Disclaimer: Same as before. But if you've been keeping up with this, you already knew that.

AN:  Added Tallgeese Sol-Tekka to my web site. Check in fan-art.

Chap. 26

Far outside the L3 colony, a large force of Leo Sol-Tekkas and their carriers were getting destroyed left and right by a single gundam tekkaman. The dragon tekkaman, Shenlong went on a warpath, ripping through any opposition that came at him. It wasn't long before the Space Fortress Barge appeared in the far distance and with it a swarm of Taurus Sol-Tekkas. But that didn't stop Shenlong as he focused in on his next targets.

"I will destroy all of OZ!"

"A gundam! All units engage immediately."

As the Sol-Tekkas engaged the gundam, Lady Une was on a shuttle coming from the Lunar Base and approaching Barge. As the shuttle flew, the battle began to move toward them. As the shuttle pilot weaved through the battle, Lady Une got on the loudspeaker.

"Please stop. This fighting is not necessary."

Her call momentarily stopped Shenlong, "Huh?"

"There should be no battles in space."

Shenlong hesitated briefly before he was shot at again by the attacking Sol-Tekkas. 'The enemy is sly. And the people are with them. But I will never stop!'

With that, Shenlong continued fighting, despite Lady Une protests. As her shuttle entered the docking bay of Barge, the main cannon began to charge up. Meanwhile, Shenlong began to feel the effects of the disruptor crystals, but he continued on, oblivious to the charging cannon behind him.

"Fire the Barge cannon!"

The red glow erupted from the space fortress into a massive beam. Many of the Tauruses have been caught by the beam and exploded. Shenlong was caught in the midst of it and was fried. However he survived, but was severely damaged. Still holding his lancer, Shenlong stood ready, but knew he couldn't fight. And as the Sol-Tekkas came up to him, he thought to himself.

'They would sacrifice their own so ruthlessly. They are no different than the Radham and that is why they don't belong in space.'

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

Space Knight HQ- Medical Center

"So how is she?"

The team was in the waiting area outside the room where Yumi was kept. Anita had just come out after being told of Yumi's condition.

"Still unconscious. Med's say it'll be awhile."

David, who was by the window, grumbled, "Damn military. If they weren't there..."

Anita heard him, "It's alright, David. No one could have known that would have happened."

Hayato frowned from his seat, "Tell that to Yumi, if she awakens."

Goliate stood up from his seat, "Hey, I know you guys are worried about her. We all are. But arguing won't..."

"This is because of you." Natasha suddenly snapped at Dead, who was in the corner. "If you hadn't flown off on your own, then Yumi wouldn't have even gotten hurt."

"I did what I had to do." Dead answered simply.

Natasha snarled, "And as a result, Yumi was left unguarded."

Dead was now glaring openly at her, "For that matter, why don't you blame yourself while you're at it?"

Natasha growled and both of them looked as though they would come to blows. However, Goliate and Anita stood in between them.

"Hey, that's enough." Goliate answered, "Look, we're all tired and not thinking straight, so why don't we just turn in for the night?"

The two of them glared for a few minutes more before both going of in their seperate directions. David left as well and Hayato followed shortly after. They were unaware that their actions were watched by their resident engineer chief.

'Oh boy. Looks like things can only go downhill from here. Please hold on Yumi.'

-----------

Zechs sat within the Tallgeese, awaiting his incoming battle. After the battle in Moscow and his suspicion of saving Relena as well as teaming up with the Space Knight tekkaman, Vesna, the Romefeller Foundation tried the ace pilot. Despite his recent successes in battle, they suspected signs of rebellion and possible desertion on his part. Wanting to take no chances with a rouge OZ pilot, they decided to have him eliminated. However Trieze was able to convince them that if he should die, then it should be as a true soldier; in battle. They agreed with this and pronounced that they would launch their new Sol-Tekka dolls against him in order to do so as well as test the dolls power.

'So those are the Sol-Tekka Dolls. The Foundation obviously doesn't want the Lightning Baron to survive.'

The boosters on the Tallgeese flared to life and he charged into the battle. The Leo and Aries Dolls locked onto their target and fired. Tallgeese weaved and circled through the fire and began his attack. Using his cannon, he blasts the first three in rapid succession. But as he aimed for the fourth, the group shot away and came back.

'Hmm. Reaction time is sped up. This will be tough.'

Tallgeese shot back and fired at the incoming Sol-Tekkas, blasting two more. The Dolls then circle around his fire and shot back. Instinctively, Tallgeese shot to the left and then upward at high speed, dodging the fire completely but causing immense pressure to press against it. Inside, Zechs felt it hit him hard, but he continued to fight. Wanting to move faster, Tallgeese pulled out his sabre along with his cannon and flew into the thick of the fight. As he flew and attacked, the pressure against the Tallgeese increased and the few shots that hit him didn't help. Inside, Zechs was injured from the attacks as well as coping with the increase in pressure. His silver mask was cracked in several places, but he continued to fight fiercely against the relentless dolls.

'The times have changed so radically. But Trieze still remains. This friendship of the past will last until the day my mask breaks.'

Looking up, he saw a carrier approaching the battlefield, loaded with more Sol-Tekka dolls. Wasting no time, he zoomed upward and sliced right through the carrier. His sabre cracked, but it was enough to cut it in half. The carrier drifted back before exploding in the air. The shock from the explosion hit the Tallgeese and inside, Zechs' mask shattered revealing his true face. His eyes were a glassy blue and his platinum blond hair swayed behind him openly

'And now, I can not be your friend anymore. Farewell, Trieze.'

With that, Tallgeese rocketed off into the atmosphere and disappeared.

-----------

Duo lied, tied up in his cell, listening to the hum of the disruptor crystals above him. But he, being Duo, found that the hum was driving him crazy. So he decided to find a way to pass the time until he reached his new prison.

"Hey, come on." he called out of his cell. "Can I at least get a hot dog or something in here? Not too much to ask for, is it?"

"Keep quiet in there." a harsh voice called out.

Duo blinked. He didn't really expect anyone to respond and certainly not a girl's voice. As he looked out of his cell, he saw a young girl around his age with dark hair. She looked German in origin, but Duo wasn't sure.

"Huh? Who are you?

"Hilde Schbeiker. Sol-Tekka pilot."

"You're from the colonies, aren't you?"

Hilde frowned, "I told you to keep quiet."

Duo merely shrugged jovially, "Nothing wrong with a little conversation now, is there?"

The door opened and Duo backed away as Hilde trained a gun on him. "Don't push it, gundam. I can very well kill you right here and now."

Duo sat down, but wasn't afraid, "OZ is fooling the colonies, you know? They're only using the colonies to strengthen themselves."

"That's not true." Hilde argued. "OZ is giving people a chance to make something of their lives."

"You don't need OZ to do that. At least, that's what I thought. We fought for the colonies, but something happened and we wound up their enemy. I'm not sure what OZ is saying, but you can't trust them."

"And why should I believe you?"

The barrel of the gun now rested on his forehead. Yet Duo continued, "I may run and I may hide, but I never lie."

Hilde looked straight into his eyes and saw that he wasn't lying. At least not about the last part.

"Now approaching Lunar Base, docking port 16."

Hilde held her place for a moment longer before removing the gun from Duo's forehead. Without a word, she turned and walked out of the cell, sealing it behind her. However, her thoughts were now on their conversation.

'OZ does people a chance...doesn't it?'

------

Meanwhile, at an unknown computer terminal, a certain gundam tekkaman is currently locked into OZ's computer files and looking through a schedule report.

'So now Wufei has been captured as well. Him and Duo, as well as the engineers.' Heero continued to read, 'Lunar Base...near the site of Omega's former base of his invasion on Earth. With OZ occupying that area, they could discover something dangerous. Either way, it must all be destroyed.' He clicked the terminal off.

"Mission accepted."

-----

Trieze's Estate…

"Your Excellency...There is a man demanding to see you. We tried to get rid of him, but..."

Trieze merely smiled, "Well that's a first. Show him in."

The guard nodded and left the room. Moments later he came back with the visitor; an emerald haired man with dark shades. Trieze waved the guard off and the man closed the door. The two faced down each other for a few minutes before the man spoke.

"Trieze Khusrenada."

Trieze was indeed surprised, "So I finally get to meet the famous Tekkaman Blade, D-Boy." He moved to look out the window. "What brings you to my doorstep?"

"We at the Space Knights have noticed your improvement in Radham warfare."

"Hardly as much as what you do, but continue."

D-Boy continued, "I wish a coalition between us and OZ."

"That's quite a surprise. From what I understand, the Space Knights have no wish to join up with any military powers."

"That remains true. But due to the current events, even we can not deal with the Radham without crossing OZ path. This is simply a way for all of us to stay out of trouble and avoid any conflicts."

Trieze continued to look out the window, secretly probing D-Boy, "That sounds interesting. Are you sure this has nothing to do with the new Taurus suits?"

"On the contrary, this is more about your Sol-Tekka Doll program."

Trieze finally turned toward him, "I'm impressed that you know about that kind of info."

"I don't approve of what you are doing, Trieze. But I do not know your intentions, so I have no say. However, the Dolls are another story. Lifeless machines utilizing Radham nerve controls are more than dangerous." His eyes narrowed behind the shades, "It's foolish."

"I couldn't agree more. The Dolls are not of my doing, nor do I accept them. As for my intentions, don't be surprised if they come out to be the same as yours, D-Boy."

"That, only time can tell."

"Indeed. Nevertheless, I will grant your request. It sounds favorable enough. We can't have Space Knights fighting OZ soldiers and the Radham all at once now. However, you should be aware that my position within the Romefeller Foundation is somewhat shaky, so whether your request goes fulfilled or not will be uncertain."

D-Boy turned, "I understand. Thanks for your time."

D-Boy left and Trieze looked out the window again. 'Things seemed to have changed far more than I expected. What place in the future will you occupy, Blade?'

------

Lunar orbit...

The captured Wufei was being brought in through another transport heading to Lunar Base. As he did, he took a glimpse at the approaching satillite. His tekka-set dully shimmered as he approached closer to the moon.

'I see. Then I will wait. Nataku, you've shown me your strength. Now we must grow stronger.'

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

Heero has infiltrated the Lunar Base in order to assassinate the gundams as well as the engineers. However, he is captured as well by their newest soldier, Trowa Barton. Meanwhile, the engineers get to work on two new Sol-Tekkas that would prove to be extremely powerful, but secretly work on a plan of their own. Meanwhile, on Earth, Zechs has survived the battle and now heads for space under his true name, Milliardo Peacecraft. And the Space Knights are called together once again to investigate a possibly new Radham tekkaman, but instead find a former ally. Next on Gundam Tekkaman:  The Secrets of Battle.