"Dr. Simmons!" Kira said, pleased to see the brilliant Orb engineer again.

"Kira." She nodded her head. "How are things going?"

"There are ups and downs." Lacus replied, linking her arm protectively with Kira's. Erica smiled.

"I can see that. Cagalli… Athrun, you have my utmost sympathies."

"Thank you." Athrun replied. "I hope you poured some of that caring into your work."

"Oh, more than a bit. I've cooked up some real monsters for you guys. It's astounding the technological leaps I've been able to make once I had access to the data files from the Justice and Freedom, as well as the combat data I salvaged from the Duel and Buster and Strike Rouge. Having first chop at the defense budget helped too, thanks to Kisaka." Erica replied.

"I figured that despite our hopes, peace was going to have trouble coming to pass. We'd need some enforcers, and I knew you people wouldn't be able to leave well enough alone. You're all too noble by half." Kisaka explained. "Besides, the prototype researches made from some useful advances with Astray technology as well. The new Guardians are generations ahead of where they would otherwise be."

"And who are you people? Kisaka's friends, I presume." Erica said, addressing Alkire and the TEMPEST members.

"Well… friends might be stretching it, but we get along. I'm Alkire Majesty." Alkire replied.

"Raine Belaruse."

"Victor Klein."

"James Ramsgoth."

"Vladimir Valkavich."

Erica shook everyone's hands, noting Vlad's hand instantly. "A prosthetic?" she asked.

"Two. Maybe I can show you some other time." Vlad said, uncomfortable.

"And who are these two young ladies?" Erica asked, indicating Chanel and Katie who were pulling Ysak in opposite directions. Chanel wanted to explore the scientific spaces, while Katie wanted the mobile suit hanger. Both wished to have Ysak with them.

"I'm Chanel."

"I'm Katie."

"Pleased to meet you." They said in unison. Erica hid a smile behind her hand.

"Likewise. Well, without further delay, let me show you the fruits of my hard work and that of my fellow technicians. I've been waiting for this day for months. You guys are going to go crazy. Come on." Erica beckoned everyone after her. James helped Kisaka along, but everyone else crowded close behind Erica as she entered the first mobile suit stall. Everyone gasped in awe, even those who were old hands at mobile suits.

The machine towered seventeen meters into the air, the height of a five story building. It was entirely grey at the moment, but all machines with phase shift armor were like that. It was clearly the Duel, but changed quite a bit. For one, the machine seemed a lot sleeker, less blocky. "What did you do to my mobile suit?" Ysak stammered.

"Trust me; you'll like it better the way it is." Erica assured him. "This is the ZGMF-D1, or the Duelist. We added a nuclear reactor, which allowed us to reduce the weight of the extra armor provided by the assault shroud. In fact, it's now only a little bit heavier than the original Duel, at seventy five tons. It should handle much better in gravity now. After studying Ysak's combat data, we figured he liked a sort of up close and personal combat style, so that's what we configured the Duelist for. It's got plenty of air and ground maneuverability, roughly equivalent to the Aile Striker of old. It's just about as fast too. Now you don't have to worry about being led around the battlefield by an agile enemy, you should be able to keep up with most anybody."

"Now, for the actual features. It is phase shift armored; we figured it was best to stick with overall proven defensive technologies. Of course, with the reactor installed, it doesn't run the risk of a combat power down. For weapons it carries a new innovation, the dual 57mm high energy beam rifle. It's much like the old 57mm beam rifle, except that it fires two beams at once, for twice the damage, though at only slightly more than 150 the power and heat. The dual 57's are carried by some of the other machines as well, as standard ranged weaponry. It still carries twin beam sabers for close work. The railgun on the right shoulder has been increased to 120mm, while the missile pack has been removed from the left shoulder and replaced with a rotary 25mm gatling beam cannon, which puts out quite a bit of firepower, even if it lacks much penetration ability. The missile pack has been separated into two separate hip mounted heat seeking missile 6 racks."

"The shield is also new, though it looks similar to the older models. Instead of beam-dissipitation coating, this shield and the ones like it are beam deflecting models. They actually reflect incoming beams back onto themselves, causing them to fizzle out without harming the shield. There are of course limits to what they can block, I wouldn't try and stop a Lohengrin with one, but they are much more effective than the old shields. Again, beam reflecting shields are standard issue with most of the other suits. The Duelist's shield has several extra features though. Those three spiky projections on the center are beam grapples like the Guaize carries, connected to 300 meter macro-molecular cables. The edge of the shield, as you can see, is serrated. The edge of the shield is like a giant chainsaw blade, allowing it to be used for offense as well as defense. The teeth cannot cut through phase shift armor, but anything else is easy prey. Now, for the crowning achievement. See the dark blue cloaky thing hanging down the back? That's not just a drapery. It's called a photon cloak. It's a superconductor cloth, extremely strong. Any sort of beam or heat attack that strikes that cloth is instantly absorbed and dissipated as a blast of bright light. The cloth's tolerances are extreme; it would take multiple Lohengrin blasts within a short time to melt it. On the downside is that physical attacks… guns, missiles, railguns and the like… well, the cloak doesn't protect at all against them, and can be easily destroyed by them. So… what do you think?" she asked Ysak.

Ysak's eyes were a little glassy. "That's a lot of new shit. I'll have to take a closer look. I won't know for sure until I give it a good test."

"Feel free. Just catch up with us later." Erica beckoned everyone else after her as she headed to the next stall. Dearka clapped Ysak on the back in congratulations as he passed.

"You already like it." He muttered. Ysak gave a barely perceptible nod. Katie tugged at his arm.

"Show me, show me!" she pleaded.

"Show us!" Chanel corrected, pulling him towards the machine.

--------------------

"Next we have the mobile suit we all here call the Grand Buster. The technical name is the ZGMF-GB1. As you may have surmised, it's an upgrade to the Buster Gundam."

"I'll say. It looks… bloated." Dearka said. This machine was also grey, with phase shift down. It was taller than the Duelist, closer to six stories. And it did look bloated. The torso bulged outwards on all four axes, while the arms and legs were more tubular and larger than before. Massive weapons hung all over it, including a truly titanic gun that looked more like a launch tube for a passenger shuttle than a gun barrel.

"We prefer to say it's bulked up. It's also accommodating a nuclear reactor nowadays. Admittedly, it has gained a good deal of weight, in fact it's almost doubled in mass and that has had an effect on the already mediocre speed and maneuverability of the machine. I wouldn't expect to turn any cartwheels when piloting this machine, if I were you."

"I'm gonna get eaten alive on the battlefield! I had a hard enough time staying out of harms reach when it was MORE maneuverable!" Dearka complained.

"With this beast, if an enemy gets to within even medium range then it'll only be because of gross negligence on your part. Its armor is very thick, roughly 250 of that of the original Buster. But the area it truly shines in is firepower, of both the direct and indirect fire varieties. Each shoulder mounts a 57mm beam cannon in a fully 360 degree rotating turret. Mounted just below the beam turret is a laser guided missile 15 rack, with two more identical missile racks mounted at the hips. Four 20mm CIWS gatling guns are mounted in the head, while two more CIWS weapons cover the back arc of the machine." Erica said proudly.

"Now, getting off the secondary weapon systems, we come to the primaries. The right hand hefts a 250mm hyper impulse beam cannon, a cut down version of the weapon carried by the Launcher Striker. It is still powerful enough to destroy a medium warship with one shot. The left hand holds an old favorite, the 400mm anti-armor shotgun, which you have used to good effect many times in the past. Unlike the Buster gundam though, these two weapons do not combine to make a third. Rather, the third weapon is separate, though it is the Grand Buster's crowning glory." Erica continued. She pointed at the enormous gun thing currently mounted on the center of the machine's back.

"That… is the the 200cm "Earthshaker" artillery cannon." She intoned.

"Wait… 200 CENTI-METERS!" Dearka sputtered. "That's unreal! That's bigger than the main guns of the Lessups class. By a lot!"

"So it is. The Earthshaker isn't a weapon you fire at enemies who are close by. Or indeed, even within line of sight. The Grand Buster can only carry six shells at a time, and the weapon is single action, which means you have to manually reload after each shot, which can take some time. On the plus side though, the high explosive shells it fires are capable of destroying a Lesseps with a single hit. Crater diameter is estimated to be around fifteen meters, half that deep. Blast damage is usually felt out to around thirty meters, that being the usual area of total destruction. Outside that, partial damage effect can range up to 100 meters from the impact point. We don't know how it works in space just yet, but we expect an overall 20 increase in blast area due to the lack of atmosphere. Range in atmosphere maxes out at 80km, with a maximum arcing altitude of 10km… more than enough to shoot over all but the tallest mountains. The legs have been fitted with special retractable brace supports to handle the kick of the weapon, I would not advise firing it without making sure they are properly situated."

Dearka was trembling. Miriallia pinched him. "Don't drool. You'll probably never get to fire it."

"I'll find a way." He swore.

"Now for the extra goodies. The head has those bat like ears." Erica was saying, indicating the head. "Those are the domes for the Long Range Radar array, which has an effective range of 100km in atmosphere, 100x that in space. With that array, your opponents will have to be Mirage Colloided to escape your notice, and actually, we have a way to protect against that as well. It's called the vari-camera array and it's also in the head. It's hard to explain in layman's terms, but basically it uses a battery of different cameras and sensors… magnetic, infared, seismic, radio-wave, sonic, electron active, atmospherics and a few more besides… to provide a completely clear picture of whatever you aim them at. The resolution quality is astounding and the attached computer systems use the collected data to accurately estimate the capabilities of enemy machines and weapons, even ones we've never seen before. The array has a maximum range of roughly five hundred meters, so you do have to be relatively close to use it. Within those five hundred meters, the array can detect Mirage Colloided units as easily as radar picks out normal machines."

"That's a lot of special electronics for me to keep track of." Dearka noted.

Erica smiled mysteriously. "You bring me to the next feature admirably. As you noticed before, the torso area seems a bit large in comparison with the limbs. There is a reason for this. Several actually. First is the advanced targeting computers necessary for accurately firing the Earthshaker, trying to aim it manually at anything smaller than a hillside is very hit or miss… mostly the latter. Second are the CIC command computers and data links integrated within the targeting computers, these control the LRR array and the vari-cameras as well as provide complete tactical and strategic situation analysis and planning functions."

"I hate to break this to you, but I'm really not the commander sort of guy. I'm not so good at strategies. It sounds like you made this Grand Buster out to be some sort of command model or something." Dearka protested.

"We did." Erica assured him. "But you don't have to worry about it. The primary reason the torso is so big is to accommodate the tandem seat."

"The what?" Dearka sputtered.

"The tandem seat. An extra cockpit location situated just in front of the pilot's chair. From this forward seat the co-pilot handles the vari-camera and LRR arrays, as well as uses the CIC computers to plan out and organize plans of attack and defense and assists the pilot in programming the Earthshaker computers for artillery strikes. The setup is similar to that found in the LaGowe, with the pilot and gunner positions."

"I don't need a damn co-pilot!" Dearka snarled. Erica smiled disarmingly at him.

"That's too bad. I had the system designed with a very specific person in mind, and I was sure you weren't going to have a problem with… HER." She said nastily.

"What?" Dearka asked, off balance.

"Well, as you've pointed out, you're not so good at the command and control aspect of battle. Happily, there is one among us with extensive knowledge of just that. I believe you know her quite well. At least, that's what Kisaka told me anyway…"

"You mean…" Dearka said, turning to look.

"Yes. Let me introduce Miriallia Haw, co-pilot and tactician of the Grand Buster." Erica replied, gesturing grandly at Miriallia, who looked surprised.

"Me? But I've never…" she started to say.

"Never what? You were the Archangels's CIC operator from the moment you first volunteered yourself in space. I'd say you did an admirable job, considering you'd never done anything like that before. All we really did was put you into a more mobile location, with newer, fancier gear. With a trusty pilot who we can assume has your best interests and safety foremost in his heart. I'm sure you'll both make a wonderful team."

"I didn't think you actually read those reports I sent." Kisaka said amiably.

"Even I get bored with technical stuff eventually, Colonel. I happened to glance through them when I was in the design stage and the cupidity of the idea stuck."

Dearka and Miriallia were staring at each other and the massive machine nervously. "Umm… well… we should… uh… get started. See what it can do and all." Dearka said haltingly. Miriallia kissed him. "What's that for?"

"No reason. I'm suddenly feeling a lot better about you going into combat. I'll be your boss and now I'll be able to keep a very close eye on you indeed, to keep you out of trouble." She replied. Everyone shared a laugh at Dearka's expense, before moving on to the next machine, leaving the Dearka and Miriallia behind to start working through their new joint home.

-----------------------

"Now, these next two machines were tough. I had a hard time improving on them, which should come as no surprise; since they were made by the best and brightest the PLANTS have to offer. Really, all I managed to do was make a few tweaks and a few design upgrades, as well as stick in a few goodies, but the structural frames and capabilities are basically the same. Well, without further ado…" Erica entered the next stall, which was dark. She hit a small button and floodlights sparkled on. The illuminated machine was painted in brilliant shades of red and royal purple, with white and silver trim. A large flyer unit formed an "X" of wings on the machine's back.

"This is the ZGMF-X19A Justice II. Or, as we prefer to call it… the Righteous. I had it painted so you can see what it looks like in its full glory. Plus, it was a joy to paint. Anyway, as you can see, the basic concept hasn't changed much. It's much more of an "in your face" fighter than its counterpart, just like the Justice was to the Freedom. We've upgraded the flyer pack, its now two independent flyer packs, though it still serves the same general purpose… allowing unaided high maneuverability atmospheric flight, either attached to the back or if surfed upon in the upright position. You will want to watch how you match your velocities when surfing; you might tear off a leg if you punch the afterburners on one and keep the other at cruising speed. Alternatively, the flyers can be remotely controlled, just like the old one or preprogrammed to follow specific attack or defense strategies. The inbuilt AI is quite good, if I do say so myself, capable of handling itself in most situations."

"For offensive capabilities the Righteous carries a dual 57mm beam rifle in place of its old single, as well as the same old dual bladed beam sabers you wielded so well. Each flyer pack mounts a twin barrel 75mm automatic cannon which can swivel 180 degrees, it's based off the assault rifle carried by the standard Ginn. Ammunition on those runs a little tight, so be careful. Each flyer pack also carries a forward facing laser guided missile 20 pack; you can't use them effectively except when surfing or when the units are independent, I'm sorry. The beam boomerangs are still in the shoulders, those were too good to pass up. Mounted on the shoulders, underneath the flyer units but not attached to them are two 250mm railguns, kind of like the mount you see on some BuCues. Finally, the wings and noses of the flyer units mount beam saber attachments that allow them to be used for flyby and ramming attacks."

"It certainly has been beefed up." Athrun said. "It looks both taller and heavier."

"It is both." Erica confirmed. "But we managed to keep the same maneuvering and speed capabilities due to the flyer packs and a few upgraded engines and computer control systems. The interface is a little messy; you will probably want to change it around to suit yourself, but you'd be far better at that than me, so I left it until now. Next is the defensive systems. You can see it carries a beam deflecting shield, though without the extras the Duelist sports. However, the real kicker is something you can't really see."

Erica walked over to a computer terminal and a hologram of the Righteous sprang into existence between her and the group. "It's an outgrowth of the Mirage Colloid technology. I like to call it the "Angel Halo", because it is used by our guardian angels. Basically it is a reduced form of Mirage Colloid. The particles released do not render the machine invisible, but rather making the outlines blurry and hard to pinpoint, much like looking through thick foggy glass. This effect is both visual and sensor based, so it provides protection against anything short of a Vari-Camera array. Most targeting systems will have a hard time tracking you or achieveing a solid target lock when the Halo is active, with eye firing having similar problems. It is very hard to look at the machine for very long when the system is up with the naked eye; it starts to hurt after a minute or two. An upshot to the system is that it can be used in conjunction with the Phase Shift armor, so you don't have to worry about a lucky shot breaking through and taking you out. Also, the particles diffuse beams, lowering their power by a good 50. Maybe not enough to prevent damage, but enough to turn a deadly hit into just a bad one."

"What are the downsides?" Athrun asked.

"It has a time limit. The system is powered by special batteries that generate a very precisely modulated current to activate and control the particles. The batteries can maintain the Halo for an hour before they must charge off the reactor for five minutes. The reactor cannot be used to power the system directly; the Halo particles won't accept the cruder currents the reactor produces."

"That's it? The time limit?" Athrun said, incredulous. Erica smiled.

"It's a pinnacle of defensive technology. We were going to mount it in the other machines, but the cost… just making one Angel Halo cost as much as the original production costs for the Freedom and Justice combined. And that is NOT cheap. Other than that, there are no downsides. The batteries aren't even explosive. Oh, and to prevent any more heroics like we almost witnessed at GENESIS, I've moved the self destruct activation sequence to Cagalli's machine."

"Hah! Your life is mine!" Cagalli crowed.

"It was already." Athrun muttered. "I can't wait to get into this thing. Pardon me Kira, but I'll look at yours later. The same for Cagalli's."

"No problem." Kira replied. He hated mobile suits and even he was impressed by the grandeur of Athrun's machine. He looked at Lacus, who was studying him. "It's a nice piece of machinery, but I still don't like them." He assured her.

"As long as you keep that in mind." She replied.

---------------------------------

"Next to last, we come to the other guardian angel." Erica announced, walking into another dark stall and flipping on the lights. Like the Righteous, this machine was also painted up. It featured the same black, blue, white and red color scheme as the Freedom, but had gold edging on the wings and head. "Again, there wasn't much we could do to improve it."

"It's slightly bulkier, due to the batteries for the Angel Halo, right?" Kira said.

"Those and for the special weapon you see there on the center chest. It's a weapon we borrowed from ZAFT and I put it there with you and your philosophy specifically in mind. But I'll get to that later. You still have the HiMAT system. You still have your multi-target lock computer. You still have the same maneuverability and speed you had before. The only thing we really changed was beefing up the firepower. The Freedom was a bit of a "Stand Off" model. You stayed at medium range and used your massive array of weapons to dominate your enemies. We built this machine, the ZGMF-X20A Freedom II or Liberty, on that principle as well."

"The Liberty." Kira let the name roll around his head. "I like it."

"Me too." Lacus whispered, so quiet Kira could barely hear her.

"I thought you might." Erica said. "The Liberty has two 150mm hyper impulse beam cannons on its shoulders… the smallest caliber of that weapon out there, though quite powerful enough to blow the original Strike Gundam in half with one shot, each. Carried on its hips are 200mm railguns, just slightly larger versions of the previous models. It still has the beam sabers, same type, same location. The right hand carries a weapon based off the sniper cannon of the old Buster. This is the main gun of the mobile suit. Each 300mm barrel can independently target an enemy within a 30 degree cone of where the weapon is pointed at, or all three can be concentrated on a single target for extra damage. The weapon isn't very quick firing and it does have a kick, so be careful when you use it, because you might be off balance and unable to fire for a second or two afterwards. The left hand carries either a beam reflecting shield or a dual 57mm beam rifle, depending on whether you want extra offense or defense."

"Now, coming back to that special weapon I mentioned earlier. During the war ZAFT constructed a weapon known as the "Gugnir", based on the mythical spear of Odin, which represented lightning. Gugnir's were electromagnetic pulse weapons, EMP for short. They deal little physical damage and are completely harmless to humans. However, their effect on unprotected electronic systems is devastating. Anything that uses electricity or electric memory is affected adversely, shorting out in a surge of sparks or crackling current. Computer memory is erased, circuits melt, detonators fail to arm, safety systems go off line, radios go down… you get the idea. If you have electronics, and what are mobile suits but giant electronics… EMP is your worst nightmare. Your entire OS disappears like it never existed… and not very many of us can reprogram an entire OS in mid battle, especially on a shorted out computer. But enough background, you're smarter than me, you probably get the picture."

"The weapon on the chest is a Gugnir Cannon. Its range is short, as the weapon is highly experimental. I wouldn't count on hitting anything past around 150 meters away. However, the blast is conical in shape, hitting an area fifty meters wide and tall at its maximum range, allowing you to hit multiple enemies at once. The blast is barely detectable, just a few sparks and maybe a nearly invisible ripple in the air. Electricity might dance across the machines struck, but the most visible results will be their engines dying, phase shift going down, weapons stopping firing, and maybe even the machines falling over inert. It takes a complete overhaul to repair a good EMP blast, so most machines are disabled for at least a week or so. An attractive weapon for someone who doesn't like to kill, I think. Now, there are precautions you'll need to observe. For one, the weapon runs off the reactor, it actually stops its functions for a moment to generate the EMP pulse. This can lead to power allocation problems if you are flying and firing your regular weapons at the same time, which might cause some of your attacks to miss or send you for a brief drop through the sky. Another is the weapon has a backwash effect. The Liberty is equipped with extensive EMP shielding, but firing the weapon multiple times in a row might overwhelm the shielding, resulting in you disabling yourself as well. My advice is to wait at least a minute or preferably two between firings. You should be fine then."

"Now, in addition to the EMP shields, the Liberty has an Angel Halo. Firing the Gugnir Cannon while the Halo is active can have unpredictable results. Your best bet is to only have one or the other active at any given time. We're not entirely sure what happens when the Gugnir is fired when the Halo is active, our simulations always go dead or nonsensical just then and we don't have the time, budget or real desire to try a live test. So what do you think?" Erica asked.

"I'm overwhelmed." Kira said, quite truthfully. Erica beamed as if he'd paid her a high compliment indeed.

"I'll leave you to your wonder then. Only one more to go and then I can get back to a real job." Erica said, pulling Cagalli along behind her into the next stall.

"This is head pounding stuff." Alkire commented to Kira.

"Yes. The responsibility is great." Kira replied, still distracted by the Liberty. Despite himself, he liked the machine. The name. The weapons designed specifically for his tastes. If he had to go to war, this was certainly the machine to do it in. He looked over at Lacus. She gave a tentative nod of approval.

"I suppose you can pilot this, if you must. Just promise me you won't just take it out for a joy ride like I know the others will with theirs." She said.

"No. I'm through with these machines. I'll pilot it to save lives, but I'll never enjoy fighting in these abominations." Kira said vehemently. Alkire looked surprised.

"Not often you find a pilot who hates his machine." He commented.

"I don't hate the machine itself. I hate the purpose and idea behind these machines. They don't serve any purpose besides dealers of death. I wish they'd never been invented. Them… the gun… the nuclear missile… all weapons really. They're not necessary to living a fulfilled life." Kira replied moodily.

"Maybe so. But I definitely feel a bit safer with a gun in my hand when there's people who don't like me around. And theres lots of those. Always someone willing to take something from those weaker then them by virture of strength and brutality. Just a fact of human nature."

"It doesn't have to be that way. Humans can get along peacefully together." Lacus said.

"It doesn't have to be… but it is. You can't tell me it's not that way right now." Alkire retorted.

"No, I can't. It is that way right now. But that doesn't mean we can't try and change. Humans have that quality. They can change themselves, and so change the way the world is. That is our defining quality, I believe." Lacus answered. Alkire chewed on that for a while and then gave a low laugh.

"Well, you've convinced me. Now for the other million and a half gun toting morons out there, eh? Let me know when you've got them to listen. I'll throw this away then." Alkire twirled his pistol nonchalantly around a finger before re-holstering it. He walked off to join the group in the next stall. Lacus looked after him.

"I might have just gotten through to him." She said.

"Maybe." Kira agreed. "Though I wouldn't bet my life on it. It's not going to be easy for that man to reject the teachings of his life, even if you are totally right, love."

"But if I can convince him, I should be able to convince almost anyone." She replied, moving over to him to take him in her arms. "Besides the truly insane ones like Frost." She gave a slight shudder. Kira noted that.

"He's one I wouldn't mind killing, I'm sorry to say. I don't think forgiveness will ever find its way to him, no matter what we do. He's gone beyond our ken."

------------------------------

"All right, finally." Erica said, stepping into the next stall, which was brightly lit. The machine in here was shorter by a noticeable amount than the other machines. It was currently all grey, being in phase shift down. "With phase shift up, it's a brilliant cherry-apple-ruby-red color. Hence the name, the Strike Rubicon or STXR-4. We did an overhaul on the Strike Rouge, eliminating unnecessary or redundant components, and mixing and matching some systems from the original five Gundams to create a versatile weapons platform that I believe plays to your strengths, Representative."

"How so?" Cagalli asked.

"Well, for starters, we'll look at the weapons. I've reviewed your combat data from the battle of GENESIS. You did well to survive and indeed you fought admirably. However, your best combat was done at a distance, not closer in. You just don't have the razor sharp reflexes for saber fighting like Kira and Athrun. Added to the fact that you're the sole Natural pilot out of all of them and we decided to keep you at a distance from the melee. Kisaka might have also slipped in a word about exiling us all if we created a suit that would force you to fight in the more dangerous arena of close combat." Erica said with a grin. Kisaka remained stone faced, neither denying nor confirming.

"The Rubicon's primary weapon is an 80mm ion beam rifle, a little like the ion cannon carried by some Ginns. It is not a heat based attack, but rather dispels the magnetic bonds holding matter together, resulting in the matter dissolving rapidly. The range on the weapon is great, stretching into the tens of kilometers even in atmosphere, though accuracy is always an issue, as is proper lead time on moving targets. Additional long range weapons include two radar guided missile 20 racks, one per shoulder and two 25mm gatling beam cannons carried on the left arm under the shield. For close in defense, the head mounts two 20mm CIWS guns. If forced into melee, the Rubicon wields a new weapon, the beam lance. It's really much more of a halberd though. The pole is a good ten meters long, and the head projects three widely curved plasma blades in a roughly spear shaped configuration. I'm sure you will grasp its use quickly, though hopefully you will have little cause to use it."

"Now, for the extras. Unlike the other machines, your shield is an older, beam resistant model rather than the new beam deflectors. There is a reason for this, namely the heat converting mesh that completely covers the armor and shield. Don't bother looking for it, its microscopic; you can barely even feel it. What this mesh does is absorb some… anywhere from 40-80... of an incoming heat based attacks energy, which is then fed directly back into the battery of the machine. I'm sorry, Representative, but we didn't feel it necessary to give you a nuclear powered machine, since it was unlikely you'd be able to take full advantage of all of the power of such a machine. Hopefully you won't get shot at much, but if you do get hit, well… at least there is also an upside to surprise the enemy with."

Cagalli nodded sullenly. The argument made sense, but that didn't mean she didn't want a nuclear powered machine too.

"To enhance your machine's role as a long distance support combatant, we've added a Mirage Colloid system like the Blitz had. It's good for forty minutes before you have to shut it down for a couple hours, and you can't have phase shift active when it's up, sorry. Finally, the head carries a high resolution long distance sniper camera. It can pick out the individual feathers on a sparrows wing from five miles away. A necessary tool for precision attacks. You won't be in the thick of things, Princess, but you'll definitely make your presence felt. Oh, and there is no self destruct control. All of these new models are equipped with anti-capture devices that will scramble their OS's and destroy their vital and top secret equipment if they are captured, but there will be no big walking bombs anymore. I'm sure Athrun could figure a way to melt down his reactor, but he'll have to try for it and there's a good chance the reactor safety systems would stop him. I don't want any of you to even have the opportunity to sacrifice yourselves for the "greater good"."

"Thanks." Cagalli said. She thought she heard Kisaka say the same thing, but when she turned to look at him he was as inscrutable as usual. Something occurred to her just then, something Kira and Athrun had been worrying about earlier. "Do you know where we can find the Archangel, Kusanagi and Eternal?" she asked. "It's all well and good that we have these mobile suits, but without carriers to transport and re-supply them, our effectiveness will be extremely limited."

"I'm glad you asked. Come with me." Erica replied, leading Cagalli, Kisaka and the TEMPEST members up a flight of stairs to a control booth that looked out over the entire hanger. Ysak could be seen on the shoulder of the Duelist, hands inside the access panel to the Duelists head, checking something or other while Katie leaned over his shoulder, nearly unbalancing him. Erica smiled and went over to a bank of computer controls. Seconds later a hologram of the earth appeared in the middle of the room. A red star pulsed in the middle of Orb. "This is our present location."

A green star appeared in the middle of the Sahara desert in North Africa. "Here is the Archangel. With the help of Desert Dawn, and Commander Waltfeld's contacts in the area we were able to build an underground shelter for the ship there. It's not much more than an enlarged cave with a breakaway roof, but it's proven to be more than enough to keep it from being found by any side. Desert Dawn knows the exact location and is responsible for maintaining the ship, something they were only too happy to do."

Next the world rotated around so everyone was looking at the south pole. A blue star pulsed a few hundred miles scalar away from the pole. "Kisaka sent the Kusanagi to the south pole after the descent and refit. Public reports have it placed up in space, patrolling Orb's remaining space territory, but that job is being taken care of by several other Izumo class ships."

"Why Antarctica?" Cagalli asked Kisaka.

"Like the Sahara desert, it's in a location few people would ever think to look, or even have the resources to search thoroughly. I thought it best to have an ace up my sleeve; a ship full of M-4's that nobody else knows the exact location of." Kisaka replied.

"The Kusanagi is in a converted ice cave underneath one of the glaciers. There are a few technicians posted there to keep watch over the systems and to make sure the ice doesn't close off the access tunnel, but most of the crew is here at Orb, disguised among the regular military personnel. Most of the mechanics and technicians actually work here with me." Erica said. She hit a few more controls. The globe shrank until it was about the size of a baseball. A purple star appeared way out at the edge of the field.

"The Eternal is anchored in shut down mode at this point, roughly five million kilometers above the ecliptic plane, and 15 million kilometers from Orb. It's well past all but the most vestigial grasp of the Earth's gravity and totally outside all known shipping lanes. Someone would have to trip over it to actually find it. The crew, under Commander Waltfeld, is currently in the PLANTS, where I don't exactly know. I have an electronic address you can have that will allow you to get into contact with Waltfeld or his aide, Martin Dicosta." Erica picked up a data disk and handed it to Cagalli. "There, did that help?"

"Very much, thank you." Cagalli replied. Erica turned to Alkire and the TEMPEST members.

"I'm sorry, I did not know you were coming or we might have come up with some stuff for you as well."

"That's all right. We're ground pounders at heart. All these machines are pretty much just magic to us." Alkire said with a grin.

"Oh, I'm sure that's not the…" Erica was cut off by a low whooping alarm and flashing red lights. Erica frowned. "That's the proximity alarm. But who…?"

Kisaka turned quickly and took a deep breath, having jarred his broken ribs in his haste. "Get the pilots into their machines. The Hellhound has found us."

Alkire jumped for the control panel. After a few seconds frantic search, he found the intercom button. "Hello kids. This is your friendly neighborhood commando leader speaking, Alkire. As you may have guessed, the alarm and flashing red lights is not a good sign. We have incoming, what I don't know. Knowing Asmodeus, it's probably quite a bit. He always did err on the side of caution. If you'd all board those miraculous machines of yours, I'd be much obliged."

"Are you always a maniac like this?" Kisaka asked.

"Only during tight spots." Alkire turned to Erica Simmons. "Doctor, are there any employees we need to evacuate?"

Erica shook her head. "We only work a few days a week now that the machines are finished. I was only here today because I was late with a report."

"Good. Do you have an escape route?" Alkire asked.

"There is the cargo train below the hanger. It's a mag lev flatbed train that we used to bring in the raw materials. It runs out to the nearest military base, ending in a disguised sealed hanger there. It's how the technicians and I usually get in here."

"How many people can it hold?"

"Everyone here, plus three mobile suits."

"Well, I was actually going to have the pilots fly their machines. The rest of us are going to take this train to the base. From there we should be able to secure a vehicle to get us to the airport where my jet is. Once we get there, we're home free."

"My family is still here. Once I get to the base, I'm just going to go home." Erica replied.

"Do you mind if I go with you?" Kisaka asked. "In my condition, I'm not ready for the sort of running, leaping and dodging that Alkire usually incorporates into his escapes."

"I suppose I can put you up at my house until you recover a bit. As long as you don't mind babysitting my son all day long."

Kisaka rolled his eyes at Cagalli. "I have some experience dealing with unruly children."

"But… instructor… what do you hope to accomplish by staying here?" Alkire asked. "Injured as you are, you won't be able to flee if discovered."

"Yes, but everyone will assume I fled the country with you. It's foolish for me to stay here; you were polite enough not to say. They will focus their efforts on finding you, not on searching a country they already have under their control. And once I am well again, there are a few things I need to do here before I can feel right about leaving. People I have to talk to, things I have to organize."

"But…" Cagalli started to say. She saw the look on Kisaka's face. "Fine… but you'd better not die. I won't forgive you if you do."

"Of course." Kisaka replied, cracking a slight smile. He turned to Alkire. "I'll be at the Kusanagi in about a month or two, if you need me. Until then, I'm leaving Cagalli's welfare in your hands, Robert. I look forward to talking with her again in a few months time." Kisaka said quietly.

"I understand, sir." Alkire said. He turned to Erica. "Doctor, I assume this place has some defensive emplacements? Could we get them going, to cover our retreat."

"They activated the moment the alarm sounded. All we need to do is get to the train."

"Superb. Vlad, get everybody to this train and leave the door open for me. Cagalli, I'm leaving it up to you to tell the other pilots to meet us back in Hawaii, at my safe house, after you break free. It won't be a fun flight, but you need to make it there. I assume you can find my place. If not, just call me and I'll give you the coordinates after I arrive." Alkire ordered. He paused as the entire facility shook slightly. Dust trickled down from far overhead on the hanger ceiling. "Things are getting rough faster than I expected. GO!" Alkire sprinted for the stairs leading down to the hanger, Cagalli a few paces behind him.

Alkire first found Lacus, already heading towards the stairs with a determined if shaken look on her face. "Kira said to find you and do what you said…" she told him. Alkire pointed her towards the stairs down to the train and ran on. Katie and Chanel met him halfway.

"Ysak told us to get the hell out of the way and find safety and then he powered up his machine." Chanel explained.

"I wish I had a machine like that." Katie pouted.

"Well, if you're good…" Alkire joked. "Get to the train. Far staircase, the only one that goes down. Vlad is waiting." He ran on. He wanted to get a look for himself at what the kids were facing. He hoped he wasn't sending them out on a suicide mission while he ran for cover. He'd never forgive himself if that was the case. He had just reached the door leading to the cave with the van when the door blew off its hinges. Only razor sharp reflexes honed with years of instinct let him drop underneath the flying steel debris unharmed. "So much for anything inside the cave." Alkire muttered. He ran through the drifting smoke and crackling flames to stand at the mouth of the cave.

Mobile suits steadily advanced toward him from downslope. Strike Daggers, the mass produced suits introduced by the Earth Alliance late in the war. Alkire had heard they were inferior models, but to him, a lone man armed only with an automatic rifle, they seemed deadly enough. Bright green beam blasts assailed the mountain the facility was buried under, carving great chunks out of the rock and dirt. A larger and bulkier mobile suit Alkire recognized as one of the type he had encountered in Switzerland seemed to be in charge. A railgun on one shoulder and a missile pack on the other spat flame and fury as he watched, sowing a dozen explosions across the mountainside just above the cave mouth, causing the entire world to shake crazily. Alkire was thrown forward to one knee. The command suit leveled a large caliber weapon with wisps of smoke trailing from its barrel at the mountainside.

Alkire sprinted back inside, deciding that it was unsafe to observe further. The mountain seemed to shift as a whole when the command unit fired, a beam of crackling blue-red energy that pierced the rock and dirt of the mountain like a scalpel through butter. The explosive shockwave of countless tons of vaporizing rock and dirt threw Alkire forward off his feet and into the hanger bay, where he rolled for nearly fifty feet. "The second time this has happened to me." He groaned, staggering to his feet with smoke trailing from his clothes and bandages. He staggered for the stairs down to the train as one by one the kids in their Gundams lifted off to face the advancing foe on pillars of blue flame and smoke. Whole sections of the mountain fell away as the upper hanger doors opened to allow the mobile suits free exit.