Update: Tweaked/rewritten September 2020.

A Bothersome yet Benevolent… Blond?

The arrival back on the Vesalius had been sudden if not unexpected. Eclipse had finished up the Duel at about 0600 and Athrun had already left at around 0530. Zellman had called her to the bridge, explained the situation, and sent her packing in the matter of 20 minutes. Next thing she knew she was wearing the elite uniform and as soon as the ship reached the Homeland she would get a mobile suit, personal space suit, and her first mission.

And all that from a coded message.

Wow.

The repairs were finally finished on the Vesalius and that in itself was quite a feat. Practically no mechanics from Ades's ship survived much of the attack so all who were left were from the Laurasia-class warship. Not very many, but the work was still done quickly and with such little resources. Unfortunately, one of the storerooms had also been hit in the battle.

The Gamow, along with Nicol, Yzak, and Dearka, was ordered to stay behind and try to get hold of the "Legged Ship" or at least stall them until the briefing was done at the PLANTs. Knowing a little about how the three of them acted around each other, the redhead knew that things weren't going to go too well. Nicol had a cool head, but since Dearka and Yzak had such a low outlook on him, she doubted they would take his advice.

Such sad circumstances.

Eclipse knew the reason she was returning to the Homeland, but what she couldn't figure out was why Athrun was ordered back. A few ideas skipped through her mind, but none of them seemed plausible enough.

Oh well, she'd find out soon enough.

As soon as most of the mechanics returned to the sister battleship and the injured secured, the Vesalius left Artemis and its target behind. It wasn't a hard thing to guess that Le Creuset was a bit angry about the summon and even Athrun looked a little shaken. Now being of equal rank—sort of—the weapon felt as if she could ask him some questions respectably this time.

Perhaps.

This particular redhead had an unhealthy case of stubbornness.

The grand arrival back at the PLANTs was short and unnoticed. Only a few officers met the commander and Athrun at the harbor to escort them to the other shuttle that would take them to the Council chamber.

A handful of mechanics went aboard the ship to finish up the repairs. There wasn't much more to do, but restocking was the top priority. The captain left most of the remaining artillery with the Gamow, so fire power was in desperate need as well as food and water.

The injured crewmembers, Carter included, were rolled out on beds and taken straight to the hospital. Having to step aside to let them through, Eclipse glanced down at her mechanic superior as he passed. His injuries weren't fatal, but he'd most likely loose all use of his right hand and have limited use in the arm. Considering the damage done by the sheet of metal, Carter was still said to have close to full motion in his leg once he recovered. Perhaps he was lucky after all, but the blow to his dominant hand might slow him down for a while.

Hands were a mechanic's best friend.

Most of the others weren't so fortunate and just the looks the doctors gave would be enough to make any person lose hope. She took a look at some of the other soldiers nearby who had caught the looks on the doctors' faces and frowned, knowing their confidence would be a bit shaken. She almost felt bad for them at that moment, but just shook her head. It wasn't going to be the last injured person they would see, she knew, so they had better either get used to it, or leave.

Because the Vesalius was receiving the proper repairs now that it was docked, there was no room for Eclipse's new mobile suit (the Aegis was taken out of the ship's hangar as well). Actually, since the stay was expected to be relatively long, the redhead wasn't even allowed to pick it up. Quite depressing, really, since she had been looking forward to that moment and now her patience had to hold out for a few more days.

Captain Ades had remained on the ship to supervise and summoned Eclipse to the bridge around noon. The redhead had stayed aboard as well to help out when ordered, but welcomed the needed break. After a quick stop in the locker room to freshen up, she met him at the bridge. "What is it you need, sir?"

"Ah, Lunar Eclipse, I'm glad you came so quickly. Word on your mission just arrived." He held out a slip of paper that the weapon took and read quickly. "The Vesalius will be around for some time, so I'm sure you'll come back before we depart."

"Sounds about right, sir."

"Good luck, soldier."

"Thank you, Captain." She saluted and was about to leave when Ades stopped her.

"Oh, and Eclipse?" She turned. "Be careful out there. You're a part of the team now and we like our members in one piece. Don't do anything foolish."

"Yes, sir."

The captain watched her go with a small sigh. He hoped his words sunk deep not only for Eclipse's sake, but for the military's as well. Even though he hadn't seen her perform in actual combat, Le Creuset's speeches had made him a tad curious. The commander never gave out praise idly, so she had to be worth the time. ZAFT couldn't afford to lose someone like that.

At least not to a band of rebels.

Don't do anything foolish, huh? Eclipse glanced down at the message in her hand and rounded the next corner to reach one of the nearby shuttle docks. The orders had said she was to meet her fellow teammates near one of the civilian boarding docks, but why she didn't know. Seemed a tad risky.

She had a backpack of provisions across her shoulders with a gun in a holster at her right thigh and two spare magazines in her backpack. Another knife was in a holster around her left ankle and on her other hip. The note had told her to "come armed" and prepare for multiple days away, so she had planned for such and occasion. She just wished she knew how much firepower to bring. She had also brought an extra set of clothes in case her red uniform was too obvious for any sort of covert assignment.

Civilians littered the waiting areas around the terminals and were even scattered out onto the main docking area as some were boarding their shuttles. Considering the time of year and the rather happy expressions on people's faces, Eclipse was quite lost as to why there were so many wondering about.

They were in a war, after all.

The briefing was scheduled to begin in five minutes at her departure shuttle, but when she reached the right one, Eclipse had to look down at the slip of paper again in order to make sure. There was no one around. Either she was terribly punctual or everyone else was just late.

Five minutes wasn't too early by her standards.

The side door swung open as she debated the subject further and out popped the head of a young commander adorning a white uniform. He wasn't a commander of a ship, she knew, his badge showing he was a leader of a team at best. No more than 24 years old, the weapon guessed. "You, soldier, are you the one from Le Creuset's team?" She nodded and the man stepped aside to let her through. "I heard that your ship just docked, is that true?"

"We came in at 0900, sir."

"Oh, well I'm glad you had some time to get a little rest at least."

Rest? the redhead thought, remembering the number of things she had already done that morning.

"Unfortunately, we're still waiting for a few others," the officer went on. "Since there's an assigned amount we can't just leave without them. Well, this is the military so—Ah! There they are!" Three greencoats stopped next to the shuttle, announced their names, saluted, and came inside as Eclipse was sitting down.

The older officer closed the door after about a dozen or more soldiers arrived and cleared his throat to begin. "Good, everyone's here and accounted for." Eclipse took a brief surveillance of the room. There seemed to be a few other redcoats aboard, but no one higher than that, which surprised her. Either ZAFT didn't want to spare any other elites or they weren't as concerned about these rebels as she had originally thought.

"You're one of three groups going to the L4 colony cluster to do some scouting," he continued, pointing to a map behind him. "There have been reports of a suspicious group held up in the area and your job is to find out if the rumors are true. Be armed and ready to defend yourselves, but don't be reckless; we're not sure if the group is hostile or peaceful. You'll be assigned to one of the satellites upon arrival and there's a lot of ground to cover, but be thorough." He looked at each in turn. "You're given about two days to get the area searched and keeping that in mind, I hope you all remembered to grab proper provisions. Each of you will contact by radio and will know each other's exact position thanks to the special frequency emitted by a beacon fitted to each of your suits. That will also help you keep track of who's who when you get to the colonies. There are only twenty of you so any more and you have a stowaway. Five other soldiers and their GINNs will be outside the colonies keeping an eye on things. Don't be afraid to call them in for back-up if the situation requires it.

"That's it. Keep your eyes open, safeties off, and remember your training. Watch each other's back and I'll see you when you return." They all saluted and watched quietly as he handed out a smaller bag of devices and left, leaving the soldiers to think about what he had said. Apparently, that particular squad leader wasn't going to be joining them on their mission, leaving Eclipse to wonder who was the unfortunate leader to command their ragtag group once they arrived.

Sighing, she slumped down in her seat, attempting to get some well-deserved sleep. Time to prove you know what you're doing out there.

"Hey, is this seat taken?"

Apparently, that shut eye would have to wait.

The redhead opened an eye, trying to see the speaker. Obviously, the seat was open; half the aircraft was. It wasn't a large craft, but large enough to spread each one on the team out fairly well, so why did this soldier feel the need to take the one right next to her?

"Good. Then I'll just sit down here." At first look, his hair was a golden blonde color, but upon closer inspection, she noticed it was actually orange and fell to about mid-neck. His bangs were combed over almost comically on the right side, but for some reason, it seemed to fit his angular face. Two emerald eyes sparkled at her momentarily as he sat, a humor there that she could neither place nor understand at that particular moment. He was one of the other redcoated elites of the group and she couldn't help but sigh.

"You're new to that uniform aren't you?" he asked, pulling at the fabric near her shoulder. "There aren't that many elites like ourselves in the military and I thought I knew all of them until I saw you." He smiled, flashing some pearly whites before turning awkwardly in his seat and extending a hand. "I'm Heine Westenfluss, elite pilot and really good with the sword, been in the military for two years, German in some respects, have dashingly stylish hair that stays this way without gel, beautiful green eyes that you seemed to admire." Eclipse blinked, more surprised by his statement than touched emotionally. "Am 18 going on 19," he continued without missing a beat, "but still have a lot of my boyish charm, have a good humor and a tendency to speak my mind, am very stubborn, and let's see what else?"

Eclipse just stared, not even knowing how to react let alone say anything. Who the hell—

"Oh!" He snapped his fingers. "And I'm single."

She made sure her eye roll was obvious after the comment and she noticed his chuckle. Perhaps he was just messing with her?

"And who are you, miss elite soldier?"

She wanted to say merciless killing machine, but after his description it didn't see to fit as well. Glancing down at his hand she hesitated, but finally grasped it firmly and gave it a shake. "I'm Lunar Eclipse."

"That's it? Nothing else? Not even your real name?"

"Nope. The rest is either quite boring, non-existent, or too gruesome for your 'boyish charm.'"

"You so sure about that?"

"Yup."

"Oh." The soldier let go of her hand, but still remained relatively close. "You know, you just sucked all the fun out of my little speech."

"I'm really sorry, but forgive me if I don't shed a tear."

"And you're heartless! Although," he began, narrowing his eyes and leaning even closer. She felt her eye twitch in annoyance. "I think it's all just a ruse. You have five brothers or something that made you so cold?"

"Will you please back off, sir?" Eclipse insisted, pushing him back at arm's length. Because of his persistent scooching, she was practically plastered against the window. He struggled at first, but soon sat back in his seat with nothing more than a shrug. Just a harmless flirt, she thought to herself. Yeah maybe harmless physically but I might need to see a therapist after this flight.

"So, do you?" Heine asked.

"Do I what?"

"Have five brothers."

She nearly laughed, however it probably wouldn't have been out of humor. He was a bothersome little fellow.

But strangely likeable.

"No, I don't have five brothers."

"But you do have at least one, right?"

Eclipse sighed. "Yes, I have a brother, but he's quite an electronic geek. I wouldn't necessarily blame him for my cold demeanor, as you so put it, sir."

"Then who would you blame?"

The redhead sighed again, but what exhausted her the most about the conversation was not his persistence, but his questions. Why did he care? They were on a mission with an objective. Why play this game? Even when she had interacted with Nicol and Athrun in the cafeteria it had been odd. They were in a war, weren't they? Why were so many people suddenly so keen on getting to know her personally? Maybe it's just a facility thing, she thought, turning away to look at the back of the seat in front of her. Maybe others in the military actually expect something more from their colleagues? Should I lighten up too?

"Well?" Heine prodded, noticing that Eclipse was getting lost in some daydream.

Who to blame, indeed… Vindur? The instructors? The place in general? Or maybe it's my own naiveté.

"I don't know," she responded after another pause.

"Man, you are really hard to get information out of, aren't you?"

"Well, isn't that a good thing, sir?"

"Yeah, maybe if I was interrogating you, but I'm just asking some harmless questions."

"The word 'harmless' means different things to different people, sir."

"Man, you're good at that 'cold' bit, and why do you keep calling me sir? Just Heine's fine."

"No, sir, really I'd rather just—"

"No, I insist."

Eclipse sighed, "Yes, sir."

"Man, you suck at this."

"Heine Westenfluss!" the aircraft pilot shouted once he opened the door to the control room, causing the redcoat to literally cringe.

Man, he's animated, isn't he?

"No mobile suits were allowed on the carrier. We already selected the five that are going to follow us."

"But sir, I figured if we ran into trouble it would be nice to have one inside the colony too."

"Yes, but if the renegades got their hands on it what are you going to do?"

"Shoot them before they get the chance?"

The redhead rested her face in her hands shaking it back and forth slowly. Was this all a ruse?

The aircraft pilot just groaned. "We're unloading it and leaving it in the harbor. You'd better hope someone comes and picks it up for you." With that said he pivoted and headed back through the door that he exited.

"Well, that was rude," Heine said as soon as he left.

"Rude, but right," Eclipse muttered, leaning back in her seat again. It was going to be a long trip.

"Yeah, I know, but I was just trying to think ahead. I guess I thought that just in case no one got the message for back-up, we'd still have some kind of fire power that we could use nearby. Stupid idea, I guess." He smiled faintly and hung his head, almost as if he was sorry or about to cry.

Was he that wounded?

"Hey, did you know that I sing?"

Nope.

"Y-you sing?" Eclipse stuttered, trying to comprehend how someone could bounce back that quickly. Even his eyes were sparkling, but definitely not from tears.

"Yeah, you want to hear? I've been working on a song and I want you to tell me how it sounds."

"Not really—"

Yup, a very long flight indeed.

Eclipse couldn't remember the last time she was happy to change into a spacesuit. Perhaps it was the relief of putting on a pilot's suit and not a mechanic one, or the thought of finally being able to prove herself to everyone. Whatever the reason, it wasn't because of the orange-haired pilot next to her. At first the thought of him singing sounded terrifying, but as soon as he began, she found herself slipping into an almost comatose-like state.

His voice was amazing.

He hadn't been able to sing for long, unfortunately, the rest of the ship shouting their disapproval almost immediately after he had begun. His voice still resonated in her mind, however. It wasn't particularly deep and sounded almost in tenor range, but when he hit the low notes, she felt an uncharacteristic shiver.

The lyrics had been just as beautiful and the redhead could only imagine what the music was supposed to sound like. A soft accompaniment echoed in her head, but whether it was the right one, she didn't know.

"We still have about twenty minutes," Heine complained as soon as he had returned from changing, still pouty about his treatment earlier, she gathered. He wore the same green spacesuit as Eclipse, which was startling since they were both elites. Perhaps it was easier to just make them all look alike.

The redhead didn't reply, and Eclipse had vaguely noticed that didn't seem to bother him.

"I wonder why they had us change early," he continued despite her muteness. "I mean, I don't mind, but having you change in a separate room seemed unfair." She felt him glance her way briefly and resisted the urge to respond. "Such beauty should be displayed, not hidden."

Nothing.

"Ugh! Do you ever talk?"

"I don't want to—"

"Finally, she speaks!"

"—encourage you," Eclipse continued, ignoring his outburst. "You don't need any more hot air for that head of yours, sir."

"Blunt... Tell me, how can you end such a statement with 'sir?' Do you honestly talk to your superiors that way?"

"I'd be dead if I did," she muttered, remembering again her experience at the facility. She flexed her right hand and the thought.

"Huh?"

"Never mind."

She tried to ignore him, but she could see his confused look reflected in the widow. It was a strange feeling, she realized. Strange because she just couldn't figure out why he was so curious, especially since they had only just met. Why does he care? Who—no what am I to him? Eclipse thought.

They both sighed and Heine laughed at their synchronization. The weapon just shook her head, hiding her own smile.

"Your beacons should be working automatically, but I want all of you to make sure that your hand-held devices are functioning properly." They all sat quietly as the pilot talked. Some of them wondered who had been flying the craft and, lucky for all the soldiers on board, Heine had been one of the curious ones. He made a point to say something, but after a stern "Don't worry about it!" all the muttering ceased.

Bothersome as always.

Eclipse swung her backpack out in front of her and set it on her lap as she found the contraption that the pilot was talking about. The thing was small (about the size of her cell phone) and circular with some sort of grid on the front. Two dials framed the device; one on the top and another on the right side. The right one moved the screen up and down, while the other moved it left to right. A button on the left side zoomed in on the target (a large, white, blinking dot in the middle of the screen).

Basic design, low technology, fool-proof, and yet someone still couldn't figure it out.

"You have got to be kidding me," Heine groaned, throwing his head back with the effort. "There's three buttons! Our urinals are more complicated than that!"

Thank you, Heine, the weapon thought. A few off to her left muttered their own insults, but talked a little softer than the elite. Of course, their superior heard the elite's remark and glared his way, but nothing more than that. Lucky bas—

"We're dropping two pairs off at the two smaller colonies and three pairs at the two larger ones. As I mentioned before, you're all given two days to scout out your respective, so don't be quick, but don't be too slow either. At 2100 hours two days from now, meet at the same hangar we drop you off. We will then proceed picking up each of you and go through the information that you found. Each group is going to be given a main radio that will contact you both to the outside GINNs as well as to the carrier. Report in your status periodically and any new information that you acquire. Now, your groups are…"

Why do I have a feeling I'm going to get stuck with Heine? Eclipse thought with a long sigh. Her life so far had been full of awkward circumstances so what would make this time any different? I'm sure I'd kill him within the first night. Then again, that might be doing him a favor, or at least his superiors.

"Alright!" Heine suddenly cheered, slinging an arm around Eclipse's shoulder. "I get to sing you to sleep!"

"W-what?" the redhead stuttered. She had been so lost in her thoughts that she didn't even hear her name being called. Not like she needed to. And lucky her, she was one of the first teams announced. That meant she would be in one of the smaller colonies and glancing at the other pair of greencoats with them, she assumed be doing most of the work. Heine might do his share, but the other two were just rookies, straight out of the academy; probably had the highest markings in recon.

She sighed.

Like Eclipse figured, her and Heine (along with the newbies) were the first ones to be dropped off. The pilot said his last words, saluted, and sped the carrier away almost immediately. The port was relatively clear of debris other than an assortment of crates near the main entrance. There seemed to be gravity, which came as a little bit of a surprise, but there was still no guarantee there was oxygen so they all kept their helmets on.

Heine introduced himself to the two others recruits, learning their names and memorizing their voices if they had to talk over the radio in the near future. Both were about Heine's height, so a little taller than Eclipse. The one on his left, named Rait, had a higher voice than the other and a soft, but evident London accent. The other, Joab, had a very low voice, almost a second bass by singing standards. His wouldn't be hard to pick out either.

And then there was Heine. Thanks to his constant blabbering, she had his voice memorized.

Observing them a while longer, the weapon almost laughed. The rookies looked so scared at first, but after a while they started chuckling nervously at the singer's jokes. They were poorly executed, to say the least, but perhaps that was because Eclipse had such a low outlook on the comedian.

"Right, let's leave the port and see what we can find," Heine announced, leading the way to the large door on the far wall. After he pressed a few buttons, the door opened and they all, surprisingly, found themselves cringing from the light. They hadn't expected the colony to be so functional the weather systems were still active. It was morning, they assumed, and the light was coming through the large windows at the other end of the shuttle port. The building they had walked into look a lot like the airports found on Earth, rows of chairs stacked side-by-side and separated into separate gates. A moving platform was actually functioning in the middle of the hall and it wasn't until she noticed what looked like two greencoats with backpacks and rifles in the distance quickly approaching their position did she start to get nervous.

The door shut behind them.

"Are you all from ZAFT?"

Question was, were they?

"Ye—" Rait began, but was silence by Heine with an upraised hand.

"Who are you, soldier?" he asked instead, not wanting to give away anymore than their appearances already have.

"We're from ZAFT, and judging by your suits, I presume that you are as well. Are you here to relieve us then, sir? We were sent here three days ago with no message of pick-up. Our rations ran out about a day ago, so we're a little anxious to be rid of this hellhole," replied the one on the right. He seemed to be the talkative one of the pair.

"We haven't heard anything of another team being here. Can I see your IDs?" Heine continued, walking over to the pair and holding out a hand. Eclipse stood a step behind him, her hand on the handgun on her thigh. Hm, maybe Heine does know what he's doing.

"Of course," the right replied, fishing out his first and then turning to the other. "You'll see that they're authentic, of course. These things are impossible to copy."

"Yes, I know the records, but please, humor me." The redcoat took the cards offered, made a quick check of the identities, and then turned away. "You two, take their weapons and stand guard."

"Sir!" the greencoats replied, doing as they were told.

He pointed at Eclipse and jerked his head to the side. She hesitated, waiting for the soldiers to be patted down and the others to put a gun on them before following him. "What do you make of it?"

"Them or the IDs?" she asked, glancing at the four. She really didn't like leaving the rookies with two possible enemies. For all they knew these two were part of the renegade gang.

"Both. Their faces seem to match these, but the only way of knowing is by doing a full DNA testing."

"We don't have the time or the resources to do that much."

"That's obvious."

"Are we sure that the IDs are real? The only way I know of testing them is by cutting them in half and glancing at the computer chip inside."

"You mean look at the manufacture on the chip, right?" Eclipse nodded. "That may sound fine and dandy, but how do you propose we do that?"

The weapon glanced over at the four again. "I don't know, sir, but I really don't like this."

"Me neither, so let's do something fast."

"Fine, here. Hold this."

"Huh?"

She gave him one of the IDs and aimed her handgun at the corner. "You sure you want to hold it in front of you like that?"

"Are you crazy?"

"Probably, but do you have any other suggestions?"

Heine sighed. "No."

"Good, then either move it or your face will look a little lopsided without half of it there."

Holding it out at arm's length, he shifted his fingers to the furthest corner and closed his eyes. It's not like Eclipse was going to fire at him, so why was he so scared?

"You'd better have a firm hold on that thing. I really don't want to go chasing after it if it flies away."

"Yeah, yeah. Just shoot."

She was about to make another sarcastic remark, but knowing they were short on time, she held her tongue.

Lucky Heine.

Pressing the barrel against the far corner, she fired. The bullet cut cleanly, which was expected, and the redcoat shared a few colorful words. That was also expected.

"Tell me, sir. How can you be an elite if you're so afraid of guns?"

"I'm not afraid of them, just don't like how you're so quick to resort to them."

"What would you have done then?"

"It doesn't matter now. Here," he shoved the card at her, "finish what you started."

There was no need. After the echo of her shot faded, two more sounded in its place. Turning, Eclipse saw the prisoners each with a gun and the two newbies on the ground in their own blood. So, her gut feeling had been right after all. Damn, she couldn't afford to make that mistake again.

"Nice shot," one congratulated, presumably the one who always speaks.

"Yes, that went clean through to the other side."

"I guess they don't make helmets like they used to."

"Drop 'em," Heine hissed, slinging out his own firearm.

"My, my, so their powwow's finished is it? I'm actually quite surprised how this turned out, Eclipse. From what we remember about you, this seems sloppy," the main soldier said.

Eclipse pointed her own gun, masking her confusion with the movement. Remember about me? From where?

"What do you mean by that?" Heine asked.

"Oh, come now, this is boring," he continued, ignoring the question. "Why don't you put your toys away and play 'Follow the Leader' with us?"

"I'm not up for games," the redhead spat, receiving a nod from her partner as well.

"Aw, that's a shame. And we have somewhere nice and cozy to show you," complained the quiet one.

A smirk or two was shared before Heine finally spoke up again. "Sorry to spoil the hospitalities, but since neither of us are going to lower our weapons, I advise that we either come to an agreement or Eclipse and I will get that DNA sampling that we were just talking about." Eclipse found herself blinking in amazement after the threat. If it wasn't for the handgun, she probably would've given him a pat on the back or something. It wasn't bad.

"Now, that I believe, but the girl'll be the only one walking away if that happens. Her trigger's faster than mine and her aim dead on. I'd probably panic and miss a vital area, so I'd be dead and she'd shoot my partner here before he got a chance for a second shot. You, however, would be dead after his first try." The talkative soldier shrugged, adding a small chuckle at the end for flavor. "Just a lot of needless violence, if you ask me, but then again, that's what you were made for, eh Eclipse? Being left alone wouldn't bother you."

The redhead's eye twitched slightly. She could've fired and it most likely would've gone down like he narrated. Then again, maybe not. If she—

"Don't," the quiet one ordered, noticing her inner struggle.

Eclipse hesitated again, sure of her ability, but a part of her still didn't want to get Heine killed. She wasn't sure if she'd ever live that one down. Why she suddenly cared for him was beyond her, but maybe it was because she didn't want to make the same mistake twice.

She didn't want to get any more of her comrades murdered.

After a few more moments, she lowered her gun. "What's this? The great Lunar Eclipse is surrendering? What a twist of fate," chided the leader.

"Who are you?"

"All in good time, my dear. C'mon, I'm still up for a game of 'Follow the Leader.' Spencer, take the lead, would ya?" The other nodded, walked over to get the redcoats' weapons, proceeded to unload them, and turned while his partner bound their hands with rope.

Eclipse followed close behind Spencer and then Heine behind her. At any other time, they might look comical, but at the moment Eclipse was doing her best to stay calm and not do anything rash. A fierce rage was burning deep inside of her and she knew that if it consumed her, neither she nor Heine would be getting out of the colony alive. Everything was going fine until she looked over and saw the pieces of their handguns discarded on the ground.

She really had to learn to act on her impulses.

The two renegades, Spencer and Rya by name, escorted them to an old hotel about a half hour from their drop-off point. The place wasn't falling apart like the many other buildings still left standing, but most of the bricks were missing in some areas. It didn't look stable, but apparently the people inside didn't feel the need to be afraid. Perhaps they knew something that Heine and Eclipse didn't.

"Welcome to SIN-ED," Rya said, sweeping his arms in an exaggerated display of pointing.

"Great. What the hell is that?" Heine muttered to his partner, but Spencer heard.

"All in good time," he responded, a coy smile across his lips.

"You really need to stop saying that. What, did you watch some lame kidnapping movie before you—" Eclipse stopped abruptly, letting Heine smash into her. He let loose a loud "Umph!" as he hit, and stumbled back a few inches before Rya steadied him again. At least it shut him up.

"That female friend of yours is right, y'know. I'd keep your mouth shut," the soldier laughed, pushing Heine back ahead of him. Reaching out, he opened the door and bowed politely as he gestured them inside. "Hostages first."

"You're too kind," Eclipse retorted.

The inside of the hotel was a lot better furnished than the outside. Red velvet chairs littered the main common room with small, but sturdy coffee tables between them. Black and green carpet marked a path to the reception desk at the far end of the room, surrounded by wooden flooring on each side. At the very top of the ceiling hung an intricate chandelier, lit by light bulbs. It was the only light in the room, but there was no need for more. The balcony and staircase wound up to the prisoners' right, stretching to the second floor before continuing its ascent.

It was definitely a ritzy place back when it was still open.

"Wow, isn't this unexpected? Rya, you're a tad early." Eclipse stopped and looked over at the individual sitting on one of the couches. Luckily, Heine anticipated the move that time and stepped aside before he hit. "We thought it would've taken longer, given the target. Spencer, please untie them and for goodness sake let them take off those stifling masks; there's oxygen here."

Spencer nodded and undid Eclipse first, barely getting the ropes off before she threw the helmet to the side and lunged at the man on the couch. "FS!"

A/N: Hey guys! Gotta love school and all the insistent homework! See, I don't know if I should blame my classes for not allowing me to write, or thanking them for letting me write while the professor lectured. Tough choice that one. Anyway, I'm sure you can all tell that it was a little hard for me to get into it. The beginning's really choppy and short, so I apologize for that. The only thing I was really for sure about this chapter was that Heine was going to make a grand appearance. Heine! Can you believe it? Who else is as stoked as I am about that? He had such a small role in Destiny, but he really stuck out to me. It helped too that he was based off of T.M. Revolution (One of my favorite artists). Well, I was really mad he only had three episodes and four panels so I'm having him play a bigger role in the series. Yay!

I know, I know, the ending's really predictable, but hey, sometimes predictable is good. Bringing back my original characters is going to be a blast and seeing what they're going to do now will even be more fun. I have about two more original characters to bring in yet and let's just say that if one of them meets Heine, I feel sorry for all those in the vicinity. Hm, actually that can go different ways for each OC. Interesting...

Okay, let's see a show of hands. Who noticed the "beacon detector" has a striking resemblance to the "Dragonball radar" in Dragonball Z? Hah! That wasn't intentional at first, but it kind of just turned out that way.

Oh, and here's another question: was anyone surprised by Heine's appearance? The good surprised, or the bad surprised? Let me know!

A thanks to all the readers and reviewers out there. I hope you'll all stick with me and forgive my long breaks. School is weighing down, but somehow I always semm to have time for my Weapon's Waltz. I hope you enjoyed the chapter and see you in the next one!

Darkangelsonic: The real Eclipse is definitely hidden deep and there's really only a few people who can bring her back again, but I have a feeling that shell of her's is cracking. Or is it growing thicker? I guess we'll just have to find out in the next chapter.

CSS Stravag: Hah, you're right in saying it's nice to see someone that follows orders. We don't need another person with the "Kira complex" or anything.

Death-Scimitar: Always a pleasure to hear from ya even if it's twice in a row. Heh. I feel sorry for that '/ key' of yours. Is it feeling better? I'd hate to have it hold a grudge against you just because things got a little out of hand. If you need any counseling help, let me know.

Strata