Chapter Five – War Between Gundams
The Freedom spread its wings wide, as the red particles from its wingtips floated to the ground, as the bright blue and green light burst from the spread wings. Carrus watched, as the Earth alliance approached again. The remaining fifty Enacts and Jegans, which rode on large hover sleds, housing one Jegan each, approached once again, alerting Carrus as he watched the machines soar towards him, his father's words rung in his mind loudly.
"What you hold is the result of war breaking out again."
Carrus narrowed his eyes, and silently gripped the controls firmly.
"If you kill, then are killed for killing that person, how could this ever bring about peace?"
He eased the throttle forward, just as ten red lights flashed in the distance, a sign of the ZAFT forces returning.
"Please, try to understand what really happens in the world, and let Athrun, and everyone else close to you help you in whatever decisions you wish to make."
"Let's DO THIS!" Carrus yelled, as the Freedom soared ahead. Five Enacts spotted him, and began firing their Linear rifles at him, trying a desperate attempt to cover the Jegan's below. "Is THAT IT?" Carrus swerved, the Freedom gliding effortlessly past the beams, as the Jegan's launched a pair of surface to air missiles. Smiling, Carrus raised the arm on the Freedom, as the Gundam raised the Mirage Colloid barrier, blocking the missiles. Drawing a beam rifle, he fired twice, shooting the flight packs on two Enacts. Lowering the shield as the heat from the missiles' explosion died down, and drawing a single beam rifle, he fired five more rounds in three seconds, shooting down five Enacts in single shots.
Mayu watched closely, seeing Carrus duel with the Enacts in the sky, all seventeen of them were being shot down effortlessly by him. Mayu's eyes widened, as the Jegan's leaped off their hover sleds, now being on dry land, the green mobile suits ran up the beach, as the Murasame's began to open fire, the beams unable to catch any of the Jegans. Powering her suit to maximum offensive and defensive power, Mayu aimed the rail guns on her suit's back, opening fire; she tore through a chunk of rock, which caused one to fall, damaged. Caught by a beam rifle, it exploded, as Mayu raised the beam shield, aiming the Gatling cannon welded onto the front of the shield. All of a sudden, a Jegan leaped in front of her.
"NO! STAY AWAY!" Mayu lowered the Strike's right hand, drawing one of the physical swords on the Strike, deflecting the beam sabre from her attacker. Mayu tried leaping back, but the weight on the Strike held her down. "Hey! Why can't I move?"
Suddenly, a Murasame leaped in front of Mayu, slicing thee Jegan's arm off, and aiming its beam rifle dead at the cockpit of the attacker, and shot it through the Jegan's chest. The Murasame landed just by her, and placed its hand on her Gundam's shoulder, establishing a contact link.
"You all right?"
"Sorry," Mayu apologised. "I'm not the best out here…"
"Don't worry; you just fire on 'em, I'll keep 'em off of you."
"Thank you!" Mayu smiled, her heart lightened at the knowledge someone would cover her."
"LIEUTENANT!" One of the technicians called out, fixing the GN drive on the shield of the blue Gundam. "You're good to go!" He leaped off, and ran back into the empty hangar. Setsuna lowered his gaze as he flicked a switch.
"Roger, this is 00 Qan [T], Setsuna F Seiei, launching." The 00's eyes flashed, and as the hangar bays opened. Setsuna felt the 00 surge into the sky. Setsuna looked on the battlefield, and saw the EA Enacts had all been shot down, and left in the skies was a single Gundam. "Freedom Gundam…" Setsuna whispered. "So, you live once again." Ten Flags flew ahead of Setsuna, and following the other pilots, Setsuna surged ahead.
Carrus watched the Flags fly at him. Carrus launched all Dragoons, and readied his Positron cannon, rail guns and beam rifles. "No way am I letting ANY of you through you BASTARDS!" Carrus pulled the trigger, releasing a great red and blue light from the wing tips of the Freedom, and Carrus fired all of the weapons on the Freedom.
"Damn it!" Setsuna grimaced, as the Geara Zulus and the Enacts were caught in the Freedoms attack. Barely flying out of range if the blast radius.
Carrus glared, seeing all of the ZAFT mobile suits fall, not a single one exploding. "Twenty eight mobile suits in one attack… and I didn't even kill anyone… So this is how my father fought." Carrus' eyes widened at the sight of a blue Gundam fly out of the flames, its shield splitting into six blades, and aiming its one physical sword on its arm, firing a purple beam at Carrus.
"DAMN!" Flying out of range of the beams. Carrus drew both beam sabres, as his Dragoons circled around, firing at the Gundam. Carrus struck, his speed matching the enemy Gundams. The pair circled around, in a clash of red and green light. "What the hell do you want pal?"
"So… Its you." A voice answered.
"Huh?" Carrus growled, as a panel on his view screen opened, and Setsuna appeared. "You… Why are you the pilot of that Gundam Lieutenant Setsuna?"
"The 00 Qan [T] is my Gundam." Setsuna answered emotionless. "And why are you the pilot of that machine, only Kira Yamato could pilot something so well."
"Sorry to disappoint… but my father can't be here today!"
"Your father?" Setsuna answered, shocked. "So… that's who you are, I thought you looked to reminiscent to him." Carrus pulled back, as two GN bits flew at him, dodging the pair, when the other four linked to the sword on the 00.
"No way!" Carrus yelled, as his Dragoons fired in a sphere around Setsuna, who effortlessly evaded, and threw his GN buster sword down on top of Carrus. Carrus barely spun out of the way, thrusting his sabres at the 00, which deflected both with his shield. "Damn it! Why are you here? What is it that ZAFT wants?"
"You're sitting in it!" Setsuna roared. "Machines like the one you possess must be destroyed!"
"No way! This was made to defend Orb!"
"And yet it STILL carries a nuclear reactor!" Setsuna growled. "You may claim that you're trying to defend Orb, but that very power source will consume the world in hatred once again!"
"And you think those lights from your Gundam will help?" Carrus yelled, as his sabres struck Setsuna's sword and shield time and time again, unable to get through Setsuna's defence.
"My Gundam has the power to eradicate war. The time of the Freedom and Justice has come to an end!" Setsuna drew back, flying above the Freedom. "Let me show you how… TRANS-AM!" The 00 began to shake in power, the very frame began to change colour as the new Gundam glowed red. All of a sudden, Setsuna surged forward, faster than Carrus could see, and strike. Barely deflecting with his beam sabres, Carrus was thrown down, as the GN sword split off into the sword bits, and Setsuna circled them around his buster sword, and fired from it, causing a beam rifle shot that rivalled a Positron gun.
"SHIT!" Carrus raised his Mirage colloid shield, the shield stopped the main body from getting damaged, but the legs and tips of the wings were torn asunder. "Fuck! Not NOW!"
"Do you see?" Setsuna roared, as the sword bits flew down, cutting holes in the Freedom. "Your Gundam won't last in this war against the GN drives. I will eradicate war, once and for all."
Carrus screamed, the bits tore slowly into the Freedoms armour, and from nowhere, he heard a collection of voices, Athrun's, Cagalli's, Lacus', Kira's… but the one voice that stuck out was one that he knew most.
"So, what happens now?" "Only because it's what my parents would do… and I want to follow their example." "Carrus… Good luck out there!"
Suddenly, a surge of clarity opened Carrus' eyes, as he screamed in frustration. "You guys started it!" Catching two bits by their jets, Carrus saw his eyes in his reflection, they had changed somehow, his pupils had dilated, almost disappeared, and there were streaks of yellow light that seemed to illuminate within them. Affirming his determination, he crushed the bits. "You CLAIM you're ending war, and yet you're picking fights against Orb which just wants to live in peace!" Drawing his beam sabres, the Freedom began to glow as well, this time, a golden light burst from the wings, and the frame began to glow blue, as Carrus disconnected what remained of the legs at the hips.
"So why are there machines like yours still in the world?" Setsuna answered, who gathered his four remaining bits, and fired his beam rifle through them, forming a beam sabre longer than his own Gundam.
"Because people like the EA and you keep attacking us unprovoked!" the Freedom and the 00 launched at each other, striking each other, as Carrus' Dragoons emerged, forming eight flying beam sabres, that struck Setsuna in his back, tearing off his right leg and a portion of the torso.
"What the hell?" Setsuna grimaced. "How has his power grown so quickly?"
Mayu fired again and again, as the Jegan's began to fall back, still trying to fire on the shore line. She really began to get a feel for the Strike, as her Co-ordinator blood began to adapt to the mobile suit. She even managed to deflect one Jegan that cut through her wingman's guard with her swords. Mayu was suddenly distracted for a moment, when she looked to the sky, where she saw a gold, blue and red light clash against each other in locked combat. Her heart whispered to her, as her eyes reflected the battle between the 00 and the Freedom. "Carrus…"
Taking towards the shore, the Strike launched, a pair of wings extended from the pack. "Hey! Strike? Where are you going?" One of the pilots called.
"I have to go!" Mayu answered, as she flew slowly towards Carrus.
"SETSUNA!" Carrus roared, as the pair locked again and again, neither one able to give out, until Setsuna shot one of the wings of the Freedom, and Carrus cut off the left arm of the 00, straight through the shoulder.
"Damn it! Not the GN drive!" Setsuna growled, as the power source on the 00 suddenly gave out, the twin drive system collapsing, and the Trans-Am failed, as Carrus fired his positron gun, which cut through the front of the 00, barely missing Setsuna. Carrus could feel the forces act on his body as the Freedom fell through the skies, down towards the ocean, when he began to black out, the world around him faded as he lost consciousness.
When Carrus came too, he woke up to find he was looking up towards the sky; the sound of the waves was comforting to him, as he silently sat still. All of a sudden, Mayu leaned over Carrus, smiling at him.
"Uh… hey…" Carrus chuckled, as he felt his body ache.
"Hey yourself." Mayu smiled. "Well, guess you need my help to keep a promise…"
"That pilot! The one from the Gundam…"
"He's been captured." Mayu explained. "Athrun said he's going back to ZAFT when he gets proper treatment."
"Oh…" Carrus answered as the smile on his face faded.
"You know, you're a jerk." Mayu responded, turning her nose up at Carrus.
"What? What'd I do?"
"You didn't ask how I'M doing." Mayu answered, not looking at Carrus. "Some friend you are…"
"But I don't have to! Look! You haven't got a scratch on you!"
Mayu rolled her eyes in response. She then stood up, and began walking away. "I WAS worried about you know…"
"Huh?" Carrus blinked for a moment, unsure of what Mayu was hinting at. "Oh… Are you okay?"
Mayu giggled, turning back, and sitting by Carrus' side again. "I'm fine… although Dad's gonna kill me…"
"How come?" Carrus asked. No later than he asked this, did Mayu lower her head above Carrus', as she pressed her lips against Carrus'. His face lit up bright red, when without thinking; he closed his eyes and kissed her in return. Mayu pulled back, flicking her long hair behind her ear. "Wow… your dad IS going to kill me…"
"Yeah…" Mayu giggled as her face blushed. "In one day, we've met again after a two year seperation, escaped a battle, boarded a Gundam, had an awkward moment, fought in another battle, and decided we're in love…"
"Some day… huh?" Carrus chuckled.
"CARRUS!" Carrus looked up, as Athrun walked down the beach head towards the pair. "Are you two all right?"
"Well…" Mayu sniggered.
"What am I going to do with you Carrus?" Athrun laughed, knowing what happened. "You really ARE just like Kira…"
Carrus smiled, looking back to Mayu, her hair lit up in the sun. "That's not a bad thing…"
Athrun turned, thinking about the past for a moment. "Tell that one to Shinn…"