Yo everybody! Got another chapter up for you all. Kinda a little annoyed that I got only 3 reviews after the chapter before it got nine, but whatever.

Phase Seventeen: Grieving Skies

Suddenly, the Aegis exploded. The fireball engulfed the Strike and expanded, slamming into the Raven. The Raven was sent flying. "AAAAAAAAH!!!" Chris screamed as the Raven was slammed across and darkness took him.

Chris groaned as he slowly opened his eyes. He blink a few times as everything came back into focus. The Raven was lying on it's front. The phase shift armor had deactivated and the main battery almost completely out of power. He switched over the reserve battery. It'd give him enough power to get back to the ship. The screens in the cockpit flickered to life. Most of screens displayed static. Either the screens were damaged or most of his camera had been taken out. Or maybe a little bit of both. Slowly, the Raven stood up. There were several mechanical groans that accompanied the Raven's movements. The Raven was in rough shape. The left arm was completely useless. The small hole in the left wing had grown in size as a result of the explosion. And the Raven's body had been damaged from the fire of the explosion and from being slammed into the ground. He had to get back to the ship before any of the ZAFT mobile suits found him.

He turned towards where the Archangel crashed and started to head that way. When he remembered what exactly happened during the battle...

"Kira!"

Chris scanned the area for Strike. The explosion had thrown him deeper into the woods. But there was no trace of either the Strike or the remains of the Aegis. "Kira! Come in Kira! Can you here me?!" Chris said over the comm, hoping it was working. "Kira, respond!"

"Come on Kira, where are you?" he said to himself as he listened to static. "You and the Strike are tougher than that. Come on, where are you?!"

"...Tol...Kira...ris...please...res..."

It was Mirillia! Chris found comfort in the fact that at least the Archangel was still out there.

The bridge of the Archangel was silent. Save for Miriallia's attempts to contact the two mobile suits and the Sky Grasper. They had all seen the explosion. All contact with the Strike, the Raven and Sky Grasper 3 had been lost. They all feared the worse.

"Captain, what was that explosion?" Mu asked over the comm.

"I don't know." Murrue said. "But we've lost contact with the Strike, the Raven and Sky Grasper 3."

"...gel...This...Chris..."

"Chris! Chris! This is the Archangel! Do you read?!" Miri said, frantically trying to reestablish communications with the Raven.

"Archangel...re gone...coming..."

"Chris! We're not gone! We're still here!"

"Archangel...This is Chris...still here...Raven's damaged..."

"Chris. What happened to Tolle and Kira?"

"Tolle's...dead...Kira...I...I don't know..." Chris replied, coming in clearer.

A stunned silence filled the bridge. Miriallia let out a sob and ran out of the bridge. No one tried to stop her.

"You have to send someone out to search for him." Chris said.

"Captain! Three contacts on radar!" Kuzzey said.

"They're DINNs, ma'am!" Chandra said. "They'll be on us in fifteen minutes!"

"Prepare to intercept." Murrue ordered.

"Not possible, Captain." Natarle said. "Over half of our weapons are out of commission. We won't last ten minutes against them. We have to leave the area as soon as possible."

"What about Kira?!" Chris said. "We just can't leave him out there!"

"There's nothing we can do." Badgiruel said. "It's obvious that Ensign Yamato is MIA. Return to the ship."

"But Kira-"

"Ensign Dante, return to the ship." Murrue said.

Chris sighed. "Yes ma'am..."

"Captain, power has been restored." Newmann said.

"Prepare to take off once the Raven is on board." Murrue said. "What was the last known position of the Strike?"

"But Captain! We don't have enough time to search for the Strike." Natarle said. "If we stayed, you'd risk this ship as well as the lives everyone on board."

"I know that! Send out an SOS, along with the Strike's last known coordinates to Orb." Murrue ordered.

"Orb?"

"Orb will accept. We're asking them to save lives."

"But that nation's-"

"I will take full responsibility for this!!" Murrue said, silencing her XO.

The damaged Raven approached the Archangel. One of the catapults was open for him. The Raven clumsily jumped up, landed on the catapult and staggered into the hanger. The Raven moved passed the captured Buster and Surge and came to rest in it's usual spot, next to where the Strike normal stood. Chris didn't say anything as he deactivated his machine and climbed out. Once he was out of the cockpit, he tore off his helmet and slammed it into the ground, screaming as he did it. He leaned on the catwalk, his eyes watering.

"Birdie. Birdie." Kira's mechanical pet chirped, flying through the hanger before landing on Chris's head.

Normally, Chris would have swatted the bird off his head. But at the moment, he didn't care. Tolle was gone. Kira was missing. Worse, they were abandoning Kira to save themselves.

Chris slammed his fists onto the railing. He was right there and he didn't do anything. He should have known that the Aegis's pilot would have self-destructed like that. He should have tried to pull the Aegis off of the Strike.

Liz touched his shoulder. Chris turned to face her. There were tears on her face. The two hugged each other as they cried.

Elsewhere, Miri approached the flight simulator that Tolle had spent so much time in. "Tolle?" Miri said, tears in her eyes.

Mu approached the grieving girl. "Where's Tolle?" Miri asked him.

Mu didn't say anything. He hated these situations. He never knew what to say.

"Tolle cannot be dead...He just can't...Because...because..."

Miri collasped to the ground, crying. Mu reached out to her, drew his hand back before he touched her. He instead punched the flight simulator in frustration and grief. There was nothing he could do to help her.

Aboard the Cousteau

"Captain!" Yzak said as he entered the Cousteau's bridge. "Why are we moving?! Athrun, Dearka and Saul aren't back yet!"

"They're all missing, I'm afraid." the Captain said. "And Commander Le Creuset has ordered us to return to base."

"Missing?! What do you mean missing?!"

"What do you think it means?" Zane said, staring at the screens. "Dearka and Saul were likely shot down and Athrun likely killed himself taking out the Strike."

"WHAT?!!" Yzak shouted.

"He grabbed the Strike with the Aegis and then self-destructed." Zane said. "I did see him bail out, but it's unlikely that he cleared the blast radius in time. But he did destroy the Strike and likely the Raven as well."

"Turn this ship around right now!" Yzak shouted. "There's no way that all three of them dead! We don't wear these red uniforms for nothing!"

"Those red uniforms mean that you should be able to make decisions calmly and rationally." the Captain said. "We've been ordered back. Second team has been dispatched to search the area. And we've received word that Orb is also joining in the search for survivors. If they're alive, they'll be found."

Aboard the Archangel

"Well...This is one fine mess we've gotten ourselves in." Saul said.

The two of them had been taken to one of the locker rooms, stripped of their flight suits and dressed in simple white clothes. Their hands were tied behind their backs and a pair of armed guards were watching over them. "Shut up." one of the guards said.

A man entered the room. He wasn't wearing a uniform like the others. Rather he as wearing a dark trenchcoat and pants. But there was something about him that Saul found familiar. But he couldn't figure out what it was.

"More kids." the man said. "You'd think that they would have entrusted those stolen mobile suits to people that were older and more experienced."

"You seem familiar." Saul said.

"I could say the same about you." the man said. "Wait. What's your name?"

"Saul Kessel."

The man started to laugh. "You're Diana Kessel's little brother?! The one she's always complaining about? Yes. Now I recognize you. You're the lazy slacker."

"Hacker. I'm the lazy hacker. What about it?" Saul said.

"You don't recognize me?"

Saul stared at the man. There was something familiar about him, but he just couldn't place it.

"No. Why..." he said as it suddenly donned on him. "Wait minute! Now I recognize you! But you're dead!"

"Okay. I'm confused. What's going on here?" Dearka asked as the man continued to laugh. "You know this guy?"

"Yeah. This prick's the Black Hawk. Commander John Alaric." Saul said.

"What?! No way! You mean the guy that fought the Tiger actually was the Black Hawk!" Dearka said. "Wait a minute! You don't look like the Black Hawk. The Black Hawk had-"

"Longer hair and a beard and mustache? It's called shaving kid. Something you have yet to experience."

"He's Alaric." Saul said. "I met him once, a few months before the war started. It's him."

"But you're a Coordinator. Why are you fighting with the Earth Forces?" Dearka asked.

"I have my reasons." he said. "None of which I have to explain to you two."

"Does my sister know that you're a traitor?" Saul said.

"She knows, along with the entire 11th Fleet as they have been aiding me since my 'death'. And we're more like patriots than traitors. We're simply doing things our own way. As we have always done."

"What do you mean 'doing things our own way'?" Dearka asked.

"There are times when people, who love their nation, must act against it to remove dangerous elements within the nation that don't have the nation and it's peoples' best interests." he cryptically replied.

Alaric turned to the two guards. "Now, the Captain wants us to take them to the infirmary, so the doctor check them over before they're put in the brig."

A few minutes later, the five of them were walking down the halls towards the infirmary.

"Well, at least you got one cute girl on this ship." Dearka said as they approached a group of crew members, one of which was a sad-looking, brown haired girl.

"Must you hit on every cute thing in a skirt?" Saul said.

Dearka ignored him and turned his attention to the girl. "Aw...What's with the tears?" Dearka taunted. "Saul and me are ones that should be crying."

"Well, you should be crying." Saul said. "You got shot down by a single fighter. What kind of Red Coat gets shot down by a fighter?"

"Hey! That was no ordinary fighter!" Dearka said as they continued down the hall.

"Excuses. Excuses." Saul said.

Aboard an Orb Transport Plane

A Few Hours Later

Athrun slowly opened his eyes. Sunlight was shinning through the window, onto his face. He slowly sat up and groaned from the pain of his injuries.

"I see your awake." a familiar voice said.

Athrun turned his head. It was the girl, Cagalli. Holding a gun at him. At the moment, you're aboard an Orb aircaft." she said, moving closer to the bed. "We decided to take you in after we found you lying on the beach."

"What does a neutral nation like Orb, want with me?" Athrun asked. "Or am I in the hands of the Earth Forces now?"

"There's something I have to know." Cagalli said. "Were you the one who destroyed the Strike?"

Athrun bowed his head, unable to look her in the eye. "Yes...That was me."

"What happened to the pilot?" Cagalli desperately asked. "We couldn't find him anywhere. Did he eject like you?"

"He's dead...Because I killed him..."

Cagalli's eyes widened as her arm holding the gun began to shake.

"It's true...I grabbed the Strike with my Aegis and self-destructed. I don't see how he could have escaped."

Cagalli grabbed him by the collar and jammed her gun under his chin. "It was the only option I had left..." Athrun said, raising his head.

Their eyes met as tears slid down Athrun's face. Cagalli slammed him down on the bed and looked ready to shoot him, when she let go of him. "DAMMIT!!" she shouted as she punched a wall while her own tears appeared.

Athrun sat up again. "But why am I still alive?" he said, more to himself than to Cagalli. "I must have gotten out just in time."

Cagalli spun around and pointed the gun at Athrun again. "Or maybe you're the one destined to kill me."

"Kira...took too many risks and didn't always know what he's doing and always cried....But he was kind! He was a nice guy!" Cagalli shouted.

A sad smile spread across Athrun's face. "Yeah...Sounds like he didn't change a bit. He was always like that."

"Did you..."

"He was a sentimental crybaby and he was smart but never thought things through."

"You really knew Kira?"

"Yes...We were close. We were friends ever since we were child. We were the best of friends."

"But then...That's crazy!! If you were such great friends, then why did you kill him?!!" Cagalli said grabbing his collar.

"I don't...I have no idea why either!!" Athrun shouted back as his tears returned.

"We separated as friends and the next time I saw him, we were enemies. I asked him to come with us, over and over. Because he was a Coordinator! Don't you see?! He was one of us! He didn't belong with the Earth Forces!" Athrun said. "But he wouldn't listen! He fought against us! Even hurting friends of mine! Then he killed Nicol!"

"So that's why-"

"He wasn't on my side any more! He was an enemy!! I had know other choice but to kill him!" Athrun said, trying more to rationalize it in his own mind than Cagalli's.

"You idiot!!! How could you have come up with something so stupid?! How could you do something so terrible?!!" Cagalli shouted.

"He killed Nicol! He was fifteen! He loved to play the piano! He only fought to protect the PLANTs! And Kira murdered him!"

"Kira was fighting to protect the people he cared about!! He didn't deserve to be killed!! And by his best friend of all people!!"

Athrun didn't say anything, but a fresh set of tears rolled down his face.

"Someone's killed for killing another! Then that guy is killed for killing him! How is that twisted thinking ever going to bring peace?!!" Cagalli said, crying.

Cagalli held on to Athrun and leaned her head onto his shoulder. Suddenly, the door opened and an old man in an Orb Military uniform entered the room.

"Sorry to interrupt." the man said. "But we received word from the team that recovered the remains of the Blitz. There were no remains within the cockpit. Likely the pilot survived and was captured by the Archangel. I figured that he would want to know."

The news hit Athrun like a ton of bricks. Nicol was alive...He was alive...Then he had killed Kira over nothing...He had killed his best friend for nothing...absolutely nothing...

"What...What have I done..."

The Archangel

Later That Night

"Come on you guys! I'm begging you!" Mu said, trying to get the hanger crews to prepare his Sky Grasper for launch.

"Don't be a fool." John said. "There's nothing you can do for him."

Mu ignored him and started loading extra supplies on his fighter.

"If you some how manage to find the kid, just what then? ZAFT forces are likely still in the area." he said. "You'll be lucky to get to the island without being attacked."

"Commander!" Murrue called out, running towards them.

"At last, someone that can talk some sense into him." John said.

"Give the mechanics some time to rest." Murrue said.

"Have we received any word from Orb yet?" Mu asked.

"No. But-"

"Have we reached Alaska's air defense space?"

"Yes. But-"

"Then I'm going."

"I won't allow it." Murrue said.

"But what if he managed to get out in time!"

"And I would be the first to volunteer to go out and search for him. But right now, that's impossible." Murrue said. "And given the current situation, I cannot permit you to go out alone either."

Noting the change in Murrue's tone, John decided that this conversation no longer for him to be a part of. And he quietly left the two.

"Commander, if you didn't come back and we lost you too...I don't know..." she said, her eyes watering. "Have faith. Pray for Kira. And stay here."

Mu put a hand on her shoulder. "Understood."

Nicol quietly sat on the floor of his cell, writing another musical piece. Chris was a life saver. If he hadn't managed to bring him paper and a pencil, he probably would have lost it a couple of days ago. At least now he could do something to kill time. Chris also frequently brought him his meals and would stay and talk for a while.

His stomach growled. Loudly. Nicol hadn't eaten anything since breakfast. There had been a battle shortly after he had given his breakfast and no one had stopped but his cell since the battle ended.

Suddenly, the brig door opened. Nicol quickly stuffed the paper and pencil under his mattress. A weary looking Chris, holding a food tray, stepped in front of the cell doors. Nicol could tell that something bad had happened just from looking at him. "Sorry about forgetting to bring you lunch. I...There's been a lot going on." he said as he slid the food tray through the slot.

Nicol grabbed the tray began eating with gusto. "The Buster and the Surge were captured in the last battle."

Nicol's eyes widened as he stopped eating. "Are the pilots-"

"They're fine." Chris said. "Actually...They should have been moved into their own cells hours ago. I think I better go ask someone about that."

Chris turned and started heading for the door. "Wait!" Nicol called out. "Was anyone else shot down during the battle?"

"The Duel was damaged but retreated." Chris paused for moment. "The Aegis...The Aegis grabbed the Strike and self-destructed. I don't know if either of them made it."

Chris left the brig without saying another word. "Please Athrun. Be okay." he quietly said, worried about his friend.

Chris sighed as he aimlessly wondered the halls. They had reached the safety of the Alaska Air Defense Zone and ZAFT had given up. They'd reach JOSH-A the next morning. And then...Well he didn't know what would happen when they got there.

Everyone was having a difficult time with Tolle's death and Kira's disappearance. Chris had spent the day alone for the most part. Wondering the halls or just sitting somewhere. Flay had tried to comfort him, but he just wanted to be left alone for now.

He turned a corner and came face to face with Sai as he left the infirmary. Neither he or Flay had spoken with Sai since it happened. But he figured that maybe now would be the time to try to patch things up between.

"Sai." he said.

"...Chris." Sai said as politely as he could.

"I'm sorry about everything. I never wanted or intended for what happened to happen." he said. "I just wanted to help Flay out with her grief over her father's death. But...Well, you know what happened. Again, I'm sorry about this whole mess."

Sai opened his mouth. "I-"

Suddenly, they heard some muffled shouting and a loud crash. It was coming from the infirmary. Chris and Sai ran into the room. The blond haired prisoner was lying on the ground, his hands bound and bleeding from a cut on his forehead. The other prisoner was sitting on one of the beds, trying to break free of his bonds to help his comrade. Standing over the blond was Miriallia, holding a knife. Her face was a mixture of grief and rage.

Both Sai and Chris grab Miri, stopping her from attacking the prisoner again. "What the hell is her problem?!" the other prisoner shouted.

The two teens ignored him, focusing on Miri. "Miri! Stop it!" Sai said as they get the knife from her hands.

"Doing this won't change anything!" Chris added.

"Tolle's gone and he's never coming back!! And yet this creep...What is this scumbag doing here?!!"

"I hate to have to do this." Chris said, letting go of the girl.

A second later, he slapped her. Stopping her. "Is this what Tolle would have wanted?" Chris asked. "Would he have wanted you to kill someone?"

The rage left Miri's face, leaving only her grief. But also caused her loosen her grip on the knife. Chris pulled it from her hand. Miri hugged Sai, burying her face in his shoulder, muffling her sobs. Chris placed the knife on the desk near the door as Sai comforted Miri. Chris then helped the injured prisoner back up onto the bed. "Why don't you take her back to her room." Chris said. "I'll get the doctor to see to this guy."

Sai nodded. "Okay." he said, guiding Miriallia to her quarters. "And I accept your apology."

"You just had to make those stupid comments, Dearka." the other prisoner said once the two were gone.

"Shut up." Dearka said. "How was I suppose to know that she'd react like that?!"

Chris sighed. He felt a headache coming on. "Do I even want to guess what you said?"

The other prisoner chuckled. "Probably not." he said. "When that girl, Dearka started taunting her about how upset she was and how soldiers shouldn't be crybabies. And he made a really bad comment about how maybe she's upset because her boyfriend got himself killed."

"That's what I thought." Chris said, rubbing his forehead. "You know, her boyfriend died in that last battle. And everyone's having a hard time right now. In fact, I wouldn't mind having a piece of you after what you said."

"Hey! How was I suppose to know that!" Dearka said.

"It doesn't matter." the other prisoner said. "That's not something that you joke about! That girl should have cut your balls for that!"

"Hey!! Don't even joke about that!"

Chris rolled his eyes. "Whatever. I'll get the doctor to patch that up." he said, leaving the room.

A Short While

The doctor had patched Dearka's wound and now a pair of guards were escorting them to the brig. Then when they reached JOSH-A, they'd be sent to some some POW camp until the war ended. Something Saul was not looking forward to.

"Saul! Dearka!" a voice called out from a cell as they entered the brig.

A very, very familiar voice. A voice that they shouldn't be hearing. The two ZAFT pilots turned to the first cell. Sitting on the bunk was...Nicol. Alive and well. "N...Nicol...You're alive..." a speechless Dearka managed to say.

Saul started to laugh. "I don't believe it! How did you survive that?! You have got to be the luckiest guy in ZAFT!" he said as a grin spread across his face.

"Move it." one of their escorts said, jamming his gun into Saul's back.

"Okay. Okay. We're moving." Saul said. "Jeez. We just meet a friend that we thought was dead and you guys won't even let us talk to him."

"You two are going into the two cells next to his." the man said. "So it doesn't matter."

The guards opened the second cell and put Saul in it, then they placed Dearka in the third cell. "How did you survive Nicol?" Deakra asked. "I mean that explosion...We all thought that you were dead."

"Yeah. I'm surprised I survived myself." Nicol said. "I guess I was just lucky that the Strike's sword didn't hit the cockpit."

"I'll say." Saul said. "You got a rabbit's foot on you or something. Or maybe you got a four leaf clover hiding in that green hair of your's."

All three friends started laughing. And for that moment, the war didn't exist, nor were they soldiers. Instead, for that brief moment, they were a trio of teenage friends, laughing and joking around.

"We've got a problem!" the infamous Mr. Pink said, bouncing around in the backyard of the Clyne residence.

"Mr. Pink! Don't go there!" Lacus called out as the pink Haro entered the glass sunroom.

The Haro landed on the bed in the sunroom. Lacus followed after it and grabbed it from the bed before it could wake up the boy in the bed. There was a groan and the boy's eyes opened. "Oh. Good morning, Sleepy Head." Lacus cheerfully said.

Kira blinked a few times. "Where...Where am I..."

That's it for now. I don't know why, but I really loved that little jab at Athrun at the end of the scene with Cagalli. It's tossing salt on the wound, but I loved it. You kill your best friend for killing your friend, only to find out the friend you though was dead, is alive. Meaning that you killed your best friend for nothing. Truly the pointlessness of war.

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