Update: Tweaked/rewritten October 2020.
Everything's a Piece of Shit
Athrun's escapade—thank goodness—didn't cause as much of an uproar as the team anticipated. Well, at least in the grand scheme of things. Yzak and Dearka went off every now and again, making a few jokes about the event, but that was normal, leaving the other three redcoats to wonder if they would ever change.
Eclipse grumbled about that on the way out to see her machine. Apparently, the mechanics had been so eager to see the Stealth they had been running random tests almost nonstop since they had landed. The good thing about the intervention was the little things on her suit that needed adjustment were—well—adjusted, but now she had to go back and make sure everything was up to her standards.
After all, she was still a picky pilot.
"Glad to see you finally showed up," one of the mechanics yelled, motioning the redhead over to the computer. "Your suit is one fine piece of shit."
"Is that a good piece of shit, or a bad piece of shit?" Eclipse asked, standing next to the younger guy. He had blonde and spiky—on the verge of comical—hair with fair skin and brown eyes. The rolled-up fabric on both his arms and legs only added to the sight, having him look more like a farm boy than a top mechanic. Actually, the redhead thought the look suited him.
"A good piece of shit, of course."
"I never knew a 'piece of shit' to be a positive phrase."
"You haven't? Ever taken a dump?"
"What the hell are you two talking about?" Dearka asked, reluctantly entering the conversation. He debated staying out of it—not really knowing why it was going in such a direction—but had a sudden 'Prince Charming' moment and felt he had to save the fair damsel.
Hah, don't say that to her face.
"Nothing," the redhead responded.
"Shit," the mechanic said at the same time, smiling smugly about the whole ordeal. Extending a hand, he shook Dearka's hand and then Eclipse's. "Szell Dekker, kick ass mechanic and in your ass blunt." His smile was priceless, on the verge of overly charming with innuendoes clenched between his pearly whites.
Damn mechanics.
Both redcoats digested their inevitable migraines before they dared to respond to such an introduction. "Are you any way related to that mechanic at the Gibraltar base?" Eclipse asked, slowly seeing some similarities. If the language wasn't enough of a giveaway.
"Yuppers, he's my uncle."
"Can I fire you?" She turned to Dearka for confirmation, but he merely shrugged.
"Hey now! I resent that. So, changing the subject away from my—uh—potential demotion, you wanna check out what we did to her?"
"Is she still a virgin?" Dearka asked, totally straight faced.
"Dear God, it's spreading," Eclipse groaned, turning away from the two in complete dismay. Holding a hand to her head she could just feel the pounding headache forming. And it was only 10 in the morning.
"N-no, I-I mean you haven't taken her out yet, right? Aw c'mon, stop looking at me like that! Is this your first test run?"
The redhead nodded slowly, not wanting to make any stupid remark and push the conversation any further down this ridiculous direction. The blond elite smiled, relief flashing across his face as soon as his point was made and even understood. This girl took things too literally sometimes. Frustrating all her comrades, of course.
Eclipse—after digesting that entire conversation—really didn't want to know what he did in his spare time.
And in the Buster for that matter.
"Yes, she's still a virgin and ready to be taken for a ride. How about it?" Szell asked, the smile never leaving his fair lips.
If the redhead wasn't so stunned, she would have knocked him senseless by this time. "Yes, I'll be taking the Stealth out. Now, can we stop with all the sexual references? I'm really getting tired—"
"She's taking her out everyone! Stealth will be ridden after all! Three cheers!"
I give up, Eclipse groaned, throwing her hands up in defeat.
Dearka couldn't withhold his grin anymore, finding Eclipse's frustration terribly amusing and the looks on the faces of the other soldiers was just as priceless. It had been a while since he had had that much fun. Well, other than making fun of Athrun. "I'll man the computer from here, if you don't mind me sticking around."
"Sure—yes—please. Judging by the others here, you're probably the only sane male in the hangar at the moment."
"That might actually be a compliment."
The redhead smiled and waited until the blond left to put a hand to her right ear. "Coffee Addict, status report."
"Stealth reporting. Adjustments made to Scylla and the operating system is updated. Mirage Colloid is full and battery charged, but may be unstable. Energy output on beam sabers adjusted, may need more maintenance."
"So, basically, the OS needs a lot of work."
"Affirmative."
Sighing, Eclipse cut the transmission and walked towards the lift. "Just let us know when you're ready to take off," Szell called from the hangar floor.
"I plan on making a few more adjustments to the OS and then take her out. Standby for now."
"Roger that."
At least they take orders well, she thought and pulled back the lever. Ascending, she took a quick look at the physical condition before jumping into the cockpit. Things look all right from out here, but what the hell did they screw around with on the inside? The redhead paused and shook her head. Oh my, now I'm going on with innuendoes. "Coffee Addict, beginning maintenance."
"Finally finished?" Dearka called from the floor computer, tapping impatiently on the keyboard. It had only been 15 minutes, but still the blond was getting bored just standing around waiting to begin the test run. He hadn't bothered to check out the Stealth yet, so this was going to be his introductory course into the newest model based on the prototypes.
"Just a few more minutes," Eclipse replied, sticking her head out of the cockpit to answer and then disappearing back inside.
Dearka could only sigh. Well, at least he had some time to actually look at the Stealth. Yzak had been talking so highly about the suit, but it looked like nothing more than a mix of all the prototypes. It had the large firing capabilities of the Buster, the Mirage Colloid like the Blitz, the Scylla—although a small version of—like the Aegis, and the maneuverability of the Strike. The only machine not embedded into the unit was the Duel. Maybe we'll say the pilot is like the Duel's. Yeah, that's right; a real patchwork.
"Finished, detaching maintenance wires and battery cable."
"Roger that, unhooking from down here as well," Dearka responded, slipping on the headset near the console. "Communications check."
"Feels like déjà vu," Eclipse muttered from her end. "At least we have no AWOL commanders to chase after."
"Amen to that. Did you want targets set up?"
"Nah, I'll just check the maneuverability and HiMat wings. The OS is updated in here, so I'm assuming the weaponry works well."
"Assuming might be a bad thing."
"Trust isn't always a bad thing, Dearka."
The blond just shrugged and watched the machine walk out the hangar door. He couldn't argue against that. "Alright, systems check."
"All systems normal, battery output acceptable. Ready on this end."
"All green here. We're following you out."
"Roger that." Eclipse walked the Stealth out towards the harbor, not willing to have any bystanders get in the way. Flipping a small switch on the control pad near her right hand, she initiated the HiMat system and could feel a small amount of excitement—or was it anxiety?—chill up her spine. Two, mechanical wings erupted from the Stealth's back stretching behind the unit to about the same height as the mobile suit itself. Another switch and those wings opened, four, metal feathers breaking apart to make the mobile suit look like a crow against the fair sky in the background.
"A fallen angel sounds so cliché," Dearka muttered as he stared at the suit, but her next transmission pulled him away from his insistent gawking.
"Stealth heading out."
"Roger that, Stealth, you're clear, but Eclipse, be careful, alright? I don't trust this new flying system. It may look flashy but—"
"That's what these test runs are for, now stop being a pansy," the redhead retorted, however, she couldn't blame him. She was having her doubts about this flimsy wing system as well, but would never let it show like Dearka had.
And she was the one in the cockpit.
Stepping down on the pedal, the thrusters powered up, lifting the machine into the air in the matter of seconds. Holding her breath, Eclipse steadied herself at about 500 feet, awaiting the sudden plummet back to earth. Luckily, that never happened, the individual feathers emitting their own thrusters and making small adjustments according to the air currents. "So, it works?"
"You doubted it?" Szell asked from the other end of the transmission.
The redhead just ignored him. "Dearka, how do things look from down there?"
"Everything looks normal. Try to do some simple maneuvers."
"Affirmative." Taking his advice, she pushed forward and did some zigzag moves along with some other ascent and descent tricks to make sure everything was working correctly. And things were still normal. "Alright, time to have a bit of fun."
"Huh?" the blonde asked.
"Stealth is getting creative."
"Heh, roger that." Dearka chuckled, leaning sidelong on the console and watching the screens. If anything went wrong, he would be the first to know, but the amusing remarks Eclipse made from the cockpit were just as interesting. Her maneuvering wasn't half bad either—some mechanics even whistling in appreciation—but when the screens started flashing red, they all had to break out of their daze. "Eclipse, your altitude—"
"Boosters failed. Battery life running low. Damnit, what happened?" Fiddling with the controls, the redhead brought up the OS. "Transferring energy from—Ah! Shit!"
"Initiate the Hydrogen Fuel Cell!"
"I'm working on it!" Eclipse hissed. "Coffee Addict, maintain altitude. In—"
"The Stealth's still falling," Szell reported, pulling the binoculars from his eyes. Leave it to him to state the obvious and in such an unprofessional way. He sounded almost amused. "Well, at least she's over water."
"Can't you be a little more serious?" Dearka spat, typing vigorously on the console.
"Why? It's like she said, this is what test runs are for. Well," the mechanic began, sighing when the Stealth hit the water, issuing a tidal wave that may have been pretty in any other situation. "This might be the first time we've had to repair a mobile suit before it went into battle."
"This is ridiculous," the blond groaned, never even noticing the suit go down until Szell had opened his big mouth. "She's gonna be pissed."
Eclipse glared at the young commander, cursing the hour he came in to "check up" on her and the Stealth. The only thing they had been doing since he walked into the hangar was argue; argue on how the Stealth was supposed to be programmed, why the test run failed so miserably, and how much trouble this was going to cause him as her superior officer.
Damn frustrating.
Athrun had walked into the hangar just as the Stealth was pulled out of the harbor and standing back against the wall for repairs. Neither Dearka nor Eclipse knew why he had decided to come in and observe, but it had been Hell ever since he walked over to the controls. Dearka, wanting nothing to do with some touchy redcoats, had retreated back to his room for a nap. Eclipse had almost begged him to stay—not wanting to confront their commander alone when he was in such a foul mood—but he had snuck off too soon. Even Szell muttered something and fled to fix another machine. Cowards.
"I said this should be like this," Athrun muttered, pulling the keyboard away from the redhead and typing in another sequence.
Eclipse knew why she was so pissed off—blame a failed test run—but the pilot's attitude seemed out of the blue. Maybe he's just exhausted, she decided, but nearly screamed a second later when he basically changed all her adjustments. Or he's just looking to get killed. "What're you doing? I just did that, but my way was faster. Here, look."
"No, no. You miss so many other things when you take shortcuts—"
"No offense, sir, but I've been doing it this way for the past year and the machines have been running just fine. If you'll just let me—"
"Yes, it may work like this on the battlefield, but when you finally have time to sit back and relax, going through the whole thing will help you out so much more," Athrun explained, beginning to redo the entire OS.
Eclipse glared on his right, standing stubbornly with her arms across her chest and a foot tapping impatiently on the floor. It was a good thing they were at ground level or his remains would have been rotting on the cement by then. "Is this a good time for me to tell you I've been doing shortcuts on your Aegis ever since I started taking care of the thing?"
"You what?"
"Yeah, back in space, I really didn't give a damn if there was one more zero in the sequence or not. So, tell me, how's it been running since then?"
"If I said 'like shit' would you believe me?"
"Like what?" she screeched, her fists now curling into fists at her side. If he didn't start thinking before he talked, this pilot was going to get a good whooping. She didn't care if he was technically in charge now.
"Hey there, what'cha doing?" Nicol asked, walking up to the duo quite cheerfully, however, as soon as he saw the scowls on their faces, that cheerful disposition faded immediately. Leave it to those two to suck the happiness out of the world. "Okay, I guess I won't—"
"No, you won't ask and just get this dickhead away from my machine!"
"Dickhead? You're the one who can't take advice!" Athrun countered, pulling himself away from the keyboard to stand face-to-face with the redhead. "I mention one or two helpful things—"
"More like force them on me!"
"Uh, guys—" Nicol began, but was cut off by another response from Athrun. By now, the two had gathered quite an audience, some were pointing and laughing, while others just shook their heads in embarrassment. This was a commander and one of his soldiers? "Guys, please—"
"Damnit Eclipse, you're beginning to act like Yzak more and more each day!"
"Well, that's fine with me. At least he has the balls to stand up to you."
"What was that?"
"Enough!" Nicol shouted, putting an arm in between them and pulling the duo apart when they managed to get even closer. Some soldiers began laughing loudly, but not even that humiliation could make the two stop glaring at each other. "This is ridiculous. And you guys call yourselves elites? C'mon, we're getting away from here."
"No, we're not, Nicol. I have a lot to do—" they both started simultaneously, but another glare by the musician kept them quiet.
"No, we're leaving this place and getting some fresh air," Nicol spat, surprising both of his teammates with the finality in his voice. Blinking, they were still too shocked to resist as he pulled the two out of the hangar and all the way back to headquarters.
Stopping at their rooms individually, he shoved each inside. "Now, get changed, both of you. We're going into town. I'll change and get permission. No arguing!" he shouted a second later when he saw them open their mouths to retaliate. "We're going and that's that. Now, get dressed damnit!" That shut them up and when the younger pilot stomped off down the hall and slammed the door to his room, Athrun and Eclipse gave each other a surprising glance. Although, that didn't last long before the glare returned and they ended up slamming their doors as well.
Nicol was changed and had already gotten permission by the time the two walked out into the hallway. He wore dark, khaki pants with white tennis shoes that had—surprisingly—stayed their bright color through their three years of use. Given the chill in the air, he decided to put on a light green, long-sleeved shirt and topped it off with a black, zipped up vest. Athrun walked out next, wearing a pair of loose jeans and running shoes with a blue T-shirt and a short, black coat to keep out the cool air. Glowering, he barely looked up at his friend, choosing to lean back against the wall.
Eclipse came out a few moments later, sporting jeans, a green T-shirt and a blue, zip-up sweatshirt. Surprising both guys, she wore high, khaki boots, ending about mid-calf and looking rather trendy with ties laced up the front. Her short hair was flipped out casually to the sides, making her actually look... feminine.
"Uh, Eclipse you look—well—uh—" Nicol stammered, being the first to say anything when she walked out.
The redhead glared a response, seeming to not want him to finish that statement, but Athrun—still a bit peeved—added in his own thoughts.
"You actually look like a girl."
That did it.
"Why you fuckin' smartass—"
"Alright, let's go," Nicol countered, stepping between the two. "I'd rather not get into another argument."
"Fine. Where are we going?" the young commander muttered, pivoting on his heels and leading the others back down the hallway before the musician could respond.
"Well, then let me show you," Nicol said, grabbing the back of Athrun's coat and pulling him to the rear.
It was going to be a long walk.
"Tea, really? How regal," Eclipse muttered, trying not to let the anger get the best of her, but she had lost that particular battle, it seemed. Nicol had led them both to a small café on the outskirts of town, having to shove them both inside as soon as they had gotten there. They were going to leave right away, but the musician offered to pay, got their orders, and then had sat them down in a table near the middle of the room. Probably hoping their prides wouldn't let them make a spectacle of themselves.
The café was large enough to seat 15-odd people and had a rather homely atmosphere. Only half of the room was tables while the other half had two sofas face each other and two other comfortable loungers nearby. Wooden bookshelves lined each wall other than the one behind the counter which was covered from floor to ceiling with plastic containers housing various coffee beans. An open stairwell swirled up the wall in the back-right corner near the bathrooms to a second floor and more tables, Eclipse assumed. The other surprising feature was the piano in the back and to the left of the main counter, the back open and facing into the café to give the current guests the full immersion of any melody someone should attempt. It looked so out of the way that the redhead wasn't sure it was usable, but, sure enough, someone sat down and started playing a tune just as her argument resumed with the young commander.
"What's so bad about that?" Athrun responded, taking a careful sip and licking his lips.
"Seems pretentious. This place is known for its coffee—says so on the front," the redhead continued as she absently stirred her latte. "So… you order tea."
"Didn't want coffee and there's nothing that says I can't have tea."
"Oh, that's rich, going by the book again."
"What the hell is that supposed to mean? Why does it matter if didn't get coffee or not? Damn, just because Commander Waltfeld—"
"Guys, I really don't—" Nicol started, but could only sigh when Eclipse cut him off. Taking a sip of his mocha, he slouched down in his chair and muttered a prayer.
It didn't work.
"Hey, that guy was a genius."
"I'm not saying he wasn't. I'm saying that's the only reason you're bugging me for getting tea."
"No, I'm 'bugging' you because we're sitting in a famous coffee café and you ordered something without coffee."
"Honestly guys, please—" the musician tried again. Still, futile.
"Who cares? It was on the menu, wasn't it?"
"Damn it all, you're insufferable!"
"Well, as I recall, you're the reason your precious coffee genius is dead, so I'll take being insufferable any day."
Ah shit, Nicol thought with a sigh, trying to digest the emotions crossing each of their faces. Athrun's frustration had gone too far and Eclipse was just too touchy to let any of his insults brush by. And now it had come to this.
The redhead was rather surprised about the comment, but anger won over as the chief emotion. Scowling, she instinctively grabbed her coffee mug and threw its contents at the pilot across from her. Nicol managed to dodge the droplets that went off-target but Athrun—as intended—got the bulk of the attack. Making some inaudible noise close to a gasp, he jumped to his feet too late and caught most of the beverage on his chest and stomach.
At least it wasn't smoldering hot anymore.
"I hope that jacket is dry clean only," Eclipse muttered before stomping off to the bathroom.
"W-what the hell?" Athrun stammered, but in the back of his mind, he knew it was his fault. Grumbling, he accepted the napkins from Nicol and tried to dry himself off. "Damn girl."
"You brought it on yourself," the musician replied, getting up to grab the towel offered by the server at the main counter. He just tossed it at the young commander.
"Yeah, yeah."
Stifling a laugh at the ridiculousness of it all, Nicol glanced about the room and saw some hidden smiles among the other customers. Many girls were outright laughing and some men were eyeing their dates suspiciously, probably debating if they would do the same thing.
"Damn it all. Me and my big mouth," Athrun grumbled again.
"What started this huge argument anyway? I don't think I've ever seen you two so pissed at each other."
"Well, it was probably my fault to begin with. Eclipse and Dearka were giving the Stealth a test run and I dropped in. My original plan was to get some fresh air and stop reading reports for a while, but I saw what they were doing and thought I could help. Dearka had everything under control up to that point, but when Eclipse came back in, I sort of decided to jump in and start helping her with the adjustments. We began talking about the reports, some personal things she artlessly evaded, one response led to another and we ended up venting our frustration out on each other. Now, I'm covered in coffee."
"Hm, you're right. It was your fault then."
"Thanks for the sympathy." Athrun sighed, peeling the shirt away from his chest a few inches before the elasticity slapped it back with a sick, squishing sound.
Nicol could only laugh.
I shouldn't be so angry at him, Eclipse admitted as she looked into the bathroom mirror. He's probably stressed out and I'm just making things worse, not to mention making him look bad because he is my commanding officer. Sighing, she turned on the faucet and started washing her hands. And poor Nicol. He just wanted a nice coffee break and we're acting like four-year-olds. I should go apologize at least. She grabbed some paper towel, wiped her hands dry, and then grasped the door handle, but stopped before opening it. Piano music sounded on the other side, muffled because of the walls, but still beautiful. Nicol? she thought, smiling slightly. She had always wanted to hear him play. Just the richness of the melody made her shiver, never hearing that particular song before and as soon as he added the lower accompaniment, she couldn't stop the grin on her face. Opening the door, she stared across the room.
Her intuition was right again when she saw the young musician sitting behind the keys. She couldn't see much of him, his form hidden by a large portion of the counter, but his body swayed on the seat as he played, following his left hand to the bottom of the keyboard and then back up with his right hand.
Athrun leaned forward on the table as he watched Nicol, his hand resting on his upright palm and when he saw Eclipse, he smiled sheepishly. It seemed they were both sorry.
The redhead paused to watch him play for a moment before retaking her seat, sitting down across from her other comrade. "I'm sorry," she admitted first. "Drinking tea is fine. Not everyone has to be obsessed with espresso like me."
"Heh, thanks. And what happened in Banadiya was not your fault," Athrun said as he took a sip of his approved beverage.
"Yeah, I know. Nicol already drilled that into my head."
"Well, he's an intuitive guy."
"And talented. I'll have to ask him to teach me the piano when all of this is over."
"Hah, and I'll laugh as you flounder over the keys," Athrun joked, receiving a glare in return, but there was a smile under that anger.
"I'd like to see you try. I, at least, have some musical talent."
"Bragging now, are we?"
"Just drink your damn tea."
Nicol smiled from across the way, glad to see that things had calmed down. It was impressive to note the changes Eclipse had gone through in the past few months. A while ago, he wouldn't never though this possible—the three of them enjoying a day out in the town. Hell, her and Athrun had always argued, but even the young commander had changed a bit. He seemed more comfortable—or maybe even confident—in his position. Athrun had confessed to Nicol about Kira, but perhaps the young commander had finally come to a conclusion in his own mind. What that decision was, however, the musician didn't know. But, despite that apparent revelation, something else in him had changed. Athrun had also told him a little about this island excursion and the main thing he talked about was that girl Cagalli. Infatuation wasn't a good word to describe how he talked about her, but he was definitely intrigued. Ah, Athrun. What's going on in that head of yours?
"Alright, we finally got news about the 'Legged Ship's' whereabouts," Athrun began, flipping off the lights as a map projected on the screen next to him.
"Well, we've always known where it was, but we never seem to get there in time," Yzak grumbled, sifting uncomfortably in his chair. "Take our submarine excursion for example."
The others sighed, but this time it wasn't for the pilot's lack of respect. There was another Archangel sighting about eight days prior—a couple of days after Nicol's impromptu café trip—and they were all ready to go, but the submarine they had boarded suffered some malfunctions. So, in the end, they had gotten to the battle too late.
How ironic.
We just have really bad luck, Eclipse had decided when Athrun had relayed the embarrassing report. Yzak had been upset—surprisingly, not as bad as he used to be—but the others hadn't said much.
"Yeah really… I'm actually shocked we haven't found them sooner," Dearka chimed in, folding his hands behind his head. "It's been rather dull for the past week."
Eclipse had to agree. SIN-ED seemed to disappear and Namarra had been silent. The redhead had debated sending her a message and ask her if she had heard anything on the organization, but dropped the idea, deciding to enjoy her short moment of peace.
Well, it was peaceful if no one argued.
"ZAFT has been going through a lot of changes lately, not to mention, many of the soldiers here are working on Operation SpitBreak. Unfortunately, the 'Legged Ship' isn't a top priority for them like it is for us," Athrun explained.
"Yeah, you have a point." For a few seconds, the team was speechless. Did Yzak just agree with Athrun? "What?"
"Nothing," Nicol said, deciding to turn the conversation back to the Archangel. "Where's the ship, Athrun?"
"It was by the Strait of Malacca the last time we got an update, so it should be—" Pointing to the screen, the officer dragged a possible path across the map. "—somewhere near the Fiji islands; heading near Orb."
"By Orb?" Eclipse asked. "Are they insane? I'm sure we all know where they stand in this war."
"The same could be said for us. By the time we meet them, we'll be dangerously close to Orb territory. Here's a question, do we confront them before they get close to Orb, or hope to get them after? Are we positive they don't have some, secret agenda in that country? They are from Heliopolis," Yzak brought up, feeling a bit superior by his observation and he had a right to. It was a disturbing revelation.
"Well, if we stop them before Orb," Athrun began, "perhaps we can push them away—"
"Or push them towards the country and use Orb's strength to help us sink them?" Eclipse suggested.
"Cowardly," Yzak countered immediately.
"Possible," Nicol added.
"Suicidal," Dearka finished. "Orb'll fire on us too."
"True, but we're not as big of a target as the 'Legged Ship' is," Eclipse continued. "We're fast enough to get away. After all, we'll all be on Guuls, or at least attempting to fly by ourselves."
"That's if we don't get shot down first," the blond stressed, receiving quite a few glares for his realistic remark.
"He's got a point," Athrun added, getting the butt of the glares now. "Orb is very powerful."
"Well, what if we didn't worry about firepower? Wait, here me out," Nicol began, waving off the surprised looks by his comrades. "We all know how strong Orb is, and we know their neutral state, so—putting all that aside—is this the only opportunity to get the 'Legged Ship' before it reaches Alaska?"
"Before it reaches Alaska, no, but we don't know if they are actually heading to Orb to restock on food and weaponry," Athrun explained, leaning back against the wall near the screen. He honestly didn't think this briefing would take so long let alone go into so many different directions. However, he really didn't mind. They were all bringing up good points, and ones that made him quite proud. He had a capable team.
The only problem was getting them all to work together.
"Does their current course support this?" Yzak asked.
"We don't know their course exactly, only their whereabouts. Also, since the battle at the Strait of Malacca, they'll probably stick to shallower waters so as not to get snuck up on again," Athrun continued.
"So, they could be heading to Orb, or they couldn't be?" Dearka asked, sighing as he scratched the back of his head. They were just going in circles.
"I don't know about you," Yzak chimed in, "but I don't want to take that chance. I say we get them before they reach Orb."
"I second that," Dearka added.
"They won't restock in Orb," Eclipse said, sounding quite confident in the statement. "I know that country, they wouldn't jeopardize everything for one ship, even if they did build it."
"So, we're back to square one?" Everyone grew silent after Nicol's remark, each issuing a small sigh of exhaustion. There were just too many things that could go wrong with whichever path they chose to take. The fact that they knew nothing of the Archangel's and Orb's plans made everything worse. Were they in cahoots? And if so, would attacking the ship before it reached the neutral nation be suicide for the Zala team? But what if the ship was trying to avoid that country as well? Would attacking them right away—thus initiating Orb into the battle—actually work to ZAFT's advantage?
"We'll attack them before they reach Orb," Athrun ordered, having the final—and official—say in the matter. "We can't just pass by this opportunity no matter what we think Orb will or won't do. Now, get all you stuff together, we'll leave as soon as the next carrier submarine is ready."
"Yes, sir!"
As planned, the Zala team caught up with the Archangel about six miles from the Orb territory. The ship looked a little worn, most likely from the recent battle it was put through. That may mean they're low on ammo, Athrun thought, having thought about it during the briefing, but felt there was no need to mention it. There was no reason to rely on such suspicions. No matter what, they had to fight the Archangel with everything they had because—after all—it was still a formidable enemy. "All suits launch as soon as the submarine surfaces, Yzak and Dearka, center your attacks on the starboard side. Nicol and Eclipse on the port side. I'll focus on the front and lure the Strike out into the open."
"As soon as the Strike's out, I'm taking over," Yzak announced, flipping a few more levers on his console.
"We'll worry about that as soon as we get that far," the commander replied. "Oh, and Eclipse, how did the final adjustments to the HiMat system end up?"
"Should be working now, sir, although I'm a bit too scarred from my first experience to trust the system completely."
"We don't have another Guul for you to board, so you're gonna have to trust the mechanics a little bit more."
"Fair enough. I don't think they would let me down… Heading out."
The Archangel was ready for them, but not as much as they were for the ZAFT forces at the Strait of Malacca. After the island escapade, they were down one Skygrasper and relying on less than a comfortable amount of ammo. Not surprising for a lone battleship, but now having to face five, high-speed mobile suits with only two units and some armaments no doubt made everyone nervous.
"What do you think you're doing, Dearka?" Yzak complained, having just evaded some rear missiles launched by the Archangel. "Hurry up and stop that ship now!"
"I know!" the blond replied heatedly, not enjoying being the emotional dumping ground. He had already fired three, well-aimed shots and destroyed three Igelstellungs along with scarring the outer armor on the ship. "It's not easy evading all this fire power!"
"Dearka, you have the best shot on our team. I'll provide cover if you just clip off those guns," Eclipse suggested, flying next to the Buster and destroying some stray missiles that came nearby.
Waiting for the smoke to clear from the small explosions, he unhooked his rifle. "Sounds like a plan." He straddled the gun launcher and high-energy rifle at the suit's hips and fired two separate rounds into a port side Igelstellung and Valliant gun. The Igelstellung was destroyed—along with scarring another nearby—but the Valliant was a little more resistant, only suffering minor damage. "Eclipse, missiles approaching from my nine o'clock."
"I'm on it. Let's swing around to the back and cut the engines before—damnit, that plane is buzzing about now," the redhead spat, firing her CIWS guns to destroy three of the five missiles and armed her saber to cross slash the last two before the Skygrasper flew in. Hoping to take advantage of her distracted state of mind, it fired the impulse cannon mounted on the bottom of the plane. The mobile armor missed the Stealth's right side, but due to the trajectory, the shots nearly hit the Buster on its downward ascent to the Archangel. "Damnit! Dearka, incoming from your six."
"I see him."
"Eclipse, move!" Nicol shouted over the same frequency, causing the redhead to turn her unit just in time to see two barrels of the ship's Gottfried cannons aimed at her backside. The barrels surged with green energy, sucking in the oxygen from outside to gather enough firepower to shoot and—hopefully—destroy the Stealth in one, clean shot.
However, things weren't that easy.
Cursing, she cut her thrusters and dropped quickly, evading the gunfire, but not without suffering some minor paint damage. Eclipse didn't really like Earth until that moment, and especially the gravitational force that kept her from getting her backside fried. This ship was definitely more formidable than she remembered in outer space. The redhead turned her thrusters on again before she hit the water, skidding across the waves and out wide to avoid the Strike's persistent gunfire. I hate this ship.
"Yzak, don't go too far out!" Athrun ordered, having to evade a few missiles of his own. So far, none of the redcoats had lost their edge on the Guuls, but given the hotheadedness of one team member, such a blessing wasn't going to last long.
"Shut up!" that same hothead shouted, causing a scowl to grace the commander's lips.
They were doing okay. Eclipse providing cover for Dearka—even if it was for a short time—had cut down the Archangel's defenses, but not enough to start uncorking the champagne bottle. They had to cripple it even more. "Try and aim for the engines. Nicol, flank them on the port side."
"Roger that, Athrun."
"Eclipse, how's the HiMat?" the commander asked, firing at two more Igelstellungs.
"Working better than expected."
"Good, support Nicol."
"Right."
The Blitz and the Stealth sped to the port side. Sheathing her beam saber and pulling out her rifle, Eclipse attacked the missile launcher on the tail of the ship just as it was about to open another round on the redcoats. Only two of the six barrels took severe damage, but that was enough to cause some internal malfunctions and hinder later attacks. But Eclipse knew that wasn't enough. To finish the job, she pulled out her beam saber again and was going to sever the contraption altogether, but that annoying fly fired and cut her off. Nicol fared better, launching his lancer darts at the Valiant gun—damaging it enough to kick it out of the game and fall off the ship—before moving to the engines. Eclipse tried to meet him there, but neither got close enough to cause any damage. The Archangel fired its Helldarts from behind the bridge, frustrating the two pilots and forcing them to fall back in order to destroy them all safely.
Athrun had had his share of sitting back, but when he saw the Strike on the bow of the ship, he couldn't remain idle any longer. They promised each other they wouldn't hold back, so it was time to see who was ultimately supposed to win. Diving his Guul towards the Archangel, he fired a mere three shots at the Strike before the Duel cut him off. "Stay back, Athrun, I'm gonna get this guy!"
"Yzak, don't be reckless," the commander yelled through the transmission after seeing the Duel's high-speed attack. It didn't even look like he was attempting evasive maneuvers. "You know it's not that easy!"
Either the pilot didn't hear him, or Athrun had said it too late. The Strike aimed and fired at the Duel's Guul, destroying the contraption in a display of billowing heat and debris before forcing the redcoat to jump off so the explosion didn't damage his machine. Damnit, the boy thought, unsheathing his beam saber and prepare himself to dive bomb onto the Archangel to engage with the Strike. His plans, however, were thwarted when that same unit used the Duel as a stepping stool.
"Yzak!" Nicol yelled from above him, having come around to give his comrade some support. It was a good thought, but having the extra lift from the Duel, the Strike was able to bridge the distance between the two suits and knock the Blitz off its Guul. Nicol cursed silently, but only managed one shot at the unit—one that went wide—as it destroyed the flying machine with its beam saber and fell back to the Archangel.
"Yzak! Nicol!" Eclipse yelled, but knew they would fine as soon as they were under water. Their carrier submarine wasn't far away, after all. Damnit, he's gotten better! Eclipse thought, dodging one of his shots to the right before turning a 360 and colliding sword to sword with the Strike. Deciding to avenge her fallen comrades, the best bet was to meet that prototype hand-to-hand and hopefully catch him off balance from his little escapade with the Duel's face. The flat expanse under the bridge was a good enough place as any. "Well, I don't care how good you've gotten, kid. You're facing me in my own suit now!" The words were for her alone and seeing as the two swords were at a stalemate, the redhead wasted no time in turning the attack downward. Pivoting on her right foot, she spun her left leg around and kicked the side of the Strike, sending the machine flying into the wing of the Archangel. Regaining balance, she grabbed an EARP dagger from her right hip and threw it towards the prototype, not planning on hitting it, but at least throwing the pilot into a frenzy.
It worked.
The Strike evaded the tossed dagger to the right, the smaller explosion when it hit the Archangel forcing him off balance and into the lower bridge. His head was spinning, but still retained enough consciousness to avoid a serious blow. At least for now. Eclipse leapt towards him, spearing her left, GINN sword into his left shoulder—trapping him firmly against the ship—and putting her right hand on the machine's chest. "Activating Scylla," she announced, smirking as she felt the controls tingle with electric energy. Perhaps the change had been a good one for her suit and just imagining the look of pure terror etched on the pilot's face made everything worth while. Sorry, Athrun, but, in the end, we can't save everyone.
"Enemy three o'clock," Coffee Addict announced into her ear and she turned to see the Skygrasper. It peppered her with a barrage of machine gun bullets, Eclipse having no other choice than to abandon her advantage, leaping off the Strike and back 50 meters.
"Why you—" Stopping the Scylla's attack, she pulled out her beam rifle to try and clip the machine as it sped away. Her shots went wide, but when she saw the Buster flying by to intercept, she let him do it. Besides, the Strike seemed to have regained its bearings.
She really wished she could see what was going on in the cockpit because despite his near brushing with death, the Strike looked almost cocky as it prepared for another attack. Eclipse just laughed.
The Berserker was pretty confident too.
The Strike pulled out his remaining beam saber from behind his abandoned shield, standing defensively as the Stealth charged forward with the beam saber in her right hand. "Now, this is cute," the Berserker began, laughing to herself as he barely managed to parry her thrust near his damaged shoulder. "You're so confident and yet you were so weak as to let me get this close in the first place." She smirked, talking to the pilot as if he could hear. Spinning, she blocked his attack with the buckler on her left arm, sending the sword wide and coming in with a jab from below. He just jumped out of the way. "You do realize we're right below the bridge, right? Just one shot—" she emphasized, jabbing the sword at the Strike's head. The blade went clear through the machine's left eye, crippling his cameras. She laughed again as she saw the energy from the saber slowly melting away the metal. Such a memorable picture. "Just one shot and your ship is gone."
It was almost as if the pilot could hear her, yanking out the blade as he made one last charge. Using his limp, left arm as a shield, he swung it wildly out in front of him, forcing Eclipse to block that attack and take the careless strike from the beam saber in his right hand. The blade barely missed her side, but sliced through two feathers on her left side, severing them.
"HiMat system 33 percent damaged. Switching to alternate modes of transportation," the Stealth reported, but Eclipse ignored it. The attack had left the Strike wide open. Grabbing the limp arm, she threw the machine towards the bow of the ship and took a second to watch it dangle over the edge.
Sweet victory.
The Skygrasper had returned then, flying towards the Stealth again, but never managing to get off an attack. The Buster clipped his right wing just as he was going to fire. It wasn't an accurate enough shot to down the plane, but the pilot was forced to steer away from the Berserker.
"Thanks, Dearka," she managed, but had to laugh a second later when a stray shot from the Archangel nearly damaged the blond's Guul. By this time, the Orb fleet had come to its borders, making some speech about its right to defend itself if either army came any further. Eclipse ignored them.
Adjusting her thrusters and pulling out her beam rifle, she couldn't stop the smirk from curling up her lips. This was her chance to get revenge for Commander Waltfeld and Aisha. Even though it was off-handedly, this damned ship had caused their untimely deaths and just destroying the Strike wasn't going to make her feel any better. No, she had to get rid of them all, and this was her chance. Just one shot and so many wrongs would be paid for. Yzak's revenge, and ultimately her team's revenge would be enacted.
All she had to do was pull the trigger.
"…we strictly prohibit all armed ships, aircraft, and mobile suits from entering our waters…" the Orb commander muttered over a universal communication line. But it was all too late.
See you in Hell, Archangel. Hah, such an ironic phrase. Leveling the gun, she aimed it at the captain's seat on the bridge, taking that extra moment to watch the crew members squirm in their seats.
"…This is your final warning…"
Some jumped up and ran for the doors, while most of them merely stared in horror, or cowered in their seats. The Berserker could just see their fondest memories erupting and disappearing before their very eyes, giving them a last bit of hope before their bodies became dispersed among the debris. Sweat drops, tears, screams; none of it mattered. Rubble and burnt fish food was their destiny; to remain scattered without a face, an identity, or even a body. A water grave for the ones soulless enough to attack those close to a Berserker. They all knew it, wish they could've changed it, but couldn't stop it. Smirking, her lifeless eyes glimmered with excitement as she pulled the trigger.
But stopped.
Another girl had just entered the bridge, her cool demeanor offsetting the ghastly looks of her crew members. She wore a red T-shirt and cotton, khaki pants, but the things that were most familiar were her blonde hair and golden eyes. "Cagalli," Eclipse breathed, her other half fleeing in time to cease the attack. "So you're—"
The Strike had started moving again as she hesitated and fired reckless shots at the backside of the Stealth. Two attacks clipped the remaining feathers on her left side—not enough to totally sever them—and the last shot hit the thruster on her back. Cursing, she had no other choice than to bail into the water and sink back to the submarine with her other teammates.
She failed.
Maybe—in the end—I shouldn't have changed, Nicol. Commander, I'm so sorry.
"This announcement is nothing but a pile of crap!" Yzak shouted as he slammed the piece of paper down on the table. The mission had failed and the Archangel was still afloat—or so they figured. The only thing throwing that theory off was the "official statement" made by the Orb government.
"I can't believe they're actually telling us the 'Legged Ship' has left Orb territory," Dearka muttered from the corner. Him and Nicol sat side by side as the other five in the room—Athrun, Yzak, Eclipse, the captain, and second-in-command of the submarine—stood around them.
The redhead could only sigh, shaking her head and leaning against the wall. She was still upset about her missed opportunity. If she hadn't have been so cowardly, none of this may have happened. Now, the Archangel was probably under the protection of Orb instead of sinking to the bottom of the ocean.
"That's their solution?" Dearka continued. "They're treating us like complete fools! Maybe it's because we have a raw commander."
"Dearka!" Nicol spat, igniting a scowl on the musician's fair face. Even Eclipse looked pissed, but the one the remark was aimed at didn't seem bothered in the least.
"That's irrelevant," Athrun said. "But, unfortunately, you can't deny this is Orb's official response. So, you can complain all you like about how they're a bunch of liars, but it's not going to change the situation we're in."
"Say what?" Yzak chimed in, taking a threatening step forward.
Eclipse was off the wall and ready to intercept the hothead, but just one look by Athrun kept her still. Yeah, yeah, you can protect yourself, she thought with a snort. Just didn't want things to get that far.
"If we forced our way in, it'd only turn into a diplomatic scandal," Athrun explained.
The room paused for a few moments as it digested the idea. Yes, they couldn't just march into Orb and declare the Archangel was there without any hard evidence, even if they were sure it was docked inside. As soon as Orb made that announcement—no matter how absurd it was—the situation went beyond just two armies fighting one another. Now it involved politics.
Damn it.
"Heh," Yzak chuckled, breaking the silence. "Your analysis is impressively rational, Athrun—oops, Commander Zala."
Ignoring the comment, Dearka continued with a few thoughts of his own. "Hold on there. Are you saying we have to accept their word and just leave?" It even sounded foolish to the others in the room. After all they've been through to get this far, they had to retreat back to headquarters? After yet another embarrassment?
"We'll ask Carpentaria to apply some official pressure, but if there's no quick resolution, we'll sneak in." That was a surprise. Athrun, the supposed nice guy on the team, was going to suggest something so malicious? "Does that meet with your approval?"
Perfect, Eclipse thought with a small smirk. Now that's an interesting proposition.
"Oh, to pinpoint the ship's location, right?" Nicol added, catching on.
"Yes, because whatever the situation is, our opponent here is a sovereign nation. We can't take any hasty action against it without evidence of some sort." Eclipse was really starting to like where Athrun was going with this. Perhaps he read a little too many of her personal files.
"Look, we can just force our way in," Dearka said, apparently not liking the idea. "We know the ship's there."
"This is nothing like Heliopolis!" Athrun shouted. It was obvious he was sore about what had happened before, but why the sudden emotional attraction? Nicol had an idea and one look between him and Eclipse gave her a small hint as well. What the hell happened on that island? "Just look at the size of their forces, and I don't have to you how advanced their military technology is. Officially, they're neutral, but behind the scenes they are a cause of great concern to us."
Laughing, Yzak shook his head and walked to the door, Dearka standing and following him a moment later. "I'll go along for now," the Duel pilot said. "But if it were up to me, we'd be forcing our way in. I can't disagree with the son of Committee Chairman Zala, can I? Well, sneaking in sounds fun too. And there's always the possibility I'll finally get a chance to see the face of the Strike pilot."
Athrun gasped at the comment, watching his two comrades leave, but made no move to follow them. Of course he'd be hurt by the remark, but he shouldn't be showing such emotion in front of Yzak and Dearka. That kind of thing would only make things worse.
"You were serious about sneaking in then?" Eclipse asked, pulling Athrun away from his thoughts. If anything, to get his mind off of it.
"Yes, I think we've established that is our best move at the moment."
"How long do you think the 'Legged Ship' will be docked there?"
"I don't know. A week? A few days? We damaged it pretty good, but we don't really know why it's staying there in the first place."
"If you want, I could get us some internal contacts to let us in undetected," Eclipse continued, interesting both Nicol and Athrun as to why she would bring that up. "If you let me go ahead of you, I can set things up if you hear nothing back from Carpentaria."
"But, Eclipse, you're from—" Nicol began, but Athrun cut her off.
"You want me to let you go now and alone? Just like that? What if you're caught?"
"Do you think I will be? You're the commander now, Athrun. You know what I can and can't do, so you have to make the decision. If I say I won't get caught, will that make you feel any better?"
Athrun sighed, thinking it over, but there was really nothing he had to think on. Yes, he knew he had to send her in. They needed contacts if they planned on infiltrating—since that was probably what was going to happen—and if they wasted any more time, the Archangel would be long gone before they even got into the country. The thing was, did he want to send her alone? If more than one person went in unattended, it might look suspicious, even if they were disguised as newlyweds or lovers. Also, she was the only one registered in that country.
But did he want to use her like Commander Le Creuset had?
"Fine," he said at length. "Be ready to leave by morning. Get some rest, we'll give you some money and other essentials. Lodging?"
"A motel will work for the first night. I'll make contacts and might get a temporary residence from there on out. I'll let you know."
"Very well then, dismissed." Saluting, Eclipse hurried out of the room and down the hall, passing the captain and second-in-command as she ran to her quarters.
"Are you sure about this?" Nicol asked when they had all left. "Sending her alone?"
"She used to live in the country, so I'm not too worried. She'll know how to blend in."
"That's not my point—"
"I don't like saying this, but she has the skills for this and we have to use her. I'm thinking she already has some people in mind she's going to contact and we're gonna have to trust her. We can't pass up this opportunity to get the 'Legged Ship,' Nicol."
"Is that you talking, or Yzak?" the musician asked, but never got a solid answer. Sighing, they both left to get some rest.
Eclipse had made it Onogoro Island easy enough. Making a fake ID wasn't as hard as she anticipated it to be, then again she still had her original one lying around to go by. Just change the picture, name, and other characteristics and she was officially Rayne Corim, out of town journalist coming home to see her parents.
Having booked a room at a motel near the coast and already set her stuff inside, a walk seemed ideal. The redhead wasn't necessarily glad to be back in the country, but being under a false name gave her more freedoms than she would've had before.
Rymyr was a well-known name, after all.
It hasn't changed, she thought, stopping in front of a wrought iron gate. She had ventured a few miles inward, weaving around the various subdivisions to pause at the one labeled "Rich Bastards Central" by the local high schoolers. "Rich Bastards" may have been close to fact if someone stopped to look at the houses—well mansions—nestled along the road. The smallest house was two stories and built on seven acres with so many windows the house literally screamed "no privacy." However, the one next to such a mansion was the one Eclipse had found interesting. The driveway ran up to a three-car garage, which probably stored a yacht, two motorcycles, and one vintage car since the limo was parked outside near the front door. The house itself was two stories tall, stretching a total of 9,500 square feet across eight acres of land. A pond settled out in front of the house—the limo having to cross a bridge in order to get to the front door—with no particular features other than a small rowboat near the shore and a gazebo on a small island.
"Probably has too many rooms to count," Eclipse muttered, picking up a stick and dragging it across the iron bars. I hope they never know I'm back, she thought, but ended up sighing. Announcing her full name was the only way she could get any contacts in the country. That kind of news wasn't about to be ignored. "Yes, Orb, both your precious princess and her sidekick are back in the country. You can all breathe a sigh of relief and know that, after much turmoil, they're both alive and well. Hah!" she laughed, throwing the stick through the gate and angrily brushing away a small tear. "Yes, alive and well. Happy Birthday, Lexi Rymyr, welcome back to Hell."
A/N: Hey! I'm actually surprised this one turned out to be so long because I really just wrote it up quickly in order to—mostly—get it out before November first. Why? Well, NaNoWriMo is why and for all of you out there who know what I'm talking about or who are doing it, I feel for you. So, because of that contest I probably won't be writing much besides my new story. Hence, trying to get this out quickly. I'm thinking there are quite a few spelling errors then too. I've read through it a couple of times now and have noticed more and more mistakes and if there are some I've missed, sorry. Blame time—or lack there of.
Oh, and those of you who are doing NaNo, let me know and I'll add you to my buddy list. It'd be cool to read someone's story and something non-Anime related would be neat too. Putting it in a PM might be easiest—if you don't feel comfortable posting it in a review—but either way I'd love to add you!
And so the Stealth and Strike meet. Up to your approval, reviewers? Yes, I'm still getting the hang of this mobile suit battling thing, so if it's rather short, that's why. The good thing, though, was how comfortable I was with writing this one. Given I had to look up all the schematics of the Archangel and the other mobile suits, but I feel as if I know so much more now! And maybe that's just me and the whole thing actually sucked. O.o
Anyway, we've finally made it to Orb and it doesn't look like Eclipse is too happy about it. Not surprised, given her past with her parents, but I'm one of the few who actually know about that so the rest of you are just squirming in agony! *Insert evil laugh here* I'll be getting into more of her past as their stay in Orb drags on. Besides, it's not like the stumble upon Morgenroete on the first day. Well, that's how it always happens in the Anime.
Oh, and going off that time thing, I'm kind of mad I found that SEED timeline. There are so many huge gaps between events and I have very little to no idea what to do with those. SIN-ED's a good filler, but I can't do it every time. Well, I guess that's up to me to decide on and I'm thinking all the little rendezvous with Nicol and Athrun are getting rather old. I'm sorry if they are, but I like to think they're doing some form of characterization.
Speaking of the timeline. For those of you who are wondering what Eclipse's birthday is, it's March 24. (I know two of you who might recognize that date) The battle against the Archangel took place on March 23rd and Eclipse entered Orb on the 24th. Ironic how it worked out that way, really.
And this is when I give a shoutout to my Betas. They helped me a lot with the battle sequence because—as we all know—I needed some extra help with that. I'm getting there, but will probably never be up to par with most of you people out there. So, kudos to anyone who can write a MS battle.
Questions/Gripes:
On an off note, wow. There were some long reviews for the past chapter. Thanks! I never knew you people could write so much on this story let alone have it be amusing. O.o
CSS Stravag: Thanks for your little comment on SIN-ED because, as you know, it helped me out a lot for future events. I even wrote an outline for what I want to happen and, I must say, it's rather dramatic and bloody. Huzzah for Betas!
OrangeP47: Yes, those notes were kind of spur of the moment, but amusing nonetheless. I was debating whether or not to have her cry again, but this is Eclipse and she was still embarrassed from crying to Athrun. Besides, I think that breakdown was good enough for now. Oh, and Nicol seems to be a local favorite, so you might be seeing something in the near future.
Maderfole: I'm still fifty-fifty on whether or not I want to have Athrun explain his little escapade. I eluded to it a little in this chapter, but never went into a lot of depth. What do you guys think out there? I have a few more chances to have him spill his guts—not Sloth-style mind you—but is that part just too over written/played? Would you rather me leave it out and just bring it up off-handedly again later on?
Death-Scimitar: I've never really put this up yet, but how you ramble just cracks me up. "What should I write about? Oh, how about how long I can or can't make this review." Always a welcome. Yes, Namarra, Lexi, and the Lust twins is going to be the bitch fight of the century. Better buy your tickets now because I'm sure after reading this author's note the things are gonna be sold out. O.o Oh, nevermind, we already get front row seats. Pretty much "in the action" if you catch my drift.
On an ending note, I'm not sure when I'll be posting the next chapter. As I mentioned above *points to the A/N* I'm doing NaNoWriMo and just typing the name gives me a headache. I'll try, really I will and volleyball is going to be ending here pretty quick so I'll finally have some extra time to sit back and enjoy some good writing. Gotta burn those finger calories.
Thanks again to all who did the poll and I'm thinking a few of you voted twice? Not sure if that was allowed or I'm just so surprised so many people participated, but thanks! Glad to see the two prime candidates die… O.o Oh, I did alter one suggestion so I wonder if anyone—those of you who haven't voted yet—will pick him.
Strata