Heavenly

Chapter 12: Rey

A loud alarm was heard at the South East Asia Base of Zaft as a familiar mobile suit flew away. Startled by the sudden alarm, every personnel went to their assigned places, figuring that an enemy is nearby.

"What's happening?" asked Captain Talia Gladys as she entered the meeting room were the chairman and other council members were.

"It seems like another traitor is out on the loose" replied Chairman Gilbert Durandal as he gestured her to sit down.

"Who is it this time?" asked the female captain as she took her seat and looked at the chairman mockingly

"Shinn Asuka and Lunamaria Hawke"

~~~*~~~

"What's gonna happen to us now, Shinn?" asked Luna in a mild panic tone. She never thought that she will be in the same position as her late little sister.

"Do you trust me?" asked Shinn after a little while as he glanced at her from behind. Luna quickly nodded as if it was a stupid question.

"Then you don't need to worry, I promise that we will both make it through safely" he said as he turned his attention back in front. In a few moments, Zaft will come after them. The only thing that is running through his mind right now is to get to a safe place, wherever that may be.

~~~*~~~

Under the orders from Chairman Gilbert Durandal to capture and return the two traitors to the base, five Zakus went into the air. It was not long before their radar detected the mobile suit that the traitors used to escape.

The leader of the Zaku platoon went ahead with great speed, feeling anger surge through him at the thought of his fellow soldiers betraying Zaft.

Shinn quickly took notice of the mobile suits following them. He sped up, as much as possible he didn't want to hurt them. He was a soldier too and every soldier must do their assigned task, whatever the cost may be.

"Shinn Asuka and Lunamaria Hawke, surrender to us peacefully and we will not shoot" said the leader as the five Zakus circled around him, weapons at hand, ready to strike anytime.

Giving in to their demand is not an option that Shinn and Luna considered. It's suicide to go back there and just be used for something that it is really not worth it.

Answering the earlier request, Shinn pulled out Excalibur and dashed forward, disabling two Zakus and getting away in the process.

"You traitors! I will not let you get away!!!" yelled the leader as he went to attack the special mobile suit and failed. Then he asked for more reinforcements.

Perhaps, loosing Shinn Asuka and his mobile suit would be a great loss to Zaft, especially since the Destiny is one of the strongest mobile suits that Zaft has ever produced, aside from the Freedom and Justice, and Shinn Asuka was the perfect one to pilot it. But what good does it do for Zaft to have a strong mobile suit but the pilot's loyalty is questionable?

~~~*~~~

"The chairman's orders have changed. He said that from now on it will be a shoot-to-kill order" said the leader to his subordinates as they flew forward, not taking their eyes off of the traitors.

It wasn't long before two Zakus caught up with the Destiny and started attacking. Shinn swiftly dodged their attacks and disabled them. Then as more mobile suits approached and attacked them, he went into Seed mode, taking down those enemies around him in a single slash of his Excalibur.

Lunamaria could only watch as her lover attacked Zaft's mobile suits in desperation. As much as she wanted to help him, all she could do is stand there and watch firsthand at how the Seed factor took over Shinn. She had never seen him like that before. Sure, she knew he had that factor but she never saw it back then. Such factor was only possessed by ace pilots.

Disregarding her earlier thoughts, Luna turned her attention back to the battlefield. Zaft has sent more reinforcements. Perhaps the thought of Zaft's most precious secrets leaking out scared the hell out of them so they want to make sure to eliminate the traitors as soon as possible.

The battle went on and on. It had to end soon or the Destiny's power might run out, not to mention that this battle brought out a lot of stress to Shinn and no one around is foolish enough to help a couple of traitors like them.

As much as she disliked calling herself and Shinn traitors, everyone in Zaft thinks so. If not, then why would they want to run away like that? Like they are escaping from something. Aside from the both of them, the only one who knows about the chairman's plan is Rey.

Maybe it's too much to ask Rey for help. He already helped them escape in the first place. And knowing how loyal Rey is to the chairman, the both of them knew that he'll be on the battlefield sooner or later. Still, they hoped that such a thing will not happen. Just like Shinn promised earlier, they must make it through alive, even if that meant engaging in a battle with his best friend.

~~~*~~~

Rey Za Burrel entered Legend's cockpit upon orders from the chairman to take down the two traitors who left Zaft a while ago. The shoot-to-kill order really surprised him, he never thought that the chairman will go to such extremes to have them eliminated. Well, he should've seen this coming since he also issued that order when Athrun and Meyrin tried to escape. Even though he knew from the bottom of his heart that his two friends will not betray Zaft, that doesn't make a reasonable excuse for them to cease attacking.

"Decisions should not be based on emotions"

He rememebered Gil mentioning that to him a while back. He fully agreed on that statement. Emotions are weaknesses and might cause downfall. It was planted on his mind when he was just a young boy. For the past few years of his stay in Zaft, he always lived up to that statement. He saw people who fought to avenge their loved ones and when they finally reached their goal they kill themselves to be with their loved ones.

Such things are not needed in a war.

But even though he tried hard not to get too close to anyone, Shinn and Lunamaria still managed to break through that barrier he put around himself. And he hadn't really taken notice of that until a month ago when Lunamaria and Shinn were talking about quitting the military.

Then it hit him. It was his fault why his two friends are being labeled as traitors in the first place. He just heard the two of them talking about their plans on quitting the military and he quickly delivered the message to Gil.

How could he do that to his friends?

They have been there for him ever since their military school days, not even asking for anything in return.

He is the traitor, he betrayed his friends.

"I'm sorry" he muttered as he launched together with the other Zaft mobile suits.

He will make it up to them, and now is the right time to do it.

~~~*~~~

Relief flowed all over Shinn's body as he stared at the last Zaku hitting the water below. They're safe, at least for now. In a few moments another platoon of Zaft mobile suits will be coming after them. Why couldn't they just leave him and Luna alone?

"Shinn, are you okay?" asked Luna with concern on her tone, drawing him away from his thoughts. He stared at her from behind as she flashed a concern smile across her face. It's the least she can do for him.

"Yeah. We should get going" he replied as he flashed her a smile too, indicating that there's nothing to worry about. And then they set off.

~~~*~~~

Just as Shinn had predicted earlier, a platoon of Zaft mobile suits pursued them. And they still haven't found a place where they can land safely. The radar detected a small island up north, but with Zaft continuously sending mobile suits after them, it proved hard for them to get there.

Shinn turned around to face the enemy and was surprised at what he saw.

Unlike the first team and the second team who came to take them down, this one is really… different.

Leading the platoon of Goufs was Legend, his best friend Rey's mobile suit. He should have expected Rey to come, after all he's really close to the chairman. It seems that they have met in the past.

"Oh no… Rey" he had heard her murmur from behind. They were labeled as traitors after all so they must expect all of Zaft, including their friends, to hate them for their betrayal.

Shinn put the Excalibur in front of him in a defensive style, he knew Rey too well to know that he hated failed missions. Missions are given to be succeeded and not failed, that's what he always said.

Rey has finally reached Shinn and stopped in front of him, leaving a large space between them.

"Shinn…" started Rey as he and his opponent just stood there and stared at each other.

"Rey…" answered Shinn back, not letting his guard down although he has faith in his best friend that he will not cause them harm

For a brief moment they just stood there and stared at each other until Rey finally broke the tension

"I never thought that there will come a day like this when we will face each other as enemies" he said in his usual serious tone

"I have joined Zaft in order to protect those who are weak and bring justice and peace to the whole universe. I always believed in the chairman's words that he will make a world where there would be no war. But I failed to realize that the world the chairman speaks of is merely a dream, a tool that he used in order to influence people to fight for him. I nearly did as he wished, bringing victory and honor to his name. I was taken by his words that I failed to take notice of the unnecessary sacrfices he made. Just like Athrun and Meyrin and many more Zaft soldiers who died in battle. The perfect world that the chairman speaks of will not exist if he will continue his way of doing things" explained Shinn, making his point clear

"The chairman is my benefactor, if it wasn't for him then I shouldn't be here. And because of that I made him a promise that I will become a loyal subordinate to him and follow all of his orders until the very end. So I fulfilled my promise to him, I joined the military and do what he said. I killed countless of people in his name. And the thought of that never even distracted me. Such things are necessary in a war"

"So, are you implying that killing me and Luna is necessary to fulfill the chairman's wish?" asked Shinn sarcastically, finding it hard to believe that the same man he is speaking to right now is the same man who helped them escape earlier.

"YES! IT'S BECAUSE YOU TWO ARE TRAITORS!!!" said a man who was pilotting a Gouf and aimed his weapon at them repulsively.

"Leader, the chairman gave us orders to take down these traitors, not have a chat with them" said another soldier, obviously growing impatient with their leader and the traitor's conversation. The other soldiers agreed, voicing out their reactions in chorus.

Rey just turned around and stared at them, not really caring if Shinn decides to attack him since his back is facing him. His conversation with Shinn was so deep that he forgot about the soldiers behind him. It's time to answer the question that has been plauging his mind all this time. Who will he choose? His benefactor whom he promised to create the world he desires or his innocent friends who disagreed with his benefactor's plans and are now being pursued?

It's a very difficult decision. Will he let his emotions get in the way? Or will he stick to his original plan? A sudden yell from the back disturbed his train of thoughts.

"Since you're a coward, I'll do it myself" said another pilot as he charged and aimed for the Destiny. Shinn immediately saw this and moved to evade it. But the sudden declaration influenced the other soldiers to ignore their leader and get the job done right away. Luckily for Shinn, he missed all of their attacks, except for one which hit his left arm.

Rey have to stop his subordinates as soon as possible. With the state Shinn is in, he couldn't possibly take down all those Goufs in his own. Rey yelled at them, telling them to stop attacking but it seems that his subordinates are really stubborn to ignore a direct order from the one leading them.

Seeing as there's no hope for his subordinates to ever listen to his commands, Rey charged forward and aimed at the Goufs before him. It's like his body is moving on its own. And in that moment, Rey found the answer to his question.

~~~*~~~

Chairman Gilbert Durandal watched in surprise as his most trusted soldier betrayed him right before his eyes, helping the traitors get away.

He clenched his fists angrily, his knuckles turning to white. How could Rey do this to him? Rey owed his life to him and he still had the guts to betray him.

"Send more reinforcements. Take down the Destiny and the Legend"

All eyes inside the room narrowed towards him in disbelief but did nothing to alter it. It's clearly written on the chairman's face that nothing will be able to make him change his decision.

He smirked in satisfaction as more Zaft mobile suits launched.

~~~*~~~

Rey and Shinn smirked in satisfaction, their backs facing each other, as they saw the remaining Goufs from Rey's team disappear in the ocean below them.

Somehow, the thought of Rey helping them out didn't surprise the two Zaft redcoat soldiers at all. Well, he did help them escape earlier in the base so it's not that unnatural for them to expect him to help them out until the end. After all, they are the Minerva trio, the trio who always supported each other in and out of the battlefield.

"What are you smiling about?" asked Rey as he saw Shinn smiling on his monitor

"You still have to get away from here" he said as both the Destiny and the Legend sped up north, to where the small island is.

"What about you?" asked Shinn worriedly and he could feel Luna's worry too.

"All my life, my actions have always been predetermined" he paused and continued afterwards, finally deciding to reveal his identity to his friends.

"Since I'm a clone"

"What!?!" asked both Shinn and Lunamaria in utter surprise, but not slowing down.

"I'm a clone of the late Commander Rau Le Creuset" he said in his usual stoic voice

Shinn nodded in understanding, not taking his eyes off on the slightly visible island in front. As much as he wanted to ask his best friend the many questions that are occupying his mind right now, his first priority is still to get to safety.

Luna nodded her head slowly as she tried to register what Rey had just said. They were still in the Zaft military school when the war broke out and ended the life of the famous Commander Rau Le Creuset. She didn't have the chance to see or get to know him personally. She doubted if anyone saw what he really looked like under his mask since he was always wearing it. He seemed like a really strange person. But from what she heard from the news and from her fellow soldiers and crew in Zaft, he dedicated his life for Zaft and was killed by the Freedom.

Her thoughts were disrupted when she heard the alarm from behind, indicating that an enemy is behind them.

Both Shinn and Rey turned around and were shocked to see many more reinforcements from Zaft come after them. Rey quickly recovered from the shock, this was to be expected. After all he did help Shinn and Lunamaria escape so he didn't find it really shocking to know that they are after him too.

However, he didn't care about his life right now. It's the first time he felt this strange feeling, the feeling of wanting to protect his friends at all costs.

Then he turned to Shinn with a serious face. It wasn't like he was never serious before but his look told Shinn to listen carefully because his and Luna's life depended on it.

"I'll hold them for a while as you go full speed ahead" he said curtly

"WHAT!?!" asked both Luna and Shinn in chorus, raising their voices

"NO. We are not letting you handle them on your own" said Shinn just as seriously as Rey

"I will follow after I'm done with them" Rey said with no emotion on his voice

"But-" Luna was cut off when Shinn nodded his head in understanding and went towards the small island in full speed.

After being with Rey for a long time, Shinn knew what he is capable of doing. Even though he hasn't seen Rey turn into Seed mode, he knew that it will take a lot for Rey to be taken down.

Rey took a deep breath then with a push of a button, the DRAGOONS on the back of his mobile suit flew up and hit some of the mobile suits, purposely evading the chest area where the cockpit is located. He made sure that no one will be able to get to Shinn and Luna. He knew that it will be very hard to handle all those mobile suits on his own.

Such a thing needed one big miracle to happen.

~~~*~~~

It wasn't long before a loud explosion was heard from behind. As much as Shinn wanted to turn around and see if his best friend is alright, he couldn't, seeing as how close he and Luna are to the island, to safety.

And then another explosion was heard, but this time it was louder. Shinn finally turned around and saw in horror as the Legend was stabbed in the chest with a saber.

"REY!!!!!" Shinn and Luna screamed his name together

Luna felt hot tears fell from her eyes as she watched the Legend froze with the sudden hit, the saber was stabbed through the chest and both of the Legend's arms were nowhere to be found. And she also saw how many Zaft mobile suits are floating on the ocean below them. Rey gave his best to defeat them but sadly, things are not that easy to achieve.

Shinn's eyes widened when he saw the sight before him. And unconciously, his eyes watered as his hands froze at the controls. He couldn't believe it.

"Shinn… Lunamaria…" they heard a soft call and realized that it was Rey's voice calling them. They looked up at the screen and saw him, blood trickling down the side of his head, as he cast an everlasting smile on his pale face.

"I have done all that I can to stop them. Sorry if this is all I can do…" he said softly with his hoarse voice

"Stop that, Rey! You already did too much!" yelled Shinn, not minding the tears that had fallen from his eyes.

"You must go now. Get somewhere safe…" Rey said, already feeling the darkness consuming him

Shinn nodded his head and Lunamaria only stared as the signal was starting to fade.

"Thank… you… Now I will die with no regrets…" he said then closed his eyes peacefully, welcoming the darkness.

And then the signal was lost as the Legend hit the ocean. Shinn and Luna saluted to him as their tears continued to pour out of their eyes like a faucet.

Then Shinn tightened his grip on the controls and turned around. Rey sacrificed his life just for them to get to safety, he will not waste it.

Then as he sped up, a few mobile suits caught up with him and started shooting. He tried his best to evade all the attacks but sadly, the power is running out and they already took a few hits.

Then he saw the small island and sped up, smiling in satisfaction at the thought of them landing somewhere safe.

And then there was another loud explosion. Shinn and Lunamaria didn't even look around to see that the explosion came from the mobile suit that they are in. And slowly the Destiny started to fall down.

Shinn knew that they are at their limit. He removed his seatbelt in a fast pace then turned to face Luna who was smiling at him. He engulfed her in his arms protectively as more explosions were heard.

"I love you" he whispered softly in her ears, his grip tightening on her waist

"I love you too" she said as she looked up to see his face.

He then inched his face closer to hers and soon they found themselves tangled in a sweet, passionate kiss. They broke up after a while and wrapped each other in their arms protectively as they felt the cold water enter the cockpit.

Never letting go, they faced the darkness together.

Author's Notes: So sorry for the late upload... And sorry if I keep on apologizing hehehe...

I've been out of health recently and I just had my first minor operation a few days ago. But no need to worry, I'm doing fine now. And thankfully it's done only in a clinic. If it was done in the hospital then I should've freaked out already. Somehow, I have a disliking to hospitals (although I haven't been hospitalized before). I just think that it's so boring in there.

Anyway, back to topic. I decided to make the title of this chapter "Rey" because Rey really played an important part in this chapter. And GSD also had an episode titled "Rey".

And the seamstress is already working on our Orb Uniform! I just hope that it turns out great. We still don't have the other patches but I hope that we will by the end of this month. n_n

Oh, and I will be uploading the last two chapters soon (as soon as I'm finished with them). I just hope I find time to write them since it's already the start of the second semester.

I have lots of surprises coming!!! I can't wait! XD

Thanks for all the reviews and I hope you can keep on reading until the last chapter!

Stay safe! :)

(*^o^*) Peace out! (*^o^*)

Kaycee