Author's Note: I thank you guys for reviewing the first chapter… last chapter was a bit of hurried one… so I don't have any time to add more details. This chapter will probably be the same… blame the stupid exams that stressed me out. Oh, and this story is mostly made by my brother… I'm just helping with the story to go. Well if you notice any vocabulary or grammar mistakes, I'd very much appreciate it if you guys would tell me in the review. There are some OOCs inside... so bear with it, okay? We (my brother and I) don't ask much… Just a single sentence is okay… Tell us what do you think of this story, good or bad, but please don't give us flames. Oh well, anyway, on with the story.

Disclaimer: I don't own any Gundam SEED characters and mechas, and Maderfole's techs, I only own the plot and my OCs.

Chapter 2: The Truth Behind

Rey returned to the base, feeling a bit annoyed. He couldn't take Athrun down, and yet he was knocked out down by that unknown Gundam. His Legend landed on the hangar, and he went down from the cockpit by the rope.

His mind wandered to Shinn… He has defeated the Freedom, hasn't he? Why hasn't he returned? He could've also fallen down along with the Freedom… Maybe that was Athrun's reason to run from ZAFT? To search for his friend… Kira, is that his name?

But if he did fall down, why didn't the Chairman told him to search for him also? The Chairman must've known, right? He somehow felt that he lost someone that's pretty important to him… Shinn may not be his best friend, but he sure was a good comrade. But that feeling was quickly replaced by his angry feeling towards Athrun and strange feeling about Shinn… Athrun had betrayed ZAFT, again, and most importantly, Gil. He has to report to Gil now… about what had happened before.

While the four teenagers walked to the meeting room, Cagalli stopped and said, "Uh, guys, you go ahead… I need to meet Athrun…"

The three boys looked to her, and Kira nodded to her. "I think so too… You're probably the one person he wants to meet when he got up later. Go Cags, you have some matters to finish with him right?" Kira smiled.

Cagalli beamed back at him, and nodded. "Thanks Kira, you're the best! Take care of the things for me, okay?" she yelled as she turned and went into the medical room.

Kira and the others then continued to walk. Shinn suddenly asked, "Hey, this thing's been kinda bothering me, Kira-if you don't mind me calling you that-is Cagalli… your sister?"

Kira stopped for a moment, then walked again. "Well, yeah… although we've never met each other until the First War… we're separated since we were born…" Kira replied quietly. "And yeah, I don't mind you calling me Kira."

"Oh, right…" Shinn replied. He never knew Kira had a sister… he himself had one, and… No, now's not the time to remember back that awful memories, certainly not. He might just burst into tears with remembering those events… and again, this one man next to him that may has a family connection with him.

"Well, Jirou, mind telling us why do you have the same family name as Shinn? Though it may be inappropriate for me to ask, that should've been Shinn's rights to ask," Kira started the conversation.

Jirou looked to Shinn, asking for confirmation. "Do you want me to tell my history?"

Shinn just nodded, didn't know how to reply.

"I think I better summarize it… it'll took too long to tell them all."

"Just… tell me, will ya?" Shinn finally said.

"Okay, okay… Well, I was born from the Asuka family, the same as you…" Jirou started.

"So that basically means, that you're… my brother?" Shinn asked cautiously. Things just come too quickly now, he doesn't know how to get used to it!

Jirou nodded. "Yeah… But when I was around one, I was adopted by someone… If I'm correct he said that he was a distant family from mom and dad. They gave me to him, and I just followed him, 'cause I didn't know anything. I live with him, like, for 10 years. After 10 years, he showed me my real mom and dad… and even though we only met for a short while, I was very happy to be able to see them again. They told me everything when I was gone, and told me that I have two more siblings… I saw the picture of you, Mayu, mom and dad."

Kira and Shinn listened intently to Jirou's explanation, wanting to know more about this new guy. Shinn couldn't believe what he just heard, he has a brother-a long lost brother! But he doesn't even know how he is… his personality, etc.

"My adoptive father then took me back after the brief reconciliation. When I was home from school, an unknown special force attacked our city… My adoptive father had no choice but to protect me… He died in his attempt though. That's my first time seeing someone die right in front of me, and that's when I went berserk. I was still a small kid, so they easily captured me. They're Naturals-as I found out later, though that doesn't mean much to me-and I was a Coordinator. My appearance kinda fooled them, so they didn't kill me, instead they put me inside the military, seeing how I fought against them. That's the first time I entered the military, at the age of 11."

Kira and Shinn just nodded, letting him to continue. But the both of them had their jaws dropped inside… military since the age of 11? Man, that's young.

"Thus begins my days of torments. I only stayed with the EA for 2 and a half year though, before I ended up in ZAFT. I learned a lot from my time there… mostly pain. After a lot of life and death training, they put me in a special force, which main duty is to eliminate anyone who opposes us… with dirty works."

"So… you were an assassin, once?" Kira asked.

"Yeah, at the age of about 12 and a half. That's what made my feelings dead years ago, before I moved here. The last time I was with them, was my last mission too."

"And… what is that mission?" Shinn clarified.

"When several important Coordinators went missing in a day? It's okay if you don't know, you don't wanna know anyway. My team was faced by another pro-Coordinator assassin team… and you know the rest. We were annihilated by that unknown team quickly… and I think I'm the only one who's saved… though some of the injuries are permanent, like this scar," Jirou pointed his left brow. "Some of the horrible things that the EA officers did to me helped me to recover faster, and yet, I'm a Coordinator…"

"Uh… horrible things?" Kira asked, a bit of… curious. Not like he enjoyed people suffering, he just wants to know.

Jirou quivered a bit, then replied, "You don't wanna know… those things are damned horrible… even though I only had a bit of them, not like my companions… your clue: Have you ever seen a Frankenstein movie? I experienced some of the things like that, thank you."

Kira and Shinn's eyes widened, and their jaws dropped a bit. "You have got to be kidding me!" they both said in unison. Kira shook his head and shuddered, not wanting to think about it… Frankenstein… he felt like puking now. Shinn just stared at his… brother, with disbelief. He was used like that? To be modified like things?

Jirou saw them acting like that, and grinned a bit. "Okay, drop the topic. I'm not the one asking what at the first place, yeah?" Kira coughed, then let him continue again.

"Then after that, my days as a ZAFT officer begin. They captured me and brought me to the military. I hoped that they'd just execute me so I don't have to suffer anymore… but again, they recruited me after I recuperated. Hell, life's worse there. I did two jobs back then, first an engineer, where I was one of the top engineers, and two, my old job… but this time, with the addition of a partner… or best friend. My team was one of the best, if I remember correctly, even with only 4 or 5 members, including me and my partner. But if I have to say, it's better working as an assassin in ZAFT… you don't really have much work to do… more like, I have another job that is to be done as soon as possible."

Kira and Shinn just nodded at his story, both not knowing what to say.

"So again, my last mission ended up with me quitting ZAFT, leaving fake tracks behind so they wouldn't find me anymore. The rest of my teammates are still in ZAFT though, they promised to never tell me to the higher officers. I've still got a hidden connection to the PLANTS, especially ZAFT… and that Gundam you saw back in the hangar was the newest ZAFT production."

Shinn's eyes widened again. "B-but… won't they know that you stole it?" Shinn exclaimed.

Jirou sighed. "And here they say again… Who do you think I am, back in the hangar? Hello, I was one of the top engineers for the Freedom and Justice project, and so are my teammates. That Gundam is named Archaeus, and that is a top secret project… only my teammates know. Nobody knows about this… that was its first show in public. And why did they give me the Archaeus? 'cause I was the only one who doesn't like to kill, and I hated my old job really damned much. The Archaeus is modified to its use, so I could easily disable my opponents without killing them."

Shinn turned to Kira. Kira muttered something incoherent, facing the floor, but Shinn was a hundred percent sure that he was somehow happy that someone has the same perspective as him.

"Okay, so I suppose that's enough?" Jirou asked, waiting for confirmation.

"Yeah, that's enough, and thanks for your info, Jirou," Kira replied, nodding, followed by Shinn.

"And if you still don't believe me about the last part, you can go check 'em yourself… I ain't lying when I said that I hated killing and the war. I've lost my beloved ones… No más." Jirou finished.

Cagalli sat silently beside Athrun's bed, observing his peaceful sleeping face. His face was covered by bandages, but nevertheless it still looks the same. His condition reminds her about the first time they met on the remote island, when she tried to kill him, but instead ended with helping him. So many things had happened since then… she hoped they'll be able to solve their biggest problem. She saw Athrun stirred and tensed a bit.

Athrun groaned at the light surrounding, trying to adjust himself with the condition. His head hurts like hell, and he feels like being thrown from a cliff. He opened his eyes slowly, and found someone sitting next to his bed. After the image became clear, he then realized that the person that has probably been waiting for him is Cagalli, and he immediately jerked his body up. "Cagalli?!" he yelled, but the enormous pain forced him back down.

"Hush Athrun, it's me. Now just go back to sleep," Cagalli said quietly. She has to finish this matter right now… or she won't know if she'll ever be happy again.

"… Yah, ugh, okay. Here… this is Archangel, right?" Athrun asked as he touched his temple. His head still hurts a lot, though not as much as before.

"Yep, it is."

Athrun nodded in confirmation, but then asked again, "Uh… Then, who brought me here? Last time I remember was being in a cockpit, and…"

"Uh, you'll know… later. You were attacked by a Gundam… knowing you, I think you escaped again from ZAFT. Right?"

Athrun nodded again, confirming her question. He glanced around, seeing that nothing has really changed. He then gulped, remembering the question he needed to ask. "Uh, Cagalli?"

"Yeah?"

"I've got something to talk… about us, if you don't mind…"

Cagalli tensed again, but went unnoticed by Athrun. "Uh, okay."

They both remained silent for a few seconds, and the deafening silence forced them to open their mouths and talk. "Hey, Athrun." "Hey, Cagalli." They said in unison, then blushed a bit. "Uh, you go first," Cagalli gestured Athrun to start. "Nah, you first," Athrun replied. Then silence again. Athrun couldn't stand the silence, so he decided to speak first. "Cagalli?" he asked.

She looked up from the floor, and waited for him to continue.

"Uh… well… I'm sorry, Cagalli," he confessed, with a whisper at the end. He hoped that she will be able to forgive him, though even if she doesn't… well, he guess he might not be able to move on. "When I left you behind to ZAFT… and the things I did that probably hurts you… and many other things I don't know that I probably accidentally did."

Cagalli, hearing Athrun's confession, lightened up a bit. That's the thing she wanted to hear from him, and she's waited for a damned long time! Now here comes her part then.

"Will you… forgive me, Cagalli?" Athrun asked again, waiting for her answer. He kinda had a high hope that she'd say yes, seeing her eyes glinting.

"You're forgiven, Athrun. And in many other ways… will you forgive me also? For… betraying you?" Cagalli asked gain, hopes high too. If this goes smooth, her life could be perfect… maybe.

Athrun smiled, his emerald eyes flashing a bit. "Of course, Cagalli… What would I do not for my queen?" he answered back, with a bit of teasing tone at the end.

Her face turned from happy into annoyed one, and said, "You say that once again, and you'll be in bed for several more weeks… or even months."

He chuckled inwardly, but then said in a made-up afraid tone, "Uh, okay, okay. I don't wanna be here for a time too long." But then he added with a mischievous tone, "Then again… I could use some of that." He chuckled again seeing her pink face.

"Oh why you… even in bed, you could still say something like that. I wasted my worries on things I shouldn't worry about." Cagalli muttered, touching her temple. Her cheeks turned pink at Athrun's comment… she certainly hadn't expected that to come. He's still in bed, but said things like that already… well, that's Athrun for you. But oh well, he couldn't do that in a near time anyway. She somehow hoped that things like that would eventually happen though… she shook her head. Now's not the time to think of that, Cagalli! You've got a bigger problem ahead of you, and you still haven't gotten rid of the freaking bastard Yuuna! Come to think about it, she could probably use some of Jirou's help, if he's going back to Orb sometime soon.

Athrun chuckled and smirked inwardly at her reaction… that must've caught her off-guard. He hasn't seen her like that for a long time now… how he missed those good ol' days. To be honest, he hadn't even seen that coming, those words just slipped out of his mouth. Talk about teenagers with raging hormones… Well, at least their problem is done, and they've forgiven each other. Just one more thing-ending this war, and he'll probably be happy… hopefully. He noticed the embarrassed look on her face had changed into a determined one. "Anything else?" he inquired. "And you haven't told me who saved me."

Cagalli frowned. "Uh, nothing," she denied. "The second question, it's Jirou. For further information, ask Kira… or even better, Shinn, about him. But that's later. Now you get back to sleep, so you'll get better… or you're not getting what you wanted," Cagalli demanded. She smirked at Athrun's reaction, heh, they're even now.

Athrun was taking his breath in after he resisted the urge to laugh and grin, but when Cagalli said the last part of the sentence, he choked. Choked and coughed. He then flushed a bit at Cagalli's statement… more like warning to him though. She countered him, not long after he teased her… well, that's the fiery princess and lioness for you-his fiery princess and lioness, correct that. Ah, he's being possessive again… but isn't that the truth? Past is hard to forget… but future is harder to get. "Okay, okay. You got me there," Athrun gave in, lying back down from his half-sitting position.

"Now you go to sleep, I still have other things to do. Kira'd take care of you for the moment. Or Shinn. It depends anyway," Cagalli finished, standing up from the seat, directing towards the door.

Athrun frowned. Shinn again? "Shinn? What about him?"

Cagalli stopped and turned to face him, and half-glared. "Sleep. You'll know later." With that, she went out of the room, leaving a boy with a questioning look on his face.

When Kira, Shinn and Jirou were about to arrive at the waiting room, Jirou suddenly stopped into a halt. He slapped his forehead and stepped back, which got him a questioning look from both Kira and Shinn. "Goddamn, how could I forget such a thing?! Shit, tell the Chief Representative I can't explain anything to her right now, okay? I've got to return to Orb-gotta deal with more problems! Uh, see ya!" Jirou hurriedly said as he took off to the hangar. Kira looked at Shinn and pointed over his shoulders. "Let him?"

"Well… yeah. Athha'd probably get angry at him later. You tell her. I ain't doin' that." Shinn decided, with a small smirk on his lips. He shrugged off Kira's look, not wanting to compromise any more.

Cagalli was heading towards the waiting room to meet the boys, but she accidentally bumped into Jirou on the way. Jirou sweatdropped, and waited for her to speak up. "Whatever are you doing, Jirou?" she asked.

Jirou scratched the back of his head, looking for a reason. She just got to be in the right place and right time! "Uh… the hangar?" he answered, couldn't think of any reason. "I need to take the Archaeus back to Orb, since there's… a problem there, regarding the security affairs and mostly, Djibril and Yuuna." Jirou continued, afraid that she'd get mad, a bit hesitantly, like a child being scolded. But instead of asking more questions, her eyes flashed, and he gulped. 'What now?' he thought.

"Orb, eh? I was just wondering when will you get back to Orb… I didn't expect it to be so soon. Eh, anyway, you go to the hangar, while I'll tell the captain that we're going to launch," Cagalli ordered, "Get it?"

"Yes ma'am!" Jirou saluted her, knowing that the few last parts of her sentence used an Admiral tone. She is the real Chief Representative after all, even though most of the Orb military is currently controlled by Yuuna. After she left, he headed towards the hangar, waiting for her to take off also.

Cagalli walked towards the bridge, and passed Athrun's current room. She slowed down, and peeked inside, to see that he's already asleep. She smiled, 'Good thing he listened to my advice,' she thought. She closed the door and proceeded to the bridge.

Inside the bridge, she immediately walked to the captain's chair, and Murrue turned her head. She saw someone else standing beside the captain… Mwu, is that his name? She couldn't remember it clearly… ah, what the heck.

"And what could we do to help you, Representative?" Murrue asked, tilting her head aside. Mwu turned to see Cagalli also, and said, "What brings you here, Representative?"

Cagalli sighed, and massaged her temple a bit. "Please, captain, we're not in a very formal place, don't call me like that. I am not really used to people calling me like that… we're the same, after all," she replied, "Oh yeah, aside from that, captain, I'm going to go back to Orb, since I had some things to take care of. I'm returning with Jirou, and if Kira asked about it, just tell him not to worry about it."

Murrue looked at her neutrally, but you could see the surprised look in her eyes. "If that's your choice, then we've got nothing to do to stop it. But if I may ask you, how are you planning to go back to Orb?" Murrue asked again.

"Where's Kisaka?" Cagalli asked.

"Colonel Kisaka? He's in the hangar, I think," Mwu trailed off, rubbing his chin.

"Alright now captain, all I ask is for your permission to take off. How will I get there, rest assured that you will find me back at Orb, safe and sound. Please, don't worry about me, captain. Just let me go, okay?" Cagalli almost sighed in exasperation, but held it back.

"Yeah, that's okay for me, but-" Murrue's voice was cut off by a new voice that apparently just arrived. "That's okay captain, let her go. I'll be responsible for her."

All heads in the bridge turned to see the newcomer. "Kisaka! Where have you been?!" Cagalli called, but it sounded more like a yell.

Kisaka ignored her, instead he nodded his head at the Murrue. Murrue gave the kind of face of a scolded kid for a second, but after two seconds she finally nodded, somehow reluctantly.

Kisaka grabbed Cagalli's wrist, and dragged her out of the bridge. "Hey-what're you think you're doing-Kisaka!" Cagalli yelled as she snatched her wrist out of his grasp, and glared at him.

Kisaka stopped and turned to face her glare. "You said that you are going to leave for Orb, right? And now that I'm helping you, you don't want it," Kisaka said.

Cagalli stopped her glare, and said in a disbelieving tone, "Help me? Aren't you usually the one that has to stop me every time I'm doing something nuts?"

Kisaka shook his head and sighed. "Just… come with me now, will you? Jirou's been waiting for you. Now, come on." Kisaka grabbed her wrist again, but this time Cagalli didn't do anything to stop it. She just followed him, albeit a bit reluctantly.

Jirou waited for Cagalli in the hangar, scratching the back of his head nervously. He glanced around to look for the blonde, and finally found her with the tanned colonel dragging her. He stopped scratching when the both of them came nearer. Kisaka approached him first, leaving Cagalli behind, and said, "Commander Asuka."

"Yes sir." Jirou saluted him, even though his rank was higher. Kisaka stared at him directly in the eyes, like looking for seriousness and truth. He then nodded, and then walked back to Cagalli. He dragged her to the opposite part of the hangar where Jirou was standing, and stopped. Cagalli looked at the big steel gate in front of them, and raised a brow. "Why did you bring me here, Kisaka? To this steel gate?"

Kisaka took a breath, and pressed a red button next to the gate. The steel gate opened slowly, revealing nothing but darkness inside. Cagalli's brow rose higher, and she was about to ask something again but was cut off by Kisaka. "Come in, Cagalli."

They both walked into the dark room, and Jirou, feeling curious, followed them also. Kisaka pressed another button inside, and lights began to shine through the room. There, towering gloriously in the middle of the room-which looks like a small hangar-a Gundam, painted shining gold with some light orange and yellow patterns. The light was reflected upon its armor, making the Gundam shining even more. Cagalli and Jirou just stared at the Gundam with jaws slightly dropped, while Kisaka just watched the two of them staring. Then after a minute or two, a projection of Lord Uzumi's face appeared, covering most of the half bottom part of the Gundam.

"Fa… ther?" Cagalli said slowly, looking at her father's projection.

"Cagalli, by the time you saw me like this here, I am probably dead right now. But aside from that, if you see me like this also, that also means that you've seen the Gundam in this hidden hangar. It's probably wrong for me to say this… but I hope, with this Gundam, you will have the power to protect those who are important to you… to us. If you see this Gundam also, that means that Kisaka has given you the permission to protect Orb, with actions, not just speech. That's all I need to tell you Cagalli… and remember this, whatever happens, I'll always stay by your side… even though not physically." Lord Uzumi finished his short speech, and the projection of his face vanished along with his lat sentence.

Cagalli, caused by an unknown but strong force, let a single drop of tear fall down to her starting-to-pink cheek. She didn't know what to say, so she just let her tear explain it all. She might be a strong and stubborn person outside, but inside, she isn't as strong as outside.

A/N: Really, I'm sorry if this is still a hurried chapter, and a very lame one. Please, no flames… constructive criticism are greatly welcomed, and as usual… one review please? Oh, and for you readers of Shinn's Betrayal, I'm still working on the story, don't worry, I'll never leave it. Anyway, Chapter 2 is done… and once again, I'm very sorry if this story is lame, or hurried, or bad, whatever you think.