Chapter 3: The Changing World

Athrun analysed the rest of the information in his Gundam en route to the mission. "Although this isn't as important as the details of the mission, I need to understand the background to this whole conflict."

Opening a direct link to Veda, an ability all of Celestial Being's Gundams possess, he read through the intelligence report gathered by various agents and compiled by Veda.

"Based on Veda's information, the current conflict between the Kingdom of Azadistan and the Republic of Kurdistan had been ongoing for nearly a hundred years. The source of the conflict was religion and energy, with the latter being more dominant among soldiers of both sides.

Ever since the introduction of solar energy, the nations which used to profit and prosper from the oil and gas industry were ruined. Not only were these states sidelined, they were also left out to dry as other states consolidated themselves under the three power blocs. Azadistan, being the superior nation, tried to force its will on Kurdistan, going as far as a military invasion of Kurdish territories. Kurdistan on the other hand still has more oil reserves.

However, both nations are politically instable. Internally, there is civil unrest within Azadistan. The country's government is headed by reformists and a modernist monarch, the Crown Princess of Azadistan, Marina Ismail. The Princess favours pacifist policies, in favour of talks, dialogue and negotiations rather than armed conflict. However, as a result of her attempts to modernise Azadistan, she came into conflict with the conservatives. The conservatives and reformists are constantly at each other's throats, with reformists in favour of allowing free trade, more international involvement and the modernisation of Azadistan. However, the conservatives vehemently disagree. They believe it's their righteous duty to ensure foreigners are not allowed into their country which they consider holy and sacred. They are very hostile to foreign ideas and concepts, and therefore directly reject the plans for Azadistan's modernisation.

However, currently, the conservatives are leader-less. Their spiritual leader, Rassa Massoud Rakhmadi, was kidnapped a few days ago during a sermon. Although most conservatives believe that the reformists were responsible, Celestial Being has solid intelligence it was not the reformists. Rather, Rakhmadi was kidnapped by mercenaries employed by the Kurdish government. The Kurdish government is hoping that by destabilising Azadistan's internal politics, they will have the upper hand in the conflict. As a means of avoiding suspicion, the mercenaries were ordered by their Kurdish masters to remain within Azadistan territory. Veda has pinpoint their exact location to a small village in Rewandiz, Azadistan.

Rakhmadi acted as a balance between the reformists and the conservatives. Although he himself is a conservative, however he refuses to let the conservatives further escalate tension and took it upon himself to lead the Conservative Party. Under his leadership, the conservatives kept their methods of demonstration as peaceful as possible. However, without him, the conservatives are now being led astray by opportunists and extremists within the movement. These people are twisting the thoughts of their followers, convincing them to forcefully overthrow the current government, or else God's judgement will be rained upon them. This contributed to the violent demonstrations happening within the capital, to the extent that the conservatives are now asserting that the current government has no right to rule. They are now advocating the forceful removal of the Reformist Party from Parliament and the abdication of the Crown Princess. In retaliation, the Reformists within Parliament are pressuring the Princess, Marina Ismail, to issue a statement condemning the conservatives. She refused.

Militarily, both sides possess mobile suits which are inferior to that of the Union, the HRL and the AEU. Azadistan's Armed Forces, armed with an army of MSER-04 Anf mobile suits, which has thick armour plating, but its weapons are outdated compared to today's mobile suit specifications. Although it was created and mass-produced by the Human Reform League, but its performance lags behind that of the HRL's main standardised mobile suits which are more up to date. The Kurdish are terrible in comparison. Most of their mobile suits are Workloader units armed with machine guns and missile launchers. Although it does deal a certain degree of damage to the Anf units, however, it is tactical suicide to mobilise these units against the superior Anf mobile suits which possess thick armour."

While he was so absorbed in reading the report, a warning appeared on his screen, - Within hostile territory-

~Rewandiz, Kingdom of Azadistan~

"Aegis, Athrun Zala. I have entered Azadistan airspace. Approximate location is Rewandiz. Heading to the target location provided by Veda."

Nearing the abovementioned village, Athrun detected multiple heat signatures. Zooming into the village, he saw a squadron of mobile suits. "Hellion mobile suits?" Athrun ran the mobile suit features into Veda, wondering whether these mobile suits are AEU forces or mercenaries. Matching it to a private military company, PMC Trust, it confirmed Athrun's suspicions. "So the mercenaries holding Rakhmadi hostage are private military contractors? I've heard of PMC Trust. Their ruthless tactics makes them one of the most-feared yet most-efficient contractors around."

"All of the mobile suits are patrolling and on guard. They seem to be protecting a building. Hopefully, that is where they're holding Rakhmadi."

"Target location found. Hostile mobile suits sighted. Commencing with the first phase of the mission. Aegis, Engaging the enemy units."

Using Aegis's High Energy GN Beam Rifle, Athrun aimed carefully and shot down the enemy mobile suits one by one. Taken by surprise, the Hellion units quickly scrambled and flew towards the Aegis.

"Air combat eh?" Athrun simply smirked.

Transforming the Aegis into its Mobile Armour mode, Athrun activates the Scylla Energy Cannon and fires at the remaining enemy mobile suits.

By the time Athrun was finished with them, all of the Hellion units were scattered on the ground, although none were destroyed completely, all were immobilised.

"Heading towards target building."

Landing the Aegis gently in front of the building, Athrun jumped out of his cockpit and into the third floor. Quickly taking his gun, he shot three of the guards instantly. While they were writhing in pain, Athrun approached Rakhmadi. "Rakhmadi, Rassa Massoud Rakhmadi?"

"Yes, yes I am. Who are you?" The old man gave Athrun a suspicious glare.

"Now's not the time sir. Azadistan is falling apart. I'm here to rescue you and return you to the capital."

Complying, Rakhmadi followed Athrun and went into the Aegis's cockpit.

"Hold on, this will be a bit rough."

"GN Particles dispersion switched to maximum. Aegis, first phase of the mission is completed. Returning to the Eternal now."

Returning to the Eternal, Athrun placed Rakhmadi under the care of the Eternal's crew. He proceeded back to continue with the remaining mission.

"Athrun Zala, Aegis, heading out to proceed with the remaining mission."

~ Qamishli, Northern part of the Republic of Kurdistan~

"Strike, location Qamishli, North Kurdistan. Targets located. 30 Anf mobile suits, 45 workloader mobile suits, armed with machine guns and missile launchers. Proceeding to neutralise targets."

Using the Strike's High Energy GN Beam Rifle, they were simply target practice for Kira. And he's not even utilising all of Strike's weapon systems. With each passing second, multiple mobile suits had been disabled. Within less than fifteen minutes, all of the enemy mobile suits are either destroyed or are currently retreating. "Mission accomplished."

"Strike, targets have all been neutralised. Second phase, completed. Continuing with the last phase of the mission."

Kira headed to the designated rendezvous point for the last phase of the mission.

~Piranshahr, Azadistan area which borders Kurdistan~

Both arrived at the same time.

Unknown to the hundreds of trucks, lorries and vans moving in and out of the area, belonging to both Kurdish and Azadistan forces, the Gundams are getting ready to open fire.

"Strike, Commencing with the last phase of the mission"

"Aegis, Commencing with the last phase of the mission."

Both Gundams used their High Energy Beam Rifles and CIWS guns to destroy the targets. With each passing second, dozens of trucks and lorries were on fired or completely destroyed.

"Strike and Aegis, 98% confirmed annihilation. Enemy supply lines have been successfully severed. Last phase, completed. Mission completed. Returning to the Eternal." With that, both Gundams returned to their mothership.

~ On board the Eternal, within the briefing room ~

Lacus praised the performance of both Gundam Meisters on their first mission. "Congratulations to the both of you. You have completed the mission within the allocated time, and at a success rate of 98% for the last phase. Veda was right in choosing the both of you to be Gundam Meisters."

"What about Rakhmadi?" asked Kira.

"We handed him over to Celestial Being's Azadistan agents. They are sending him back to the capital as we speak. If my predictions are right, this will temporarily cool down the sentiments of the conservatives. For how long, I am not sure. You both can return to your quarters and rest. Maintenance and repairs of the Gundams will be handled by Eternal's team of mechanics and engineers. We shall monitor the situation in Azadistan as well as the actions of the Kurdish government. If necessary, we shall intervene again."

As Lacus exited the briefing room, a red haired girl entered. To Athrun's surprise, it was Meyrin, the person in charge of communications and radar on board the Eternal. "Hi Athrun. Good job out there, during your first mission..." She trailed off. Unsure of what to say next, she quickly asked Athrun, "Do you wanna come and eat with me at the cafeteria? I'm sure you must be exhausted..." Athrun was caught off guard by this question. But as a courtesy, he agrees. "Sure Meyrin. Let's go." Kira simply observed the two, giving Athrun a grin and thumbs up, to which he received a glare from Athrun.

"Seems like everyone has a personal life except me... I'll just go back to the Freedom. It's my machine, my Gundam. I'll take care of it. Anyway, I need to submit a mission report to Veda." With that, Kira left the briefing room and headed for the hangar.

~ The Terminal, Celestial Being ~

The Terminal is one of the many space colonies Celestial Being possesses. In addition to housing research and development data for Celestial Being, it is also one of the few space colonies which are allowed to participate in the creation of the Gundams.

Like most of Celestial Being's space colonies, its location is kept a secret from most members Celestial Being, even Observers and Meisters, to avoid potential leaks and treachery. Very few know of the existence of this, or any other colony. Most who do know of its existence will not divulge the information unless absolutely necessary.

However, the unique feature of the Terminal is that it has its own intelligence and reconnaissance teams, both in space and on earth. They are part of the bigger framework of Celestial Being's intelligence network.

Within the main hangar bay of the Terminal, Erica Simmons, Chief Engineer of the Terminal, was observing the modifications being made to the First Generation and Second Generation Gundams.

"To be honest, I am puzzled as to why Veda would request that we update and rearm these old units. The First Gen and Second Gen suits were never meant to be officially used by Celestial Being; they were simply prototypes for the current Third Gen Gundams. We don't even have enough GN Drives to power the remaining Gundams here as all of them are now in use by the various Gundam Meisters and their Third Gen Gundams. I guess we'll just have to resort to installing GN Condensers on these suits in place of the GN Drives."

~ Ptolemaios, briefing room ~

Sumeragi showed the crew recordings of Celestial Being's intervention in Azadistan.

Lasse was the first to speak, "So, the secondary team did quite well."

Setsuna simply stared into the distance, mumbling to himself incoherent words.

Allelujah spoke out as well, "At least the world now knows Celestial Being is really serious in eradicating war."

Tieria, with a smile, spoke out, "Aeolia Schenberg's plan is proceeding as planned. Now, all we have to do is continue with the mission plans Veda has laid out, and the world will surely change. Or rather, we will force them to change."

Then, the most mature Meister, Lockon, spoke, "The eradication of war. That is Celestial Being's aim. And it will be achieved with the Gundams."

Four hours later...

~ Office of JNN News, Tokyo Special Economic Zone ~

The offices were full of busy and dedicated journalists. The sounds multiple conversations echoed throughout the office halls, some in foreign languages.

Screens were lined up, showing journalists and reporters from various parts of the world. Multiple clocks were on the wall, showing the times of different countries.

Suddenly, a man who was on the phone exclaimed loudly, so loud, that everyone heard it, "What, Celestial Being intervened again?! Where? Azadistan and Kurdistan?! And it was two newer Gundams as well?! Both sides were attacked?!"

The office went dead beat silent. "Both sides were attacked" and "two newer Gundams" were the phrases on everyone's head. Some were wondering why they would attack both sides in a conflict. A young blonde woman, who is in charge of researching Celestial Being and Aeolia Schenberg, wondered to herself, "Attacking both sides? Won't that cause everyone to hate them? Why? Aeolia Schenberg..."

While she was deep in her thoughts, her boss, the Editor in Chief called her, "Hey Stellar, you're in charge of covering news of Celestial Being, right? I want you to do a reporting right away, now!"

Quickly, she picked up all her research papers and rushed to another room.

This time, the chief was yelling, "Everyone will be involved in the coverage of Celestial Being. I want a special news night for this. I want you to bring in intellectuals, professionals and politicians, soldiers, we'll interview them all! Do it!"

The office was back to normal again, with everyone rushing, hurrying about, and doing their assigned tasks.

3 Days later...

~ White House, Washington DC, USA, Union Territory ~

"Mr. President, it's an honour meeting you in person." A blonde man came up to the President and shook hands.

"So, you are our military's ace pilot eh, Graham Aker?"

"Yes, Mr. President."

"Please, take a sit."

"President Jonathan Kennedy. Never have I dreamt of meeting the President." Graham thought to himself.

"Respectfully, Mr. President, may I know why I'm here?"

"You're here to explain your thoughts with regards to Celestial Being, Mr. Ace Pilot. Starting with what you saw with your own eyes during their first intervention as well as your opinion of them."

Smiling, Graham complied. "Very well, Mr. President. When I first encountered the Gundam, it was during the AEU's presentation of its newest solar-compatible mobile suit, the Enact. The first thing I noticed about these Gundams is that they release this light, or rather, particles. Although none, be it us, or the HRL, or the AEU have been able to confirm what those particles are. However, we do know that they are capable of jamming all forms of radio frequencies and communications. Upon landing in front of the Enact, it simply waited for an attack. When the Enact attempted to attack with a sonic blade, the Gundam quickly used its sword to cut off its hands, followed by three swift attacks which cut off both of its arms and head. And that's militarily speaking. With regards to the organisation, Celestial Being, I have mixed feelings with regards to their goals. Eradicating war by waging war? Isn't it contradictory? Somehow, I have a feeling that Celestial Being has ulterior motives, other goals that they are not revealing to us..."

Satisfied with Graham's reply, he asked one last question, "Do you think, on any levels, can our Flag Fighters compete with the Gundams' performance? I want your honest answer."

"Honestly, no. These Gundams, they are very versatile, more advanced, agile and simply powerful. There is no way our Flag Fighters, even with ace pilots, can compete with the Gundams."

Smiling, the President was very much satisfied with his answer. "You're the perfect candidate."

"I'm sure you've heard of my initiative to form the Union Anti-Gundam Team. It is now a formally and officially recognised mobile suit team within the Union military. You will be transferred to that team as its commander. And they're not using any of the standardised Union Flag units; they are assigned with customised Flag Fighters. Also assigned to the team, is your best friend and mentor, Professor Billy Katagiri and Professor Ralph Eifman. They will be responsible for tweaking and upgrading your team's mobile suits."

"This is a great honour, Mr. President. Thank you very much. I shall not fail you, Mr. President."

Shaking hands with the President, Graham left the room, ecstatic. "I will face you one day, Gundam. Just you wait..."

~ Bridge, Archangel, Tertiary Team, Celestial being, In Space ~

A woman with long dark brown hair was talking to her colleague, "So, the main and secondary teams have conducted their first armed intervention. I've got the feeling that Veda will give us a mission, we're next."

She looked a bit uneasy, but her friend re-assured her, "Look Murrue, even if we do get a mission from Veda, there's nothing to be worried about."

"I guess you're right, Natarle."

Barely a minute passed, and the main screen showed a mission from Veda. Immediately, she announced an emergency meeting in the briefing room. Before heading to the briefing room herself, she decided to return to her quarters to analyse the mission herself.

~ Briefing Room, Archangel ~

It was noisy; the ship's crew from the bridge as well as the mechanics and engineers from the hangar were there. However, four men stood amongst the crowd. All were together; a blonde man who looked disinterested with everything that's going on, another guy blonde guy was ruffling his friend's hair, who albeit having white hair all over, isn't old, as well as another guy with green hair, simply observing the childish behaviour around him.

Even as Murrue entered the briefing room, everyone was still goofing around. "I swear, sometimes I feel like I'm in a kindergarten."

It took Natarle's loud voice to get their attention, "Attention!"

Everyone immediately shut their mouths and kept quiet.

Murrue started the briefing, "Now, as you all know the main and secondary teams have conducted their first missions. Well, now it's our turn. Veda has assigned a mission to us. Based on the secondary team's intervention in Kurdistan and Azadistan, it has been confirmed the mercenaries employed by the Kurdish government are in fact PMC Trust. They are a source of conflict; they train soldiers, participate in wars, profit from wars and finally promote a culture of conflict. We shall sever this source of conflict once and for all: by striking at the heart of private military companies, the Republic of Moralia.

Established in the year 2284 AD, the Republic of Moralia is a member state of the AEU. 20% of its civilian-operated corporations and businesses are owned by PMC Trust, a major contributor to the stability and growth of the nation's economy. The nation also attracts investment from a variety of other private military contractors by providing incentives and benefits.

PMC Trust is a private military contractor based in Moralia, where its activities have continuously benefitted the local population. Its collective armed operatives form the functional mercenary equivalent of a standing army. Besides providing deployments of mercenaries, the company also provides services relating to the training of military personnel as well as the transport and development of weapons.

And lastly, the AEU itself is very active in the arms trade. It has been proven that the AEU has participated in arms deals with smaller countries, private military companies, and terrorists. Therefore, our intervention in Moralia will be to sever the sources of war there. We're not only intervening against PMC Trust, but also against the AEU's warmongering ways. Businesses, nations, individuals, all those who seek to promote or participate in wars shall face Celestial Being armed intervention, as well as the Gundams. In conclusion, our mission will consist of four phases: 1) An attack on all of PMC Trust's mobile suits. Ensure not even one is left standing. 2) An attack on the laboratories of PMC Trust responsible for the research and development of weapons and mobile suits. 3) Attack the local AEU military garrison. This is required, to send a direct message to the AEU that Celestial Being will not tolerate its actions. 4) Once Phase 3 is completed, wait for the enemy's response. If they surrender, then we shall leave the area and the mission is complete. If not, we shall engage what remaining forces they have.

To the Gundam Meisters here, Dearka Elsman, Yzak Joule, Nicol Amalfi and Mu La Flaga, all of you are required to remain on standby within your Gundams. The actual mission plan itself will be sent to you later on. Ensure your Gundams have activated a direct connection to Veda. To the crew of the Archangel, this will be our first armed intervention. There is no room for mistakes. All of us were scouted and chosen by Veda, be it myself, as the tactical forecaster, or the Gundam Meisters, or the engineers and mechanics of Celestial Being. Good luck everyone."

With that, Murrue, accompanied by Natarle, left the briefing room.

Yzak seemed as annoyed as usual, "Jeez, why did we get the last mission? We could've been first... Instead those misfits from the main team were given the first mission. Damn them!"

Now, the other Meisters were getting annoyed. Yzak was bombarded by a barrage of insults, starting with La Flaga's "Shut the hell up white hair boy", and Nicol's serious warning "We're Gundam Meisters. Start acting like one", followed by Dearka's usual word, "Relax". After another round of trading insults, all the Meisters were on their way to the hangar bay.

As all of them entered their Gundams, all performed systems check on their Gundams.

"Impulse Gundam, analysing data, performing systems check. Weapons check, GN Beam Rifle, functioning. Silhouette Pack: Blast Silhouette. GN Particle dispersion, set at minimum. GN Drive functioning. Systems check complete, system all green." La Flaga finalised his systems check and reported back.

"Duel Gundam, confirming tactical data. Performing weapons check. Shiva Railgun, 5-Barrel GN Missile pod, High Energy GN Beam Rifle, CIWS, weapons check complete. All weapons fully functioning. Activating GN Drive. Setting GN Particle dispersion to minimum. GN Drive is stable. Systems check, all green." Isaac's done with his Gundam

"Buster Gundam, activating GN Drive. GN Particle dispersion steadily rising. GN Particle dispersion is stable, setting it to minimum. GN Drive, functioning properly. Performing systems check. GN Gun Launcher functioning properly. GN Buster Rifle, compatible. GN HILR Sniper Rifle, functioning. GN Anti-Armour Shotgun, compatible. 6-Barrel GN Missile Pod, fully loaded. Weapons check, complete. Systems check complete. Systems all green." And with that, Dearka completed inspecting his Gundam.

"Blitz Gundam, GN Drive, stable, particle dispersion set to a minimum. Conducting weapons check. GN Shield Trikeros, fully functioning. High Energy GN Beam Rifle, GN Lancer Dart, GN Beam Saber, all functioning. Weapons check complete, systems check complete. Systems all green." And with Nicol, finished calibrating his Gundam.

The Meisters remained on standby.

An announcement was made, "Gundam Meisters, transferring timing to you."

"Blast Impulse, Mu La Flaga, heading out!"

"Duel, Yzak Joule, heading for interception!"

"Buster, Dearka Elsman, launching!"

"Blitz, Nicol Amalfi, intervening!"

As the hatches of Archangel open, two of the Gundams launched first, followed by another two. La Flaga took charge of the team. "Listen up, this La Flaga. We'll have to perform atmospheric re-entry ourselves. Once nearing the Earth, activate GN Field."

All the Gundams were nearing the Earth. At the same time, all activated their GN Field, allowing them to perform atmospheric re-entry by themselves, a feature among mobile suits that only a Gundam is capable of.