Time to Heal

Chapter 7: Revolution

DISCLAIMER: I do not own anything pertaining to the Gundam franchise.

SEPTEMBER 23, CE 71

'That man thinks he's a saint, people like him send the commanders to impossible missions.' Natarle couldn't help but feel disgust at the thought of Azrael. She felt like she had done an injustice to her crew and mankind by allowing the Alliance to do this. They are the enemy, but they are still human. She didn't care if took her command from her as long as she convinced someone to see that what they are doing is wrong. She turned on the computer.

"Both of you need to know that today we attacked Boaz, but we used nukes. According to early calculations by ZAFT is that nearly 7,500 soldiers have been killed today. I would be surprised If ZAFT doesn't retaliate with nukes or something worse. I just hope that today put some doubt into the members of the Alliance; they need to question orders now more than ever. This isn't something that any soldier signs up for and I can't stand idly by as this happens. Azrael was amazed at the downfall of Boaz, I wonder if he thinks about the consequences of what we have just done. Not only have we put humanity at risk, but we have just made the Alliance look like monsters. The bridge was quiet when we left the battlefield; everyone else knew what we had just done, except that monster. Flay, the girl from a while ago, is extremely scared. She knows that something else will happen. We both just hope we stop it before humanity is lost. What would happen if this ship deserted today, would we look like heroes or traitors?"

She stopped the recording and thought about today. There is no way that ZAFT won't strike back, the Alliance was lucky when they didn't retaliate after Junius Seven. Would ZAFT attack the Alliance fleet or would they just strike Earth. She would stop any attack against Earth but she believes that maybe the Alliance needed an example of what would happen because of nukes.

PRESENT TIME

'So that is how Natarle felt about the attack. I never got to see her after Mendel.' Murrue felt happy that Natarle felt terrible about the alliance using the nukes. That meant that at that point she wasn't too far gone, she didn't need Azrael to pull the gun to react against the injustices he had done. Natarle had changed and hoped that her crew had changed. Boaz had caused Natarle to think about deserting, but Murrue wanted to know if GENESIS would cause her to think about stopping that genocidal maniac. She opened the next video.

SEPTEMBER 26, CE 71

"Goddamn psycho!"

Natarle hoped someone had heard her shouting and she hoped that she was not the only one feeling the same. Estimates of the death toll were well over 10,000 and Natarle felt responsible for every death. She hadn't stopped the use of nukes within her group of ships and they used those nukes on Boaz. Low and behold, ZAFT had created a monstrous device, GENESIS, and used it on the two fleets that were sent to attack Yakin Due and the PLANTS. She could have prevented some of the deaths, if that bastard had allowed them to provide help to the damaged ships. She got the video program started she didn't know if she could this without crying. She had lost people and it was all her fault.

"ZAFT has just used a weapon against us today; it destroyed most of the two attacking fleets. I am responsible for the deaths of 10,000 soldiers. I couldn't stop the use of nukes and now members of my fleet are paying for it with their lives. Radiation from the attack is causing more deaths to occur. Azrael wants the rest of the fleet to attack again, but if we do then we will be wiped out. Azrael is making this harder than it has to be, we could be fighting alongside the Archangel, but he is focusing on destroying the PLANTS, not that weapon. He won't let our ship help the injured on other ships; he says that we don't have time. How can we not have time to help those that can still be saved? When I offered to provide assistance he called me 'stupid woman', like a little kid he is just scared and lashing out. The rest of the war is going to be like this death and destruction; I have to think about what I need to do to help end this with less bloodshed. I need to go and survey the damage to the rest of the fleet and see what repairs can be done in the short amount of time."

Natarle left the room and went to see how Flay was doing. She had seen how scared Flay had been when they left the battlefield. She knocked on the girl's door, "Flay…"

"Come in," she could barely hear through the steel doors and headed in. Flay was sitting up in the bed, eyes bloodshot, she had been crying.

"Flay, I came by to see how you were holding up. I know that what you saw was extremely frightening, hell it scared me. But if you need to talk I am her for you," Natarle said as she gave the girl a supportive hug.

"It scared me, but I knew you would know what to do. How much longer do you think we will be fighting? I don't think it could last much longer," the girl said. Natarle could see that the girl had grown up a lot since she had last been on the Archangel. Maybe she had seen enough death to make her grow up.

"I won't allow it to continue for much longer something has to be done, someone has to be stopped. If we don't stop the war soon there will be no one left to enjoy the peace."

Flay stared at amazement at Natarle, was she standing up against the Alliance or was she going to go all out against ZAFT? Flay hoped that the latter wasn't the one Natarle was thinking about. Natarle had changed and in a good way, It was something she had noticed when Natarle started to treat her as a little sister.

"Thank you, Natarle, for everything."

"It isn't a problem. I should have done something a long time ago. In fact I should be thinking you. If you hadn't come on the Dominion I would be like the other captains, blind to the injustice we have been doing. Thank you," Natarle bowed to the girl. She knew what to do.

PRESENT TIME

So that's what the monster had done. Azrael hadn't allowed for the injured to get better treatment on board the Dominion. Natarle hated herself for allowing so many of her subordinates to be killed in retaliation for something that she could have stood up against. 'Two more, they are both marked September 27. What was Natarle thinking on the morning of the final battle? Had she guessed she wouldn't survive or what? ' She clicked on the second to last video. 'Here goes, what were you thinking Natarle.'

SEPTEMBER 27, CE 71

'This is it, the battle that will decide the victor and how history will be written. Depending on the outcome either side could be heroes or villains.' Natarle hadn't slept; she couldn't because she knew that she needed to intervene today. Would she stop Azrael or go against the entire Alliance. She started the computer and finally knew what to do.

"Mom, Dad, I know what needs to be done. Although both of you will disagree with what I'm going to do. I am going to stop Azrael today so that peace can be achieved. I don't care what happens after I start, but I know that I won't stop until he is stopped. I might get killed on sight for this type of treason, but I will be able to face my friends, my crew, and the rest of the family with a little less blood on my hands. I am going to protect my crew and the Earth. I am going to do what the kid did, I am going to fight for my friends even if it kills me. If I don't see you again I hope you know that I love both of you and I didn't let the 12,500 soldiers die in vain. I will help stop this war."

Natarle shut off the video. Since she had started the videos she had just saved them to her computer to send to her parents later, but she knew what to do with them. She used the backdoor into the Archangel mainframe, something she would have to thank Arnold for, and saved them on the database there. She hoped that if the something happened to her that Murrue would send the videos to her parents. She has the cameras on the bridge recording since Boaz; each recording would automatically save onto the Archangel's database after a minute, keeping the video as up to date.

Natarle sat at the computer; she had one piece of business left to do. She started another video.

"Murrue…"

TO BE CONTINUED

AN: To clear up some confusion. Arnold has not seen the nine videos, only the one of Natarle's death. I realized that in episode 49 Natarle had seemed a little extreme, I don't think that Natarle was an extremist. But hey she is my favorite character in the Gundam Seed series, so I am a little biased. Oh well. Thanks for the reviews and I hope you enjoyed this chapter. I will update tomorrow. Thanks