Chapter Forty-Seven: Commit This to Memory

"Crap, Cagalli, you're raring to go!" That was Miriallia talking to me as I was sitting in the Strike. Usually I wound up launching after La Flaga, but I had gotten myself ready before he did and now I was sitting on the catapult, ready to launch.

"Just let me know who's the enemy and point me to them," I said. "They won't get anywhere near this ship."

Badgiruel's voice. "I don't want you getting too aggressive out there, 2nd Lieutenant Yamato. Petty Officer Pal has identified four enemy bogeys heading our way, and they are Le Creuset's unit. The Aegis, the Buster, the rebuilt Duel, and the Blitz."

"So I'm up against all of them. Got it. Any other support?"

"There's no signs of enemy DINNs," Badgiruel replied. "It looks like to me that this is going to be a pretty straight-up attack to end the battle that began at Heliopolis here and now. They can't be let through to damage the Archangel. We are not far from Orb waters. If we can make it there, we win by default."

"That's right, we do," I said. "ZAFT won't be allowed to follow us in there, not without violating Orb's sovereignty. I doubt they want to drag Orb into the war when they're stretched enough as it is fighting the Earth Alliance."

I look at my sensors. "Give me the Aile Pack. I'm gonna need a balanced assault for this one."

"Not the Sword Pack? Isn't that the one you prefer using?" Miriallia asked.

"No. Not against four GUNDAMs in the atmosphere," I replied. "By the way, how the heck are they flying over here?"

Badgiruel's voice. "I've heard of this machine called a GUUL. The Mobile Suits ride on it like a human rides on a skateboard. Not the best analogy but the closest one I can think of."

That put a memorable image in my mind of a GUNDAM riding a skateboard up a half-pipe, losing control, and crashing head-first into the ground.

Hopefully I wasn't going to end up like that.

"All right, thank you. So obviously, if I remove the GUNDAM from its GUUL, the GUNDAM is going to go crashing into the water."

"Yes, probably. Except for the Aegis," Badgiruel answered. "The Aegis has a Mobile Armor mode, remember. It can fly in the atmosphere."

So Athrun, again, would be the most difficult to remove from the battle. Somehow that did not surprise me. "All right, thank you. I'm ready to launch anytime. How long do we have until we're in Orb waters?"

"About forty-five minutes," Miriallia replied.

"I won't need that long."

The hangar opened up, and I was staring at the partly cloudy sky in front of me. We were going to be fighting in perfect weather. That seemed appropriate. No variables interfering in the battle. Just me versus the four GUNDAMs that have been hounding me since Heliopolis. Well, three GUNDAMs and a very vengeful young woman who is piloting an advanced copy of a GUNDAM I actually managed to shoot down, but who cares about such technicalities?

I was ready to end this and go home and sit out the rest of the war.

"This is 2nd Lieutenant Cagalli Yamato," I replied. "Launching!"

I shot out into the atmosphere and powered up the Strike's launch pack. It wasn't going to be perfect but I was going to be able to fly. That was all I was going to need.

The four machines came up on my radar. "I'm moving to intercept! I won't let any of them reach theArchangel!" I shouted, and powered the Strike forward.

"Don't be a fool, 2nd Lieutenant!" Badgiruel shouted immediately. "You can't fight all four of them by yourself! Wait for La Flaga and Allster!"

"Watch me!" My senses felt dulled but I could still feel how the four GUNDAMs were going to move. The Buster and Blitz were going to hang back, and the Aegis and the Duel Assault Shroud were going to come right at me. I could just sense it.

A pain in my head. Buster was aiming at me. I just knew it.

I moved the Strike to the left and watched as a beam flew right past me. I had dodged it with ease.

Another pain, this time from the right. Asta and Athrun, the both of them, coming right for me.

What was this needle-like pain, and how was it directing me?

No . . . no, I was letting myself fall into a trap. They were going to try to box me in.

Good strategy, but I wasn't going to let that happen!

It wasn't going to end like this. I had promised myself that. There was no way Athrun and his subordinates were going to shoot me down.

I saw the brown seed appear in my mind's eye again, like I had fallen from reality and had gone to another world.

This time, I didn't feel afraid to let it break. In fact, I embraced the seed shattering.

I was going to use everything I could get to beat the four of them . . . or die trying.


I could see the battlefield with even greater clarity than before. I immediately began aiming at the Duel and let loose with a barrage that forced the Duel to back off. I sent Athrun the same message a moment later, forcing him to retreat. I felt the needle-like pain in my head again and I forced the Strike to fly upwards, dodging another sniping attempt by the Buster.

I was getting annoyed.

I powered up my engines and flew right towards the Buster.

It was then that it occurred to me.

The GUULs were not what they cracked up to be. Sure, they permitted the GUNDAMs to fly in the atmosphere, but the GUNDAMs could not manuever very well. They were moving in a clumsy way and that was why I was flying circles around them . . . and why they bothered to try to box me in rather than just charge through me on the way to the Archangel.

The Buster saw me coming and tried to fly off, but I wasn't trying to hit the Buster. I had no interest in hitting the Buster.

All I wanted was the GUUL.

I blasted the GUUL and it exploded right under the Buster's feet. The GUNDAM was blasted away like it was shot out of a cannon, and spiraled towards the ocean, out of control, before vanishing in a plume of water.

One down, three to go.

Another needle, this time seeming to remind me about my right flank. The Blitz this time.

That's right. The Blitz was hanging back with the Buster.

I was feeling confident. The most confident I had ever felt while piloting the Strike. It wasn't like I was feeling invincible, but I felt like I had years of battlefield experience directing me. I knew what to do and how to do it. Nicol and the Blitz seemed like a rookie to me.

I dodged a barrage from the Blitz and charged below the Blitz, flying right above the water. I spun my GUNDAM around so I was facing the sky, and saw the underside of the Blitz's GUUL for just a moment.

That was all I needed.

I squeezed the trigger and I blasted the GUUL, and while it wasn't a dramatic explosion like what happened to the Buster, the Blitz had to abandon the GUUL and it too fell right into the water, the smoking, out of control GUUL crashing into the ocean shortly thereafter.

Half of them, dispatched right at the beginning of the battle. I was winning. I was beating all four of them, and Mu La Flaga and Flay hadn't even joined the battle yet.

I felt the needle-like sensation again, and I turned around to see both the Duel and the Aegis coming at me, the Duel firing at me with an all-out fury that suggested the pilot was royally pissed off. Not that it surprised me . . . and I didn't really care either.

I dodged the flurry and I was immediately hailed thereafter. I wondered why I should bother, but I wound up answering the hail anyway. "Yes?"

It was Athrun. "Cagalli, I know you feel like you're doing your duty-"

"Athrun, I'm not going to play mind games with you. I'm protecting my ship and that's final. Don't even try to convince me otherwise."

"Cagalli, you have nowhere to go! The Earth Alliance has made you and the legged ship fugitives! You really think a tiny, neutral nation like Orb will be able to shelter all of you from the Earth Alliance's wrath? You'd be wiser to join ZAFT, Cagalli!"

"Athrun, I told you not to try to convince me. It's not going to work."

"Cagalli-"

"Athrun, I'm going home and staying there! I don't care what happens in this war anymore! I gave up all stake in it once the Archangel got branded a rogue ship! I'm going home and planting my ass in a soft, warm bed and enjoy the rest of my life! Everyone here has suffered enough!"

"Are you being dense on purpose, Cagalli? Haven't you heard a word I've said? How can Orb protect you from the Earth Alliance?"

"Athrun, right now, I'm not concerned about that. My concern is getting my ship home. And by the way, calling my ship 'the legged ship' isn't helping your case!"

Asta interrupted, her voice low and bitter. "Athrun, stop talking to her and shoot her down. I've had enough of hearing her voice . . . and yours too, for that matter."

"Asta, I had to make the attempt. It's important!"

Asta chuckled softly. "It is nothing more than your personal pipe dream. Now stand aside. If you won't kill Cagalli Yamato, I will. My brother deserves vengeance."

The needles were getting softer, like I was using my abilities up the more I used them. I was running out of time. I had to shoot them both down while I still had my ESP advantage!

Here came the Duel, charging for me, firing. I realized there was no way I was going to line up a shot and destroy the Duel's GUUL, so I moved to dodge the flurry of shots. Maybe one of them scraped my Phase Shift as the Duel flew by me, and turned in a wide, rounded pattern, its agility greatly weakened because of the GUUL.

I fired at the Duel's GUUL but Asta was a better pilot than Dearka and Nicol. She dodged my attempts to shoot her down by literally stopping the GUUL in mid-air, which caused my timed shots to fly in front of her, and before I could re-focus my aim, she restarted the GUUL and flew away, causing my shots to fly behind her.

She was a good pilot. By herself, she'd be a match with me. Teaming up with Athrun, however . . .

This was gonna be hard.

"This damn GUUL is so clumsy! Athrub, stop flying around and do something! You're supposed to be the commander!"

"I'm trying to find an opening, Asta. I'm also keeping an eye out for the Mobile Armors. They're heading our way."

"We wouldn't have to worry about them if we shot down this bitch, Athrun!"

Were they aware that I could hear every word they said?

At least this proved some of my assumptions. Asta was massively insubordinate, and that the GUULs were as clumsy to the GUNDAM pilots as they looked. I wasn't sure how to take advantage of either. Poking Asta into making a mistake seemed risky, and Athrun . . . Athrun would have to be a team effort with La Flaga and Flay.

Asta was still firing at me, and I was flying low to the water, relying on my speed to dodge her shots. Asta's firing seemed more than a little awkward. I wondered if it wasn't just the GUUL. Maybe she wasn't used to firing in the atmosphere period. She did not use her guns against me when she rushed me out of the ruins of Tassil, and she didn't do much of note during Waltfeld's final battle. Maybe she was a significantly better shot in space than she was on Earth.

I switched to my beam saber. As long as I was stuck flying in Asta's direction, I was going to rush her from below and stick the saber into her GUUL and knock her out of the battle too.

I used the needle pains to see where she was shooting. It was like I had a split second warning where she was going to fire before she actually did. It was fading, fading the more I used this ability, but it was still strong enough for me to know what Asta was doing.

"Oh come on!" Asta screamed as I powered the Strike towards her GUUL's underbelly.

I stabbed the GUUL and immediately withdrew as sparks flew from the machine.

"Damn it! This isn't over, Cagalli Yamato! I swear it on my life! I will kill you before I die!" The Duel, much like the Blitz, jumped off the GUUL and willingly fell into the water, which made me wonder if there was a submarine or something on standby to rescue them. Otherwise why would you willingly fall into the ocean? It'd be better than blowing up, but speaking from personal experience, GUNDAMs sink like rocks.

Still, with the Duel splashing down, all that was left was Athrun . . .

Athrun and a slew of reinforcements from nowhere.

Four DINNs had joined the battle, flanking Athrun. Looks like he had called for reinforcements.

I was getting hailed again by the Aegis. Looks like Athrun had changed channels while I was fighting Asta, and that's probably when he called for his backup.

"Yes, Athrun?" I asked.

"Cagalli, you won't be safe in Orb. Trust me on this. You need to give up and come with us. This is your last chance."

"How many times do I have to tell you 'no' before you get the hint, Athrun? Actually, wait, it's not just a 'hint'. I am literally shoving this in your face every single time we encounter each other! I am not joining up with you! I have a ship full of people to protect and that is my priority!"

Athrun sighed. "All right then. Take her down by force. Don't hit the cockpit."

The DINNs launched towards me and I immediately opened fire, before I realized that all four of them were going to strafe me. I dove down, again just keeping myself from hitting the water, and flew below the DINNs, one of which was smoking, but not out of action, from a shot I was able to connect.

I was gunning for Athrun himself and to his credit he realized it. "Crap."

He manuevered his GUUL to the left just enough for my attempt to shoot him to miss.

One of the DINNs, moving much more ably than the Aegis, moved into the Aegis' old position and took some potshots at me. I moved to the DINN's right flank and blew off his left leg with two rifle shots. Smoking, the DINN immediately withdrew.

The other smoking DINN, however, with a left arm that looked out of action, had other ideas. Using his retreating buddy for cover for the briefest of seconds, he began shooting at me and that forced me to literally stop the Strike and reverse my course. I was hit three times and my Phase Shift didn't like those shots at all.

I aimed for the DINN's chest and fired. This DINN exploded, covering everything in fire and smoke.

Yet another pilot I had killed in this war. I was privately hoping that this would be the last one.

La Flaga and Flay seemed to be keeping the other two DINNs occupied. It was just me and Athrun now.

I knew I was returning to normal more and more. The ESP I had relied on to win this battle was fading. Athrun had beaten me every time we had fought in space or on Earth, before Stellar did this to me. I couldn't afford to let this drag out.

I aimed at the Aegis and fired, and just as I expected, Athrun dodged the shot. He was maneuvering his clumsy GUUL with just enough skill to avoid me.

Athrun was still on the public channel. "You've improved dramatically. I never thought you'd be capable of pulling off what you've done. Not without years of experience, anyway."

"I guess that makes me full of surprises then." I kept firing at Athrun, trying to lure him into a position where I could finally hit him and knock him out of the battle, but Athrun seemed to know this because he wouldn't let himself get trapped. Every time I thought I had him, Athrun would maneuver away, and all of my work would be for nothing.

This battle was getting frustrating and I knew my time was running out. Both for my ESP and for the Phase Shift. I was using up a lot of power firing at Athrun like this.

"I told you I wasn't going to let you anywhere near the Archangel, Athrun," I said. "And I haven't. Even if you shoot me down, you've lost this battle. The Archangel is going to escape."

"I know." Athrun paused for a second. "It won't be a total loss if I take you and the Strike back to my superior officers, however."

Somehow, I knew he was still going to try and bring me to ZAFT. How was I not surprised? "It's not happening, Athrun. I know you care about me, and I . . ."

I was surprised. Even with my seed activated, I could feel something aching in my chest. Damn it, were these . . .

"And I care about you too. You were my best friend all of those years ago. I wish you were still my friend. I wish things were different, Athrun."

Out of time. This had to end right now!

"But guess what? This is the world we leave in and we've made different choices! And now we have to live with the consequences, Athrun!"

I blasted towards Athrun. I was going to stick my beam saber into hsi GUUL and send him crashing into the water just like Asta.

Athrun seemed to realize this. He let out a cry as he tried to blast me. I used every bit of my perception to dodge his attacks right before they would hit me. This was going to be my last assault. My powers would be too far gone for me to use them properly again if I failed in this attack. I was risking it all in one final charge to knock Athrun out of the battle.

"Commit this to memory, Athrun!" I powered the Strike upwards and I clipped the GUUL just as Athrun tried to dodge me. "I'm not going to do what you say just because you think it's the best for me! I'm not like that! I will keep moving forward in my life, and you need to do the same! We've made our choices and there's nothing we can do about it!"

"Cagalli . . ." The Aegis fell off of the GUUL then, and probably not willingly. I had sliced off one of the GUUL's wings, and that had sent the GUUL into a death spiral. That in turn had caused the Aegis to fall off the GUUL, out of control. Otherwise, the Aegis probably would've had a chance to go into Mobile Armor mode and continue the battle.

"And finally," I said. "Go soak your head."

The Aegis splashed down violently enough to make it seem like a geyser had momentarily been born into the ocean. And then silence.

I switched my coms. "I apologize, Archangel. This was something I had to do myself. All four GUNDAMs are out of action."

As if on cue, I seemed to lose my seed, and I truly felt normal again. And exhausted. Majorly exhausted. I wanted to fall asleep right in my cockpit. How far had I pushed myself to pull off what I just did?

I heard Badgiruel's voice. "I should chew you out and bust you down to Seaman for what you just pulled, Lieutenant . . . but at the same time, what you did worked. Return to the Archangel immediately. We're going to be approaching Orb waters shortly."

"Thank you, Captain." Truth be told, my rank didn't mean anything to me. All that mattered was Orb.

In a few minutes, my war was going to be over.


It was when I stepped out of the cockpit when it happened.

"Big sister Cagalli!"

I turned to my left and suddenly saw Stellar running towards me, her arms outstretched.

Uh oh.

She embraced me, which would've been fine by itself. The problem was that she hit me with so much momentum that I fell on my back, her arms wrapped around me tightly.

"You made it! You made it! You made it, Cagalli! I'm so happy!" Stellar cried.

"Yeah . . . I did. I guess I did," I said, lying on the walkway, staring at the ceiling.

I slowly wrapped my own arms around Stellar. It took me a moment to realize I could not feel her anymore. It felt like an illusion every time I tried to reach out. Like a mirage before me and it would vanish before I could remember how.

I had won, but I was no longer like Stellar. I was back to normal again. Still, what Stellar had given me had been worth it. I had won the battle, and no one else had died onboard the Archangel. I had acocmplished everything I had set out to do for the first time. Yes, there was the one DINN pilot I clearly killed, but . . . at this point, it was something that had to be done, and something I wouldn't have to do anymore.

I saw Kira then, cheerfully leaning over Stellar and looking at me. "Well, you did it, Cagalli. We're in Orb waters. We're already being hailed by the Orb fleet. We're going to make it."

"We are? We really made it?" I asked. It was a stupid question but it was so hard to believe. After everything that had happened, after all of these weeks of suffering and hardship and death, the mere idea of safety, of home, seemed so hard to believe.

When did this whole mess begin? January 25th? What was today? March 22nd? 23rd? Something like that?

Wow. Two months, give or take a couple of days. That's . . . that's a long time.

"We really made it, Cagalli. Thanks to you. You did great out there. That was the best flying I've ever seen from you," Kira said.

"I . . . I did my best, that's all," I said. "I did the best that I could do."

"The best was good enough," Kira said. "We made it. We're home, Cagalli. Now I need to get to the bridge so Orb doesn't accidentally blow us out of the water. I don't think they're going to attack us anyway, but . . . better safe than sorry at this point."

"Sounds good to me." I gave Kira a thumbs-up. "Do what you gotta do."

"I will. Thank you again. For everything." Kira vanished then, leaving me with Stellar still locking me in her embrace.

It took me a moment to realize that Kira was saying goodbye. Was he really? After everything else? Or . . .

No. If he was saying goodbye, he would say it. He was that kind of person. Still . . . after two months of him being at my side, supporting me and perfecting the Strike so I could protect this ship the absolute best I could . . . he wasn't going to be around anymore. He was a friend, a companion, someone I could trust, someone who seemed so familiar even though I had never met him before Heliopolis' destruction . . .

And soon he and I were going to part ways, likely never going to see each other again. Yeah, Kira said that I should become his political adviser, but did he really mean it? And was I really qualified for something like that?

Why was I even thinking about stuff like that anyway? I was home, right? That was all that mattered.

Thinking about it nearly made me cry. Somehow, some way, we had managed to pull it off. Everyone onboard this ship. We had managed to make it. It was over.

I hugged Stellar tightly. "We're safe, Stellar. We're finally safe. You'll never have to fight again."

"I know, Cagalli. I know. Thank you. Thank you so much."

"You're . . . you're welcome, Stellar."

I thought about everyone, my friends, Elle, the officiers, everyone I had met on this ship. I felt tears form in my eyes but I couldn't bring myself to stop them. I didn't even care. These were not the tears I had been crying for the last two months. They were a different kind of tears.

Tears of joy.

I'm home.

A big stupid grin crossed my face.

I'm finally home.


Yes, we're finally approaching the end of part 2. Next chapter will finish up part 2 at long last. Only took me a couple of years, lol.