A/n

Okay, here is the next Phase in this tale, hope you enjoy even if there isn't a great deal of action in this phase.

Phase 31: In the Promise Land

May 18th, 71 C.E.

The Bering Sea, Just Outside of Norton Sound

Three weeks had gone by after the Archangel had left the Orb Union with resupply, heading towards its intended destination. One of the patrolling recon aircraft spotted the ship as it came into range of Alaska. The aircraft crew reported the sighting, and JOSH-A ordered four Des Moines-classes to go and escort the Archangel. The ships ordered to escort the ship headed out and came alongside the vessel within thirty minutes. The group headed northeast toward the Norton Sound inlet where Alliance Headquarters was.

The JOSH-A base or the JOint Supreme Headquarters – Alaska as its full name was, though it is pronounced Joshua was the Alliance's current headquarters. That had been the case since the loss of the Victoria Base in the African Community, which had been the previous headquarters. The base itself was large and underground, designed to be able to withstand attacks, assaults, or anything that had been thrown at it so far up to a nuclear attack in theory. The base had heavy fortifications in place and was accessible by a series of hidden gates, which were also heavily defended.

Many on the Archangel's crew was hoping that this was the start of the end to their journey. The path here had been longer as well as twisted than it had ever been predicted. Yet, the feelings present on the white ship weren't ones of relief as they would've been weeks earlier. Where it had been feelings of looking forward to completing the mission, it was now one of apprehension and worry. The officers, including Murrue herself, wondered what would happen next to them and the Archangel. Nothing had been said or even hinted as to what the higher-ups had in mind for the future. And the silence was becoming more problematic than it being "trust" in those in command.

While on the other hand, the Heliopolis students recalled the words Kira had said Tyler believed would likely happen at this place. Such thoughts had been coming up the closer the Archangel had gotten to OMNI's headquarters. It was a reminder that Tyler was gone after sacrificing himself so that they could continue onward. Without Tyler, they had been leaning on one another, and through several discussions outside of the eyes of the Archangel's officers, they had come to an agreement. The Earth Alliance and its OMNI couldn't be trusted at their word, and it was for a couple of reasons. The first of which was they had received little help from their "allies" during their journey, there was little reason for that to change. While the Archangel's officers were good people so Kira and his group could trust them, there weren't many beyond that. The only other OMNI officer that had been nice or helped had been Admiral Halberton, and Tyler had seemed to know the man.

The second reason the Alliance couldn't be trusted came from the words Kira said Tyler mentioned. When Tyler said something could happen, it tended to occur, even if not exactly as he said, it was almost a sixth sense with him. And according to Kira, OMNI was more than displeased with the Archangel, its crew, and most of all with its involvement with recent events. Tyler had been more trustworthy with his views and what he said from Heliopolis onward than any in OMNI. He'd made it clear that he had had more motivation to help them stay out of trouble than anyone. That wasn't the only worry or question unanswered for the Archangel's crew upon their arrival at JOSH-A. They still had the ZAFT pilot that had been extracted from the Buster, he was in the ship's brig. There had been no decision made of what would be done with the teen, it would likely be the higher-ups that would make that decision.

Then for the ship officers, there would be the debriefing, and that was another matter with its own set of issues. The mission on the outset had been simple, but what had happened was anything but simple. Murrue and Natarle knew some wouldn't be happy or even understand what actions they had taken. Murrue didn't kid herself, the Archangel had been involved in one disaster after another, starting with Heliopolis to the most recent around Orb. And it wasn't like any of the officers, along with herself, had meant for any of the events to happen. Those at Artemis had brought what they got on themselves, and if not for the actions of some, the ship would've fallen there. Then what had occurred with the Eighth Orbital was tragic, with so many good people dying. However, the Archangel had done what it could to minimize that, and Murrue would state that for the record. ZAFT had just been so persistent in pursuing the Archangel that all the events happened the way they did.

Natarle, while she was proud overall with the performance of the Archangel and her crew, she wouldn't deny it could have been better. The loss of most of the ship's officers at Heliopolis was disastrous, they had all been good men and women. Yet, there hadn't been a prediction or signs of ZAFT sneaking into the colony, killing many, and stealing the mobile suits. Then the first group of allies they had come to had not helped them, instead of trying to steal what remained of the G-Project. Natarle did regret the Eighth Fleet's losses, but the Archangel had made it down to Earth because of their efforts. Still, ZAFT hadn't given up their pursuit of the Archangel and had chased them into Federation territory twice.

Then while it had come up with Admiral Halberton, Natarle didn't know how higher-ups would present the subject of Tyler's involvement and actions. She had her own issues with the teen, even before his actions around Shira. He was rebellious, didn't listen to orders, and seemed to go out of his way to flaunt his disrespect for authority. But with him also being a member of the Federation's Military, there were other problems beyond his attitude. Tyler had been around the fruits of the G-Project long enough to know about them. He had even said the Federation had the schematics of the five prototypes and the Archangel itself. Thus, the Federation had everything from the project, which she didn't doubt OMNI wouldn't appreciate.

The G-Project could've been advantageous if the war required OMNI to fight the Federation. With the Federation always seeming to keep ahead when it came to technology, anything that could give an edge was needed. That was especially necessary if the Federation's Military had mobile suits of their own as rumors suggested. Yet, any advantage OMNI could have had against the Federation was gone with them having the data. The Federation could use, employ, and improve any part of the G-Project now. And the responsibility for them getting it would fall on the crew and those assigned to the G-Project.

Two hours after the escort had joined the Archangel, the ship came into view of Norton Sound's entrance. The group entered the bay, and Murrue spotted the waterfall that hid the main gate of JOSH-A. The main gate was the strongest of all of them and was the central defensive position for the base. The sight of the destination didn't change the air on the bridge or the rest of the ship. The two escort ships split off and headed out to patrol the bay itself while the Archangel moved towards the main gate. The base control raised the Archangel and told them to set course that would direct them inside. "We have been told to for the main gate, and they are awaiting us to set navigation to auto," Pal reported.

Murrue cleared her head of the thoughts she'd been having and focused on the task at hand. "Ensign, confirm the signal is from JOSH-A," she ordered, "If confirmed, then Arnold will switch the navigation to auto per orders."

Pal put in a command, and the return said the signal was genuinely from JOSH-A control, "Signal confirmed," he stated.

"Switching navigation to auto," announced Arnold as he changed his controls to the automated system, "They have control."

The Archangel sailed forward, and just before they reached the waterfall, it parted, revealing the main gate. The ship moved through it into a docking area filled with OMNI ships of most seaborne classes. There were even transport subs in the dock, though Murrue did note there were several docks empty currently. She wondered why so many ships would be out, and it gave her a feeling of unease. The Archangel came into a large dock before the ship was locked into it, and the crew wondered what would be next.

As the Archangel was docking, the senior OMNI officers of the base were meeting together to discuss what had arrived in their laps. The ship had been nothing but trouble from the moment it launched from Heliopolis. The Federation was pressing for answers and making rather serious threats if they weren't provided from its actions. The official statements made in response hadn't gone over well, and the Federation rightfully suspected they were lies. Then, by reports, the project that the ship was supposed to deliver to Ptolemaeus had been almost completely stolen by ZAFT. The only reason a task force hadn't been sent out after Artemis was the data that the ship carried.

The Archangel would have been dealt with earlier if not for Halberton not cooperating and doing as he was suggested. Those that wanted the Archangel destroyed could just do it outright with the chance it still carried the data from the G-Project. The chance of getting mobile suit schematics was too tempting to pass up. Thus, some had suggested that Halberton have technicians extract the data and then let ZAFT take down the Archangel. It could have been done easily with the battle in orbit the Eighth Fleet had with ZAFT. But instead, the man had insisted the ship still had use and sacrificed a good portion of the fleet to protect the ship. And yet now, the ship had defied all odds and made it to OMNI HQ when predictions said it wouldn't. "The Archangel, I never thought it would actually make it here after what it has faced," one of the commanders around the table remarked. "Even when it kept getting into one fiasco after another."

There were mutterings of agreement to the comment, "You think maybe Halberton's force of will protected the ship," posed another commander a tad jokingly. "It wasn't supposed to really see much combat before reaching Ptolemaeus."

Another officer scoffed, "More like they relied on those Coordinators they charmed somehow."

At the head of the conference table, Captain William Sutherland, the most senior officer in the room, hadn't been paying much attention to the conversation until the last two comments. He was looking over personnel files, specifically the pilot, Kira Yamato. He'd skimmed over the two other files which had been on the other suit pilots, neither of which were on the ship anymore. The girl, Lacus Christopher, had held little interest in his view. True, she had the same first name as the idol daughter, which belonged to Siegel Clyne, the PLANTs' Chairman, but the likelihood that she was the same girl was laughable. Her Coordinator parents probably liked the name, the thinking of Coordinators rarely made sense to genuine humans. And then, of course, most importantly, she was one of those abominable Coordinators herself. Yet, there was nothing else of interest or note other than that.

However, the other pilot, Tyler McGregor, had been a different matter, and he was much more a risk than any. He was part of the Federation's Military, and there were records with the Earth Alliance on him. The young Coordinator was suspected of having been involved with incidents of sabotage and other problematic things. There was no solid proof of the suspicion, but there was enough information to imply it was true. And that McGregor had been at Heliopolis suggested the Federation had been on to the project. So, Sutherland hadn't a problem at all that McGregor was stated to have been "killed in action," good riddance to bad rubbish. Plus, it saved the trouble of having others take care of the young man, and Sutherland was fine with that, less work to see to.

If the Federation would just mind their own cursed business, the Archangel arrival would be more a victory. Sutherland himself believed that the Federation and those that were a part of them were no better than the PLANTs or ZAFT. The Federation Military was made up of a mix of Naturals and Coordinators, or rather traitors and horrible mistakes after all. Then, the Federation had ignored the requests for assistance in the fight against ZAFT over the war years. And that was done even though their 'member nations' were made up of nations of Earth, so they should have the same responsibility to repel invaders. They claimed neutrality as an excuse not to be involved in the fight against mankind's enemy and enjoy the peace that others paid with blood and lives to obtain.

Captain Sutherland put down the datapad he had been looking at and focused back on the others gathered around the table. "Indeed, Halberton had little to do with this, other than buying the vessel an opportunity," Sutherland shrugged, "He could have settled the matter when he had the chance, but that is not up for discussion right now. The remaining young Coordinator, along with two others, is the real reason that the Archangel is here now."

The officer in the seat next to Sutherland looked at him, "Captain Sutherland, it is too soon to be positive on that. None of us will deny that Coordinators have," the man hesitated, "Unusual abilities. But let us not jump to the conclusion that they were the only reason the ship made it here. Records indeed state that the mobile suits and their pilots played a part, but they are not solely responsible. The Archangel-class design has now been proven formidable and so has of course been approved to be put into production."

"While that's true," Sutherland mused, "even were those mobile suits piloted by top armor pilots, it is a slim chance that the ship would have reached here. It was those pilots they had which made a difference."

There was silence around the room for a full minute, but the officer next to Sutherland spoke again. "Yet, by what information that has been acquired recently, two out of the three Coordinators aren't on board any longer. According to reports, one was killed in action during the Archangel's battle against ZAFT outside of Orb. And by what I've read, that one was the most dangerous of the three Coordinators who became involved in these series of events. The female vanished during the stopover in Orb for the ship to make repairs, and there has been no other information on her since. A rather fortunate turn that those two vanished, even if it was in different ways, the fact still is that two of them have been dealt with."

"That just leaves the younger male Coordinator, and that's easily dealt with," the first officer that had spoken about the Archangel remarked.

Sutherland raised a hand to his chin in thought, "That's correct, still the GAT series will make up our main fighting force going forward against ZAFT to victory," Sutherland stated, "Technicians will begin the data extraction as soon as the Archangel docks and the crew are out of the way. With the five complete blueprints of the GAT series, mass production can start quickly. That being said, we can't allow people to know that the Strike was operated by a Coordinator child, no matter which one of the three it was doing it."

There was no argument about hiding that a Coordinator had piloted the Strike with any at the table. But that still left questions about the "other two" machines the Archangel had carried, which hadn't been part of the project. They clearly had elements of the G-Project, which suggested a leak potentially. However, that also could mean they had tech, which the other prototypes didn't. Any new technology, especially if it were Federation tech, would be valuable in development. "Captain, what of the other two mobile suits that the Archangel carried," the commander on Sutherland's right asked, "The winged one, of course, is assumed to belong to the Orb Union originally, but it could still have technology which could be used. And with Orb part of the Federation, that machine may even have some of their equipment."

Sutherland sighed, "From what I'm to understand," he said in an even tone holding back the bitterness, "Orb took it back while the Archangel was resupplying. So, there will be no chance to inspect it here. Should the crew have been thinking straight, they will have information on that unit that can be used.

"But what of the black one, what is known about that unit," asked another officer.

As reports had called it, the Shadow was a mystery as there had been little info on that unit. It did bear striking similarities to the X207 Blitz, but that was mostly what there was to go on. "There is little information on the third mobile suit, it seemed very similar to the X207 Blitz, but there's little creditable information other than that," Sutherland commented. "And with its destruction, there is nothing left to look at. Again, should the crew have been fulfilling their duties, we may get more information from them on the unit."

"While the mobile suits are all well and good," said Sutherland's right neighbor, "with Coordinators have piloted all three machines." The officer paused, clearly angry about the fact, "It's like glaring evidence of our own inferiority to them!"

Sutherland picked up the datapad again and switched over to see the specs on the Alliance's six newest additions to the GAT mobile suit series. The six machines each had specialties and strengths, the GAT-X251 Sinister and the GAT-X252 Forbidden were fast and meant for assault. The GAT-X333 Bandit and a very similar suit, the GAT-X370 Raider, could transport other suits and be armed for assault. Then, the GAT-X130 Raptor and the GAT-131 Calamity were the heaviest armed of the six, both wielding artillery. "While the next stage of the GAT series isn't fully complete," Sutherland said, "with the information which will be extracted, we will get that taken care of. And all the technology from the GAT series will be transferred and further developed for future operations. And this time, it's we who will benefit from it, not ZAFT nor the Federation."

"Sir, what have you told Azrael," the first officer asked.

Sutherland put down the datapad again and scanned those who sat at the table, "I told him that we would take the necessary steps to address the standing issues and fix all the problems that have come up recently. What has happened in the recent months has all been a rather unfortunate chain of events," Sutherland paused, "just like what will happen here." There was muttering of understanding and agreement around the table, "All of what will happen and what we do will be for the preservation of our blue and pure world," Captain Sutherland said with finality. "None will win against that."

Meanwhile, once the docking procedure for the Archangel was done, contact was made with the bridge from the base's control center. "A message from the joint operations room to the Archangel of the Eighth Orbital Fleet, and it comes directly from Captain William Sutherland. We commend you on your achievements in making it to JOSH-A through so many difficulties and hardships. We will be debriefing you upon your experience at a later time, so all are to standby aboard the ship until further orders are received,"the Alliance officer stated.

Murrue was a little surprised as the Archangel had been on a mission that had spanned more than four months. To be just told to standby and not get ready to report was rather odd to Murrue, and she doubted she was the only one that thought so. "Standby on the ship," she asked, "Is that what you said?"

"Correct, with all this talk about an impending attack on Panama, things are hectic around here. Just sit back and relax, for now, captain,"the Alliance officer returned.

The com-link disconnected and those on the bridge were left to wonder what was happening within the Alliance. Murrue glanced at Natarle but saw that she had no more clue as to what was going on than she did. The orders to standby were odd with how far the Archangel had come and how important their mission had been on had been considered. Murrue and Natarle were both thinking about the report they would soon be turning in or presenting to their superiors. The rest of the crew wanted to know what would happen next to the ship and them. That there were rumors about Panama being attacked by ZAFT was worrisome. That base had the only mass driver the Alliance could use for military purposes, so losing it would cripple OMNI for a time. If such a rumor was true, it could explain why there were so many empty docks, they were likely sent to protect Panama.

While the rumor about Panama facing an impending attack was new, that wasn't what worried Mu and Krystal. Now having reached JOSH-A, the big question was what would the Archangel do next? Nothing had been said even to imply what the ship would be assigned to do, which was concerning now. Neither Mu nor Krystal had met Captain Sutherland, but they had heard some things about the man. He was part of JOSH-A's general staff as of two years ago, but that was the closest fact they had. And when the two were off the bridge and in Mu's quarters, Krystal looked up the Captain's record and showed it to Mu, they weren't encouraged. The man was a member of the Anti-Coordinator group "Blue Cosmos." The group was known for radical views and also acting on them. Truthfully, the Earth Alliance protected the group from ZAFT and the Federation, who had expressed issues with them. Granted, Blue Cosmos didn't act within Federation territory, mostly since they would be punished. However, that hadn't stopped the group from telling the Alliance to be harder on the other factions. That Captain Sutherland was a member said that he would be very negative about the ship's pilots. Mu feared that the "debriefing" would be worse than what had happened with Admiral Halberton.

Then the other point worried the two, which came from what Kira mentioned Tyler said. From their observations, the older teen was either very well informed or had an amazing intuition with how he predicted things, maybe a mix of both. Thus far, Tyler had been able to say how things would go and be right most of the time. It was possible he could be getting some of his information from the Federation, but it seemed there was more to it than that. And Tyler had said something to the effect that the Archangel wouldn't get a warm or good reception at JOSH-A. Mu would admit that so far, they hadn't gotten a good welcome, almost anything but that. But he didn't think that's what Tyler had been referring to, yet he couldn't figure out what else there was. The other thing that Tyler had said was the crew would be divided and then one group "taken care of." Mu rubbed the back of his head and sighed, "Am I the only one that feels we're going to be facing more trouble here than we have before now?"

Krystal had been having much the same question as Mu had just stated. Their allies hadn't been the most helpful before now, and there was little reason for that to change. Yes, Halberton had been an ally and had acted the part, but no one else had. "Recalling Kira saying Tyler claimed there wouldn't be a warm welcome," Krystal mused, "And it isn't just you Mu, I wish it were, but I fear that this will be much like Artemis if not worse. I very much doubt we have allies here."

Mu frowned, "Yeah, I believe you are right on having no allies." He paused, "Then let's make sure we are keeping our eyes open so that we don't get stabbed in the back."

Krystal nodded, "Yes, I fear all of us have targets on us, the whole crew in fact," she remarked. "The question is whose targets are the biggest and most likely to get struck."

"You're worrying about the kids," Mu questioned.

She stared at him, "And you're not? Those teens aren't soldiers, they just wanted to help us not die."

Mu's head fell, "And yet since they enlisted, they will be treated just like we will be," he said tiredly.

Krystal's shoulders slumped, "Correct. And then I'm afraid Kira is in the most danger, more than any of us, with him being a Coordinator. I fear Captain Sutherland or one of the other general staff members may have him kill silently if they can get him alone."

"I guess," Mu began, "We really haven't paid attention to what Tyler said as we probably should have. That kid seems to know things that he shouldn't, so tends to be right when what he says will happen. And as for Kira, he is not to be alone even on this ship until further notice," he stated, "I don't care which of the crew is with him since I wouldn't doubt you have a point with Kira being silenced if the chance comes up."

Krystal was more than appalled that they had come to the point they had. Before Heliopolis, she and Mu wouldn't have needed to plan to counter for those who were supposed to be allies. The very thought would not have come up except a select few whose records showed they were dangerous. Yet, here they were, having to do just that against their superiors that made up OMNI's earthbound general staff. Krystal shook her head in frustration, "When did we come to the point we have to prepare ourselves for assassinations from those that are supposed to be our allies?"

Mu would love the answer to the question Krystal asked, he had the very same question himself. This war had soured many, he wouldn't deny that, but he didn't think that it had driven those in the Alliance to go to assassination. Mu had wanted to believe there were enough in the Alliance leadership who had enough common sense to not lower themselves just to kill one for their human type. But those they had been encountering had been showing signs such was becoming more normalized. "I wish I had an answer to that, Krystal, I really do," Mu replied, "Things have changed without us seeing or knowing it."

Krystal leaned against the nearest wall, "Back when Tyler said the Federation was concerned with the Alliance getting mobile suits, or even trusting them," she paused, "I thought it farfetched." Krystal hesitated, "But now, I'm not sure if I want to believe such possible, but I fear there is more to the view than any have given it."

Mu sighed, "I certainly understand better the view Tyler had, and now I'm worried that the Alliance may consider fighting the Federation in the near future. The top brass wants to win this war, and now I can't see that ending with the Federation staying neutral. I fear this war will become much worse soon, and I can't see how it could end anymore."

"But will attacking the Federation occur," Krystal mused, "The higher-ups have always avoided the subject. Those that have been honest had stated we would not stand a chance, even with mobile suits. It is why it has never happened, the losses would be horrible, and there would be little to no gain. Plus, OMNI would still be fighting ZAFT at the same time, it's the worst decision that could be made." The crew milled about the ship for the rest of the day since standing orders were to standby on the Archangel. The mood only seemed to sour further as time kept moving forward for the whole crew. They went about their jobs, but they were more going through the motions rather than performing duties.

Meanwhile, Kira was held up in the quarters he had, he didn't feel like going anywhere else. He had been to Lacus's quarters which were empty now, and it only echoed her absence. Kira had only gone to Tyler's quarters once, it had been painful even to enter and see his friend's things. Kira was still having trouble accepting that Tyler was gone, having saved him from Athrun, who had been trying to kill him. However, that visit had given him a lot to think about as mostly he'd found a message left by Tyler:

Kira

Should you be reading this, something bad has likely happened to me, and I'm not on the Archangel by the time you get to JOSH-A. Understand that what this message contains is not to be shared with any of the ship's officers for any reason until the time is right, and you will know when that is. You can see this as a type of confession to clear the air between us and extend the help I'm able.

Kira, there was so much I wanted to tell you along our recent journey but couldn't say anything due to Federation protocol. When I came back to the Archangel, my mission was to find and neutralize data the ship was carrying. I doubt the crew knew that the Archangel carries copies of the G-Project's units' specs. It is better they don't know, as OMNI higher-ups will be blamed for things they had nothing to do with in truth. Early on during my assignment, it was suggested that I let the Archangel be destroyed as that admittedly would have been the easiest and cleanest way to achieve the goal. However, whatever others may say, I couldn't do that since the crew even with all of their flaws they're still good people. It's why I suggested the Archangel dock in Shira when the captain was asking for places to resupply. While the ship was in port, I, along with others, got on the Archangel and neutralized the data we were assigned to handle. It was a form of sabotage, so I couldn't outright deny what Natarle was accusing me of. Even if I had explained the reasons, she wouldn't have listened to me at the time. They wouldn't have believed me were I to have told the truth that their allies were looking for a means to sink them and retrieve the data.

The assignment was important, when the Alliance gets mobile suits, they will use them against the Federation and its member nations. Some will argue that, but I fear it is only a matter of time before the member nations will come under attack because of the Alliance's vendettas. And while I may have delayed mobile suits getting to OMNI, that is the best I could do for the time being. Also, I make a warning that should any activate the Strike's OS and go beyond the system menu, they will be stopped. I put a contingency in place so that the OS crashes and wipes itself. So, if battle comes up, you will have to rewrite the OS, and I apologize for putting you through that. But please understand that the Earth Alliance and its OMNI can't be trusted, and I swear it's the truth to you. Their goal isn't peace, it is domination which they will use mobile suits for without hesitation. So when you get to JOSH-A, don't trust any outside the Archangel's crew. Do not get into a situation where you are alone, those there will not hesitate to kill you. Until the crew Is ready to see the truth, they won't listen to what could be told to them, they have to be willing to listen.

I would have liked to tell you all in person, and I might have already, but in the case, I couldn't for one reason or another, I wrote this letter to explain things. Please forgive me should I have worried you in some way, I never meant to Kira, you're one of my best friends after all.

Tyler

Kira had been going over the letter Tyler had written since it contained a lot. First, it said that Kira had been right to believe in Tyler. He had not been trying to hurt the Archangel nor its crew, if anything, he'd been helping them far more than any of their allies. And now the mention of data made sense, it had been the mobile suit data that the Alliance wanted. That Tyler said, the Archangel was as much under threat from their allies as their enemies were concerning. For Tyler to believe and rightly, Kira agreed the Alliance would attack the Federation's member nations, which served as his motivation.

Kira worried that Tyler had seen the need to "booby trap" the Strike's OS since he didn't do something unless he thought it was required. But now that Kira knew it was there, he could avoid the trap, but should technicians inspect the mobile suit, they would be the victim of Tyler's work. And Kira figured that Tyler had been expecting that, which is why he had done what he had. It both comforted and hurt Kira to know that Tyler had always been doing what he could to help him and their friends. It also made Kira worry as Tyler seriously believed that the Alliance would do horrible things were going to happen to the crew of the Archangel.

At the same time, Miriallia had just gotten off her shift, as had Tolle. Miriallia was taking Tyler's death only a little less hard than Kira had been. While Kira was isolating, none of the others that had been Tyler's friends couldn't do that effectively. Miriallia would keep her feelings inside when she was on duty, but she let it out with tears and avoided the crew between shifts. She recalled the times she had railed on Tyler for his behavior and his actions, now she regretted some of the things she'd said. Miriallia wished she could apologize to Tyler for some of the mean things she'd said to him. And yet, with Tyler gone, she would never have the chance to say how much she appreciated some of the things he did.

Tolle had been doing what he could to comfort Miriallia, but he was also dealing with Tyler's death. All of those from Heliopolis had been taking the news of Tyler's fate hard. None of them had really understood how much they'd counted on him until recently. Tolle knew that he'd taken Tyler's actions for granted, he had always been there ever since he came to Heliopolis. Still, he was guiding Miriallia to the mess hall to get something to eat before getting some sleep. And convincing Miriallia to eat something was becoming more of a challenge lately, which worried Tolle. But he managed to get her to eat, and after she finished, Tolle suggested that they swing by the infirmary to get her something to help her sleep.

Meanwhile, Dearka was lying on a bed in the infirmary after being brought here to check him over. He'd had some minor injuries that had been tended to, but nothing major out of the last battle. Dearka assumed that he would be taken back to the brig cell he'd been thrown into earlier, he still had his restraints on after all. However, he was left to lay in the bed waiting for whatever was next for him. Dearka bet he would be let go if the Federation had picked him up, but it was unlikely with the Alliance. Heck, the likelihood of him seeing the PLANTs again was slim, and that left a bad taste in his mouth. Dearka accepted that he would probably be treated as a prisoner of war which he didn't look forward to. However, it would keep him alive for a potential opportunity to escape and move on from there.

Nevertheless, the doctor had gone somewhere, leaving him where he was and no one around. The thought of slipping out of the infirmary had crossed his mind, but where would he go? His mobile suit was no doubt locked down by this point, so it would be unable to help him. There was no place on this ship that he could hide since he didn't know its layout. In the end, laying where he was just happened to be the best option for Dearka to go with. But he didn't miss a very glum air on the ship it was impossible to miss. What had caused that mood, Dearka couldn't say, but the glumness was dragging him down. Yet, his attention was drawn to the present as the door to the infirmary opened. Hopefully, that meant the doctor was back, and Dearka could at least be told what was next for him. "So, how long with I be left to lie here, doc," Dearka asked.

Both Tolle and Miriallia looked over to the bed where the voice had come from. Neither had expected there to be anyone other than the ship doctor in here, and the voice didn't sound familiar. Tolle moved forward and pushed the divider back and found the ZAFT pilot that had been taken out of the Buster. Tolle was apprehensive at seeing the ZAFT pilot again, the last time had been just a glance, and most had been in shock at hearing about Tyler's fate. "You," Tolle uttered, "You're the ZAFT pilot that was in the Buster."

Miriallia snapped her head to look at Tolle, for she had heard the Buster had been brought on board and the pilot extracted. From what Lieutenant La Flaga had said, Tyler had disabled the Buster while he'd been out in the battle. She didn't like the guy was here, but the doctor could have been looking him over. There really hadn't been details stated on how the Shadow had been destroyed, so this guy could've had nothing to do with it.

Dearka glanced at the ones that had entered the infirmary and saw they weren't the doctor, but they were in OMNI uniforms, so likely part of the crew. Who knew why they were here? Yet, they had the same glum air as the rest of the ship seemed to have hanging over it. So, Dearka made the best of the situation as he was able. "Well, didn't expect visitors from any on this ship," he remarked before he smiled a little mockingly, "you two look like you were just at a funeral or something like it. So, what, a friend of yours decide to be stupid by going out and getting killed or something?"

That simple question snapped something in Miriallia, and rage flashed up in her and made her blood go beyond boiling. This idiot had the gall to say Tyler went out and stupidly fought before he died for nothing. So, Miriallia grabbed a scalpel on the nearby table and twisted around, attempting to stab Dearka. Dearka barely had the time to shift out of the way of something coming down at him. A moment later, Dearka saw that what had been sent in his direction was a scalpel, and it had been done in a stabbing motion. Dearka's gaze snapped back to the girl that withdrew the tool and raised it above her head clearly to repeat the action. He had no idea what brought this on, but if it had been something he'd said, Dearka would willingly apologize if given a chance. He hadn't meant what he'd said to be serious, it had been a joke to lighten the mood, nothing more.

Tolle was shocked for an instant at what Miriallia had just tried to do, she wasn't a violent person. And while the question the ZAFT pilot had said wasn't nice since it was a reminder of Tyler being gone, Tolle doubted the guy had meant it as an insult. But a second later, Tolle moved forward and hooked his arms under Miriallia's and held her back and prevented her from making a second try at stabbing the guy. Tyler would never want any of them to do horrible things because of what happened to him. "Miri, stop," he shouted, "Don't do this, it isn't you!"

Miriallia struggled against Tolle, "Let me go, Tolle," she snarled before her voice rose to a screech. "Why does he have to be here when others aren't?! Tyler is gone, so why does he have to be here instead?! Tyler had more reasons to live for, he should have come back instead of this scum!"

At the same time, Flay found Kira in his quarters moping as he had been for weeks now, and it worried her. Since the last battle, Kira had been almost like a ghost, barely eating or being seen by the crew. However, today, Kira looked thoughtful instead of lost as he had been the previous times she'd come to check on him. He had looked to be reading over a page with writing but Flay couldn't see what was on the paper. Still, Flay had then convinced Kira to come with her to visit Doctor Graham to get something for Kira to sleep. Yet, as they had just about reached the infirmary, they had heard shouting from within. Kira recognized the voice yelling to be Miriallia's, but he couldn't tell what she was screeching about. So, Flay and he quickly entered the infirmary and found an unreal scene. Miriallia was grasping a scalpel, and Tolle held her back from using the tool against the ZAFT pilot.

However, Miriallia stopped struggling a moment later and dropped the scalpel to the floor. The moment Tolle let go of her, she sunk to the floor, tears flowing from her eyes, "Why are good people who are protecting others being killed?" She kept sobbing before she spoke again, "I want Tye back, I need to apologize for the things I said about him." Tolle hugged Miriallia, wanting Tyler back as much as she did. His absence was creating a widening hole in them all.

Kira knew he wasn't the only one to miss Tyler and wished for him to appear alive and well with all their hearts. He had spent nights recently crying himself to sleep at the loss of one of his best friends. But now Kira saw he had been ignoring his other friends' struggles to accept Tyler's death. He should be doing what he had done for Tyler and Athrun after Bloody Valentine had occurred. However, before he could move forward and try to help, there was a click behind him. Kira turned around and, to his shock, saw Flay holding a gun pointing it at the ZAFT pilot.

Dearka also heard the click of the gun and was staring wide-eyed at the redheaded girl pointing a gun at him. Staring down the barrel of a gun wasn't new to Dearka, there was a week of training with ZAFT that was survival training. During said training, the recruits were given a gun and some clips, however, they weren't told the clips had rubber bullets. The testers were made to believe they were facing down real guns that could kill them during the whole test. It was to help learn the value of preserving your own life above all else, even if it meant killing another. In that experience, he had met Nicole, and the two had gone against the proctor. Dearka would never forget when he faced their gun, and the bullet was coming at him. However, right now, the same fear for his life was going through Dearka's mind. The girl he was looking at appeared ready to pull the trigger and kill him.

Kira didn't want Flay to have blood on her hands, he knew what that was like and hated it. Plus, Tyler wouldn't want another hurt because of his death, regardless if they could have played a part in the event. Tyler had always believed in justice taking its course and punishments being handed to those who earned them. Killing out of anger was wrong, and Tyler had made that clear, and Kira agreed with him. Thus, Kira moved to be between Dearka and Flay holding up his arms.

Flay gazed at Kira with incredulity for his action, it made no sense. His friend was dead because of ZAFT, who this guy was a part of. If anything, then Kira had more reason than she did to want this guy dead. "But Kira, why," she questioned, "It's because of those like him," Flay reasoned, jabbing a finger at Dearka, "That your friend is dead. You have more reason to want him dead than any of us, so why are you stopping me?"

Kira shook his head, "It wouldn't change anything," he stated as evenly as he could, "nor would it bring Tyler back." Kira's throat was dry, and his heart ached at stating Tyler was gone out loud, "It isn't worth it in this, and," Kira paused as the pain swelled, "Tyler wouldn't have wanted it to happen."

The door to the infirmary slid open, and a couple of the bridge officers came in with doctor Graham. They all stopped as they took in the scene of the teens. There were two volunteers on one side of the room, one of them sobbing. The redhead was pointing a gun at Kira, who was standing before the bed where the ZAFT prisoner was on. Graham had gone to the officers to ask them what would be best with their prisoner. "What is going on in here," Graham asked.

The incident was brought under control and cleaned up, with the ZAFT pilot being escorted to one of the brig cells. However, that wasn't the end of the situation entirely since it was a breach of protocol. As the superiors' report loomed ahead, thoughts of what needed to be said came to many of the officers' minds. This strained the relationship between Murrue and Natarle a margin as Natarle thought the situation was handled poorly. The prisoner should have never been left alone, even for a short time. Tensions were high, so the prisoner was a threat to hurting others and driving a member of the crew to do something foolish. And since Murrue was the ship's commanding officer, it had been her responsibility to keep that in mind. "It was a mistake leaving him in sickbay for so long," Natarle reasoned. "Even with us being at HQ, that doesn't mean that we ignored rules and protocol."

Murrue grunted acknowledgment to the statement, for she knew it was true, the prisoner they had on the Archangel shouldn't have been left in sickbay. However, the ship was still short-handed, so there wasn't personnel to watch things that weren't urgent or essential. Rules and protocol assumed there was a full crew for the ship, so it wasn't fair to judge this incident by them completely. The Archangel had been running as an OMNI crew to the best it could be with the journey it had traveled. And with Natarle, she would include it in her report to the general staff, which Murrue would likely do the same in her position. Natarle continued, "And then there was the fact that he was briefly left unattended."

"Indeed, is there a point you're trying to make Natarle," Murrue asked tiredly.

Natarle wasn't one to like to call out another, especially a fellow officer that she'd worked with. But when a mistake was made, it needed to be acknowledged and corrected so that it didn't happen again. Natarle would say that Murrue had done admirably commanding the Archangel through what it had faced. Natarle would ask any other officer to do better, knowing what they had at the outset. She doubted that any other officer could have done any better than them, and likely would do worse. Still, what happened needed to be addressed, "Firearms management was lax among other things. There is no other option to report this incident along with the rest of what happened on board this ship," Natarle stated. Murrue said nothing in response, yet Natarle didn't want to come off as critical of Murrue Ramius. She wanted Murrue to see her as a friend as she saw Murrue as much as a colleague. "Captain," she said, and Murrue turned to face her. "Please try to understand, I'm not saying that you are unfit or failed as an officer, for I feel that you have done an admirable job with the circumstance that we've been under. I am merely attempting to point out the vital importance of maintaining order and structure. That shouldn't change due to field promotions or emergencies."

Murrue nodded, "I understand the idea, the principle of it anyway."

"The military must be regulated, such requires soldiers that follow orders given by their superiors and commanding officers that can see the bigger picture and then make the appropriate decisions. Otherwise, the ship cannot fulfill its mission and be victorious or survive in battle," Natarle said. It had an often-quoted idea of Natarle's father, which she respected.

While what Natarle said was all well and good when stated, the application was far from simple as it was made to sound. Principles and ideals were nice on the face of it but taking them to heart and applying them was a different matter. So, the rhetoric was more something to work towards rather than expect. "There are some of us Natarle that know that but still have great difficulty doing it," Murrue replied. Natarle was taken aback at the reply, yet Murrue kept going, "Lieutenant, I'm fully aware that I'm not suited for the position I am in."

"I wasn't trying to imply that, captain," Natarle started.

Murrue, however, cut over her, "It's fine, Natarle, I know such to be the truth. I know a lot has come between us throughout this journey, but still, I am truly grateful for your help and insights, Natarle. I do not doubt that when you become a commander of a ship Natarle, you will do very well, above most if not all expectations," Murrue stated before parting ways with Natarle.

The next morning, all of the officers of the Archangel, both commissioned and non-commissioned, were called to a 'debriefing.' It was to be in front of JOSH-A's general staff in one of the large court-like rooms the base had. The expectation was that Murrue and Natarle would be giving their side of events to the general staff. Both had been working on the talking points they would use and answers to potential questions those hearing them would have. Mu and Krystal had discussed what might come up at the debriefing, and their expectations hadn't been good. The circumstances the Archangel had been under during its journey had been unlike any of the predictions. The ship and its crew had done the best they could under that kind of pressure, both would state such for the record if required. However, the more complex subject would be the Coordinators on the ship. The general staff would have some sort of bias and use that to condemn the Archangel's mobile suit pilots.

The Archangel's officers were escorted to a large room with chairs in the center and a raised stage in front of the chairs. The whole crew stood as the general staff officers came in and took their seats, then they were directed to the chairs in the center of the room. The only thing that any had been told about the debriefing was the general staff had questions about their journey here. However, with three high-ranking OMNI officers, the foremost being the officer in charge, one with the rank of Captain by the insignia on his uniform. Murrue assumed the man was William Sutherland, she had heard that he was strict and was known to dislike Coordinators. There were other officers on the sides of the room, Murrue assumed for recording this 'inquiry.'

Captain Sutherland gazed at the crew of the Archangel, wondering many things about them and how they handled themselves. From what he had read, they had done well in some circumstances but failed spectacularly in others. To be sure, their mission had been a difficult one, more so with ZAFT having interrupted when it was almost done. Due to ZAFT's actions, many good officers had been killed, which was regrettable. And that the Archangel got here to JOSH-A was commendable overall. If that was all there was to this, there would be little need for a full debrief. However, the other actions that made the work of the Archangel and her crew questionable. "Good morning, I'm Captain Sutherland of the general staff, and you're all here to answer questions to help in the understanding of what has happened to bring you to JOSH-A. This meeting will be held according to court-martial regulations, so the proceedings will apply the same rules. All of you can be seated."

Krystal and Mu didn't like that this "debrief" would be held as a type of court-martial. That implied that this wasn't going to be as much a question and answer session as much as it would be an accusation of what they did. It was pretty much what they both expected this meeting would devolve into, but for it to start that way didn't help. Sutherland continued, "We have gotten the log data from your navcom and the general ship logs and are in the process of analyzing it," he stated. "You've gone through some hell to get here, I must say I'm impressed, Captain Ramius." Murrue nodded in acknowledgment to the compliment, "It is hoped that you can give a summary of what events played out in the form of testimony. Remember, this will be on the official record, as such, anything stated will be written as an official statement. Thus, you are required to state the truth to the best of your abilities. Shall we begin?"

"Yes, sir," Murrue replied.

"Then," Sutherland began, "Let us start with file one, which is ZAFT's surprise attack on Heliopolis since that's where things are not clear." Sutherland brought up images of Heliopolis, "this event is what led to your promotion Captain Ramius, so you will be the first to testify about this event."

The question and answer session proceeded with Murrue giving the event as she had experienced it. She recounted taking the Strike and trying to get away from ZAFT forces. Then she brought up the appearance of the Asuka and the Shadow, then moved on to those two, forcing ZAFT back. With how Kira and Tyler had piloted the mobile suits they were in, Murrue had to admit she'd suspected they were Coordinators and said as much to the general staff.

Sutherland interrupted her right after she said she assumed Kira and Tyler were Coordinators. "So you already your suspicions about the two young men," he asked, bringing up files with their pictures on them to display them on the main screen of the room. "That the two were Coordinators living in the colony, correct?"

Murrue nodded, "Yes," she answered, thinking about how those two had made machines that should've had the same OS as the Strike work. How they had grasped the system so quickly, Murrue couldn't say, but she believed it was more than them being Coordinators. They seemed familiar with the OS or at least parts of it somehow. "From what I'm to understand, they were students at the technical college the colony had. But they hadn't seen or knew of the mobile suits before that day. And as neither could have seen the project before that, for them to be able to reprogram them told me they were likely Coordinators. They later admitted they were Coordinators thereby confirming the suspicion I had."

"Then tell us," Sutherland said, "what did you think of their performance and abilities? You did get to see them use such when they were fighting off ZAFT after all."

Murrue hesitated for a moment since, honestly, she had been impressed and intrigued with how Tyler and Kira had made using mobile suits seem so easy. Even against ZAFT, they would beat them and prove that the G-Project was incredible when used by certain individuals. And Tyler being a Federation pilot made her wonder more about just how good they could be. "Well, sir," Murrue started, "I admit that I was somewhat entranced with what they could do."

Sutherland grunted in response, but the grunt was almost sarcastic in nature by what Mu heard, and he didn't like it. He could tell this would likely lead to blaming Kira and Tyler in some way for what happened back in the colony. Krystal was on the edge of her seat, not liking the implications any more than Mu did. Sutherland continued, "From what the logs say, you fell unconscious not too long after that and were cared for by teenagers from the colony, which you later restrained."

"Yes," Murrue answered.

Sutherland nodded, "I agree with that decision," he admitted, "It was the correct one under the circumstances. To regroup and assess the situation was indeed the best course of action as your injuries made more difficult. However," Sutherland paused, "before you could meet up with friendlies, you came under attack by a mobile suit that had entered the colony being chased by Lieutenant La Flaga and Major McAlester." Sutherland shrugged his shoulders, "A stroke of bad luck, no questions about that, but then you handed the controls of the Strike over to an uneducated civilian, one of the very civilians that you said you were suspicious of being a Coordinator. Because of that, you failed to follow through with taking control of the situation, is that right?"

Mu shot out of his chair, angry that this captain was implying that any of them had not tried to prevent what happened to the colony. Le Creuset was to blame for what happened, that masked man was a threat to all. "Sir, if you're implying that what happened with the Strike was preventable, then you're wrong. If you'd have been there-"

"Commander La Flaga," Sutherland interrupted, "We are only confirming facts at the moment, not accusing anyone of anything. This isn't the time for personal opinions when we are clarifying records."

Mu gritted his teeth at that reply but felt Krystal tugging him down. He looked at her, and she shook her head to say that now wasn't the time to talk back. So, Mu sunk back down to his seat, still angry that things were being stated in the way that implied Kira and Tyler were at fault. Sutherland kept going, "While one suit was keeping the ZAFT CGUE at bay, Kira Yamato boarded the Strike and due to his inexperience was led to fire the 320mm hyper impulse Agni cannon without any knowledge of its power. Although he did manage to drive away the CGUE, his actions led to serious structural damage to Heliopolis. ZAFT then sent in assault forces into the colony after the Agni's firing, which strongly infers they felt threatened by it and respond in kind."

Krystal held Mu's arm this time when he tried to rise as it was clear his anger was getting the better of him. Not that Krystal didn't understand the feeling Mu was fighting, she too wanted to punch Captain Sutherland for what he was saying. But she knew that wouldn't help them or those they wanted to defend from the general staff. "Captain, that is nothing but conjecture," Krystal stated as calmly as she could, "You said you and the general staff were confirming facts, not speaking in hypotheticals."

After a moment, Sutherland nodded, "While that may be so, however, as a commander with battlefield experience, this logic is easy to understand and comprehend." Sutherland paused, "If you were the member of the opposing team, would you just ignore a taunt like that or wave off the threat?"

Mu calmed down a bit before speaking, "No, I would not leave such a thing unchecked," he bitterly admitted.

Murrue was irritated that Captain Sutherland implied that what she'd done was the wrong decision. ZAFT would have kept coming, fighting back was the logical option that had been available. "Are you implying that fighting back was the wrong decision, sir," Murrue challenged.

Sutherland held up a hand, "I wouldn't go that far, captain," he assured, "But you trusted Coordinators that you had just met. That's not just bad luck, that is poor judgment, which led to the results."

Murrue rose, "But sir, they were the reason we made this far-"

Once again, Sutherland interrupted, "They also could be the reason that Heliopolis collapsed, or did that point not come up?" The man paused, "Nevertheless, there is no real point to dealing in hypotheticals now. But imagine if they were normal teenagers, unable to reprogram the OSs, then they wouldn't have been able to pilot the Strike or the other mobile suits. There would be no way for them to use the mobile suits in that scenario. And that would have led us to a very different outcome."

Mu and Krystal started to get out of the chairs, "Different outcome," Mu challenged, "You know full well that if they hadn't done what they did, ZAFT would have your whole project."

Murrue gestured for both Mu and Krystal to sit down and not argue further before she turned back to Sutherland. "And the one who allowed access to them to one and later all three mobile suits was you, was it not Commander Ramius," he asked.

"Are you saying that you hold me responsible for what happened, sir," Murrue challenged.

Sutherland tilted his head, "Apparently, you have forgotten, but it is important to remember that the Coordinators are our enemies. Their abilities are dangerous, make no mistake about that point. Even if they were young civilians, three of them were still Coordinators just the same." Sutherland looked over the Archangel's crew, "So, I'll ask the question, why did none of you realize this when all the facts pointed it out?"

Murrue stood up slowly with dignity in her posture, "Sir, if it weren't for all three of those teenagers, we wouldn't be in this room answering this inquiry," she said in a steady tone of voice

Her reply wasn't the response the officers had wanted, "If it weren't for them, Heliopolis might not have collapsed." Sutherland shot back. "Nor would the Federation have started looking into the whole event. Do you have any idea what flak OMNI has gotten because of your actions? Those Coordinators will bring nothing more than chaos the longer they are around and will leave it in their wake."

Mu was shaking with anger with this questioning session, yet Krystal spoke up before he could say what was going through his mind. "Captain Sutherland, you said at the start of this that this inquiry would be held to the rules of a court-martial tribunal. With that in mind, sir, are you speaking of just the facts without letting your personal opinion or views affect how this inquiry will proceed? You called us out for stating personal opinions before already, which needs to be observed on both sides. For you know what will happen if you let your judgment be affected by either your opinion or views," She asked clearly, leaving no question as to what she was requesting.

Captain Sutherland glared at Krystal before he took a moment to calm down and sat back down in his chair. "I was only saying that things could be different, were these teenagers not Coordinators, that's all," he remarked.

"Whether it could have been different or not isn't the point, captain. We're here to confirm and clarify the facts of the events that have happened." Mu said, keeping his anger in check with effort. None of the kids deserved any of the slander they were unknowingly getting, they had been giving it their all.

"You seemed displeased, Lieutenant, any particular reason why? And remember, what you say does go on the official record," Sutherland returned.

Mu gritted his teeth, "Yes, sir, there's a reason for me being displeased. You've been saying, implying, and accusing our volunteer pilots of doing wrong. You clearly haven't taken even one opportunity to talk to any who know them. They are kids like any you would meet anywhere you care to mention. They were thinking more about what they were going to do in the evening other than schoolwork, not piloting mobile suits to fight for their lives when this all happened," Mu stated.

"Whether that is true or not isn't what this meeting is for Commander, do please keep that in mind." Sutherland paused, "Those teenagers are with the crew, and so their actions will be judged as the crew's actions."

Mu felt seriously irked by this, "You're twisting the truth! We were only-"

Sutherland cut over Mu before going further, "Only what, Commander?"

Mu was at a loss of what to say, but then Krystal spoke up for him, "We were completing our mission to the best of our abilities, sir. So, if you intend to accuse us of wrongdoing, then define the crime that the facts indicate we've committed or end this ridiculous show and cease telling us your hatred of Coordinators, Captain Sutherland. Please adhere to the rule set for a court-martial tribunal and stop lecturing us on the view you share with Blue Cosmos. Or by the rules you stated this would go by, this 'inquiry, it's records and the information that has come with it, including your accusations will be dropped," she stated.

The other two Earth Forces officers gained expressions of anger, yet Sutherland smiled a bit, "Come now, relax. I'm not saying that you are to blame for everything that's transpired. In fact, I believe that you did quite well getting through some difficult situations. However, when the Archangel arrived here, only two GAT series machines were on board instead of five. So, tell me, how can those who gave their lives for all of you to get here now rest in peace? We have no other choice but to make things as clear as possible about the results and who was responsible for them. And in a manner that satisfies everyone," he commented. "Moving on, the Archangel was then involved in destroying the Artemis military base. And while there, witnessed advanced forces wiped out."

Krystal wouldn't stay silent with that fact, not after what those at Artemis tried to pull. "Captain, while the destruction of Artemis is regrettable, they brought that base's downfall on themselves."

There was a moment's pause before Sutherland spoke, "Would you care to expand on that Lieutenant Commander?"

Mu was up from his seat in the next moment, "Those at Artemis refused to listen to us, kept us there with the reasoning that their barrier couldn't possibly be defeated. So, when ZAFT got past, Artemis was unprepared, and if not for the crew's actions, the Archangel would have been sunk there too."

"Yet," Sutherland interjected, "You escaped and traveled through enemy territory to meet up with the Eighth Orbital Fleet. And in that process, they managed to lose more allies in the form of the advanced force sent from the fleet. Then when you reached the Eighth Fleet, you subsequentially led it to be almost cut down."

Mu and Krystal had jumped back to their feet, "Unbelievable," he growled.

"You weren't there, so you don't know what we were-" Krystal started.

Sutherland interrupted, "You were what, do tell."

Murrue rose, "We were following Admiral Halberton's orders, sir, to the best of our abilities."

"And does his will supersede that of this panel," Sutherland posed, "I can't recall when that happened?" The questioning continued, and it didn't get any easier for the crew of the Archangel. The reaming used against the three pilots that had protected the ship from being destroyed continued. However, out of the three, Tyler was implied to be worse than Kira or Lacus, especially his connections with the Federation military. The facts of Tyler's rank and other facts that Murrue, Natarle, Mu, and Krystal had heard from Tyler himself were stated.

At the same time, those that remained on the Archangel were left to wonder what the officers were being asked. It was really just the mechanics and the Heliopolis volunteers that were left on this ship. Murdoch was unhappy as a group of technicians had come onboard minutes after the officers had left. When asked, Murdoch said they told him they were there to inspect the Strike and the Buster before saying to get out of their way. Kira kept silent since he knew that said inspection would cause the OS to crash and be wiped. And if what Tyler's letter said, he had also made the data they wanted unusable. He believed that there would be repercussions when discovered, and it would unlikely be pretty.

Kira didn't know how right he was about Tyler's work before the Archangel arrived at JOSH-A. The base's technicians got to work after the mechanics were out of the way with the data extractions they were assigned to do. However, it didn't take long for them to find the data they were after had been corrupted and fragmented. The data was damaged so much that it was still recognizable but not usable in any way. It was actually kind of horrifying the condition of the data, it was too thoroughly corrupted and fragmented to be natural. That meant that the schematics of the prototypes were now unavailable for use. That did still leave the Strike and the Buster to work with, but the general staff had been looking forward to getting the specs of the GAT series. So, the technicians knew they wouldn't like the data being unusable, but that was out of their hands.

At least there was the Strike and the Buster to work with, as it would still have enough to finish the next machines of the GAT series. That would satisfy the general staff enough and others in OMNI as the data was gone. So, the technicians moved on to the Strike and began inspecting it for what they were assigned to do. And yet, when one of them activated the operating system and began diving into it, things when bad again. The system crashed within thirty seconds, and when it was booted back up, there was nothing there. The technicians worried further about the OS disappearing on them. It had been the first look at a potential working operating system Naturals could use. The hope was to see some specific things that correct the problems with OMNI's current operating system. But with the system gone, there was nothing they could do to get it back, it had been wiped so clean it had to be set up before this. The Buster's system was too far from the original to make sense of, so its OS was useless.

The lead technician decided to go and report the issues they had come up against rather than waiting on it. The report was given to an officer as the general staff was in their debrief at the moment, and that wasn't supposed to be disturbed. The in-charge officer got the report and didn't look forward to the general staff's reaction. The G-Project data and the potential natural-use OS were why the Archangel was not destroyed, and its crew court marshaled and discharged. Nevertheless, the officer simply took a breath before entering the conference room. The officer skirted around the edge of the room came up behind Sutherland, and delivered the news.

Sutherland hadn't been expecting the in-charge officer to come into the meeting, it had been made clear it wasn't to be interrupted without good reason. However, it took effort on Sutherland's part to keep his rage under control when he was told the prizes they were supposed to be getting were gone. According to the report, the G-Project data was corrupted when it wasn't salvageable. The technician's report said what they found couldn't be an accident, so they suspected enemy agents did it. The data loss would cause some setbacks, frustrating as it was, but it wasn't a complete loss in the end with the Strike and the Buster on the ship. However, the other "prize" which was now lost was the OS the Strike had since it had disappeared. The techs looked at it when it suddenly crashed and was wiped from the machine. It was likely the work of the enemy agents suggested before, and that work would mean delays. The Strike and the Buster could still provide data for mass-production of mobile suits, but it would take longer than if the schematics were retrieved.

For an enemy agent to have gotten close enough to have done the work was beyond a failure of the crew's performance. For all any knew, it could have been that Federation soldier McGregor that had been involved. They should have been watching the teen and never left him alone, he was untrustworthy. And because of that mistake in judgment, most of the G-Project had been lost. The sacrifices made were almost meaningless, and that was unacceptable. Thus, Sutherland chimed in after the officer next to him finished talking about the Archangel coming down to Earth. "Not only has your actions destroyed much of the Eighth Fleet, your negligence continued to make things worse," he growled.

The line made little sense to the Archangel's crew, and it was almost like Captain Sutherland was referring to other things. Mu and Krystal felt that whatever the officer had whispered to Sutherland hadn't been news he wanted. Mu did recall Kira's words about Tyler mentioning there being data of some sort on the Archangel. He wondered if that data was something the higher-ups were interested in, and Tyler had somehow denied them. Still, Sutherland continued, "You stop in non-allied ports, not thinking about how they could get access to military secrets," he paused, "What were any of you thinking?"

Murrue stood up again, "We were doing the best to follow through with the mission we had, sir," she stated firmly.

"And while that dedication is commendable," Sutherland replied, "When you arrived here, you had only two units from the G-Project you saved, but neither of the two other mobile suits the ship had been carrying." Sutherland paused, "How are we to face those that sacrificed their lives for the Archangel and the rest of the G-Project? It is our duty to clarify what happened so that we can hold those that are responsible accountable for the sub-sequential actions and consequences in a way that satisfies all parties."

The "inquiry" continued from there on the events of the Archangel's journey but also what resulted from them. Most of the crew were left to wonder how anything they had done would have led to what was being stated. Murrue and Natarle were baffled and worried when details of the Federation demanding answers about what had been going on with Heliopolis came. With the Orb Union being a member nation of the Federation now, or according to Tyler, had been for a year, the G-Project had been technically wrong. The project's development did violate the treaty Tyler had mentioned, and the Federation had been using that to grill some within the Alliance's leadership. Murrue knew that none of the damage they had done or were involved in had been intentional. The ship and its crew had been doing their best to complete their mission and had bad luck along the way.

Mu and Krystal were silent for the rest of the inquiry, their outbursts before had done nothing to help. And through listening, they were learning quite a bit, most of which ranged from unpleasant to seriously concerning. With Tyler having said Orb was a part of the Federation, it was obvious they would look into what happened at Heliopolis, it was an expectation. If anything, the Federation had been assisting the Archangel from the shadows along its journey looking back. That may be due to Tyler's involvement, and it wouldn't surprise either pilot if the kid had pulled some strings. However, the mention of the Shadow and the Asuka not being on the ship when it arrived kept coming up. It angered Mu as it reminded him that Tyler had sacrificed himself for the ship and its crew. The Asuka was back in Orb, it belonged to them after all, so it would have been stealing if they had kept it. Lacus's disappearance may have been unexpected, but in the end, she was avoiding this crap that she didn't deserve.

In fact, the subject of the mobile suit pilots would come up with each event, and it was always in a bad light. The teens were blamed for most things, from ZAFT's actions to allies being killed, none of which was fair on them. Mu knew that no armor pilot would be held to the standard that the Archangel's pilots were being. And if he saw right, when Sutherland went over the Shadow's destruction, the guy had a small smile as Murrue stated he had been killed in action. It made Mu want to sock the guy in the face before he slugged him until he couldn't feel his hands. This so-called "inquiry" was nothing more than a means to point fingers rather than acknowledge the results.

While Mu was angry, Krystal ignored her feelings of anger and studied what was being said and who was saying it. Pinning blame was obvious, but that wasn't the whole point of this, she did not doubt it. The Archangel's performance was not appreciated, and her best guess was because the Federation was pushing for answers that the Alliance didn't want to give. That checked out with something Kira had implied Tyler had said in some way, which made her very worried. If the Archangel was such an embarrassment, why let it continue its mission when it reflected badly on the Alliance? The only logical answer Krystal could come up with had something to do with the "data" Tyler had brought up. It would explain why Sutherland was mad after receiving news of some kind. Whatever the data was, it had not been retrievable by the technicians here. That also said there had been or still were technicians on the ship doing who knew what.

The disrespect aimed at the Archangel's suit pilots was horrible, and Krystal had gotten close to calling the general staff out of that. But Sutherland seemed to be keeping the "facts" just short of being seen as personal views. And yet, those on the general staff were making it clear they disliked Coordinators. Not only did they hate them, but they also blamed them for every loss OMNI suffered and anything that went wrong. Tyler specifically got more attention than Kira or Lacus did, the point of him being with the Federation being mentioned often. There were files shown that claimed Tyler had been involved in sabotage more than a year ago, but Krystal saw no proof of the claim from what she read.

She had to admit, and this certainly would fit a bad reception as Tyler had implied the Archangel's crew would receive from those here. Tyler had been right on the money about that, which led to the other predictions. Should Tyler have been right about the reception, then it was just as likely he was right about the other part he'd said. It had been inferred that the crew would be divided into two groups, and then one group saved, and the other disposed of. Krystal knew it would be best to discuss this with Mu, things were just going sourly, and no sign that would change. The Archangel's crew were excellent at what they did, so none of them should be taken care of.

The whole inquiry lasted for around three hours while the questions came from the general staff. By the end, most were tight-lipped and gave short answers to questions asked while holding in their feelings. The only thing that didn't slander from the general staff was the official announcement of the rank promotions presented to some of the officers earlier. Sutherland did stand up after the questions stopped, "This wraps up our proceedings, thank you all for your cooperation in answering the questions to clarify events in this long process. We'll be in touch with you concerning the next mission of the Archangel soon. All of you are to return to your posts," Sutherland paused and looked down at the datapad he had. "You are all dismissed with the exception of Commander Mu La Flaga, Lieutenant Commander Krystal McAlester, Lieutenant Natarle Badgiruel, and crewman Flay Allster."

Mu stood up, not understanding why Krystal, Natarle, Flay, and he were asked to stay. "Stay, sir," he questioned. "May I ask what for?"

Sutherland looked at Mu, "Yes, the four of you are being transferred, so you are to report to the personnel bureau tomorrow morning at 0800 hours, dismissed."

A/n

And I'll leave the Phase off there and continue in the next one. Now, on to the elaboration of details for this Phase as I do for these. Originally, this and the next phase were one phase, but it was getting long for my liking so I split them and this was the best split point. So with this Phase, readers would have noticed it is the "event" where the Archangel reaches JOSH-A and report to their superiors.

Now, there were some points that I wanted to point out that aren't in canon. First, with Kira there when in canon he is not, that puts him in danger as he is a Coordinator and such are hated by the higher-ups. That is mentioned by both Mu and Krystal as well as Tyler in his letter to Kira. Second, I wanted to highlight Mu's and Krystal's growing doubt in OMNI's direction and behavior. They are noticing that there is more going on than what had been seen in the open as Tyler implied. Their loyalty is moving toward being with the Archangel rather than OMNI and the Alliance in this Phase and will continue to do so in the next. Third, Tyler's letter that he left to Kira which gives some foreshadowing. The letter gives the summary of what Tyler did which most on the Archangel didn't know about. Tyler had a good idea of what the Archangel would be facing if they reached JOSH-A even if he didn't know the exact details. That is seen by Tyler stating Kira was in danger and the system trap he placed on the Strike.

Then finally, the "Debrief report" the Archangel's crew went through with the general staff at JOSH-A. The general scene is similar to what is seen in canon but there are a few difference as my characters are involved. It may be implied that the general staff suspects Tyler had done things while on the Archangel. It is hidden with the reasoning that the general staff is confirming facts of the Archangel's journey. Of course, the Archangel's crew doesn't like the implications the general staff is "insulting" their Coordinators. The reactions of some will come up in the next phase but the whole debrief scene was improved in my view. Now, to sum up this, please some of you write a review and tell me what you think of the phase. The next phase will come in two weeks, titled "Horrible Truth", peace out until then!