Sorry for the long wait, a nasty flu bug has been going around the local area here and first a coworker got sick so I had to cover his shift, then family members got sick so I helped them before finally I got it. I hope you understand why it took longer than normal.
Chapter 14 The Storm Begins
Dawn was still hours away as the front line commander of the Preventers slept on his side his long hair draped behind him as his arm wrapped around his wife from behind holding her close. The bedroom was very quiet apart from the gentle flapping of curtains from an open window and the sound of the night from outside the window. Suddenly Zechs opened his eyes and raised his head scanning the darkened room; it was a standard guest room in a mansion of this size. A large bed, which he and Nion were sleeping on, a few chairs a worktable and a dresser. The room also had a private bathroom that was empty but the Lightening Count's blue eyes turned away from the bathroom door and toward the door leading out to the patio. That is when he saw it a figure sitting at a small table just waiting for him, through the moon light he could make out who it was.
"Heero." whispered Zechs as got out of bed without waking Nion and headed out into the darkness of the night.
"Good evening Zechs." whispered Heero with a coldness in his voice that caused fear to rise up inside the battle hardened commander "I thought we should talk before it happens."
"Heero, I am sorry about your wife. I had no idea what Relena was going to do." expressed Zechs
"I knew, which is why what you saw was a recorded broadcast, Luna is alive. Believe me if she was dead, you would have all died at the table then and there." explained Heero calmly as Zechs sat down across from him.
"I am grateful for that." expressed Zechs
"Also I gave you a false location for the base," added Heero as he looked up at the full moon "We now have all eight beam weapons under our control and aimed at you."
"I see." confirmed Zechs as he looked up the moon as well knowing that the deaths of thousands of people could descend from there at any moment. "There is no way to prevent what is going to happen next."
"No there isn't." said Heero as he tossed a small computer pad over to Zechs. With a single swipe of his finger, he turned on the screen only to see a news headline, with a photo of a mushroom cloud rising from the surface of the moon.
"War." stated Zechs sadly
"War." confirmed Heero "And this is a war you can't win."
"I would beg to differ." stated Zechs
"Tell me have you ever played the Chinese's game of Go?" inquired Heero
"Yes, I have." Confirmed Zechs he had played a handful of times but he preferred chess "Are you recommend we play a game."
"We are already am," countered Heero "I assume you are smart enough to know the strengths and weaknesses of my forces just like I know the same about the Preventers."
"You have a limited number of forces which can be brought into any battle but those who you can bring are the best of the best. Also you have an edge when it comes to technology while we have the edge in numbers." Reported Zechs as Heero nodded his head.
"I estimate that your total mobile suit force outnumbers our own 40 to 1 and ground soldiers are around a 75 to 1." Stated Heero "The Wars have limited the population we can draw upon for war but you have no way to strike at us while we can strike at you with ease."
"This war will be bloody," stated Zechs sadly
"Yes, it will be and when it begins it will begin badly for you." Confirmed Heero as he looked up just as beams of green light shot across the sky seconds later multiple explosions happened. "You fired the first shots with the nukes and now we have fired our warning shot."
"Our missile satellites?" asked Zechs as Heero nodded his head before standing up.
"Now in a few moments you will have a knock at your door, I recommend that you advice your government to give in to our demands and let us take the Coordinators back to our world along with anyone who wants to come with us. If you don't, well I don't think I need to tell you what will happen." stated Heero as he moved toward the edge of the railing, which marched the border between his patio and the next one. Just as Heero predicted a pounding came from the door causing his head to snap toward the door. When he looked back Heero was gone.
The Preventer Military was not having a good morning besides the eight unmanned missile satellites destroyed in the first firing of the moon based beam cannons, the weapons fired three more time until all the unmanned missile batteries where destroyed. The satellites which orbited the Earth and the colonies where designed to shot down any mentors or space trash that threatened them. Within an 90 minutes they had lost all their unmanned satellites, the Zaft forces hadn't fired on any manned stations but that was only because they didn't want to take lives. The Zaft forces also had not fired on the three large space battle stations based off the old Barge design or on MO4 space headquarters of the Preventers and they had not fired on Peace Million II. Even with all this going on they couldn't hold the news media back and they demanded a news conference so at 10 a.m. chairs and two podiums had been set out in the large garden located outside the mansion.
The sound of clicking and the flashing of cameras was at a new high even by normal press core standards as Lacus walked out of the building with Heero a few steps behind her. From another door, President Barker and Relena stepped out. Lacus and Barker headed to their podiums while Heero stood beside where the Zaft, Orb and EA flags had been set up, Relena was doing the same by the Earth Nation and Preventer flag.
"Thank you for coming today." opened President Barker "As everyone is well aware over the course of multiple hours the Zaft forces have carried out an unprovoked attack on the Preventers."
"Unprovoked?" interrupted Lacus with distain in her voice as she shook her head as President Barker glared at her "Mr. President I wouldn't call the response to a nuclear strike unprovoked."
"I am making a speech, this isn't a debate." stated President Barker "You coordinators have launched an attack against our people."
"Arrest the traitor and kill the devil woman!" yelled a voice as a woman pressed through the crowed of security which lined the back of the chairs. The woman held up a photo of a young man with brown hair and even browner eyes, she pointed her finger toward Heero. "That so called hero killed my husband."
"What do you say to this!" came a second voice as a woman stepped up behind the crying woman, when Heero and Lacus saw her their eyes widened. The blonde hair was longer and she was not dressed in a Zaft uniform but she was a perfect match of Stella. Heero and Lacus shared a glace between each other as a look of confusion crossed both their faces, that image was seen as a look of guilt by most of the viewing public. "No answer I expected as much, Mr. President how can we trust these people? One is a crime against God and the other is a traitor to his own race."
Stella could not hide her smile on her face as she believed she had dropped a bomb on the Coordinator and the traitor. For the first time in a long time, Heero was at a loss for words as he looked at this version of his sister.
"Mr. President I call that you arrest these traitors!" yelled Stella as her image was broadcasted around all Earth and Space.
"Traitor." said Heero as he regained his composure. "I find that funny Stella considering the version I know of you is a gundam pilot for Zaft and married to a coordinator."
"What?" asked Stella, confused by the statement. "How could you know my name?"
"On our version of Earth, you are a red uniform Gundam pilot and a member of Angel Squadron along with your husband, brother and his wife." explained Lacus before realizing something she should have asked earlier "Your name is Stella here correct?"
"Yes and I don't care what some traitor on another universe does." snapped Stella as Lacus prepared to speak up again.
"Don't bother Lacus, this isn't our Stella." reported Heero as Lacus nodded her head before turning back to the news conference.
"Calling us traitors or crimes against God doesn't matter when it comes to affairs of state." stated Lacus "Unless you want a war we have to talk to come to some kind of agreement."
"We have come to an agreement," answered the President as Lacus turned her gaze toward the President before she or Heero could do anything three dozen masked men in Preventer special forces uniform moved out from concealed positions, including on the rooftop guns all trained on Heero. "We will arrest you both and all those who came with you. I now speak to those unnatural traitors on Malta and the moon base are not handed over to us within twelve hours we will begin executing these inhuman monsters and their supporters. Any assault on any of our forces will mean an execution at once."
Lacus didn't put up a fight as a special forces member put her into handcuffs while another one put the barrel of his assault rifle to the back of her head. Most the guns had been trained on Heero the entire time and he raised his hand up to chest level as four heavily armed special forces moved forward.
"Stop." ordered Relena as she walked forward past the guards grabbing the handcuffs out of their hands. "Allow me."
Then before the world Relena put the handcuffs on the Legendary Gundam Pilot, after they were on another one walked up and put two leg restraints on him as well. Then with a twist of the wrist pulled a pistol and a knife off their holster on his belt. With Heero disarmed a cheer went up from the press core, Lacus and Heero where lead away with two dozen heavily armed Special Forces, multiple assault rifles where aimed at Heero. Standing there beside the vehicles dressed in their uniforms stood Zechs, Wufie, Trowa and Duo, only Quatre was out of his uniform.
Zechs and Wufie walked toward Heero his head hung low.
"I am sorry Heero, I counseled against this." reported Zechs "The President overruled my objections, I threatened to resign my commission."
"Don't you may be one of the few who have a chance to save lives." Stated Heero
"We are all against this as well." added Wufie as Heero raised an eyebrow as he looked at Wufie "There is no honor in defeating you with a trick, if we were in a mobile suit I would have no issue in killing you for siding with coordinators. But to do it during a peace talk is without honor."
"Where are you taking us?" asked Lacus as they were lead out of the front doors where three armored SUVs and two armed Humvees sat waiting for them. Already the other people that had come with where loaded into the last two SUVs, all of them where restrained.
"Shut up." cursed one of the men as hit Lacus on the back of the head with the but of his rifle sending her to the ground.
"You know this isn't the way, I wanted this to happen." Reported Relena as Heero just looked her straight in the eyes.
"I didn't want this either, but you force my hand." Confirmed Heero "But you force my hand, this means war."
"But a war without you." snapped one of the guards aiming a shotgun at Heero's head. "We have emptied all the hangers around Wing Angel so any self-destruction will not harm anyone."
"Which is what I hoped you would do." explained Heero with a smile which caused Relena's blood to turn cold before turning toward Relena. "Didn't you think that was just too easily, you got everyone we brought with us without a fight. Tell me does that sound like me? You only did my work for me by getting all of us together and collecting our stuff."
Before Relena could say anything she felt a warm splash over the right side of her face and milliseconds later another splash on her left sleeve, she turned toward the first source just in time see a faceless special forces member fall to the ground, his entire head was gone and he wasn't alone. All around her the special forces where being shot in the head or hearts, within seconds half of the two dozen special forces where lying on the cobblestone driveway with bullets through their heads and hearts. Blood was leaking out of their bodies turning the driveway into a red field however the strange thing was that the other guards where not taking cover and some of their gun barrels where smoking. For a moment, she was confused as the guard who had forced Lacus to the ground with the but of his rifle bent down and undid her restraints.
"I am sorry Chairwoman." apologized the man as he helped Lacus up we had to get you out of the line of fire.
"What is going on?" asked Relena as she saw Heero undo the handcuffs while kicking off the leg restraints as if they were nothing.
"Your special forces are really ours." Answered the soldier who had restrained Heero's legs as she ripped off the helmet and face mask to reveal Lunamaria Yuy. "And did you think I was gone as well."
"You bitch…" started Relena only to get Luna's rifle but to her knees forcing her down into the still warm blood. Moments later the rifle but came down again on the back of her head.
"No one put handcuffs on my husband." snapped Lunamaria "Apart from me."
"This was all a set up." confirmed Duo as he looked at the dead bodies lying on the cobblestones.
"Yes, and this isn't the end of it." Stated Heero as the fake Preventer Special Forces got into the vehicles and prepared to head out. Heero grabbed a rifle off a dead man before getting into the passenger seat of the lead Humvee. For a moment he looked out of the window at his friends all gathered there. "Goodbye, next time we meet we will be at open war."
"We know." answered Zechs as the convoy headed down the driveway and out into the streets, pass thousands of protests who did not realize that what they thought was a prison convoy was in fact an escape. Two military police cars moved to the front of the convoy with their lights on to clear the way of any traffic.
"We have to inform the president." Stated Trowa
"I know." Confirmed Zechs knowing he had a duty to do for his nation to report this, so he slowly turned and stepping over the dead bodies. It took him only a few minutes for him to run into the President himself doing a live interview. The President was in the middle of one of his famous walking interview, not that Zechs cared.
"Mr. President Heero and the other captives have escaped," reported Zech's calmly as the President's eyes widened as she ran around the corner with the reporter and her camerawomen behind her. They came up toward the scene of gore. Duo was helping a dazed and confused Relena up, the front of her business suit was covered with blood and she even had some in her hair.
"What happened here?" asked the President
"Turns out those Special Forces we had, where not totally ours sir." reported Zechs calmly.
"And you and the other gundam pilots couldn't do anything?" snapped the President
"Hard to do anything when they outnumber us and they have all the heavy weapons." explained Zechs "They also took the vehicles."
"Well they will pay for this crime. I want to launch the attacks at once." ordered the President.
A few miles outside the compound the Humvees where heading down the road with the military police cars in the lead.
"Admiral, we are getting a report over the radio." Said the driver as Heero shock his head as the Humvee headed down an exit ramp which lead toward the Preventer base.
"I had hopped we would have gotten onto the base before that." admitted Heero as he reached for the radio, he didn't even bother to hid his broadcast he was going to do this in the open.
"This is Admiral Heero Yuy Orb Special Forces Commander of Angel Squadron," said Heero as he took a deep breath. His voice was being broadcasted across multiple channels on Earth and Space, the Preventers where confused by the broadcast while the members of Phantom Squad where waiting for this moment. Gun safeties where being switched off, detonators were being armed, and up in space a massive door was being opened to reveal two glowing golden yellow eyes.
"White Reflection….I say again White Reflection." confirmed Heero before placing the radio back down as the man manning the fifty caliber machine gun on the roof of his Humvee pulling it back and chambering a round. "Wait until it starts then you can fire."
The Phantom member did not have to wait long.
"Scramble all mobile suit for takeoff." yelled the Captain of the Preventer Aircraft carried Yorktown as it sat in the Sicily Harbor, they had gotten a flash message from the Presidential office to scramble their Aries mobile suits. "Heero Yuy is trying to escape and we will not allow him."
"Yes Madam." Reported an aid as he saluted the Captain, all around the bridge people where moving around in a controlled rush as they prepared to bring the Aries mobile suits stored in the hanger below up to the flight deck for takeoff. Then without any warning, the stern of the ship jumped out of the water throwing everything into panic.
"Report!" yelled the Captain as alarms filled the air, before she even got a report she could see smoke rising from the stern and she could tell from the feel of the deck that the ship was listing badly to the stern.
"Sir, the engine room is reporting…" started a crewmember but he never got a chance to answer as a series of powerful explosions went off in quick order. While these explosions didn't take place under the carrier they could be felt by her crew. The Captain looked up with horror in her eyes, as one of the destroyers sitting at dock was literally torn in half by an explosion coming up from below her waterline. People where literally being thrown like rag dolls off ships as one by one the small fleet which was sitting in the harbor began going up like roman candles. Secondary explosions filled the air as missiles and shells rounds exploded inside the ships which minutes ago had been sitting peacefully in the harbor. Sirens where going off, calling the crews to battle stations but it was far too late to do anything. Her shipped rocked again this time even worst then before as the ship began to take on a heavy starboard list.
"Captain!" yelled an aid "We have flooding on all lower decks and the pumps are gone, we are sinking fast."
"Launch all mobile suits we have." ordered the Captain
"But…" strutted the aid
"Anyone not launching the suits abound ship." Ordered the Captain as she turned around just in time to see a cruiser roll over on it's side. She wanted to curse whoever had done this when suddenly the sound of gunfire coming form the shore reached her ears.
On the shoreline preventer ground forces where already in fire fights as the same members of Phantom Squad who had planted the bombs under the warships in the harbor came out of hiding spots and opened fire on the stunned soldiers. These men and women where well trained but they did not have any of the experience that the Phantom has had and they were surprised.
"Get those tanks going!" yelled an officer at the head of a group of men as they ran down a line of parked tanks. The tank crews split off toward their own tanks and quickly the roar of the engines starting filled the air.
"Sir where are the mobile suits?" yelled a man
"They will be moving soon." answered the officer as a tank came around the corner, followed by another.
"Thank God, they are already moving," praised another man until he saw the barrel of the tank take aim at the first tank to start moving. A flash of light showed that the tank had fired and the roaring sound of tank turret flying up in a giant fireball.
"We have a Trojan horse!" Yelled someone before the front firing machine gun opened up on the crews trying to get into their tanks.
On the highway thick black smoke could be seen rising up from the harbor, traffic came to a stop as people stopped to watch the sinking warships. They soon had something else to worry about as the lead Humvee in Heero's convoy opened up on the two MP cruisers in front of them. The MP cars did not stand a chance as the 50 caliber rounds slammed into their bodies, the cars flipped over as the convoy powered through.
"We do not stop until we get Chairwoman Lacus out of harm's way," ordered Heero knowing that this was only the opening moments of a war that he did not want but knew was coming.
Well I hope you liked this chapter, until next time please keep reading. Thanks Wilkins75