making more sense than it did before. It feels like Lacus and I are being used for the benefit of others and it isn't nice! We aren't pilots, yes, we used the two mobile suits on board this ship, but that's all. And because of that, we are in bad situations and we have a friend is missing."

Lacus knew how Kira felt in the current situation as she felt similar, but things weren't so simple right now. There was still no information on Tyler or what had happened to him during the collapse of Heliopolis. Lacus didn't think for a moment that Tyler was dead, he was somewhere, and he would show up at some point, of that she was sure. However, she could see from the expressions on both Mu La Flaga's and Krystal McAlester's faces that they were no more happy with how circumstances were right now than Kira or she were. They were being truthful when they said they wished things weren't how they were, they didn't want to have to depend on Kira or Lacus, nor force them into what they were. So, she squeezed Kira's arm hoping that he would calm down and he stopped.

Mu looked at the two teens, "It's your choice, but the fact is you two are the only ones that can do it right now. If Krystal and I could use and pilot those mobile suits, we would in a heartbeat believe me. And if we were being chased by most other ZAFT commanders, I would say that we should be okay for the time for our units to be fixed up. But with the personal experience I've had with Rau Le Creuset, he isn't one to give up a chase he starts for almost any reason other than being directly order to and even that doesn't necessarily stop. Fact is, we can't pilot those machines Kira, we can't change that fact right now," he stated

Krystal took up where Mu left off, "We hope that ZAFT forces won't attack us until our mobile armors are fixed. But honestly, it's unlikely with how things are currently," Krystal said. "All we can ask is no matter what, only think about protecting this ship, those onboard along with yourselves. This isn't about the Alliance or the war, it's just protecting the ship, that's all."

Both Mu and Krystal said farewell to the pair and headed to the front of the ship. The two continued to the mess hall and found that their friends, yet they were in OMNI uniforms. The four came up to Kira and Lacus saying that they were going to help the crew run the ship, so they could help both Kira and Lacus while they protect the ship. Then the four said they were needed to go to the bridge for their duty shift and they left.

Tensions were hanging as well as rising as the minutes ticked by with the ship cruising forward toward their destination. It wasn't long after Sai, Tolle, Miriallia, and Kuzzey started their shifts, when things started going not so nice for the Archangel. "Captain, three heat sources approaching from behind, and another larger heat source behind the first three," said Kuzzey. "Distance for the closest heat sources, um," he input the commands he had learned hours ago, "sixty-seven. Heat signature indicates mobile suits. The heat source behind them," Kuzzey paused as he pulled up the data, "is the ZAFT Laurasia-class vessel."

"What about the Nazca-class," asked Murrue letting Kuzzey's stumbling over his words pass. He was just a civilian volunteer after all, still it was a huge relief when they offered to help out. The help the teens were giving was a miracle and any good was needed now for the Archangel with how things stood.

"Nazca-class isn't in sensor range, I don't know where it is," replied Kuzzey.

Mu looked up and around at hearing the Nazca-class vessel wasn't chasing them as it didn't seem right. Creuset was not known for pursuing those he hunted down, he was freaking infamous for being persistent and dogmatic about the idea. To only have one ship and the lighter of the two that had started this hunt pursuing them, something didn't feel right to Mu. There had to be something missing in this other than the location of the Nazca-class vessel. Mu turned back to his station and focused on the battle that was coming as it wouldn't be nice, he was sure of that.

"All hands, level one battle stations! Commence preparations now for anti-mobile suit combat," ordered Natarle, "Activate Igelstellung, load stern missile launchers tubes thirteen through twenty-four with Korinthos. Activate both Gottfrieds turrets and Valiant linear cannons. Input target data, your target, the ZAFT Laurasia class vessel and incoming mobile suits."

Kuzzey had been trying to get more data on the approaching suits even being as scared as he was. The three machines weren't identified as GINNs that ZAFT forces used normally, and after half a minute, data came up for him. "We've identified the enemy machines behind us, system is showing match for the Blitz, the Duel, and the Buster."

Hearing that three of the prototypes were being sent to attack them sent a ripple of shock through the crew. "What?! Those three," questioned Natarle sounding worried.

The fact that ZAFT forces were not only using the stolen prototypes but were sending them into combat was problematic. The mobile suits from the G-Project hadn't been ready for use in combat at the time they were stolen, none that knew much about the project denied that. There were still things to fix and tweak before the prototypes would be used in actual fighting if they were at all. But apparently, ZAFT had made a working OS and that was enough for them to send them out to fight. "They're sending the G-weapons into combat," Murrue uttered as she looked at the forward viewport. Yet then the fact that only three of them were there when four had been stolen came to mind. "But what about the Aegis?"

Mu was wondering that a bit, but with the absence of the Nazca-class, it would potentially explain why there was only three and not four coming at them. So, he turned, "Well, as the Nazca-class is gone for the time being, maybe the fourth one is on board that ship, wherever it is," he said.

"Anyway, we're about to face down three out of the four stolen G-weapons," announced Murrue in her commanding voice.

That fact concerned the entire crew as they were going to be a serious disadvantage in the looming battle. It's true that the Archangel had two mobile suits of its own, but even with the Asuka and the Strike, Kira and Lacus were just civilians. The ZAFT pilots were in machines of comparable power and had received military training. What kind of chances did they have against those odds? The pair of civilian pilots would be pushed to the extreme just to survive the encounter, much less defend the ship as well.

Meanwhile, after hearing that their friends were helping by volunteering to assist the crew of the Archangel, what else could either Kira or Lacus do but pilot the two mobile suits and protect the ship the best they could. When battle stations were sounded, Kira and Lacus headed down and put on pilot suits and then went to the hangar. They got into their respective machines, Kira into the Asuka and Lacus into the Strike.

"No matter what, only think about protecting this ship, along with yourselves," some of the words that Krystal and Mu had said were coming to Kira mind. And he refused to forget them for they were the reason they both got back into the suit's cockpit. Certainly, it was an idea that was easier said than done, but for Kira, it was further reinforced by his promise to Lacus. Kira's eyes narrowed as both suits moved to the launching catapults and images of the enemy machines were displayed.

"Kira, those are," muttered Lacus.

Kira nodded, "Yeah, they must be the other three Alliance machines, but I don't see the red one, or the suit Tye had. Maybe he's okay and not captured by ZAFT," he said bringing up the information that had been added to the Asuka and Strike onboard computers to help Kira and Lacus against the stolen machines, if or when they should come and attack. "I guess we have more than enough to worry about already without adding to them. Looks like the incoming mobile suits are the, X209 Blitz, the X102 Duel, and the X103 Buster."

Natarle opened a communication channel down to the Archangel's two machines. The teens needed what helpful advice they could get in this fight where the odds were stacked against them. "You two are to keep an eye on your machines' power levels, that will be the largest determining factor for who wins this battle."

"Understood," replied Kira over the radio.

"We will," said Lacus right after Kira.

The two Suit that the Archangel launched from the ship and began going toward the three approaching opponents. When the two machines had come to the field, Yzak had been ready to rush forward and take down the two enemy mobile suits. However, Nicol stopped him before he could, "Yzak, don't go rushing off, caution would be best in this situation," he urged.

"There are two of them and three of us, we can finish they off and be done with this," Yzak snapped back.

Nicol sighed at the hot-headed attitude that Yzak seemed to have so much of the time, it was rarely helpful. His drive was admirable but combined with his emotions blinding him to a degree, it wasn't a good combination to have. And with what Nicol had seen from the records of the encounters of the two enemy machines they were facing, he didn't want a repeat of what had happened. These mobile suits were dangerous, there was just not much of a way yet to say how dangerous they were or how they could be countered. "It is not necessarily that simple Yzak, we know little about our opponents other that they are capable," Nicol reasoned.

Yzak was growling and would have snapped a retort, but Dearka spoke first, "Actually, I would have to agree with Nicol in this. The last three attempts to take either of the mobile suits down have failed. Once can be an oddity, twice might be a fluke, but three times says that there is more to them than luck or chance."

There wasn't more time as the mobile suits came into range of each other and the fight between them began. It quickly became clear to Nicol that the pilots of the enemy machines weren't like any OMNI mobile armor pilots that he had encountered or read about with a select few exceptions. The way they fought suggested that it was possible even likely that the two hadn't received what most would call combat training, the hesitation to aim to kill said that. True, Nicol preferred to not kill if that was an option, but this was different, their opponents avoided the idea much more. Most personnel from OMNI weren't as inclined to do that kind of thing Nicol had found thus far. And yet, both seemed to have natural talent of piloting, which was rare Nicol knew, so the combination was intriguing.

Even Dearka had to admit that Nicol had a real piece of wisdom in advocating caution in this battle. The two suits weren't pushovers at all, and now the recordings that had been shown before from Miguel and Athrun made more sense. By the performance of the two, they clearly didn't have the junky and clunky OS that the prototype OMNI machines started with. That system didn't have the capability to pull off maneuvers that their opponents were doing. Yet that still left the question of should the two have working OSs, then why hadn't the other machines?

Yzak on the other hand, was getting frustrated the longer that the fight dragged on for various reasons. Their opponents had machines that their own should be matches or at least comparable to. And yet, their enemy wasn't falling like they should which didn't make sense to Yzak. And the more frustrated he got, the more aggressive in his fighting style became.

Lacus was being forced to utilize the skills that came from the lessons that her sister Sakura had given her in piloting a mobile suit. She wasn't near her sister's level of skill of course, but she could hold her own against others, Sakura had made sure of that. But she still detested this fighting, it felt so meaningless and pointless, making her question why this war kept going. The goal was to defend the Archangel since there were innocent civilians on the ship now and they didn't deserve to die. Nonetheless, that didn't make this task any nicer and Lacus wondered how Sakura even did this kind of thing on a regular basis.

Kira gritted his teeth as he kept fending off strikes against himself from the three stolen machines. To think that just yesterday, he had been trying to figure out how to get the stuff Professor Kato had piled onto him done so that he could spend time with Lacus. Now he was fighting for not just his own life, but the lives of others in a war-machine, it was definitely an unforeseen turn. And though he understood what Mu and Krystal had been telling Lacus and him in defending the ship, it was much easier said than done. Kira was doing his utmost to just defend and get those fighting them to back off, and it was taxing him harshly.

The crew of the Archangel was doing what they could to support the Asuka and the Strike in the battle against ZAFT forces. Still Mu was getting antsy at just watching and not being out on the field helping the teens fighting for this ship. He had even asked Chief Murdoch to inform him the moment one or both of the Zero armors were ready to go out, but there hadn't been a word yet. And so, the minutes dragged on and the frustration mounted higher and higher affecting all on the Archangel in different ways. However, after five very long minutes to Mu, there came the message he had been wanting to hear. "Lieutenant La Flaga, your mobile armor is ready to launch out," Murdoch said over the internal communication system.

Mu was out of the seat he was in and to the elevator in ten seconds, and the second that the lift got to the floor with the pilot locker room and hangar, he was zooming toward them. He suited up and made his way quickly to the hangar where he saw that his mobile armor was on a sled to go to the catapult. He saluted to Murdoch as he went towards the cockpit, "I owe you one for this," he said.

"Just make sure those teens make it back," replied Murdoch, "You do that and we call it even."

Mu settled into his armor's cockpit and sealed it shut before bringing its systems online and there was a jerk as the craft was moved to the catapult for launch. He fully intended to make sure Kira and Lacus came back alive, the world needed teens with the kind of courage they had more than ever. When the signal came, Mu shot out of the Archangel and headed straight for the fighting and fast as his thrusters could send him.

The flow of the battle was disrupted when the zero armor joined in even if its weapons were not so effective due to the phase shift armor. However, Nicol noticed that the mobile armor's shots did drain the power faster through the defense and power was a big factor in this. It would be the first to run out of power that would lose this battle more than who beat the other, that was already clear. Then the OMNI warship scored a hit on the Gamow disabling one of railguns and putting a hole in the side of the ship. And it didn't take much longer to see that Dearka, Yzak, and he had underestimated their opponents. The consequence of that would be to let them go for the time being and learn from the mistake. Nicol sighed, "Dearka, Yzak, this fight is decided and we won't be the victors, best to fall back and wait for another opportunity," he stated.

"What," snarled Yzak, "I'm not interested in hearing the musings of a timid coward!"

Nicol knew Yzak wouldn't be interested to leave, but it was the best course of action at this point. "At the way this is going, the three of us will run low on power first and when that happens, the phase shift armor will go down allowing the mobile armor's weapons be more effective. Time to cut our losses and prepare for the next time," Nicol reasoned.

Dearka may not like to admit it, but Nicol had a point as he normally did. In this fight, they had lost because their opponents had proven to be better than expected. "I'm with you Nicol, things are going to get worse if we keep fighting and I would like to be alive thank you," he agreed.

Yzak could see that he was being outvoted and that he would be fighting alone if he stayed out here. So, he followed his comrades as they headed back towards the ship leaving the Asuka and the Strike along with Mu's zero armor alone. On the Archangel there were sighs of relief, "It looks like the ZAFT vessel is pulling back," said Miriallia pulling double duty of mobile suit/armor controller and com-officer. "Mission accomplished, both the Strike, the Asuka and the Lieutenant's zero armor are returning to the ship."

Even if the battle had been against one Laurasia-class vessel, it had been a three against two when it came to mobile suits. When the Blitz, the Duel, and the Buster had come from the ZAFT ship there had been a lot of worry and some despair. Having to go against three of the five prototype G-weapons, and with them having experienced ZAFT pilots who had likely had the time to make the OSs on the prototypes usable and capable… hopes hadn't been high to say the least.

What had happened to the Nazca-class ship was anyone's guess with it had been absent. Since the Aegis hadn't been on the battlefield, it was likely on the Nazca-class wherever it went to. Yet, if what Mu Sorain had said about the ZAFT commander that was supposedly pursuing them Le Creuset was true, the question on many of the minds on the Archangel wondering, why was only one vessel giving chase?

On the Bridge of the Archangel, the crew was relaxing a bit from the tension that had built up from the collapse of Heliopolis and the recent battle. There were a few murmurs of awe followed Miriallia's words as Murrue sighed in relief. "Captain, since the Laurasia-class is falling back, we should make a break for Artemis," said Natarle.

"Indeed, let them go for now and set course," said Murrue, "Best to use the opportunity to forge ahead to Artemis."

"Engines to maximum," ordered Natarle.

Meanwhile, just after Kira and Lacus exited the two mobile suits they proceeded to the pilot changing room. Lacus was still coming to terms with what she and Kira did out there and it was hard for her. Once there, Lacus removed her helmet and tears floated from her face. Kira noticed, and he made his way over to her and hugged the girl saying nothing. Lacus returned the embrace and silently cried as Kira held her. Kira smiled slightly, "It will be alright Lacus, we're both still alive and everyone on the ship is okay, that's what counts," he said.

Lacus sniffled, glad that Kira was trying to comfort her, but there was still at least one missing from the ship. "Yes, but Tye isn't with us anymore," she sniffled, "He might have been shot down or is dead," she choked holding back sobs.

Kira's smile grew a bit, "There is no doubt in my mind that Tye is fine wherever he is right now. He is strong and won't die easily, trust me when I say that, he always has a plan, no matter how crazy it can seem. He'll show up when he can, but even he needs some time to work with to get things done. As he has said to me from time to time, 'I'm good at what I set my mind to, but I'm not a miracle worker most of the time'. You'll see Lacus, Tye has never failed at coming through for those he calls friends yet, and I doubt he'll start now," replied Kira.

Lacus started to calm down after hearing Kira's confident reply and nodded in agreement. Before the two teens could start changing, the door to the room opened and Chief Murdoch was at the doorway. "Oh, there you two are, just wanted you to know, both the Lieutenant's and the Major's zero armors are done being repaired. So, from here on, you two won't have to be the only ones out there defending the ship. The Lieutenant and Major will be supporting you out on the field as well," he said almost cheerfully.

Chief Murdoch waved to them and then left the room heading back to the hangar. Kira and Lacus then headed off to the quarters they had found before. However, the two had been watched and listen to without them knowing it. A little way down the corridor was Mu and Krystal, she smiled a bit after hearing the exchange, "It's hard to believe that those two defended the ship on their own, isn't it Mu," mused Krystal.

"You're right, though they may have an incredible talent for piloting," Mu said, "They're still just teenage kids," he paused, "it's probably a good thing we have both of them. I don't want to even think of what sort of emotional state they'd be in without having each other to lean on for support."

Krystal nodded in agreement, "Well, now that we have our mobile armors to work with, we can help those two so that their emotional state doesn't get all that much worse," she said.

The next few hours that passed by were uneventful, and when the sight of the Artemis Asteroid came into view, there were feelings of relief for most on the Archangel. On the bridge, a request was sent to the Alliance base to dock and those on the Archangel waited for the reply. "Message from Artemis," said Miriallia. "Request to enter port acknowledged. Inspecting officer Will be sent on board when you dock."

"Alright then," said Murrue her relief obvious. "Thank you."

Things had gone surprisingly well for them since the colony collapse even if it hadn't been the best. Sure, things didn't go as was hoped originally by any means but that was a rare thing with the war. First, the collapse of Heliopolis along with the loss of Tyler McGregor and the machine he had been piloting. Things only got direr when they had almost lost both Kira and Lacus with those two being only civilian volunteers and going up against three trained soldiers. And, with only relatively minor support from the Archangel, they'd been successful in driving off the enemy. The two had successfully held their own against three other machines, all three of them of the same model series as their own. It was nothing short of astounding really what the two teens had done.

Murrue didn't want to admit it, but when she realized what they were up against, she'd been certain that both Kira and Lacus were going to die. The two had a natural talent for piloting that Murrue knew only appeared in one out of every thousand or even hundred thousand individuals, but they were still just untrained kids, not soldiers. Yet now that the Archangel had reached the Artemis base, things could finally start going better. Granted, it was doubtful that the ZAFT forces that were pursuing them would give up the chase, but at least at Artemis those on the Archangel's crew could have a rest bit. "We were lucky," Murrue muttered under her breath.

When the announcement that the ship would be docking at the Alliance base called Artemis, the ship became more active. Kira and Lacus stepped out of the quarters they had chosen for theirs, blue OMNI uniform had been brought for Kira and a pink one for Lacus along their way to the room. Their breathing was still somewhat strained as they were still recovering from the strain of the battle and the near-death experiences they had undergone. Their dependence on one another was probably one of the major reasons that either of them weren't having a mental breakdown or close to having one. They drew strength from one another and were able to keep going forward.

The two were heading towards the mess hall to see what was going on when both Mu and Krystal came into the same corridor from one of the side ones. "Huh," muttered Kira as they found Mu and Krystal coming up behind them as they floated along the hall. The lieutenant playfully grabbed Kira wrapping his arm around his neck while Krystal held Lacus's left shoulder.

"I forgot to mention this earlier to you two," said Mu pleasantly, then he leaned in and lowered the volume of his voice, "Put a lock on the Strike and the Asuka activation programs."

Both teens looked between the two mobile armor pilots trying to figure out what they were talking about. There was no reason to put a locking program on the mobile suits, they were the only ones that could use them. "Is this some kind of joke Lieutenant," asked Lacus.

The teens couldn't know about what possible storm they were going into and it was sad. It wasn't their fault they didn't know, those outside the Earth Alliance didn't know about the dynamic between the two major states and they weren't nice. So, Krystal shook her head, "Not in the slightest, we'll be docked at the Artemis base soon."

Mu nodded knowing the suggestion they were going to give would be the best course of action. "Yes, so make sure that no one can operate those mobile suits but you two," he said seriously.

Both Kira and Lacus looked between the two armor pilots, "It's not that we don't trust the people from the Eurasian Federation but," Krystal paused then continued, "To say that the Atlantic Federation and the Eurasian Federation see eye to eye would be quite wrong. Let's just say that they will likely make trouble as this ship is a secret from parts of the Earth Alliance."

Kira looked at Mu and Krystal, then he shook his head. What they said didn't make sense, the two states of the Earth Alliance were supposed to be on the same side. But then, he had heard Tyler and his mother say something to the effect that the Earth Alliance had issues working together with one another. The way Tyler put it sounded like they were not friends, but enemies that just had a common goal for the moment. Then Tyler's mother who was in politics said dealing with those from the Alliance tended to be difficult as they argued more often than not. So, Kira shared a quick look with Lacus, and they agreed to take the suggestion, "Alright, we'll do it," he returned.

Mu and Krystal nodded and then continued to wherever they were going to on the Archangel. Kira and Lacus went back to the hangar and Kira put locks on the OSs before the pair resumed the journey to the mess hall. Once they reached the doorway, they went in though they saw Sai and Flay standing at the observation port in front of the mess hall at the asteroid that was an OMNI base.

"Wow," murmured Flay as the Archangel backed into Artemis moving towards the inactive section of the energy-wave umbrella.

"It's a lightwave barrier, known as the Umbrella of Artemis," explained Sai. After Flay had recovered from her fear of the battle, and Sai had recovered from Flay's earlier anger at him for leaving her alone like he had to take a station on the bridge. "They say it even blocks laser beams. It's the ultimate defense that the Alliance has," he finished.

"I'm so relieved," said Flay smiling. "We can finally feel safe, wouldn't you say?"

"Yeah," said Sai matching her smile.

Mu and Krystal reached the elevator after telling Kira and Lacus to put locks on the mobile suits and took it up to the bridge to watch how this situation would unfold. Neither of the mobile armor pilots was expecting what most would consider a 'warm welcome' by the Eurasian forces in the base, quite the opposite. The real question in their minds was how much trouble would come to the ship and those on board while they were here at Artemis. Stealing ideas from another member of the Alliance wasn't new, it was more an unsaid expectation even if not all knew that. That was especially true of the Atlantic Federation and the Eurasian Federation, the two were often harping at each other about things. Mu himself had seen the point in the action and it had sickened him, but the higher-ups didn't seem phased about it.

The Archangel backed into the base through the hole that was opened in the umbrella. The interior of the asteroid as large as it could house several warships without issue of space. The Archangel was directed to an open dock yet, as the warship descended into the dock the crew had been told to go to, things changed. A number of mobile armors surrounded the ship as worker craft attached restrains on the ship to prevent it from leaving the dock.

'Oh great,' thought Murrue, Natarle, Mu, and Krystal at the same time when they realized the ship was being locked into place in several ways and wouldn't be able to leave the dock while those methods were in place. The help that had been hoped for wasn't likely to come their way anytime soon. "Captain, I think that we are going to have problems," said Natarle in a worried tone.

"What was your first clue Ensign Badgiruel," asked Krystal in a flat voice.

It wasn't long after being locked into one of the docks inside Artemis when the door to the elevator opened and armed soldiers spread themselves across the bridge and aimed their weapons at those present. "What's going on there?" asked Tolle.

Murrue turned to the inspection officer from Artemis that was floating out of the elevator. Pointing weapons at allies was not helpful, it made it more feel like you were their enemies. "Well, what is this about commander," she asked.

"I must advise you captain, remain silent," said the officer.

Both Natarle and Murrue were trying to figure out what this was about for it seemed to be about more than lack of identification codes. Whereas Mu and Krystal weren't all that surprised at what was happening, it was more proof that Eurasian Federation wasn't friends of the Atlantic Federation, more a begrudging partner against a common enemy. "I was afraid of this," Mu muttered under his breath.

Krystal glanced over to Mu, "Yeah, not the warm welcome that we hoped for, but more than what we expected. That's why we prepared for this idea the best we could think of Mu," she whispered.

Mu smirked slightly behind his hand at Krystal's comment for she was right. The Alliance officers won't get the Strike or the Asuka, but that brought up the question of who's in charge here. Even with the bad relationship that existed between the two major powers that made up the Earth Alliance, this was more than what normally would happen, most from the Eurasian Federation wouldn't behave quite like this…

Phase End

A/n

End chapter 8 revised! Hope you're all liking the changes thus far, has taken a sizable amount of time to do them. Please take the time to write a review to say what you think, point out errors you see that I haven't… yes, I admit that I make mistakes like everyone else. I take people telling me that, it helps me to make less of them going forward. Until the next chapter in the coming week, peace out all!