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EDIT: Typo fixed.
DISCLAIMER: I dinnae own Gundam SEED or SEED DESTINY.
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Hunting Shadows - Strike
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For some unfathomable reason, the safe house at Number 2, Lubyanka Square accepted the standard government access card as authorisation. Sure, it made for fewer pass cards and a more unified security network, but it would leave an electronic trail on some central government server all linked to one person. That, Akira decided, was a far greater operational risk than the curious glances Shinji was drawing from pedestrians as he tried to get the PIN pad to accept input properly. Government contractors have overcharged substandard products for hundreds of years and this little bit of technology was no exception. As amusing as it was to watch his brother dance around in frustration, it was definitely time to intervene.
"Move over." A small length of detonating cord exposed the pad's internal circuitry and Akira reached in to flick a switch. "Alright, try again."
This time, the pad worked and the service door to Ishinohara Shipping Company's office slid open at a touch. Shinji waited for Akira to go in before triggering the door release and tripping the circuit breaker.
Julia greeted them at the rear warehouse with crossed arms and a frown. "Did you really have to blow up the door?" she ground out. "That's the third time we've had to replace it because of you two."
"Yes," the two assassins chorused. Of course, they'd technically destroyed the reinforced cover plate and not the whole door, but the contractors only sold doors in whole units. They followed the Japanese woman inside the cavernous building where a black sedan waited.
Shinji turned and whispered, "Ask for a door next time. Maybe she'll stop yelling at us."
"I heard that!"
Julia passed the requisition form to Akira while Shinji, the designated driver, popped open the trunk and went to inspect the car's interior and engine. It was a plain, cheap-looking government model with extra antennas and tinted windows that suited their needs perfectly. Akira flipped through the list, checking off each package and signing the last page. Everything he requested yesterday was on the list, including items that clearly were not necessary.
'As if anyone would believe that we need an entire crate of Claymores to capture someone.'
He handed the papers back and went outside to smoke, leaving Shinji to finish up a bit of maintenance and dirty the car so it didn't look as if it just rolled off the assembly line. Outside, the sun sat low on the horizon and coloured the sky blood red. The former soldier just stared out towards the sea, cigarette dangling between his lips. In a few hours, it would be dark enough to see pieces of debris from the war as they entered the atmosphere and left blazing trails in the air. He blinked after a few moments and looked down below where a white stone monument had been erected in a field of flowers on the cliff below.
"Izumi, Takahashi, Mountbatten," Akira whispered slowly. "Todaka, Jellicoe, Suzuki." He continued reciting the names of friends who lost their lives in the Battle of Orb while recalling memories of life in the service.
'Comrades, I hope you're having fun, wherever you are now,' he thought sadly. 'Someday we'll meet up, have a few drinks and remember the good times. But first, Shinji and I have to kill them all.' His right hand involuntarily flexed as if he were choking the life out of an enemy. 'Damn traitors!'
Julia came outside and saw a figure standing behind the building, silhouetted against the sun. "Hey!"
Akira whipped his gun out and pointed it directly at her before he could stop himself. After realising who it was, the assassin lowered his weapon slowly and started back towards the warehouse.
By now, she knew better than to ask him about the frightening reaction; it seemed that she had a bad habit of surprising him at the worst times. Still, Julia could not help but feel that something had changed since the last mission, although she had no idea whether it was for better or worse.
"Are you alright?" she asked quietly as he approached. Whatever had happened outside was probably not exactly enjoyable, judging from the frown fixed firmly on his face. Though Akira didn't say anything, his brief glance as he passed was filled with a mixture of anger and determination.
Shinji looked up from examining a map when Akira returned. Red lines drawn on the map traced the target's route to and from Morgenroete. A few days of surveillance and a bit of not-quite-legal hacking into the target car's GPS system provided all the necessary data. It was not an advertised fact that the guidance features in modern vehicles retained travel data for months unless otherwise disabled. Shinji made sure to disable and completely clear the unit's cache during the inspection.
He knew at once from Akira's expression and stance that his brother was in a combat trance. After all the experiments and medical procedures the two had been through, it was sometimes difficult to maintain sanity. Something must have happened because the MSS's operations had never triggered a trance.
"You finished?" Akira asked and entered the car before Shinji could answer.
"Yeah." Shinji folded the map and turned to Julia. "Thanks for the stuff. Sorry, it looks like we're going to have to go now."
"Ah," she replied meekly, barely audible over the noise of the engine starting. "Good luck not that you need it."
"Will do."
Akira stomped on the gas pedal before his teammate could even fasten his seatbelt. The assassin didn't react and just let the rapid acceleration press him back into the seat as the sedan tore out of the echoing chamber.
--
"Miss Lacus!"
Children stopped playing and swarmed around the pink-haired songstress when she came out carrying a tray filled with plates of watermelon. The war orphans had become accustomed to eating a snack outdoors in the evening while watching the light show. It was less intense now than just after the war when debris from the frantic Second Battle of Jachin Due fell victim to the Earth's gravitational pull. Still, they enjoyed the spectacle and would squeal with delight when a particularly large piece streaked through the heavens.
"My, my... Everyone go wash your hands before eating."
The children scrambled to reach the bathroom quickly so they could lay claim to a slice. However, one stayed despite the possibility that she would not be able to have first dibs on the fruit.
"Miss Lacus, when is Mr. Kira going to come back? Where is he?" the little girl asked.
"He's working in Orb right now, Megumi," Lacus answered a bit sadly. "I don't know when he'll be back, but you can talk to him when I call tonight. How does that sound?"
At that, she visibly brightened. "Yay!"
Lacus sat down as the child ran inside to join her playmates. Megumi had formed a bond with Kira when he came to live with Reverend Malchio after the war. She followed the Coordinator everywhere around the orphanage and whenever he left for any length of time, she would fall into a minor depression. Perhaps it was because Megumi had lost her parents at a young age and saw Kira as a replacement.
'I hope your job isn't too hard on you, Kira. Megumi's birthday is coming up soon and she'll be sad if you can't celebrate it with her. She wants a big party because she's turning eight this year.'
"You meanie!"
The shout interrupted Lacus's thoughts, causing her to look up. Apparently one of the boys had quickly grabbed a slice that another wanted and now the younger one was protesting. She sighed before getting up to diffuse the argument.
'Come back soon, Kira.'
--
Akira vaulted over the wooden fence behind the target's house. Shinji was at the end of the street waiting for the target to arrive home.
He landed softly and ran over to the telephone exchange box mounted on the house's rear wall. The assassin pulled out the most important piece of equipment, a circuit scanner, and pried open the box with a knife. Configured properly, the scanner would intercept data and manipulate it based on programmed parameters. He quickly hooked the unit up to the correct wires and let the unit run; it would shut down the house's security system without letting the security company's computer know.
Akira retrieved a roll of duct tape from his butt pack and stuck long strips on a nearby window. The glass shattered quietly under a quick elbow strike and he unlatched the window from inside. Of course, the alarm did not sound, the scanner's programming having already run its course.
Swiftly, he entered and made his way to the foyer, where the memorised plans showed a small closet. It would be a tight fit but if surveillance was correct, he wouldn't have to endure it for long.
--
The black sedan waited at the end of the cul-de-sac, its engine idling. Shinji reclined in the driver's seat and waited for the target to arrive home. Akira should be in position any moment and then the carefully planned trap would be armed.
The radio clicked once, indicating that Akira was in position. Privately, Shinji was glad that he was the driver and not the one stuck in the cramped closet. Now, all he had to do was to wait for the subject to come home and spring the trap.
--
Kira hummed as he collected a stack of papers from the copier. He had spent half the day drafting a briefing for Cagalli, Athrun and the Emirs. Aside from the recently discovered link between the Astray and Murasame operation systems there was nothing major to report, but they still had to be informed.
'Hmm... I'd better call Lacus tonight. We haven't talked in a while and I think Megumi's birthday is coming up. I'll take a few days off to see everyone.'
The brunet continued to hum happily as he slid the reports into his bag and grabbed his phone and keys. He switched the lights off before leaving.
--
Shinji jerked awake when a car turned onto the street and sent the car's tracking system to a flurry of beeps. He clicked the transmit button on the radio twice to alert Akira that the target was approaching.
The braided man waited for the target to pull up onto the house's driveway before heading over. He would have to do some fast talking to manoeuvre the subject into position; a government employee would never have a three-foot long braid, male or female.
"Excuse me..." Shinji started.
The target obviously noticed the government car with a blue light on top and turned around. "Yes?"
"I'm Evan Covington from the Ministry of State Security. I'd like to ask you a few questions, if you don't mind."
"The Ministry of State Security?"
"Yes, we're a part of the FIS but interface with the FSB. Why don't we go inside?"
The brunette assented and lead the way inside. "That's odd. I thought I turned on the alarm this morning."
--
Akira reached under the counter and groped around for some flexible tubing. After locating a tube, he stuck his other hand under and followed the tubing all they way back to where it met the wall. This specific tube distributed natural gas from where it entered the house to the stove, while others supplied gas to the oven and heating system. A few quick twists later and all the tubes were detached allowing the gas to flow freely. Akira again reached into his butt pack and pulled out the roll of tape, along with a large chunk of Semtex. A remote detonator was already inserted into the plastic explosive and all that was left was to tape the block to the wall, next to the stove.
He went to the foyer, locked the door and exited from the rear window. After taping up the hole in the window, he wrinkled his nose; the rotten egg smell of natural gas was incredibly disgusting. Akira pressed the destruct button the scanner and walked around the side to the front of the house where Shinji waited with the unconscious subject. The button activated a small timer on the unit; it would transmit a destruct signal to the detonator inside. When the explosives detonated, it would do have two effects. First, it would tear out a significant chunk of the house. Secondly, it would ignite the compressed natural gas in the relatively sealed house, resulting in a simultaneous fuel-air explosion that would flatten the entire building. The scanner would be consumed in the fireball, leaving behind no traces.
As he passed by the kitchen, his sharp ears picked up the sound of a phone ringing somewhere nearby.
--
Lacus leaned down and lifted Megumi from the chair. The small child had fallen asleep at Lacus's desk while waiting to talk to Kira. Unfortunately, Lacus had had to finish washing the dishes so it was nearing midnight. The messenger of peace laid her down on the bed and covered her tiny frame with a light blanket.
She walked through the house, making sure the doors were locked and shutting off the lights; Reverend Malchio was getting on in years and often went to bed soon after the rest of the children. Finished, Lacus settled into an armchair and picked up the cordless phone. It showed one message from Kira. She thumbed a button and the recording began to play.
"Lacus, I know you're busy with the children, but I wanted to talk. If you have time, call me. I'll be up late tonight."
Lacus smiled at the message; she knew that Kira would most likely have fallen asleep waiting for her to call. He and Megumi were very much alike in that fashion. The songstress dialled Kira's phone and waited for him to answer. The phone rang and rang and rang but no one picked up; eventually the answering machine prompted her to leave a message.
'I guess he really did fall asleep.'
--
Sorry, I couldn't resist leaving a cliffhanger here. I know that there isn't too much action that isn't OC centered, but with only a limited set of characters to work with, it's a bit difficult (I'm trying to have as little AU as possible).
AGAIN, Please leave a review, even if it's just to tell me that I should jump off a cliff and kill myself for not making this a KxL or AxC fic (Don't take that last bit literally). Thanks!
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