Yo everybody! The last chapter got nine reviews! Which makes me very happy. So I tired to get this one up as fast as possible for all my fans. Enjoy. Especially those that reviewed the last chapter.
Phase Sixteen: Flashing Blades
Aboard the Cousteau
"Dammit! Dammit! Dammit! Dammit!" Yzak shouted, punching a locker, Nicol's locker. "DAMMIT!!!"
The locker door flew open. Music sheets poured out. "Yzak..." Dearka said, trying to calm his friend down.
"Why did he have to die like that?! And why out here?!" Yzak shouted, turning to Athrun and glaring at him.
Athrun grabbed his collar and slammed Yzak against the locker. "Why don't you just say it, Yzak?!!" he shouted. "It's my fault Nicol's dead!!"
WHAM!!
"That's enough!!!" Saul shouted, his fist pressed against a locker.
Athrun, Yzak and Dearka were all stunned by their normally laidback teammate. Since they had first met him at the Academy, they had never seen him ever get really angry. Yet now, he was as angry as Yzak could get. It was actually a little scary. "Is this what Nicol would have wanted?!! Wasting our time, beating the crap out of each other?!! Look at yourselves!! What the hell with this accomplish?!!" he shouted. "We should be saving our energy for destroying that damned Strike and that damned legged ship!!"
Saul then stormed out of the room, leaving his comrades in a stunned state. A moment later, Zane, who had remained quiet since their return, finished putting uniform on and headed for the door. He stopped at the door. "He is right. Wasting our time fighting each other is pointless." Zane said. "But, if it wasn't for your hesitance Commander Zala, we would have crushed them long before this happened. You may want to remember that before the next sortie."
Zane left the room. "First that bastard killed Miguel, then he gave me this scar, now he's killed Nicol! Next time we meet, I'm going to destroy the Strike!" Yzak said before he and Dearka left as well.
Athrun turned to open locker. Pages of music littered the ground while Nicol's uniform hung in the locker. He grabbed the uniform and embraced it. Memories of Nicol filled his mind. "I should have died...Not you..." Athrun said, his eyes watered. "Nicol...It's all because I was too weak to defeat Kira in the past...It was my weakness that killed you..."
Athrun slumped down on the ground next to Nicol's music sheets. His expression of sorrow turned to anger. "I'll kill him...The next time we meet..."
Saul entered his quarters and closed the door. He glanced at the small desk in the room. Atop it was a photo. It was from when they all graduated from the Academy together. Athrun, Dearka, Rusty, Miguel, Nicol, Yzak and himself were all grinning, clad in their uniforms. He grabbed the picture and then slumped down on the floor beside his bed, tears falling down his face, landing on the picture. First Rusty had been killed, then Miguel and now Nicol. All because of that damned Strike.
None of them had deserved to die. Rusty had just wanted to do his part to protect the PLANTs. Miguel needed the money to help his little brother. And Nicol...
A Few Days Ago
The Cousteau had surfaced and was currently being resupplied by the supply sub, the Zanzibar. Saul, Athrun and Nicol were relaxing on the Cousteau's deck. Saul was laying on the deck while Athrun and Nicol were sitting next to him.
"Why did you volunteer for the military, Nicol?" Athrun asked.
"I guess I felt that I should do my part and join the fight after what happen at Junius Seven." Nicol said. "And what about you?"
"The very same reason." Athrun said.
Nicol turned to Saul. "What about you Saul? Why did you join?"
"Well, not for the same reason you guys joined up for." Saul said, not even bothering to sit up, his tone annoyed. "Family tradition. Ever since my great great grandparents, my family's been in the armed forces. Obviously, long before ZAFT. So, I had no choice by to follow in the family tradition. Truthfully, I had no interest in the military. Much to annoyance of my family. Personally, I'd think that they'd disown me if they thought it wouldn't look bad on them."
"I think you're just being negative." Nicol said. "Your parents wouldn't do that."
"You don't know them." Saul said. "You know what they said to me just before we left for Earth? 'Don't be a burden on your teammates. And at least act like a respectable soldier for once.' Yeah. They care about me."
Saul sigh. "Let's talk about something else. Something more pleasant."
"Well, I've just about finished my latest piece." Nicol said.
Saul chuckled. "Another one? At this rate, when the war's over, you'll have enough music for a dozen concerts. And of course, all of them will put Athrun to sleep."
"Hey!" Athrun said as both he and Nicol started laughing.
Nicol never should have been in this war in the first place. He should have been in the PLANTs, performing concerts, not fighting in battles. But he had wanted to protect the PLANTs, like everyone else was doing. And now he was dead.
Killed by the Strike.
But now...none of them were going to stop until the Strike was destroyed and Nicol was avenged.
Zane allowed himself to smile as he entered the hanger. The death of that weakling Amalfi would drive the rest of them to do what should have been done weeks ago. Especially that pathetic fool Athrun. He knew of his friendship with the Strike's pilot, just as he knew that it was source of Athrun's hesitance in dealing with the legged ship and it's mobile suits. But now, they were all determined to destroy the legged ship and it's mobile suits. The next battle would finish them all off.
"Why did the my railgun jam like that?" Zane asked as the crews worked on the mobile suits.
"A defective round, sir. When you fired, it became stuck in the barrel." one of the mechanics said. "Just a freak accident. A one in a million freak accident, but a freak accident never the less."
Images from when Miss Clyne was returned, filled his mind. Firing at the Raven, but most of his shots going wide, missing their target, regardless of what he did. The then battle in Earth's atmosphere. He had the Raven in his sight. There was no way for him to avoid the round. Only for his ballute to activate, ruining his shot. And this latest annoyance.
"I want my railgun and it's ammo throughly check over. I want it at one hundred percent before the next sortie." Zane said.
"Yes sir."
"This is third time he's escaped because of his luck." an annoyed Zane said to himself. "But he won't escape a fourth time because of that luck."
The Strike standing over the powerless Aegis...
It's sword raising...
Athrun...
Running...Strike turning...
Sword swinging...Hitting...
Athrun...Run...
Flash...Fire...Pain...
Darkness...
Pain...Smoke...
Must escape....
Sunlight...More pain...
Darkness...
Nicol groaned. His eyes slowly opened. He was lying on a bed, bandages covering his wounds. How had he gotten here? He tried to remember what happened. They were fight the legged ship and it's mobile suits. The Blitz's right arm had been sliced off by the Raven. Then...
"Athrun!" he said as he remembered.
The Aegis ran out of power and the Strike was about to destroy it. He had rushed to his rescue and the Strike had hit the Blitz with it's sword and the Blitz had exploded. They must have rescued him and taken him back to the sub.
"Ah. I see your awake." a voice said.
Suddenly, a doctor clad in an Earth Forces uniform appeared over him. The realization hit him like a ton of bricks. He hadn't noticed until now that his right arm had been handcuffed to the guardrail of the bed and that the room he was in wasn't the infirmary of the . It was the legged ship's! Athrun and the others hadn't rescued him, the legged ship had.
But then...What happened to Athrun and the others? Were they alive? Or had...No. They couldn't have been shot down. They were all Red Coats. ZAFT aces. They would have made it. Just like he did.
But he was now a prisoner of war. He had heard stories of what anti-Coordinator Naturals did to captured ZAFT soldiers. There were stories of capture soldiers being tortured to death by cruel interrogators regardless of whether or not they actually knew anything of value. Prisoners being beaten for even the slightest provocation, real or imagined. There were even stories of young captured pilots like him just disappearing. Like they had never existed in the first place.
Nicol was terrified about what was going to happen to him. Would he ever see his parents and friends again? Or would he disappear as well? Nicol's heart was racing. He heard the increasing beeps of the heart rate monitor he was hooked up to.
"Whoa. Easy now." the doctor said, trying to calm him down. "Calm down. No one is going to hurt you. You're body is still in rough shape. If you don't calm down, you're going to go into shock."
Nicol took deep breaths, trying to calm himself down and slow his heart rate. After a few minutes of breathing, he had managed to calm himself down. "Good." the doctor said. "How are you feeling? Are you in any pain?"
"No. Just a little stiff and sore." Nicol replied.
"Good. I don't have much experience treating Coordinators." the doctor said. "I wasn't sure how much painkiller to give you."
"Where...Where am I?"
"You're aboard the Archangel. The ship you've been chasing."
"Oh."
"You're lucky to have survived that, you know. Certainly, a Natural would not have likely survived."
"Get some rest." the doctor said. "The Captain will wish to speak to you in a little while, so you should rest up."
"Were...Were any of the other mobile suits shot down?"
"Nope." the doctor said. "From my understanding, the rest of the attackers fled after your machine was destroyed."
"Thank you." he said.
"Don't worry about it. Just get some rest."
Nicol nodded and then closed his eyes and drifted to sleep. When he woke up a few hours later, the ship's Captain, XO and a blond haired officer came by to ask him some questions. All they got was his name, rank, and serial number. He wasn't going to betray Athrun, Saul and the others. After they left, Nicol found himself wondering what his teammates were doing right now. Then he realized it. They probably thought he was dead. And that would his parents would find out soon enough. He could picture his teammates grieving in their own individual ways. He could picture his mother, sitting at his piano, crying.
'The truly ironic part about this is, they'll probably try to destroy the legged ship in revenge. And if they succeed, they'll end up killing me.'
Elsewhere
John entered Kira's quarters. As expected, the depressed boy was sitting against the side of his bed. "Are you going to spend all of your time mopping around?" John asked while drinking some coffee.
Kira didn't respond.
John sighed. "Look kid, you're being quite selfish." he said.
Kira looked up at him. "It's true." John said, his tone becoming serious. "You're not the only person who's ever felt guilty over killing someone. Just about everyone that fights in war, feels that way at one point or another. I remember the first time I killed someone. I wasn't that much older than you. After I shot them, I threw up and nearly passed out. And the face of the person I killed has been forever burned into my memory."
"But you really shouldn't be mopping around anyway. You should be celebrating with your friends in mess hall over this recent victory. And you should be celebrating that Blitz's pilot survived."
"Please. Just leave me alone." Kira said.
John sighed again. "Well. Suit yourself kid. But you really need to loosen up and relax from time to time. Or you're going to snap." he said before leaving.
The Bridge
A Few Days Later
"I believe that we'll receive at least one other attack before we reach Alaska's air defense space. They'll want to avenge their fallen comrade." John said, pulling up a map on the main screen. "I believe that we should take this route. It is the fastest to Alaska. But there is a chain of islands in this path. The ideal place for them to ambush us."
"But why should we take a route to us being ambushed?" Natarle asked.
"Simple. We present then with an opening, they'll take it. So we'll know when they'll attack." John said. "I recommend that we be prepared for combat and have all mobile suits and Sky Graspers ready for launch before we reach those islands."
"Making them think that they're going to ambush us, but in reality, they fight on our terms." Mu said. "That's pretty clever."
"The best way to counter an ambush is make the attacker think that they're going to catch you off guard." John said.
The Brig
Nicol sighed as he laid on the cot in his cell. The day after he woke up, the doctor had said that he was well on the way to a full recovery and that he was now out of any danger. So, pair of guards transferred him to a cell in the ship's brig.
It wasn't that bad, all things considering. It could have been a lot worse. The only thing Nicol really hated about it was alone. Sitting in a cell all day long, with nothing to do and no one to talk to, was quickly becoming difficult to bare. He had pretty much lost all track of time. Only when his meals came, did he have any real idea of what time it was. The doctor had come by everyday to check how well his injuries were healing. But other than that, there was nothing for him to do. What he wouldn't give for a pencil and some paper. At least then he could pass the time writing music.
"So you're the pilot of the Blitz." a voice said, startling Nicol.
"Or rather, you were the pilot of the Blitz." a brown hair teen in an Earth Forces uniform, holding a food tray, said.
"Yeah." Nicol quietly said.
"Well, he's your food." the teen said, sliding the food into the slot at the bottom of the cell door. "I'm Chris Dante, pilot of the Raven."
"You're the pilot of the Raven?!" a surprised Nicol said as got up to get the tray.
"Let me guess, you pictured some grizzled, Earth Forces veteran that had been fighting since before the war started."
"Well...Kinda..."
The teen laughed. "Well, sorry to disappoint you. But I'm just teen from Heliopolis. Until you guys attacked."
"Sorry." Nicol said. "We never want things to turn out that way."
"Don't worry about it. It's not like it was the first home I lost because of this war."
"Huh?"
"Originally, I was from Junius Seven."
"Wait...That means...Then Saul was right, you're a Coordinator!"
"Yep." the teen said. "Originally, I lived in PLANTs. But when the Copernicus Tragedy happened. My parents decided that it wasn't safe for us in PLANTs anymore and send my little sister and me to live with my aunt and uncle in Heliopolis. They were doctors and they couldn't just pack up and leave. But they had arranged to leave on February 15th. But of course, we both know what happened the day before."
"But why are fighting for the Earth Forces? They were the responsible for the Bloody Valentine Tragedy!"
"Are you saying that I should blame them all for the actions of a few?" he said. "What good would that do? My parents and friends are dead. Nothing will change that. And an eye for an eye, makes the whole world blind."
"That's an interesting philosophy." Nicol said as he started eating his lunch. "But still, how can you fight with them, knowing what they did your family and friends?"
"None of the people on board this ship were responsible for that disaster. And they're all good people. So why should I blame them?"
"I see your point." Nicol said. "I never had any ill will towards Naturals or the Alliance. I just don't want another Bloody Valentine Tragedy to happen."
"Nor do I." he said. "I just want this war to end before I lose anything else."
Nicol nodded. "By the way, I'm Nicol Amalfi."
"Hello Nicol. Need anything else?"
"Actually, I wouldn't mind some paper and something to write with."
"Oh?"
"Yeah. I'm a musician and I like to write my own music."
"Well...I'll see what I can do. The paper's no problem. But I may get in trouble if I give you pencil. As it could be seen as something that can be used as a weapon."
"Oh..."
"But so long as you don't try anything funny, I don't see any reason not to." Chris said. "Of course, if you'll need to make sure no one catches you with it."
"Thanks."
"Don't mention it."
Aboard the Cousteau
The Next Day
"Sonar has picked up something. It's the legged ship!"
"Are you sure?" the Captain asked.
"There's no mistake sir."
"They're heading for a chain of small islands. There isn't a lot of room for them to maneuver. It's the ideal place for an ambush." the Captain said.
"Today's the day we're gonna finish that ship and it's mobile suits for good." Yzak said.
"Yeah. Today we're gonna avenge Nicol and your scar." Dearka said.
"For Nicol." Saul said, punching his palm. "They're going down."
"We're taking off." Athrun said.
"Ma'am! Enemy silhouette detected!" Chandra said. "Five mobile suits incoming."
"Just as he thought. They're attacking!" Murrue said. "All hands to Level One Battlestations!"
"All hands to Level One Battlestations! I repeat..."
"Alright. They've taken the bait." John said from the cockpit of his machine. "Kira, Chris, stay close to the ship. They'll try to force her down into the waters where the islands will constrict her movements. We can't let that happen."
"Right." the two teens said.
"Launch the Sky Graspers." Badgiruel said over the comm.
"Okay. Tolle, stick close to either Liz or myself." Mu said as his fighter was loaded onto the catapult. "And be careful."
"Right."
A few moments later, all of the Sky Graspers and mobile suits had taken off. Farsight stood atop the Archangel's rear deck while the Strike, riding the Raven, and the Sky Graspers flew alongside the Archangel, waiting for the enemy.
Dearka combined the Buster's guns into a single long range weapon and fired. The Archangel evaded the beam while John fired back at the Buster. Yzak roared, heading for the Strike and the Raven. He fired at the mobile suit as Kira and Chris returned fire. The shots either missed or were blocked by their shields. Once the mobile suits closed in on each other, Kira and Yzak drew their beam sabers and attacked.
The Buster and the GINN fired upon the Archangel, hitting several missile tubes and one of the Igelstellung turrets. John and the fighters fired back, but missed. Both Saul and Athrun join Yzak in attacking the Raven and the Strike. They fired on two mobile suits as they clashed with Yzak.
"Damn." Chris cursed as he narrowly avoided their attacks as he pulled away from the Duel. "We're gonna have to split up."
"Right." Kira said, switching back to his rifle.
Kira jumped off the Raven and fired at the Duel, hitting it's right knee. The leg exploded, knocking it off of it's Guul and sending it to the waters below. But as the Duel fell, Yzak fired it's railgun at the Strike, hitting it's rifle, destroying it.
Elsewhere, the Archangel continued to take a pounding from the Buster and the GINN. Despite the efforts of John and the others, the Archangel had lost almost half of it's missile tubes, four Igelstellung turrets and one of it's Valiants. Worse yet, it's engines were taking a tremendous beating. John swore as he fired at the Buster. "Kira, Chris, we need some backup! The ship won't last much longer!"
At that very moment, the Buster fired, hitting the Archangel's engines. The damage was too great. The Archangel could no longer maintain it's lift and began to descend on one of the islands.
"Dammit! I'm coming!" Chris said, turning towards the battered ship.
"Oh no you don't!" Saul said, jumping off his Guul.
The Surge landed on the Raven. Saul pointed his rifle down, directly at the Raven...
Suddenly, Sky Grasper 2 appeared, the Sword Striker's sword extended and ready to slice through the Surge. "Shit!" Saul shouted as he jumped back, firing at the fighter.
A lucky shot struck the sword, destroying it and damaging the Sky Grasper. "Liz!!" Chris shouted as his sister struggled to maintain her altitude.
"I can't keep her stable! I'm going down!"
Chris transformed the Raven back into it's mobile suit mode and pulled alongside the falling aircraft. He reached out and grabbed the Sky Grasper. "I got you." Chris said, heading for the island.
"Thanks." Liz said.
The Archangel, fire and smoke billowing from it, crash landed onto the island. "Time to finish this ship off once and for all!" Dearka said, aiming for it's bridge.
Suddenly, fire from Sky Graspers 3 struck the mobile suit as the fighters flew past him "Stupid pest! You're going down!!" Dearka growled as he turned towards the fighter.
"Not today!" Mu said, firing the Agni cannon at him.
Dearka turned back as the beam struck the Buster. The powerful beam tore through the Buster's right shoulder, severing the arm and knocking the Buster off it's Guul. It landed in front of the downed Archangel. Both of it's Gottfrieds targeted it. Seeing no other option, Dearka stepped out of it's cockpit with his hands raised.
"Archangel, open one of the hatches. I have Sky Grasper 2 with me." Chris said, landing on the Archangel.
One of the hatches opened. Chris moved towards, when the Surge and the GINN fired on him. Chris pulled the fighter close to him in one hand while he fired the Raven's railgun at them. Suddenly, a round tore through the GINN's Guul, destroying it. "Go! I got you covered!" John said, firing on the pair.
Chris quickly climbed into the Archangel, dropped off the damaged fighter and headed back out. John was holding his own against the two grounded machines. For now anyway. Chris headed for the GINN, firing at it. Zane fired back and took off. Heading deeper into the island and away from the Archangel. Chris followed after him.
Meanwhile, the Strike landed on the island. "Kira!!" Athrun shouted as he jumped off his Guul and fired at the Strike.
Kira raised his shield, protecting him from barrage. Athrun landed in front of the Strike and activated the Aegis's beam saber in it's right arm. The two mobile suits clashed as it began to rain. "You murdered Nicol!!" Athrun screamed.
"No! I did-"
"SHUT UP!!! I'M GOING TO KILL YOU!!!" Athrun roared as at the Strike again.
Saul fired at the gray GINN High Maneuver Type. But John sidestepped the shot and fired, hitting the Surge's rifle. Saul discarded the weapon just before it exploded.
"Surrender." John said to the Surge's pilot.
"Never." Saul said, drawing his swords. "I'm not giving up that easily!"
"You're machine may be superior to mine. But you're no match for me kid."
The Surge lunged forward and slashed off the GINN's right arm and slammed it to the ground. The Farsight crashed to the ground. "I told you." Saul said, hovering over the GINN. "I'm not giving up that easily!"
"Never lower your guard in combat, boy!" John said, pulling out one of his hidden beam sabers.
"Wha-"
Before Saul could react, John's saber slashed through the Surge's shins. Saul swore as the Surge fell backwards. He reached for his rifle when John's beam saber appeared inches from the cockpit. "Don't. It's over." John said. "Power down and step out of the cockpit."
Saul swore. It was over. He powered down the Surge and opened up the cockpit. John pulled his saber back. "I surrender." he said as he stepped out, his hands raised.
Kira found himself being beaten back by Athrun. He was fighting like he was possessed. Kira was struggling just to defend himself from the attacks. If he couldn't
"Kira!!"
Sky Grasper 3 appeared in the skies overhead. Tolle fired on the Aegis. Only one or two shots actually hit the Aegis, causing little damage. The Aegis spun around, throwing it's shield at the fighter. Tolle never stood a chance. The spinning shield crashed into the Sky Grasper's cockpit, killing Tolle instantly.
"Tolle!!!" Kira screamed as the fighter exploded.
But he wasn't the only one. At that very moment, the GINN and the Raven approached the area they were battling in.
Tolle! NO!!" Chris screamed as well.
Chris stood there for a moment, frozen. Another person he cared about had been claimed by this war.
"What a fool. Thinking that a fighter was a match for a mobile suit." Zane said. "That idiot has only himself to blame for his death."
Images of his parents and friends from Junius Seven filled his head. Then images of it's fiery death. Then that little girl from Heliopolis that gave him the paper flower that was still on the Raven's control console. Zane, firing at her shuttle. Then finally, all the good times he had with Tolle. From the day they first met to the more recent events. His death and Zane's words collided as a seed shattered in the back of his mind.
"ZANE!!!" he roared, turning back to the GINN.
He drew both beam sabers and lunged at the red machine. The GINN jumped back, barely dodging the sabers, and fired. A round tore through the Raven's left wing. Chris was completely obvious to it. He keep on attacking. Zane was barely able to avoid the attacks. He knew he couldn't keep it up for much longer.
"Dammit." he cursed. "I refuse to lose to you and that machine! I will defeat you!"
A gray seed shattered in the back of Zane's mind. "I...WILL...NOT...LOSE...TO...YOU!!!" he shouted.
Zane switch from his railgun to his sword. The two clashed. Beam sabers striking the GINN's sword and shield. The two machines tried to overpower the other. To knock the other to ground and finish them off. Neither seemed to be able to overpower the other. Suddenly, Zane pushed his sword to the side, catching Chris off guard. Giving Zane an opening. Zane jammed his sword into the space in between the left shoulder and the body of the Raven. Where there was no phase shift armor to protect it. The sword cut into the joint. The left arm froze. The beam saber died, as did the left arm's phase shift armor. But Chris didn't care. He swung his remaining saber down on the GINN's left arm, slicing it off.
Meanwhile, the battle between Kira and Athrun become just as vicious. "ATHRUN!!!" Kira roared as a purple seed shattered in his mind.
The Strike and the Aegis lunged at each other. Kira blocked Athrun's saber, sliced off the Aegis's left arm and then kicked the mobile suit. Athrun staggered back, trying to stay standing. A green seed shattered in his mind as well. "KIRA!!!" he roared, activating the sabers in the Aegis's feet.
The two clashed again and again. The Strike's left arm flew off. The Aegis's head was stabbed and then ripped off. A gash was cut across the Strike's chest, exposing the cockpit. The Aegis transformed into it's mobile armor mode and grabbed the Strike. It's Scylla cannon started charging. Suddenly, the charging beam started to flicker before the cannon deactivated. The Aegis was out of power. It's phase shift armor deactivated. Athrun had only one option left to destroy the Strike. He activated the Aegis's self-destruct and ejected.
Both Chris and Zane saw the Aegis shut down and Athrun escape, breaking up their fight. Zane knew what Athrun was doing, he grinned and immediately fled the area. Chris, on the other hand, didn't realize what Athrun did, and turned to the fleeing GINN, preparing to fire.
Suddenly, the Aegis exploded. The fireball engulfed the Strike and expanded, slamming into the Raven.
As always folks, please revew!