Gundam Wing: Journey to a New Battlefield

by operation meteor

The war is won, yet he cannot find peace. When a mission gone wrong throws Heero into another world, how will he survive? And how will he react when he is confronted with his greatest challenge yet? For love can be trickier than any battlefield foe...

24. Chapter 24

Author's notes: Well, this one's not quite as long as 23, but it's still a monster; 131 pages! Most of it's combat, with the first quarter or so serving for final setup before the shooting begins. I know you guys and girls want to dive right in, but I've got a few things to go over real quick. Bear with me, it won't take long.

First off, I've been severely under-utilizing the Archangel's missile launchers in this fic, and that's something that I've vowed to fix. I've gone back and done some small edits to earlier scenes, but the missiles really get a workout in this chapter. In a few of the original scenes I'd written them as if the Archangel only had four launch tubes for the heavy missiles, but she has much more than that. Stupid error on my part, forgive me! *Bows head in penitence* I went back and made some corrections, anyway… does that help?

Second, this is a much bigger fight than what was portrayed in the original Gundam Seed. Also more complicated, hence the length of the chapter.

Third… well, it's long. Food and drink may be needed here, folks, along with the occasional bathroom break. You have been warned.

Finally, song list for those of you who care, in order of appearance: "Deeply Fast" from the Code Geass OST (love that show, all hail Lelouch!), "Assault" from the Final Fantasy X sound track, and "Black Paper Moon" or "Paper Moon" (I've heard both titles used for it), the second opening for the Soul Eater anime.

Enjoy!

Episode Twenty-Four: Dominion

July 12th, C.E. 71

Looking down towards the CIC, Murrue smiled as she saw Heero typing away at one of the main gunnery stations. "How's it coming down there?"

Heero looked up at her and nodded. "I'm almost done. I just need to make a few more adjustments and then install the program. In a few minutes you'll be able to start running simulations."

"Glad to hear it," Murrue replied, "Excellent work, Heero."

What the Gundam pilot was working on was new targeting software for the Archangel's weapons. Heero had approached Murrue the previous day after returning from his patrol, and she had been surprised by the idea he had come up with. The young man had devised a plan to integrate elements of the precision targeting software used by ZAFT's nuclear powered prototypes with portions of the Zero System and then tailor the new program to increase the accuracy of the white warship's CIWS, heavy guns, and missiles.

Murrue had become a little nervous upon hearing that some parts of the Zero System would be used in the software, but her fears had been alleviated by her boyfriend. Heero had assured her that the new program would not be anything like the deadly operating system used on his machine. It would not mentally interface with any of the crew, would not take control and force the Archangel down a path Murrue did not want to take. The software would not have any of the awareness of the Zero System, nor could it present possible future outcomes to people and overwhelm their minds. It was simply a targeting aid, a support system, no more and no less.

With Murrue's blessing, Heero had quickly gotten to work on the project. He had enlisted the aid of his former rival when she returned from her daily patrol, as the ZGMF-X14A Judgment used the same kind of precision targeting system found on the Freedom and the other stolen ZAFT prototypes. The Gundam pilot and the Valkyrie had spent several hours integrating the segments of their respective programs into the new software and then formatting it to best serve the unique weapons layout of the Archangel. Their hard work had paid off, and now Heero was in the final process of fine tuning and installing the system in Murrue's vessel.

Yet another extra assignment he's taken on my behalf, she thought as she watched him work, and like all the rest, he never complains about the additional workload. Heero, your devotion to this ship, to me… it truly knows no bounds. Thank you.

"I imagine Waltfeld and Kisaka will be eager to know what results we get from the simulations," said Murrue, "They'll probably want you to send them copies of the program for them to implement on the Eternal and the Kusanagi."

"You're probably right," said Heero as he continued typing, "but I can't just send them copies and be done. This program is designed specifically for the Archangel. I'll need to rewrite key segments of it to make it effective for the Eternal and the Kusanagi, and that will take some time."

"And you have your patrol flight coming up soon," Murrue added, "I know it's important to do all we can to improve the combat capabilities of our ships, but I don't want you overworking yourself Heero. Once you're finished with the installation here, take a little time to rest before you head out. You can work on modifying the system for the Eternal and the Kusanagi later."

Heero looked over his shoulder and nodded. "I'll do that. Besides, we still need to run those tests first anyway."

Murrue nodded and smiled. "I know, but I also have no doubt in the work you and Shemei have done. You both have talents that go far beyond just your piloting skills, and I'm confident this new system will be a success."

"I won't let you down," said Heero as he returned his focus to the screen before him.

Deciding to let Heero complete his work without further interruptions from her,Murrue turned her attention to her personal monitor and brought up an electronic map of the debris field. Thanks to her boyfriend's daily recon flights in Wing Zero and the data he had sent her, the map was quite thorough, with every major obstacle charted. The display was interactive and constantly adjusting to account for the projected drift of mapped debris along with the current positions of mobile suits out on patrol. At that moment there were four mobile suits flying at that moment: Aisha from the Eternal, one of the M1s from the Kusanagi, Bristow from the Archangel… along with another M1 from the white warship.

When the Orb Cornelius-class tender Himiko had arrived at the Mendel colony a few days ago, it had not only replenished the supply stores of the three warships but had also transferred three of its six M1 Astray mobile suits to the Archangel. Murrue had requested the additional mobile suits in order to round out her ship's fighting units, and had been pleased by Cagalli's willingness to grant her request on the first supply shipment. Now the Archangel's hangar was fuller than it had ever been before, with not only eight mobile suits (when none were out on patrol) but the Skygrasper, Moebius Zero, and the six MAW-01 Mistral units it had in storage. The ship's cavernous hanger was now quite crowded, and though Murdoch had complained a little he had nevertheless been able to accommodate the new arrivals. The Chief Engineer had even told Murrue that if pressed he could still squeeze in a few more machines, but he urged her not to push things, and it was a request the lovely Captain was inclined to grant for the time being.

With the increase in the amount of mobile suits at her command, Murrue's options both in and out of combat were greatly increased, and she had wasted little time in planning ways to utilize her new units. For starters, she'd immediately assigned the three units slots in the patrol schedule to fly with the other pilots in order to increase the area that could be covered. Murrue had also had her more seasoned pilots, particularly Heero, La Flaga, and Bristow run through simulation exercises with the newbies. The Orb pilots' abilities were sound, and Murrue had been pleased to learn that they had all seen combat before. In fact, all three pilots were survivors of the Battle of Orb. They had been evacuated to the L3 colonies after the first day of fighting along with their machines, and while they had understood the necessity of their withdrawal none of them had been happy about it. When Murrue had first met the new pilots, all three had struck her as quite enthusiastic about their new assignment, which was definitely a plus. After a little deliberation Murrue had decided that the M1's would join Bristow as the ship's escort, freeing up Dearka to join Heero, La Flaga, and Shemei in taking the battle to the enemy with the Buster.

Now our close-in-defenses will be even more effective, Murrue thought, with the new M1s working with Bristow's Werewolf, combined with Heero and Shemei's targeting system, we'll have much better coverage and efficiency than we did before.

Murrue smiled again as another thought occurred to her. With its current mobile suit complement and even before the Himiko had delivered the M1 Astrays, the Archangel was now deadlier than even the Earth Alliance had originally envisioned it would be. At the end of the Heliopolis collaboration the warship had been intended to sortie with all five GAT series units along with two TS-MA2 Moebius mobile armors and La Flaga's more advanced Moebius Zero. The Strike, Aegis, and Blitz had been meant to serve as the Archangel's strike force, taking the battle to the enemy while the Buster, Duel, and the three mobile armors hung back to supplement the warship's defenses. Now though, that old configuration was completely blown away by the new one. Wing Zero alone outclassed the five Heliopolis prototypes, and while the Judgment would join up with the three Wraiths from the Eternal to take part in offensive operations in future fights that still left the Tallgeese Kai and the Buster to join Heero as a forward strike force. The Werewolf alone was a considerable boost to the Archangel's defenses, but having the three M1s fighting with Bristow gave an even greater edge to Murrue's forces. She had already put the three pilots under the command of the Wolf of the Far East, and the former ZAFT Field Marshal had been quite pleased by the arrangement. The new four-unit squad had been unofficially designated Wolf Team.

When put into context with all that, Murrue felt that the new targeting system would be the icing on a very well-armed cake. If she had any complaints, it was that she lacked a pilot capable of wielding La Flaga's old mobile armor. While it was true that the machine was now relatively obsolete when compared to the amazing arsenal of mobile suits wielded by the Three Ships Alliance it was still a useful unit in its own right, and Murrue would've liked having it on hand to aid in the defense of the Archangel. Fortunately, Murrue was a woman who could see the silver lining in things, and she was comforted by the fact that the older mobile armor could act as a backup unit for La Flaga in the event that the Tallgeese Kai was inoperable.

We've come such a long way since Heliopolis, she thought, back then our situation was so dire, and we were desperate just to survive. We're stronger now, and though the odds against us are far worse than they were back in those days, we're in a much better position to confront them. The tasks before us remain daunting, but we can do it. We have to!

At that last thought she turned once again to Heero. Watching as the young man who had so completely captured her heart did his work, Murrue knew that for her the personal stake she had in this fight was far more important than the noble ideals embraced by her group. While she was just as determined as the others to stop the Alliance and ZAFT from wiping each other out, resolute in her desire to protect the countless innocent lives that hang in the balance, she knew in her heart that her true motivations for carrying on in this struggle were much more selfish. She was fighting for the man she loved, to make sure he survived this war, and for the future that she would share with him. It was such a simple desire, but it was more powerful than any of the others in her heart.

It's good to have strong ideals, she thought, to be passionate for things like protecting the people of the Earth Sphere and ending such a gruesome war, to be dedicated to peace and freedom and justice… but for me, those are merely secondary factors, additional reasons to fight. Ideals are fine and all, but what truly moves me is the people around me, the ones I'm close to. In the earlier days of this journey of ours my reason for fighting was to protect the people under my command, to guide them and care for them. They were my friends, my second family, and I was determined to do all I could to bring them through this war and out alive. When Heero first joined us, I saw him first as another friend, but as we grew closer things changed. Leading and looking out for my crew, my friends, remained important, but as I fell for Heero I began to hold him apart from the others, in another category. I valued him as much as all of the others combined, and then eventually more.

Murrue knew it was wrong for her as a Captain to show such individual favoritism, to value Heero so much more than her crew, but she could not help it. In order to make up for that, Murrue had vowed to fight harder than ever to protect and care for her subordinates and she had made Heero an integral part of that struggle. It was a role the Gundam pilot had taken to since literally the day that they had met, and it was one that she knew he would shoulder without a second thought. After all, Murrue and her crew were on one ship, and protecting her meant by extension defending the rest of them. As far as she was concerned, she had given her subordinates the ultimate guardian angel; Wing Zero. Of course, Murrue would never dream of discounting the efforts and skills of the rest of the ship's mobile suit pilots, but there was no arguing who among them was the best.

The Guardian of the Archangel, Murrue mused, Bristow told me that was one of the other nicknames ZAFT had come up for Heero. It's the only one I actually like. The others were so dark and sinister, only speaking of Heero as one would a supreme killer. That one, though… it's much more true to who he really is. Heero is a soldier, a guardian. Heero may kill without hesitation, but the reason he does it is not for glory and personal gain. It's to protect people, both those he knows and cares for and those whom he will never meet.

When she had told Heero about that other moniker ZAFT had come up with for him, the Gundam pilot had given her a small smile and said that he liked it as well. He'd told her that he wouldn't mind her or any of the others using that nickname, though Murrue would only ever call him by his name.

It was fortunate that her ship had such a fearsome soldier fighting for it. According to the periodic updated Bristow had been receiving from his intelligence network, the massive military buildup being undertaken by both sides were proceeding along at an astounding pace. New Nazca-class destroyers were rolling out of the ZAFT shipyards like clockwork, and more GuAIZs were being integrated into the fleet with each passing day. Due to the high cost of the new mobile suit, ZAFT was still producing GINNs as well to supplement it, though from what Bristow was reporting these GINNs had modified armaments, replacing their machine guns and metal swords with beam rifles and beam sabers.

The Wolf of the Far East had less comprehensive intelligence when it came to the Earth Alliance military preparations, but what information he had been able to give Murrue and the others indicated a greater presence of mobile suits in her former armed forces, along with an increasing expansion in the amount of territory said forces were covering in outer space. There was also the fact that the Alliance had, like ZAFT, significantly stepped up the production of warships, and Murrue was sure that the new vessels would be outfitted with mobile suits while the mobile armors still in the fleet would be relegated to support duties. While the TS-MA2 Moebius was overall vastly inferior to ZAFT's mainline mobile suit, let alone the more advanced models that were on the field now, there was one crucial area where the mobile armor did beat the GINN; raw speed. It may have lacked the maneuverability, flexibility, armor, and firepower of the GINN, but it was much better suited to hit-and-run attacks, strikes that Murrue knew the unit could make while the new Alliance mobile suits engaged their foes head on. She suspected that her old military would soon come to that same conclusion if they had not already, and would alter their combat doctrine and tactics accordingly.

Thanks to the Archangel's incredible mobile suits, its two amazing sophisticated companion warships and their units, along with the new targeting system Heero was installing on her vessel, Murrue knew that her position was now stronger than it had ever been before. However, she refused to let that make her overconfident. She would not rest on her laurels, would not let pride in herself and her allies blind her to the threat their enemies still posed to them, to the odds that they were confronted with. Time and time again, Murrue had seen what happened when people underestimated their foes and grew arrogant in their own abilities. She had watched the Alliance and ZAFT make those mistakes repeatedly over the course of the war, and she refused to fall into that same trap.

Part of that trap, Murrue knew, was complacency, and it was why she had been growing increasingly nervous over the past few days. The Archangel and her allies had been occupying their hiding place inside the Mendel colony for well over two weeks now, and Murrue could not help but feel that they were wearing out their welcome. The Alliance and ZAFT were not complete fools, and she knew that they were searching for them. It was only a matter of time before, somehow, they would manage to find them at L4, and Murrue wanted to be ready when that day came. Ideally, Murrue did not want to be there at all when the enemy came, but moving was not her call to make; it belonged to Waltfeld. Murrue had shared her private misgivings with Heero, and he had agreed with her that they could not stay at Mendel for much longer. However, by becoming part of this new alliance the two of them had also agreed to place themselves as subordinate to the military authority of the Desert Tiger, although Murrue knew that Heero's declaration that her orders for him would supersede Waltfeld's in his eyes had not been forgotten. Still, the two of them ultimately had to trust that the man they had agreed to let lead them militarily knew what he was doing and had a plan for the eventuality of relocation.

In order to keep herself and her crew sharp, Murrue had continued to run daily exercises since the ship had settled in at the Mendel colony. She had stepped them up a little as her feelings of nervousness had grown, though she had kept her misgivings concealed from all but Heero in order to avoid adversely affecting her subordinates. Morale was crucial on a warship, and Murrue knew that her demeanor could greatly influence that. She was determined to continue to be a source of strength and inspiration for those serving under her. To her, they deserved that much for all they had done, and definitely more.

They've all been through so much, she thought, those that have been on this ship since Heliopolis, and those that joined us when we joined Orb… they've put themselves through trials no other crew could endure. It's all for a noble purpose, but that does not change the fact that they've been called to sacrifice far more than anyone should. At least the crewmembers from the Orb Navy will be able to return to their homeland if all goes well, but those that were originally Alliance soldiers won't have that privilege. Even if Blue Cosmos is defeated and their influence removed from the Atlantic Federation, thanks to my decision at Alaska and subsequent choice to fight alongside Orb against our homeland we will all still be regarded as traitors by our former nation. It does not matter if our actions save mankind from wiping itself out; our country will never see what we're doing to achieve peace as anything other than a capital offense. We can never go home again, never see our families again. When this is all over, I want to make sure that they can at least build new lives for themselves in Orb. I'm sure Cagalli will be more than willing to help me with that.

It was another light at the end of the tunnel, another hope that Murrue could hold on to and draw strength from in order to make it through this struggle. Her fight was not just for the future she and Heero would share together, but for the future of her crew as well, and she would do everything in her power to bring them through the darkness and out into the light.

She saw Heero stand up and move towards her station. "Alright," he said, "it's done."

Murrue smiled. "Great job, Heero."

She glanced at the clock on her personal monitor before turning back to the Gundam pilot. "You're due to take off in about forty minutes," she said, "why don't you go grab a quick bite to eat before then? I'll start running simulation trials with the new system right away."

Heero nodded. "Got it. Let me know if you need me to make further adjustments to the program."

"I doubt that'll be necessary," Murrue replied, "You've never once let me down. I know you put your best work into this, Heero. I can't wait to see the results we get with it. I'm sure it'll be a success."

"Still," said Heero, "better to be safe than sorry."

Murrue smirked. "Caution coming from the man that led a head on assault against Avalon? Do you really understand the meaning of the term, Heero?"

"Murrue…" he said.

She gave a small laugh. "Just a bit of teasing, Heero. Come, now; I think I've earned the right to that after the stunts you've pulled in our time together."

Heero nodded, a small smile appearing on his face. "You have a point there."

"I'd like to think so," she said before reaching over to grab his hand, "Don't worry, Heero. While I'm confident in your skills, I'll still make sure to be thorough in the simulations. If there's anything wrong, I'll let you know at once."

"Contact Shemei if I'm not back by then," said Heero, "she co-wrote the program, and since part of it's taken from the Judgment's targeting system she has familiarity with some of it. In my absence, she'll be your best troubleshooter."

"I'll keep that in mind," said Murrue, "you'd better get a move on, Heero. Bristow will be back soon enough, and you need to be ready."

"I will be," he replied.

The two of them shared another small smile and gave each other's hands a squeeze before Heero left the bridge, a silent message passing in the gesture.

Take care, my love.

She then turned back to her bridge crew. "Alright everyone, let's get started. Initiate simulation program Alpha Verde. That ought to be a good start point for testing the new targeting system."

"Loading simulation Alpha Verde now," said the gunnery officer, "all weapons ready, new targeting system online."

"All sensors ready and linked with weapons," said the radar officer, "First wave of enemies will be within maximum firing range in ten seconds."

Alright, thought Murrue, time to go to work…

….

On the bridge of the Vesalius, behind the Captain's chair, Field Marshal Creuset studied the large tactical display before him. Covering an area roughly the size of a billiards table and standing at near the same height as one, the intricate electronic interface had served the masked officer well in his prior campaigns. It was an invaluable tool in working out last minute details before the start of a battle, and Creuset knew that he was fast approaching an engagement.

Approaching the massive L4 debris field, his eight-ship battle group was arrayed in a broad crescent, with the outside of the curve facing the ruins of what had once been one of the Atlantic Federation's largest collection of habitats in outer space. The task force's five Laurasia-class frigates comprised the central part of the formation, while one Nazca-class destroyer was at each 'tip' of the crescent. The Vesalius was just behind the crescent in a relatively protected position, though it was not an assignment Creuset intended on having his flagship keep for long.

Our ahead of the battle group, holding position at the edge of the debris field, was the Patrol Fleet frigate Mata Hari. According to the ship's Captain, the Cornelius-class tender it had tailed all the way to L4 had just left the area the day before. The departure had been seen by one of the Mata Hari's Mirage GINNs, but the ship had refused to approach the Orb vessel in order to avoid having it send off a distress call and alert the renegades inside the Mendel colony.

The Mata Hari would be launching its three mainline GINNs in support of the main ZAFT force while holding back its Mirage GINNs for its own defense. The frigate itself would not be directly supporting the battle group, but would be held in reserve and only called forth to help cover what Creuset knew would be the task force's inevitable withdrawal.

Or rather, the withdrawal of our survivors, he thought, and I'm not expecting many of those, given our opposition. The Freedom may fight only to disable, but the reports show that its allies do not hold themselves back in that manner.

The losses amongst his forces did not overly concern Creuset though. So long as he was able to accomplish his goal and had a clear escape route once that was done, nothing else mattered.

The Mata Hari would not be the only warship serving as a rearguard. As his battle group had journeyed to L4, Creuset had contacted the few ZAFT vessels that were operating nearby in a bid for support. The amount of long-range patrols had been drastically reduced since the fall of Avalon, but there was still a handful of fleet ships out this far, and the masked Field Marshal had decided to utilize the closest ones in his operation. Although he had not received orders forbidding this, Creuset knew that it was not something Zala would be pleased with; the Chairman wanted him to accomplish his task without further straining ZAFT's already stretched resources. The Chairman's feelings did not matter to the Field Marshal though. All he cared about was making sure that he had a line of retreat available once he accomplished his mission, whether it was the official one, his personal agenda, or both.

He'd managed to draw two additional destroyers and three frigates into his operation. Two of the warships, one of the frigates and one of the destroyers, were proceeding towards L4 at that very moment, though they were still much further out than his battle group. The Captains of the respective ships were under the impression that they would join the Vesalius and her battle group directly in the fight, but Creuset had no intention of waiting for them to show up before he moved into the debris field. If his timing worked out right, they would link up with the Mata Hari at about the time the survivors of his task force were beginning their retreat. The other two frigates were moving into sensor range now, but rather than join the battle group directly they would hang back with the Mata Hari, deploying their mobile suits with Creuset's force but themselves acting as part of the rearguard for the eventual withdrawal. As for the second destroyer, it was just coming into view on the tactical display and was moving to join the Vesalius behind the leading edge of the formation.

Unfortunately for Creuset, all five latecomers had not been as fortunate as his battle group regarding their mobile suit complements; they carried only standard GINNs. The same went for the three mainline GINNs that the Mata Hari was sending into the battle, and other than their cloaking devices the vessel's three Mirage GINNs were in the same situation, wielding only sniper rifles that fired physical shells rather than energy beams. Still, the Field Marshal would make the most of the limited resources he had at his disposal.

Timing is key here, he thought, my approach to the field has to coincide with Azrael's on the opposite side. So far I'm on track to do that, and I can't afford any delays. I just hope Azrael brought enough ships to keep Wing Zero and the legged ship occupied while I make my move.

He moved away from the table and towards the central part of the bridge. Looking around, he could see several crew members fidgeting nervously at their stations. They were trying to keep their discomfort concealed, but to eyes as keen as Creuset's their disquiet and fear were all too clear. The Field Marshal knew full well the reason they were all so nervous. While they had been informed that their mission was to simply destroy the rogue warship Eternal, they were aware that it would be an especially dangerous operation. After all, not only was the prototype support cruiser commanded by the legendary Desert Tiger and held several advanced mobile suits within, but its allies were equally formidable… and one far more so.

Wing Zero.

Dread of that machine has been growing throughout the war, since the day it made its combat debut, he thought, but since the fall of Avalon, that fear has reached new heights. Everyone here knows now that Wing Zero is cooperating with the Eternal, which means that engaging the renegades will entail fighting the Demon Lord of Avalon as well.

It was a matter Creuset had already given consideration, and it was another reason why he had enlisted the help of his unwitting pawn in the Earth Alliance. Of course, his subordinates did not know about that and were under the impression that their battle group would be the only force engaging the renegades. Having Alliance forces show up on the field would certainly be a surprise to his task force… though hopefully a welcome one once they divided the attention of the Clyne faction's allies. Creuset was optimistic that at least the legged ship and her mobile suits would engage the Alliance forces. After all, the ship and her crew were former Alliance soldiers, so they would have more familiarity with the tactics likely to be employed by Azrael's forces.

Perhaps the Orb ship will engage the Alliance forces as well, he mused, I can only hope. If not, we'll just have to fight it along with the Eternal. It won't be easy, but it surely will not be as bad as facing all three warships and their mobile suits fighting us as a united front.

He turned to one of the bridge officers. "What's our current ETA to the field?"

"Eight minutes until we hit the edge," replied the sensor officer, "Also, frigates Aalto and Siza are moving to link up with the Mata Hari.

"Sir," said the communications officer, "the destroyer Shepard has sent a message requesting orders."

"Send them the tactical channel we're using for this operation," Creuset replied, "we'll be broadcasting general orders for the battle group shortly."

"Yes, sir," the radioman replied.

Creuset nodded before turning to the ship's Captain. "Ades, bring alert readiness up to Level One across the battle group. I want all ships ready to engage, with mobile suits launched prior to our entering the field."

"Does that include you, sir?" Ades asked.

Creuset nodded. "Have my GuAIZ prepped for launch. The battle group is under your command now, Captain."

Ades nodded. "Understood, sir."

"By the way," said Creuset, "regarding that matter we discussed earlier, have all the preparations been made?"

"The pod's ready," said Ades, "and I've sent a security team to fetch the girl." His gaze narrowed. "With all due respect, sir, what's going on here? This is highly irregular."

"Come now, Ades," Creuset chuckled, "you've worked with me long enough to know that I rarely run a 'regular' operation."

"I'm aware of that," the Captain replied, "but this is strange even by your standards. I don't understand what the purpose of this ploy of yours is, and I'm concerned over the potential risk it poses to my ship."

"It will be no more or less a danger than the rest of this operation, I assure you," said Creuset, "Do not fret over the details of the matter, Captain. As long as the pod is launched on time and on target, that is all that matters. I know that it seems strange now, but believe me when I say that this is all part of a larger plan, one that will help bring an end to this war."

The masked ace had to refrain from smirking. While he certainly had not been lying to the Captain, he had still deceived him. His long-term plan was indeed to bring the war to an end… but not in the manner that his allies were thinking of.

Captain Ades nodded, though Creuset noted that the man did not seem entirely satisfied with the answer he had been give. "Alright, sir," he said.

"Put it out of your mind, Ades," said Creuset, "focus on the task at hand. Carry on."

With that the Field Marshal turned and made his way towards the bridge exit. As Creuset left he subconsciously patted his pocket, once again checking to make sure a certain data disk was still there.

Just one quick stop to make, he thought, and then I'll go to my steed. Let the games begin…

….

"What's going on?" asked Flay nervously, looking back and forth between the two ZAFT soldiers that had grabbed her by the arms and taken her from her quarters, "Where are you taking me?"

"Shut up," said one of the men.

"You'll see soon enough," said the other.

Their tones were cold and harsh, and they only served to increase the fear that was now gripping the young woman. After so many days of being a 'guest' of the Coordinator armed forces, isolated by the masked officer, looked at by regular soldiers with suspicion, and quietly watched over by Yzak, the sudden intrusion by the two guards and their seizure of her had jarred Flay out of the nervous resignation she'd been in during her unofficial captivity. Now they were dragging her through the ship's corridors, and Flay had no idea what their intended destination was.

"Hold on," she said, "that masked soldier… did he..."

"I said shut up!" yelled one of the guards, tightening his grip on her arm.

"Bitch needs to learn her place," growled the other one as he glared at her, "maybe we should teach her a lesson in respect."

Flay shuddered as the man's eyes looked up and down her body, leering at her. Fear was quickly becoming all-out panic, and the Natural girl was all too aware of her physical inferiority to the two Coordinators.

"Hey," said the other soldier, shaking his head at his partner, "get your head out of the gutter. Our orders come directly from the Captain, and he won't be happy if he finds out you're using them as an excuse to screw around."

"If he finds out," sneered the guard, his other hand moving towards Flay's face, "I think we've got time for a little fun. It won't take too long." He roughly cupped her chin in his hand, a cruel smile on his face. "Besides, it'd be a shame to let that body of hers go to waste. We might as well take advantage of it while it's still here."

The other soldier then chuckled. "Well, when you put it that way…"

"Hey!" shouted a familiar voice, "What the hell is going on here?"

Hope and relief filled her heart as Flay saw a certain silver-haired pilot coming towards them, dressed in a crimson flight suit with his helmet cradled in his left arm. "Yzak!"

The young man wasted little time in getting right in the face of the guard who'd been making the lewd insinuations. "You call yourselves soldiers?" he snarled, "How dare you treat a girl like that!"

The guard's demeanor had changed from cocky and lascivious to nervousness, and Flay remembered something she'd learned about ZAFT's uniforms; color denoted rank… and Yzak's red was superior to her 'escorts' green.

She felt both guards weaken their hold on her as Yzak confronted them, and she immediately took advantage of the situation. Thanks to their distraction, Flay was able to slip out of their grip, and she quickly took shelter behind the young pilot who had become her unofficial caretaker and guardian over the course of her time with ZAFT.

"Hold on, sir…" said the other guard, "let me explain…"

"Explain what?" Yzak yelled, and Flay was stunned at the fire burning in his blue eyes. He wasn't merely angry; the ZAFT Red was enraged.

"I overheard plenty of what your partner had to say!" he growled, "How do expect to explain that?"

"Sir…" said the first guard, "that was just talk, I didn't really mean…"

"Bullshit!," he roared, once again rounding on that man and grabbing him by the collar of his uniform, "Two men have grabbed a girl, and I hear one of them implying that rape is the order of the day! What the FUCK is wrong with you?"

"Hang on," said the other guard, "I was trying to talk him out of it…"

"You expect me to believe that?" said Yzak, "When you're clearly his accomplice? When I explicitly heard you agreeing with him? You're already facing charges for attempted sexual assault, and you're throwing lying to a superior officer on top of it? I may be about to fly into combat, but I've still got enough time to throw both your asses in the brig before then!"

"But sir…" said the first guard, "We have orders…"

Yzak spat out a laugh. "Orders, you say? I'll just bet…"

"Actually, they do," said a voice from behind Flay, "though they seem to be deviating from them considerably."

The blood coursing through Flay's veins chilled. She knew that voice…

Flay and Yzak turned around and saw Field Marshal Creuset approaching them. Now the girl truly felt herself to be stuck between the proverbial rock and a hard place. Part of her was desperate to get behind Yzak again, to put him between her and the masked officer, but that meant once again exposing herself to the two guards the young pilot had just saved her from. Flay froze, unable to make up her mind as to what she should do.

"Field Marshal," said Yzak, "what are you talking about?"

"These two were ordered to fetch the girl," said Creuset, looking past the young man at the guards, "however, apparently they've decided to go beyond the scope of those orders."

Yzak looked between the guards and his superior, and Flay could see the suspicion in his eyes. She knew that he did not trust Creuset, just as she did, and now that the two guards were revealed to be in cahoots with him Yzak's suspicions were only further agitated.

"What's going on here?" he growled.

"Mind your tone, Yzak," said Creuset, "you are speaking to a superior, after all."

"With all due respect, sir," Yzak shot back, "I think I still deserve an answer." He then nodded back at the guards. "And these two need to be disciplined."

Creuset nodded. "Agreed, but that will have to wait; we will be entering combat operations soon, after all, and we need everyone at their posts."

He looked past Flay and Yzak at the guards. "You two will get to your stations; I'll take over from here."

The two men nodded. "Yes sir."

"Don't think this is over!" Yzak yelled at them, "I'll be bringing both you up on charges once the battle's done!"

The guards gulped and hurried to get away from the silver-haired pilot. As soon as they rounded the corner and were out of sight Flay scrambled to get behind Yzak, clutching his shoulders as she put him between her and the masked Field Marshal.

As she grabbed him she could feel him stiffen, and for a moment she thought it was because of her. However, as she looked over his shoulder and at his face, she could see Yzak continue to glare at the man in front of him. His right shoulder shifted, and as Flay looked down her eyes widened as she saw his hand hovering over his sidearm.

"Yzak," said Creuset, his voice strangely calm considering the incredible tension in the air, "I suggest you get to the Duel."

Flay saw her protector glare at his superior. "What are you going to do with her?" he growled.

"That's not your concern," Creuset replied, "the coming battle is. You should get to your machine."

"After I get Flay back to her quarters," Yzak shot back.

Creuset shook his head. "That's not going to happen. Do not force this issue, Yzak. I'll do more than simply write you up for insubordination if you continue to defy me."

The underlying threat was clear, and it chilled Flay to the core. While she knew that she was expendable to the masked man, to hear him imply his willingness to kill Yzak was quite a surprise. Not only was the young man officially a member of ZAFT like Creuset, but from the red color of his uniform Flay knew that he was a skilled soldier, one that the Field Marshal would not easily replace.

As she looked on she noticed the sharp contrast between the two men. Yzak was rigid and tense, while the Field Marshal was incredibly relaxed. However, there was an underlying deadliness to the masked officer, a feeling about him that Flay got, one that said he was more than ready to follow through with his threat despite the fact that he hadn't begun reaching for his gun like Yzak had.

Flay looked at Yzak again, and she was startled to realize that there was more than anger and distrust in his expression. The young man was afraid. He was standing his ground between her and the enigmatic soldier, determined to protect her, but quite fearful of the man he was defending her from.

A sudden insight hit the girl, one that scared her more than the intentions of the two guards that had taken her from a room. Yzak would not back down, and Creuset would not either. The only way the situation could end at this rate was a shoot out.

And if it came down to that…

…Yzak would die.

Flay didn't know why, but her heart was telling her that despite the fact that Yzak's hand was closer to his sidearm than Creuset's was to his the masked Field Marshal was still more than capable of outdrawing his subordinate. At the same time, she realized that Yzak was well aware of this. He knew that he could not beat his superior; he knew that he was throwing himself into a fight that he knew he would lose, that would cost him his life… but he was doing it anyway.

To protect her.

He would die for her, just as Kira had.

A few months ago, she wouldn't have blinked twice at the thought. After all, she had begun her relationship with Kira with the full intention of him eventually dying in battle after killing as many of his fellow Coordinators as he could. Her manipulating his affections for her, getting him to fight for her, had simply been her way of waging war against the people that had killed her father. As a Coordinator himself, Kira had been counted among Flay's enemies, and she merely saw him as one that she could play against the rest of the race she hated before the war that had taken her dad consumed him as well.

Yzak should've been just like Kira; another Coordinator who would die in the service of her vendetta.

However… he wasn't.

Just like Kira, in the end, had proven to be more to Flay than a tool, so was Yzak. Kira's gentleness, compassion, and bravery had turned Flay's false affections into a genuine if warped romantic attachment, while Yzak's quiet guardianship of her had likewise broken through the walls of distrust and hate she had built up for Coordinators over the course of the war. While Flay may not have felt as strongly for Yzak as she had ultimately done so for Kira, she had still come to see him as more than just a Coordinator. Like Kira, he was a person, an individual, with his own thoughts, ideals, and feelings. He was not the monster Flay had made his kind out to be, just as Kira wasn't the abomination that she had tried so hard to convince herself that he was.

If her time with ZAFT had taught her anything, it was that Coordinators weren't the vile creatures she had once believed them to be, the abhorrent freaks whose annihilation groups like Blue Cosmos demanded. Sure, there had been some bad apples, with the two guards that had taken her from her quarters earlier the clearest examples of that. However, they had been the only two Coordinators she had encountered during her 'captivity' that had treated her with any real hostility. While she may have kept her distance from others apart from Yzak, she had still had plenty of opportunities to study the people she had found herself with. She'd seen them talk and work with each other, just like her friends and shipmates aboard the Archangel had done so. They may have looked at her with curiosity and suspicion because they did not know her, but other than that they had not made any kind of threats against her, and had treated her with the courtesy one would expect from professional soldiers.

Flay had finally come to realize for the Coordinators as a whole what she had just done so for Kira right before the war had so cruelly taken him from her. Coordinators weren't monsters, weren't evil creatures out to conquer the world and enslave or kill her kind.

They were human. Just like her.

And one was about to die for her.

That was something Flay refused to allow. It was because of her selfishness and hatred that Kira and her friends had volunteered to stay with the Archangel, and as a result both Kira and Tolle had died in the Marshal Islands. Flay may not have killed them herself, but she knew that she was still responsible for what had happened to them because she had manipulated them into continuing to fight.

Enough people had died because of her.

"Alright," she said, "I'll go."

Yzak whirled around, his eyes widening as he lowered his gun. "Flay, wait…"

She saw Creuset smirk. "Well, how about that…"

"Flay, don't do this!" said Yzak, grabbing her by the shoulder, "You can't…"

She looked up at him and shook her head. "I'm sorry, but I will. I have to."

Yzak vehemently shook his head. "No! I promised you that I…"

In spite of the gravity of the situation, Flay couldn't help but smile. She didn't know why the silver-haired pilot was so determined to protect her, but she was genuinely grateful to him for it. As she looked at him, she was reminded of what she had had in Kira; a loyal guardian, someone who truly cared for her and worried about her. Granted, Kira and Yzak were quite different in terms of their personalities, but both had shown a strong desire to protect others.

It was all the more amazing to Flay because she saw the whole thing through the lens of hindsight; with her past actions, she knew that she was not worthy of having anyone defend her. Even before she had manipulated Kira into fighting for her she had been cruel to him, especially during their brief stopover at the Eurasian Federation's Artemis base. Yet despite that, along with how she had pushed him away from her during their later stay in Orb as she had struggled to come to grips with her changing feelings for him, he had still fought to protect her as much as he had to defend the rest of his friends on the Archangel.

Her situation with Yzak was different than it had been with Kira, but to Flay she still felt that she did not deserve the protection the young man had decided to give her. Hell, she had told him exactly what she had done to Kira, and he had still been willing to watch over her! How he could overlook that and still see her as someone worthy of his aid, Flay did not know, but she considered herself very lucky that he did. He may not have been as soft and gentle as Kira had been, but the gruff and hot-headed Coordinator was kind in his own way, and he shared her late lover's passion for protecting people.

He's a good guy, she thought, just like Kira… and I bet there's other Coordinators like him as well. He doesn't deserve to die… none of them do.

She surprised herself, and no doubt Yzak, by leaning in to give him a quick kiss on the cheek. As she pulled back she saw his eyes widen, and she felt her face warm just a bit. "I know," she said, "It's alright. This isn't your fault, and I don't want you to die because of me."

"Flay…" he said, clearly pained at the thought of breaking his word to her.

Flay did not consider his promise to be broken though; this was simply something beyond his control, just like the death of her father had not been Kira's fault even though he'd told her that he would save her.

"Take care, Yzak," she said, "and thank you. Go now, please."

The young man hung his head in resignation. "Alright… I'm sorry."

With that he went on his way, pausing only to glare at Creuset as he passed by. The Field Marshal for his part simply smirked, like the whole spectacle had been nothing more than an amusing diversion for him.

"Well," he said as his subordinate disappeared around the corner, "that was interesting." He then gestured for Flay to follow him. "Come along, Flay. We've wasted enough time here."

She nodded and fell in behind him as he led her through the ship. "Where are you taking me?" she asked.

"The same place those two incompetents were supposed to take you," he replied, "the hangar." He looked over his shoulder and smiled. "It's time for you to fulfill your role, Flay. Today you'll play a crucial role in helping me bring this war to an end."

Had someone else told her that, the thought would've excited her. Coming from this man though, Flay only felt dread. Whatever he had planned would not be as altruistic as he so claimed, but what choice did she have? If she didn't go along with him, he'd simply kill her and find a new pawn. Of course, Flay was also aware of the very real possibility that going along with him would spell her doom anyway. There was nothing she could do though. Her hands were tied, and her fate was now beyond her control.

At least I was able to save Yzak, she thought. It gave her only a little bit of comfort, but she would take what she could get.

"Why the hangar?" she asked, "I'm not a Coordinator; I can't fly a mobile suit."

"A fact that I am well aware of," said Creuset nonchalantly, "rest assured that I have no intention of turning you into a pilot. You'll see soon enough."

Flay remained silent for the rest of the brief journey, knowing she would not get anything else out of the masked soldier.

When they entered the hangar, Flay was in awe at the bustle of activity. The warship's mobile suits were being prepped for launch, and the girl realized a very similar display had no doubt unfolded on the Archangel each time the vessel had gone into battle. It was a glimpse into the world that Kira, Heero, and the other pilots on that ship had lived in, had risked their lives in… just as Yzak was doing now.

Flay saw him heading towards one of the mobile suits, a machine that reminded her of Kira's Strike. She realized that it must have been one of the four units that had been stolen from Heliopolis. Flay wanted to call out to him, to once again tell him to be careful, but she was sure that any such action on her part would not be well received by Creuset. She continued to follow him, wondering if the masked officer would be taking her along with him in his mobile suit. However, he did not take her towards any of the six fearsome machines that occupied the hangar. Instead, he guided her to what she realized was a ZAFT life pod.

The Field Marshal tapped a key on the pod, and it opened up. "Get inside," he said.

She nodded and did as she was told, her apprehension only growing as she took the sole seat. Looking around, she found the safety harness and began strapping herself in.

Flay saw Creuset glance around the hangar before turning back to her. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a data disk. On it was a circular symbol, with alternating yellow and black blades inside it. It was a very strange design to Flay, yet she could not help but feel that she should've known what it was.

"For you," said Creuset, handing her the disk.

She took it with care, holding it in both hands as she examined it. "What is it?"

Creuset smiled. "The key, girl. The key to ending this war."

He then reached inside the pod and began typing on a small keypad on the arm of her chair. "At a certain point during the engagement," said Creuset, "this pod will be launched. When it does, I want you to get on the radio and tell your friends what I've just given you."

Flay's eyes widened. "My friends? You mean the Archangel's out there?"

Creuset nodded. "Yes, along with others. I've already set your radio to an open channel. All you have to do is tell them that you have the key to ending the war. Everything else will fall into place once you do."

Flay nodded. "Ok… but what if they don't believe me?"

Creuset chuckled. "Have faith, girl. Play your part, and things will work out quite well. You'll see."

Flay nodded. It wasn't like she had much of a choice in the matter.

Creuset smirked. "Thank you, Flay. I know it doesn't seem like it now, but your assistance here will be vital in bringing this war to an end. Farewell."

The man's words brought her little comfort. There was just something about him that made her very uneasy. She thought back to the confrontation between him and Yzak, how casual he had looked during that showdown… how he would've shot the young man without a second thought. Someone who was that blasé about the lives of soldiers serving under him was definitely not to be trusted, regardless of whatever flowery language he might use.

As the pod's hatch closed, Flay was able to take some small measure of hope from everything that was happening around her. Creuset had said that the Archangel was here, which meant that she would finally be able to rejoin that ship and her friends. For the first time in months the girl felt a hint of optimism, that there was a chance that her situation was finally changing for the better.

Hang on, everyone, she thought, I'm coming back, and I'll see you all again real soon!

….

Leaning back in his chair, Azrael took a sip from his cup of coffee as he studied the image on the screen. He was in the Captain's office of his battle group's flagship, doing a little last minute overview of the situation before he made his way to the bridge. The Captain was already up there, and she had given him the use of her office for the duration of the mission. The same had also gone for her cabin, as was customary when high ranking dignitaries like him were on board, while she had relocated to one of the lesser officers' quarters. It wasn't like Azrael had given her much choice in the matter.

The thought of the ship having a female Captain was actually a source of irritation for the man. Azrael was very much against having women in command roles in the military, or in the armed forces at all for that matter. To him, as was thought by other prominent members of Blue Cosmos, women had no place fighting a war. They were too soft, driven by their emotions, by foolish sentiment, rather than the cold determination Azrael and his allies believed was needed to fight a war, especially one like this. In Azrael's eyes, women belonged on the home front, minding their families or working support jobs, subservient to the war economy. It was a belief driven by the incredible arrogance and sexism that was so ingrained in people like Azrael and his sympathizers.

However, despite the power and influence Blue Cosmos held over the Atlantic Federation and the rest of the Earth Alliance, it was currently in no position to change the structure of the armed forces. By the time Azrael and the others had established their dominance over the government, tensions between the Earth Alliance and the PLANTs were near the breaking point. They had been at the cusp of war, and Azrael and his colleagues both within the armed forces and without had taken the view that now was not the time to restructure the military. It would only serve to create confusion and discord at a time when unity was needed to combat the Coordinator menace. Therefore, it had been deemed necessary to postpone the shift to an all male military until after the war was won.

It had been Admiral Sutherland's decision to assign this particular Captain to Azrael's flagship. The move had been made without consulting Azrael, a fact that had annoyed him to no small degree. However, Azrael had not contested the decision due to the woman's unique qualifications. Given the enemy that they faced and how much damage it had wrought upon the Alliance forces at Orb, her knowledge and experience were needed. Azrael had resigned himself to dealing with the unfortunate necessity for the time being.

Hopefully I won't have to abide her presence for too much longer, he thought, it should be no later than the end of the war. After that I'll have Sutherland promote her and shift her to a desk job. Once we institute our change in policy regarding personnel she'll be quietly shunted out. For now though, at least she's performing her task. The battle group's moving into position, and the fighting will soon begin.

It was the battle group's composition and formation that was currently displayed on the computer screen. It was comprised of sixteen Drake-class escort ships, eight Nelson-class battleships, one Agamemnon-class carrier, and the flagship. Six of the smaller escort ships were ahead of the rest of the fleet in a classic skirmisher line; they would enter the debris field first in order to find the enemy and gauge their response. The main body of the fleet would follow behind them, while the carrier would hang back outside the debris field after it launched its combat units. Two of the Drake-class escort ships and two of the Nelson-class battleships would likewise hang back, both to protect the carrier and to provide cover fire in the event of a withdrawal. Like the carrier they were protecting though, they would launch all of their mobile suits and armors into the debris field with the rest of the battle group. Azrael would've preferred to bring all of the task force's capital ships directly into the fight, including the carrier; after all, it did posses two battleship-grade high-energy beam cannons. However, his flagship's Captain had told him that their current deployment was standard procedure for Atlantic Federation forces, and he had decided to go along with her for the time being.

The complements carried by the warships were mixed, reflecting the interim phase the Alliance military as a whole was entering with the shifting over to mobile suits as its primary tactical weapon. The fourteen Drake-class ships had split complements, with two Strike-Daggers and two TS-MA2 Moebius units carried within each craft. The larger Nelson-class battleships had a more tipped balance in favor of mobile suits, carrying six Strike-Daggers and four of the mobile armors. While the Nelson-class normally carried fourteen craft, the mobile suits were significantly larger than the mobile armors, thus the reduction in overall complement to ten units. As for the Drake-class ships, they had always held their mobile armors in brackets on the outside of their hulls, and the practice had continued with the shift to mobile suits. Pilots would exit the ship wearing space suits equipped with small thrusters to help them maneuver and get to their craft before detaching from the vessel.

The Agamemnon-class carrier, christened Priam, had like the smaller Nelson-class vessels been forced to undergo a reduction from its normal complement of units, in this case from forty combat craft to thirty-two. Even though, at 300 meters to the flagship's 420, the Agamemnon-class carrier was smaller than Azrael's vessel, the ship was a pure carrier and had been designed accordingly. Most of the interior with the exception of crew quarters, engineering, and of course the bridge was devoted to storage space for mobile weapons. The carrier had only two beam cannons and several CIWs as weapons, meaning that there was far less room used for ammunition storage like there was on other warships, while its bulkheads and armor was much thinner than other warships. This created much more internal space than even a ship like the Archangel had, thus giving the vessel a larger potential complement of vehicles, but it came at the price of durability; the carrier was much easier to destroy than the advanced warship built at Heliopolis, or even the more conventional Nelson-class battleships for that matter. The vessel may have had a cavernous hangar bay, but the addition of mobile suits to its combat squadrons had necessitated serious internal refits, and those were not completely worked out at this time. The warship still carried an impressive amount of fighting machines though, with twenty Strike-Daggers and a dozen mobile armors ready to go.

As for the mobile armors themselves, they had been armed with a new weapon. The usually linear gun and missile combination had been replaced by a beam cannon mounted underneath the vehicle. The gun had its own separate energy source and was significantly more powerful than the older linear gun, though it did considerably increase the mass of the mobile armor. Other than the beam cannon the only weapons it had were the pair of built-in 40mm Vulcan machine guns wielded by all TS-MA2 Moebius mobile armors.

The only vessel in the battle group that had completely switched over to mobile suits was the flagship. In addition to the Calamity, Forbidden, and Raider, the warship had six Strike-Daggers in its hangar. Azrael had insisted on nothing less than the best units possible for his vessel, and he was looking forward to seeing them in action.

The battle at Orb was a good show, he thought, but there the entire Orb military was in the way. Here though, the traitors only have two other ships with them. Even with Wing Zero and the other advanced mobile suits they have with them, they won't be able to stand against us… especially since we're not the only ones gunning for them.

Thanks to his contact 'Iscariot', Azrael was well aware that ZAFT had dispatched a task force to the area as well, though their goal was to simply destroy only one of the enemy's ships, a support cruiser that had been stolen from them. Azrael's goals were twofold; destroy the Archangel and capture one of the nuclear powered mobile suits used by the group the traitors had joined. While he would not actively try to engage the ZAFT ships when he was in pursuit of those objectives, once that mission had been accomplished he had every intention of turning his guns on the Coordinator forces. After all, how could the leader of Blue Cosmos pass up on the chance to eliminate a group of the abominations his organization had sworn to destroy? His only reservation was that he was not sure if 'Iscariot' was personally working as part of the ZAFT task force or if the agent was removed from the field. After all, the contact had time after time proven itself to be a very valuable source of information, and it was one that Azrael was reluctant to discard at this point in the game.

I suppose it can't be helped, he thought, it would look strange if I had the task force refrain from firing on a specific target, although with my authority I could of course get away with it. Still, it would be better not to test things. Who knows how that Captain would react? After all, she once served with that lady Captain of the Archangel, and that woman was willing to betray the Alliance rather than follow orders she didn't like. Admiral Sutherland assured me of this one's political reliability, but I'm still not entirely convinced. One traitor Captain's one too many; if this bitch betrays me too, it won't end well for her.

At that moment the Captain in question contacted him. "Sir," came her voice over the office's intercom, "the skirmish line is about to enter the debris field."

Azrael pressed a button on the keypad. "Very well, Captain. Have all ships launch their mobile armors and mobile suits, and go to battle stations."

"Understood, sir" she replied, "However, I'd like to hold back the three prototypes until we have visual confirmation on the enemy. Their energy reserves are not as large as the other units due to their Phase Shift Armor."

Azrael bristled at her modifying his orders, but he refrained from lashing out in this case. After all, her argument was valid, and she was the official military commander of the operation. Of course, Azrael could overrule her at any time he chose to do so.

"Fine," he said, "but make sure they're ready to launch as soon as we find the enemy."

"Yes, sir," said the Captain, "Will you be coming up here?"

"Of course, Miss Captain," Azrael replied, his words tinged with contempt, "I'll be joining you momentarily. Carry on."

He cut the connection, huffing as he did so. The sooner this is over with, he thought, the better.

On the computer screen he saw the warships begin deploying their mobile weapons. The sight brought a cruel smile to his face. He may not have brought a full fleet to the engagement, but it was still an impressive force, and it was his to wield as he saw fit. It was times like these that Azrael found it difficult to remember that he was not a trained military commander; the power that came from having such weapons at his disposal was like a sweet perfume, one that threatened to cloud his judgment.

Such a potent force, he thought as he stood up and headed out of the office, yet it is but a tiny fraction of the full might of the Earth Alliance, and that might is growing by the day! Soon we shall wrap up this sideshow with the traitorous scum and their allies. Then we will move on to the true enemy. Coordinators, your days are numbered. Soon you will be purged in cleansing fire, and our blue and pure world will be restored to its proper order!

….

Wing Zero weaved between floating slabs of scrap metal with its customary precision and speed. Three hours into his patrol flight, Heero remained as alert and ready as when he had started the routine assignment. His Twin Buster Rifle and shoulder gatlings were ready to fire at a moment's notice, while the Gundam's beam saber was in its right hand, deactivated for the moment but requiring only a second to power up its verdant blade.

While other pilots might have viewed patrol flights as a tedious assignment, Heero actually appreciated them as both a necessary precaution and a practical means to keep his skills sharp. The second factor was emphasized by the unique environment in which he was flying. The ruins of Mendel's late companion colonies and the warships that had been destroyed during the fierce Battle of Nova that had so savaged the once prosperous and thriving L4 region were a navigation hazard that kept Heero constantly on his toes, ensuring that he never let his guard down. Even with the incredibly tough Gundanium alloy that made up its construction, a collision with a piece of debris could still potentially spell trouble for Wing Zero, especially if scraps of metal somehow became lodged in the mobile suit's engines or somehow wedged into the unit's joints.

Heero shared his patrol flight with Kira and Athrun, although due to the decision to maintain radio silence with the exception of mission-critical communications and to notify their respective warships when they were returning home. Thanks to their nuclear reactors the three units wielded by the ace pilots had incredible range and were able to cover very broad areas of the L4 debris field during their flights. The only other exception to the radio-silence order was special transmissions from the warships inside Mendel, such as the one Heero had received from the Archangel roughly an hour ago regarding the trials of the new targeting system.

Murrue had run her crew through several simulations, and Heero had been pleased when she had told him that the new program had greatly improved the accuracy of the Archangel's weapons. Guns and missiles alike had gotten a considerable boost in effectiveness, but the most prominent improvement by far had been to the CIWS and Helldart light anti-air missiles. That had been intentional on Heero's part; he'd wanted to help make the Archangel more effective against mobile suits that managed to get close to it. Now, thanks to the combination of the new targeting software and Bristow's Wolf Team, the Archangel's anti-air umbrella was significantly more formidable than it had been before.

With the exception of the supply ship Himiko, there had been no arrivals in the L4 debris field since the Three Ships Alliance had made the Mendel colony its new home. While that was certainly welcome news, Heero found it odd that such a vast debris field had not attracted its share of salvage crews. Of course, given just how large the field was it was entirely possible that salvage teams were indeed operating in the area and the patrol flights hadn't spotted them yet, but given just how many flights had been made and how thorough they were that was not a very likely scenario. The Gundam pilot supposed that it was also possible that salvage crews had decided to steer clear of the field until the war was over, though whether out of respect for the dead or superstition over Mendel's foreboding reputation as a site of genetic research and rumored biological weapons testing ground he could not say. Then again, so long as it meant that they had the debris field to themselves, Heero wasn't about to complain.

This can't last forever, he thought as he dove under a large chunk of twisted metal, we've spent far too much time here, more than enough for the Alliance and ZAFT to have ruled out other places where we could've gone to ground and at least consider L4 as a possible target.

The enemy may have had a habit of underestimating Heero and his allies, but they were not incompetent. While their energies may have been focused on wiping each other out, the Earth Sphere's two superpowers still had more than enough resources to spare to hunt for the Three Ships Alliance, and with the damage the organization had inflicted upon the armed forces of both nations only a fool would assume that they weren't doing exactly that.

Heero could take comfort from the strength and skill of his allies, along with the fact that so many flights through the L4 debris field had given them a thorough knowledge of the area. If the enemy came calling while they were still there, then the Three Ships Alliance would have the terrain advantage… not a term one expected to hear when people spoke of space battles. The clashes of large fleets tended to take place in open space, with commanders naturally reluctant to engage in hazardous areas. The L4 debris field certainly qualified in that respect, but that didn't mean enemy forces would refuse to enter the area.

So far though, Heero's current flight had proven to be as uneventful as his previous ones. Granted, it was only halfway through, but there was still every possibility that it would remain just another routine assignment. That certainly wasn't something Heero would mind at any rate.

Quiet flights are the best flights, thought Heero, and it would be nice if this one stayed that way…

It was at that moment that a beeping came from Wing Zero's sensors, and were Heero a superstitious person he would've suspected that he'd jinxed himself with his earlier thought. The Gundam pilot did not entertain any sort of notions though, and simply looked at his display to see what had caused the alert.

He swiftly took Wing Zero behind a large slab of metal and shifted the thruster to station keeping. His eyes narrowed as five contacts appeared at the edge of his sensors, one large and four small.

The target profiles came up, and they were instant bad news. The large one was a Drake-class escort ship, and it was flanked by two mass-production Strikes, which had thanks to recorded radio chatter from the battle at Orb that Erica Simmons had managed to decrypt he now knew were called Strike-Daggers, and two TS-MA2 Moebius mobile armors. The former had the basic load-out that Heero and the others had witnessed during the invasion of Orb, while the latter craft each had new artillery; a large beam cannon slung underneath the fuselage. IFF transponder data confirmed what Heero already knew; it was the Earth Alliance.

They haven't seen me yet, thought Heero as he watched the ship and its supporting units approach, it's my move…

What move to make though was a difficult decision. The enemy hadn't detected him yet, and as long as he didn't move to attack they would likely bypass him entirely. Gundanium alloy was electrically non-conductive and thus could not be detected by radar, but the increase in power usage by Wing Zero's weapons was another matter. Also, if Heero broke radio silence, the enemy would detect him just as surely as they would if he were to move to engage.

While the presence of Alliance units at L4 now meant that the area had outlived its usefulness as a hideout, Heero still had not way of knowing if this was a simple patrol or part of the lead element of an attack force. If he kept his distance and simply observed his foe it was entirely possible that they would pass out of the debris field without incident, allowing him to return to the Archangel and alert the others so that they could relocate without a needless battle. However, if the escort ship and her accompanying mobile weapons were in fact just the tip of a strike force, then staying hidden would be meaningless and he would be better off taking advantage of his current element of surprise. Of course, if the enemy kept moving and wound up encountering either Athrun or Kira, Heero's caution would be rendered meaningless.

He had to make a judgment call. Was this a simple patrol, one that would eventually leave the field without incident, or was it a threat that he needed to deal with? Heero could hear the words of Odin Lowe in the back of his mind, recalling one of the lessons his guardian had taught him during their time together.

"Sometimes the hardest decision is to watch and wait. When we act, we have control of ourselves. Human beings feel the need for that control; it's natural. However, sometimes you have to fight that urge to act, and let the situation play itself out without your intervention."

They were wise words, but Heero was also keenly aware of the difference between cautious observation and careless inaction. The problem of course was figuring out which applied to the situation when he had such limited intelligence to work with. Without knowing the Alliance force's intentions, his decision would have to be made in the dark.

Attack, Heero thought, or watch? Which one is right?

Then the situation evolved and made up his mind for him. Additional contacts began coming into sensor range, and Heero could see that they too were Drake-class ships, and they were accompanied by more Strike-Daggers and Moebius mobile armors. Heero counted six of the escort ships total in a very loose formation, which was natural given that they were flying into a debris field and had to maintain plenty of space between them in order to maneuver, and he quickly realized that this wasn't a patrol.

It was a picket line.

A fleet vanguard.

The Earth Alliance wasn't scouting L4. They knew the Three Ships Alliance was here, and they had come in force.

Heero was sure that more warships would be close behind the picket line, and that he had to act quickly. Still as calm and collected as ever, Heero brought the Twin Buster Rifle to bear and lined up his opening shot. He'd contact the Archangel after he engaged the enemy, but he wasn't about to throw away the element of surprise.

He powered up the rifle. The energy spike would be detected by the enemy, but by that time it would be far too late for them to avoid his attack.

Heero pulled the trigger, and a blast of golden-yellow hellfire ripped forth. The shot hit the first escort vessel dead-center, turning it into a fireball. An instant after he had fired Heero was already moving in, gunning the thrusters and igniting his beam saber. He closed in on the two Strike-Daggers that had been accompanying the warship as their pilots were still processing that they were under attack. They were in disarray, and Heero used that to his full advantage, slashing the first one in half before spearing the second through the cockpit. He then rounded on the two mobile armors and hacked them to pieces as they desperately tried to line up shots on him.

As he targeted the next escort ship in the picket line with the Twin Buster Rifle he got on the tactical channel. "This is Heero," he said as he opened fire, obliterating the vessel, "I have Earth Alliance forces in my sector. It's not a patrol; it's a vanguard. They've found us."

….

On the opposite side of the debris field, another advanced mobile suit flew through space. Diving to avoid a particularly large hunk of metal, Kira piloted the Freedom with practiced ease. Flying his Gundam had become second nature to him, a thought that he knew would've been completely alien to him before his fateful encounter with Captain Ramius and the Strike.

I never imagined that I'd be flying anything, he mused, much less a mobile suit. The Strike was one thing, but the Freedom… it completely blows my old machine away.

That the Freedom was stronger than the Strike was hardly a surprised given the fact that it was powered by a nuclear reactor rather than the conventional ultra-compact battery packs used by most mobile suits, but Kira's new machine was also far faster and more maneuverable than the Alliance prototype. Not only had it proven itself capable of full independent flight in the Earth's atmosphere, but it moved an incredible degree of precision. It was that amazing precision that allowed Kira to fly so easily through the thicket of scrap metal, in addition to his built-up skills and his innate abilities as a Coordinator. He didn't have to rely exclusively on his Phase Shift Armor for protection, though Kira was definitely glad to have it as a layer of defense for the mobile suit.

I'm glad Lacus and her father were able to get me this Gundam, he thought, I can't imagine the carnage ZAFT would be wreaking with it right now if they still had it…

It was a little strange, thinking of his mobile suit as a Gundam when it did not fit the same technical criteria that Heero's Wing Zero did. As the process for creating Gundanium alloy had not yet been discovered in the Cosmic Era, strictly speaking no mobile suit could ever hope to be considered a Gundam by the standards of the machines used by Heero and his old comrades. Kira had only gotten the word from the acronym used for the Strike's Operating System, and it had only been fateful coincidence that the Freedom had used a program that had words beginning in the same letters that of the Strike's and thus making the same acronym.

However, Kira had been surprised when Heero had told him that the Freedom and the other mobile suits developed in its series were, in fact, Gundams. It wasn't just the alloy, Wing Zero's pilot had said, that made a Gundam. It was all the advanced technology and weaponry that went into it. It was all the elements that put mobile suits like Wing Zero, Freedom, Justice, Judgment, and the Wraiths above the rank and file.

So what would that make the Strike and the other prototypes built at Heliopolis?, he mused as he side slipped another hunk of twisted metal, Proto-Gundams, maybe? They were the root of much of the technology used in the Freedom and the rest of the units in its line, but they weren't wholly above the mainline units used by ZAFT or the new mass-production machines the Alliance has developed. More advanced, yes, but not overwhelmingly so. I'll have to ask Heero about that later.

No sooner had that train of thought run through his head when he heard the voice of none other than Wing Zero's pilot over the tactical channel. "This is Heero. I have Earth Alliance forces in my sector. It's not a patrol; it's a vanguard. They've found us."

Kira's eyes widened in shock. What? How?

He was about to reply when he heard a beeping coming from his sensors. Checking the display, Kira bit back a curse as he saw several contacts moving into his sector. However, they weren't Alliance forces.

It was ZAFT.

There were multiple warships, spread out in a broad, loose formation in order to avoid the large chunks of debris. Among them and out in front of them were dozens of mobile suits. The majority of the units were GINNs, but Kira quickly picked up newer GuAIZs in the enemy force as well. The new models were naturally the bigger threat aside from the warships, but Kira also saw that many of the GINNs weren't carrying their usual armament. Instead of the machine guns and metal swords of the units that Kira had fought in the past, several of the GINNs had beam rifles and beam sabers.

ZAFT's been upgrading, he thought as he brought the Freedom's impressive array of artillery to bear on the lead mobile suits, Bristow said the GuAIZ was more expensive than the GINN, so ZAFT's been modifying their mainline mobile suits with beam weapons to compensate for that and to help their forces fight the new Alliance units while they try to get more of their own new machines into the field.

Sighting in on his targets, Kira opened fire. All the debris floating around made his usual precision barrages more difficult to perform, but his opening salvo was still right on the mark. Crimson lances of plasma, emerald beams, and yellow railgun rounds streaked forth, destroying the head cameras and weapons of five GINNs.

The disabled units pulled back, but Kira knew that there were plenty more behind them, and soon they would be all over him. The Freedom was powerful, but not invincible, and at the rate they were moving the enemy would eventually be able to envelope Kira and hit him from all sides. He had to avoid getting swamped and stall for time until he got reinforcements. Pulling back and cutting loose again to slow his foes' advance, Kira quickly got on the tactical channel.

"This is Kira," he said, "I've encountered a ZAFT battle group. They've already launched mobile suits and are heading towards the colony! They know we're here!"

….

While the rest of the Eternal's bridge crew had gasped in shock at Heero and Kira's back-to-back announcements, Andrew Waltfeld had wasted no time in assessing the situation. All mobile suits out on patrol were required to continually send their flight data to all three warships inside Mendel, so the Desert Tiger already had a clear view of what was going on. As he studied the main tactical display with his good eye, he immediately began formulating his response.

In the 'western' section of the L4 debris field, Heero was engaged with Alliance forces. The fearsome Gundam pilot had already eliminated two escort ships with the Twin Buster Rifle, while four Strike-Daggers and four mobile armors had fallen to his beam saber. However, there were still four more Drake-class vessels in the picket line along with several mobile suits and mobile armors, and Waltfeld could already see more warships and mobile weapons moving in; the lead ships of the main enemy strike forces.

Meanwhile, Freedom was being confronted on the other side of the debris field with a broad line that consisted of no less than five Laurasia-class frigates and two Nazca-class destroyers. The ships were further apart than they normally would've been due to the need to have room to maneuver and avoid debris, and the Desert Tiger realized that as a result their fields of fire did not overlap nearly as well as they should have, if at all. With his knowledge of ZAFT fleet tactics, Waltfeld was sure that the enemy flagship and whatever companion vessels it had for its escort would not be too far behind. Dozens of mobile suits were moving to engage the Freedom, and Kira had put himself into a fighting withdrawal in order to avoid getting flanked.

"All hands, battle stations!" he shouted, "All pilots, scramble. Get us up and running, and get me the Archangel and Kusanagi!"

He glanced at Aisha and nodded. His lover returned the nod, gave him a quick kiss on the cheek, and rushed to the bridge exit. He could feel the engines rumble to life, and he heard DaCosta begin issuing orders to the weapons crews, arming guns and loading missiles. As Waltfeld turned back to the main display, he saw it split in two as Captain Ramius appeared on the left half and Colonel Kisaka appeared on the right.

"We got those transmissions," said Murrue, "I've already begun liftoff procedures for the Archangel, and my pilots are scrambling."

"Same here" said Kisaka, "We're ready over here, Field Marshal."

"Eternal and her mobile suits will engage the ZAFT forces," said Waltfeld, "I know the way they fight, as do most of my pilots. I want the Archangel and Kusanagi to engage the Earth Alliance forces; no doubt they brought more ships to the party than ZAFT did. Captain Ramius, release Rehema to fight with my mobile suits; the Valkyrie Team needs its leader."

Murrue nodded. "Understood, Waltfeld."

"Hit the Earth forces as hard and fast as you can," said Waltfeld, "I can do quite a bit of damage to the ZAFT fleet, but I might need help forcing them to back off. Colonel Kisaka, contact Athrun and tell him to engage the Alliance forces; he should be back soon, and he'll need an objective."

"Yes, sir," said Kisaka.

"Captain Ramius," said Waltfeld, "you're in charge of tactical operations between your ship and the Kusanagi; you know the Alliance forces better than anyone, so how you engage is up to you."

Murrue nodded again. "Very well, Waltfeld."

"Understood," said Kisaka.

While technically speaking the Orb Colonel held a higher rank than the former Alliance Captain, in practice Murrue had more naval experience than Kisaka, something Waltfeld was well aware of. The Desert Tiger had been worried that Kisaka would still chafe at being put under Murrue's command, but the Orb officer appeared to take his orders in stride and with the professionalism one would expect of a man like him.

"Good luck to all of us," said Waltfeld, "Eternal out."

As their faces disappeared from the monitor, Waltfeld glanced out the bridge viewport. The Eternal was already lifting off, as was the Archangel. The Kusanagi was lagging a bit behind the other two ships, but Waltfeld could see blue fire glowing at the back of the ship as its engines roared to life, and he knew it would take off shortly.

He heard the bridge door open behind him, and as he turned he saw Lacus rush towards her station. "Who's found us?" she asked, "ZAFT or the Alliance?"

"Both, I'm afraid," Waltfeld replied, "They're coming at us in a classic pincer, though I doubt they intended it that way. Call it a stroke of bad luck on our part."

"One we'll just have to fight through," said Lacus as she settled in, her gaze hard and determined, "What do you want me to do, Waltfeld?"

"Help the flight controller," said Waltfeld, "you can relay orders to our pilots. Time to put all that practice you've been getting to use, Miss Clyne."

The songstress nodded. "I'll do my best."

Waltfeld nodded. "I know you will. We all will."

As the support cruiser began pulling out of the docking bay the flight controller spoke up. "Sir, our mobile suits are ready for launch."

Waltfeld turned to the songstress. "Miss Clyne, instruct Adaline, Lan, and Priscilla to cloak once they leave the ship. They're to bypass ZAFT's mobile suits and launch an attack on their capital ships, starting from the enemy's left flank. Once Shemei launches from the Archangel, tell her that she and Kira will actively engage the ZAFT mobile suits. I want Aisha to stay with us to deal with any machines that get close to us."

Lacus nodded. "Got it."

As she began relaying his orders to the respective pilots, Waltfeld turned to the rest of the bridge crew. "Helm," he said, "once we clear the colony, take us around the front of the ZAFT force and towards their right flank. We'll hit that wing of their formation while the Wraiths hit the other."

"Aye, sir," the helmsman said.

Waltfeld could feel the Eternal pick up speed, her powerful engines thrumming as the warship pulled away from the colony. Entering a few quick commands on the keypad on the right arm of his chair, he studied the display as a broad map of the entire debris field showed up on it. As the military head of the Three Ships Alliance, he would need to keep an eye on the entire battle field, not just the theater his own ship and mobile suits were operating in.

Damn, he thought, we shouldn't have stayed here so long. I should've relocated us to one of the other hideouts I'd filed away; there are plenty of them to choose from. Oh well, too late to worry about that now. We need to focus on surviving this battle; I'm not about to let the Alliance and ZAFT take us down here!

….

As the Archangel pulled out of the Mendel colony, Murrue looked at her personal monitor. Like so many times in the past, it was set to keep track of Wing Zero's progress in the battle. She watched as Heero eliminated his third Drake-class ship of the day with the Twin Buster Rifle before swooping in to cut down two Strike-Daggers with his beam saber. As the two mobile suits exploded the Gundam pilot instantly shifted his aim to two nearby mobile armors and shredded them with his shoulder gatlings.

The Perfect Soldier had already eliminated half of the Alliance's picket line, and while Murrue knew that Heero would be able to take out the rest of the vanguard by himself, she was also aware that the main body of the enemy force would not be far behind. Already she could see a host of mobile suits and mobile armors closing in on Wing Zero, along with several more capital ships. Murrue didn't have enough data to know how big the enemy force was yet, but she was sure that they were moving to swarm Heero. Wing Zero was incredibly tough, but even its Gundanium alloy frame had its limits; a concentrated bombardment of beam weapons would eventually take it down. Heero would need help, and Murrue already had a plan to give it to him.

"Ma'am," said Miriallia, "Tallgeese Kai is loaded on the portside catapult, and the Judgment is on the starboard."

"Get them out," ordered Murrue, "Shemei will hook up with her team and fight under Waltfeld's command. Tell La Flaga to advance and aid Heero! Dearka will join him, while Bristow and the Wolf Team will hang back in escort role!"

"Yes, ma'am," Miriallia replied.

"Helm," said Murrue, "set us on approach to the right wing of the enemy force, or as close as you can get to that."

"Aye, Captain," said Neumann.

"Radio," said Murrue, "contact Colonel Kisaka! Tell him that we'll hit the enemy from the right flank, and the Kusanagi will hit them from the left. Then get a hold of the Justice; I want it out front with Wing Zero!"

"Yes, ma'am," said the communications officer.

"Activate the new targeting system," Murrue ordered, "make sure friendlies and enemies are properly designated!" With so many mobile suits on the field, the last thing Murrue wanted was to risk a chance of friendly fire.

"Aye, Captain!" said Lieutenant Tsukino, "Weapons, prepare targeting solutions for the Gottfrieds and Valiants the instant we have data! I want Sledgehammer, Wombat, and Corintoss missiles ready to fly at a moment's notice!"

Good, thought Murrue, she's really gotten a feel for my orders, and is taking more initiative. I'm glad I managed to get her as my XO… though I still wish I had Natarle here.

Glancing up at the main monitor, Murrue saw the Archangel on the tactical display, symbolized as a white outline of the ship, pulling away from the Mendel colony. Already Neumann had the ship moving towards the enemy, maneuvering to avoid the larger pieces of debris while letting the smaller ones deflect harmlessly off the ship's hull. The Kusanagi showed up on the display behind them as a blue indicator on the screen, already moving in response to the orders issued to it from the Archangel. Small dots began issuing from the vessel; it was deploying its mobile suits just as the Archangel was. The Orb warship was picking up speed, and the Archangel's Captain felt a flicker of concern when she saw that the course the vessel was taking to move into position was through a section of space that had previously been marked by the patrol flights as very dangerous for large ships. Murrue could understand why the vessel would take that approach, as it was faster than going around the area and would put them in an ideal attack position, but she still had her doubts and could only hope that Colonel Kisaka knew what he was doing. Meanwhile, Murrue could see the Justice moving down from the 'North' of the field, making haste for Heero's skirmish with the picket line.

Suddenly the Kusanagi stopped moving. Murrue was about to ask what was wrong when the answer was swiftly provided to her by none other than the Orb ship's commanding officer as he appeared on the main monitor.

"This is Kisaka," he said, "We've gotten snagged on debris! We're stuck!"

Murrue's eyes widened; that was not welcome news, and it completely justified her earlier misgivings regarding the Kusanagi's flight path. "Get me a visual!" she yelled.

The image on the main monitor shifted, revealing the blue warship caught between two large slabs of scrap metal. At first Murrue could not tell what was holding the vessel, but upon closer examination she could see thin lines, and she realized that it was sunlight reflecting off of old connector wiring.

Shit, she thought as her eyes narrowed, this is the last thing we need right now!

Murrue wasn't about to let this mishap stop her though; after the tumultuous journey she had been on since Heliopolis, she was now more than capable of adapting on the fly. "Colonel," she said, "hold back some of your M1s to cut your ship free, and deploy the others along with the Strike Rouge to attack the enemy; I need them supporting my pilots!"

Kisaka reappeared on the screen. "Acknowledged, Captain Ramius," he said, "We'll keep Engineer Simmons' three test pilots back here to cut us loose. The rest will form up with Lady Cagalli. As soon as we're free, we'll support you the best we can. Kusanagi out."

Murrue wasted no time in issuing new orders. "Helm, alter course. Keep us between the Alliance forces and the Kusanagi's position no matter what it takes; that ship's a sitting duck right now!"

"Got it," said Neumann.

"Captain," said Lieutenant Tsukino, "I have a clear shot with the Gottfrieds on one of the escort ships, and a firing solution for the Sledgehammer missiles on another."

Glancing at her personal monitor, she saw that Heero wasn't angling towards any of the three remaining Drake-class ships in the picket line. Instead he was weaving in and out through scattered scrap metal, using the environment to his advantage, taking down mobile suits and mobile armors one at a time with his beam saber and shoulder gatlings. The amount of enemy units engaging him was growing by the second as more Strike-Daggers and Moebius machines from the main force came into the fray. The three surviving escort ships from the picket line were angling to take shots at Heero with their guns and missiles, and the mobile suits launched from the Archangel and the Kusanagi had yet to join battle with the enemy.

"Take the shots, Lieutenant!" Murrue ordered.

The XO immediately followed the command. "Open fire!"

The two Gottfried dual heavy beam cannons cut loose with their emerald beams, and the salvo ripped one of the Drake-class ships apart. At the same time, a volley of Sledgehammer anti-ship missiles sprang forth from the rear launchers. As their target escort ship was trying to set up for a barrage with its four missile batteries on Wing Zero, it was not in position to bring its guns to bear on the incoming warheads. The Archangel's volley slammed into the vessel's rear, obliterating the engines and leaving the ship adrift in space.

A precise barrage, thought Murrue, in an environment like this, with so many obstacles, and at the distance we're at right now… I doubt we could've pulled that off without the new targeting system. Heero, your upgrades are already paying off.

Wing Zero wasted no time in taking advantage of the Archangel's barrage. Slicing a Strike-Dagger in half with his beam saber and gunning down a Moebius with his gatling cannons, Heero rushed towards the last escort ship from the picket line, which was furiously trying to maneuver out of the Archangel's line of fire. The move was successful, as it was now in an area with far too much debris in the way for Murrue's gunners to get off a clean shot… but they didn't have to. Wing Zero opened fire with the Twin Buster Rifle, and the blast of golden-yellow energy vaporized all the scrap metal in its path before it washed over the Drake-class ship like a tsunami, annihilating the vessel.

Heero had no time to rest on his laurels; Murrue could see a host of Strike-Daggers and Moebius units attempting to surround Wing Zero. The Gundam broke to the right, aiming to hit the flank of the attacking group. Swiftly closing the gap between him and the nearest targets, he once again began hacking into the enemy mobile suits with his beam saber, all the while dodging shots fired from his foes.

Suddenly a yellow scatter-shot blast ripped into the left flank of the onrushing machines, taking out one mobile suit and two mobile armors. Murrue quickly found the unit that had taken the shot; the Buster. Dearka was already separating the unit's massive combined gun into the smaller beam rifle and Gun Launcher and would soon be lining up shots on individual units.

At the same time, a flurry of precise emerald beams hit the enemy ranks, destroying a Strike-Dagger and a Moebius. The shots were from the Tallgeese Kai; La Flaga had gunned the machine's incredibly powerful vernier engines and was entering the fray.

As the Alliance machines were struggling to regroup and deal with the newcomers, two more Strike-Daggers were destroyed by a blur of pink energy. That energy had originated from the Justice, which had thrown one of its beam boomerangs as its opening attack on the enemy. Athrun quickly caught the special energy projectile in his units right hand as it returned to his mobile suit before drawing and igniting one of his beam sabers in that hand. As for the left, it already held the Justice's beam rifle, and it proceeded to open fire, destroying a Strike-Dagger with a well placed shot.

"Ma'am" said the sensor officer, "I'm getting updated information from Wing Zero. I've got a better picture now of the force we're up against, though I still don't know if all of it's in range yet."

"Show me what you have," said Murrue.

She then turned to Neumann. "Move us forward into a better firing position, but make sure to keep the ship between the enemy and the Kusanagi."

"Aye, Captain," the helmsman replied.

As the ship began to change position Murrue turned to the main monitor. Dozens of mobile suits and mobile armors were moving in fast to engage Heero and the others, and they had plenty of backup. Murrue counted eight Drake-class ships arrayed in a wide arc in order to avoid collisions, and behind them were four Nelson-class battleships. She realized that there weren't enough warships to account for all the mobile suits and mobile armors that had been launched, and guessed that there was at least one carrier holding position outside the debris field.

Standard Alliance tactics for an engagement in this kind of environment, she thought, Agamemnon-class carriers pretty much have tissue paper for armor, so they're vulnerable enough in a battle; they're not about to compound their risk by flying through the debris field.

She turned to her personal monitor and tapped in a few commands. The screen then split, with the right half continuing to follow Heero in the battle while the left half showed the entire battlefield. Murrue could see the Eternal moving in a wide arc, trying to get onto the right flank of the ZAFT battle group. There was a single mobile suit flying with the ship, and Murrue saw that the IFF transponder attached to it was that of Aisha's GuAIZ. Kira was still out front, confronting the lead elements of the enemy's mobile suit teams, and Murrue could see the Judgment rushing to reinforce him. She saw no signs of Shemei's subordinates, and she guessed that the girls had activated their Wraiths' Mirage Colloid systems.

ZAFT will be in for one hell of a surprise when those three attack, she thought, I just hope it's enough to keep Waltfeld and the others from being overwhelmed. ZAFT brought plenty of firepower to this battle.

Now that the ZAFT battle group had moved further into the field, Murrue had a picture of the entire force the Coordinator military had brought to L4. It was a formidable assembly of ships, with five Laurasia-class making up the center of their main line, two Nazca-class destroyers at the tips, and two more of the azure warships back behind the main line. Murrue could see that all the vessels had already launched their mobile suits, and she could only hope that there were not too many of the new models among them.

Turning back towards the main monitor, which continued to show the tactical situation for her part of the battlefield, Murrue saw the Alliance forces actually slow their advance. The move was very unusual considering that they'd only lost their picket line and a few mobile suits and mobile armors so far; normally the Earth forces would continue forward despite such losses.

Then she saw the small dots representing the enemy mobile suits and mobile armors actually begin to pull back. Her eyes narrowed as she observed this new development; something wasn't right.

"Contact Heero and the others fighting with him," she ordered the radioman, "Tell them to hold position. They're not to press forward; this could be a trap!"

"Got it," replied the communications officer.

"Ma'am!" cried the sensor officer, "The enemy forces have ceased firing! I've got additional Alliance contacts coming up on our scopes!"

Indeed, three more ships appeared behind the main body of the Alliance battle group. Two of the vessels were Nelson-class battleships, but the third was something else. It was a new vessel, a large one… the same size as the Archangel.

Murrue felt the blood chill in her veins. No, she thought, Don't tell me they built another one…

"Get me a visual on the new arrivals!" she ordered, "Priority goes to the largest one!"

The image on the main monitor shifted. All three ships came into view. The two Nelson-class battleships were flanking the middle contact, but Murrue scarcely paid those vessels anything more than a glance. It was the central ship that had her attention. A collective gasp went through her bridge crew as they all saw the vessel on the monitor. Murrue could not blame them for their reaction.

It was an Archangel-class General-Purpose Assault Battleship. The hull, the weapons, the armor… they mirrored those of Murrue's ship. However, unlike the Archangel herself, this second ship of its class had a much darker color scheme, primarily black and dark grey, with some bits of red trim along the edge of the broad wing than ran under the main hull and the bottom section of the U-shaped undercarriage that held the vessel's powerful engines. Murrue could also see mobile suits flying just out front of the warship. Six were Strike-Daggers, but Murrue's attention was drawn to three other units with them; the three prototypes that had made their debut in the Alliance's invasion of Orb.

"Captain," said the communications officer, "that new ship's broadcasting to us over an open channel!"

"Put it on screen!" she ordered.

The image of the black warship and its escorts disappeared… and what replaced it took Murrue completely off guard and drew another gasp from the rest of the bridge crew save for Lieutenant Tsukino. That exception was quite natural; the Orb Lieutenant did not know the caller.

Murrue and the other old hands from the Archangel, those who had stayed with the ship since its tumultuous departure from Heliopolis, knew the person on the screen very well. It was someone who had been with them on that fateful day, who had fought alongside them in their struggle to survive ZAFT's dogged pursuit, who had given as much effort as Murrue had to bring the Archangel to her destination at Alaska… and had been forced to leave the ship at that base. It was someone that, while Murrue had clashed with them, she had still considered them a valuable subordinate and comrade, even a friend. She'd respected them even as she'd disagreed with them, had understood them even as she fought with them, had cared for them as she had the rest of her crew… and her heart fell at the realization that she was now on the opposite side of this battlefield.

The woman on the screen wore the standard cap that most Alliance Captains chose to don, but it did little to hide her familiar short-cropped black hair, her stern features, her pale skin, or her violet eyes.

"This is Captain Natarle Badgiruel of the Earth Alliance battleship Dominion," she said, "Rogue warship Archangel, I hereby demand your immediate surrender, as well as that of your mobile suits and allies!"

….

Natarle was surprised that she was able to speak at all. Her throat had felt impossibly tight since the moment the Earth Alliance battle group under her command had entered the L4 debris field. Her heart had been pounding away like a jackhammer, and she'd had to grip the arms of her chair to keep herself steady. The turmoil, the confliction that had been tearing her heart apart since the moment she had received this assignment was now at its worst, and it was all she could do to maintain her composure.

Matters had hardly been helped as she'd watched the task force's vanguard get decimated right from the get go. Sending in a picket line had been standard operating procedure, and Natarle was fully aware that advance forces of that sort were likely to take casualties as they ascertained the enemy's position and strength, but she had been ill-prepared for the speed and lethality of Wing Zero's assault on her vanguard, nor the sudden and incredibly precise long-range strikes from the Archangel. The Dominion's Captain had not expected to encounter Wing Zero operating as a patrol unit; her former superior had held the Gundam back during their journey unless battle was imminent, the only exception to that doctrine being Heero's search flight for Cagalli after she had gone missing during the battle in the Indian Ocean. Natarle had been prepared to fight Wing Zero, of course, but she had not anticipated it already being on the field when her vanguard had begun to move in.

I should've anticipated that possibility, she thought, Just because Captain Ramius hadn't used it as a patrol unit while I was serving with her didn't mean that she wouldn't change her tactics, especially now that her ship has more mobile suits and allies. I screwed up, and the entire picket line was wiped out because of it!

Those losses weighed heavily on her mind, but they were not nearly as big a burden as the prospect of facing her former friends and comrades in battle, along with the man she loved. It hadn't taken her long to spot the mobile suit she believed Mu La Flaga to be flying; the blue and white unit had moved in quickly to support Wing Zero, along with the maroon machine that had also appeared at the invasion of Orb, the Buster, four of Orb's M1 Astrays, and a pink-red version of the Strike.

That burden was why she had halted the advance of the main force. Natarle knew it was a long shot, but she still wanted to give diplomacy a chance. She wanted to do everything she could to avoid fighting La Flaga, Heero, Captain Ramius, and the others if possible, which was why she was now reaching out to her old comrades. In her heart, Natarle knew that the odds of Captain Ramius and the others accepting the surrender offer were low… but she had to try.

Her chances of success were even lower here than they would've been in other circumstances thanks to several factors. The first unforeseen circumstance had been the entrance of a ZAFT battle group. Natarle hadn't received any intelligence reports about ZAFT activity in the area, and it was only by good fortune that they were engaging one of the Archangel's allied ships rather than moving against the Earth Alliance forces. However, Natarle was also aware that Captain Ramius would not surrender her ship while her allies were fighting another battle; she would not abandon them. It was similar in a way to what had happened at Alaska; Natarle had read the reports describing how the Archangel had lead the surviving Eurasian Federation forces in a breakout through the ZAFT armada, deliberately moving with the slower conventional warships in order to support them and give them a fighting chance rather than gunning the engines and leaving them in the dust.

Another factor that worked against Natarle's efforts was sitting on the bridge next to her. Natarle had only spoken to Muruta Azrael a few times since receiving her new command and embarking on her mission, but those brief exchanges had been more than enough to put her on edge regarding the man. There was something wrong about him. On the surface he was civil and even affable, but there was an arctic undercurrent about him. Natarle could not help but feel that the man who was both the leader of Blue Cosmos and the de facto ruler of her homeland considered her and her subordinates almost as expendable as he had Captain Ramius and her crew when he had set the Archangel up to serve as bait for the Atlantic Federation's trap at Alaska. The way he spoke of the pilots of the three prototype mobile suits the Dominion carried did not help matters. Natarle had been repulsed when she had first heard him call those three young men 'Biological CPUs'. He'd referred to living beings as little more than pieces of equipment! It was true that Natarle herself was not too fond of the pilots of the Calamity, Forbidden, and Raider; they were arrogant, reckless, undisciplined, quite possibly sociopathic, and in the brief time she had known them they had shown little regard for her authority as the Captain of the ship they were assigned to. However, Natarle had not let her personal dislike of them blind her to the fact that they were still people, still pilots nominally under her command. They were not just tools to be used and discarded when it suited her.

There was also the fact that, despite his outward civility, Azrael did not seem to hold Natarle in particularly high regard. He had listened attentively when Natarle had explained her decisions regarding the operation, but his replies had always held an air of contempt about them. The man seemed to resent the military authority that Natarle had been given, and she felt as though she were walking a tightrope when dealing with him, trying to placate him on the one hand and act in the manner she believed best for her subordinates on the other. Azrael had so far begrudgingly gone along with her calls so far, but Natarle was acutely aware that he could undercut her at any time, and her attempts to offer Captain Ramius and the others a chance at peaceful surrender could serve as a catalyst for him to do so. Natarle had heard rumors of just how ruthless Azrael was, along with how fanatical his hatred of Coordinators and those who sided with them was, and she suspected that he was more inclined to kill her former comrades than allow them to surrender… or would have them all executed even if they surrendered, regardless of the mitigating circumstances surrounding their abandonment of the Earth Alliance.

Even if I managed to convince them to hand themselves in, she thought, would he honor any agreement I made with them, any efforts I made to ensure their safety and fair treatment? I… I don't know…

On the main screen, she saw Captain Ramius's eyes widen in shock and recognition. Natarle couldn't blame her. After all, they hadn't spoken since her transfer from the Archangel at Alaska, and Natarle hadn't been able to reply to Mu's emails out of fear that she was being monitored by her superiors. Her former comrades had no way of knowing that she'd been assigned to the Alliance's second Archangel-class warship, and that her mission was to hunt them down.

"Natarle…" Captain Ramius said. Her surprise was evident in her voice… along with her sorrow.

Another voice came over the speakers and at the same time the screen split, with a very familiar pilot occupying the right half of it.

"Natarle!" said Mu, and through his helmet visor Natarle could see the dismay in his eyes, "You're…"

His voice trailed off, and the unfinished sentence could've gone anywhere. Natarle wasn't a mind reader, and she could only hope that the laid-back but cunning and valiant pilot that she had fallen in love with did not lose the affections she prayed he still held for him… though if he did, she could not blame him given the circumstances. Her heart ached, the pain it felt more piercing now than ever before. There was so much that she wanted to tell him, but given her position now and Azrael's presence on the Dominion's bridge, she could not act on her feelings.

I'm so sorry, she thought, Mu, Captain Ramius… all of you. Please, give me this chance to save you. I don't want to fight you!

"Captain Ramius," she said, "Lieutenant Commander La Flaga. I heard about what happened during the First Battle of Alaska. Please, surrender and engage in talks with the Earth Alliance. I can advocate on your behalf for leniency given the mitigating circumstances regarding your actions, and I will do everything in my power to ensure the safety of yourselves and the rest of the crew. Your situation may be grave, but we can still work things out if you cooperate and turn yourselves in."

She saw Captain Ramius close her eyes for a moment. When she opened them Natarle saw that familiar strength and determination in them… and her heart fell as she knew what it meant.

Her former commanding officer shook her head before speaking. "I cannot accept your offer, Natarle. Our actions may have originally stemmed from what happened at Alaska, but they have now gone well past that. We no longer have any faith or trust in the Earth Alliance. The Archangel and her crew stand firmly against the path our former homeland has chosen to walk. We will not let the likes of Azrael and the rest of Blue Cosmos direct the resources and military might of the world towards their goal of exterminating Coordinators, nor will we stand by while ZAFT attempts to return the favor! So long as both sides remain intent on wiping each other out to the last man, woman, and child, then we will fight both sides with everything we've got!"

"Captain Ramius…" said Natarle, her eyes widening at her former superior's impassioned speech. It was a brutal indictment of both the Earth Alliance and ZAFT, and the firmest possible reply Captain Ramius could've given to Natarle's offer of surrender. Her heart felt even heavier now, grimly aware that there was now no other way to resolve the situation between her and her former commander than to fight her.

Hoping against hope, Natarle looked at the other person on the screen. Mu, she thought, please… don't do this…

"Lieutenant Commander La Flaga?" she said, the presence of Azrael forcing her to use cold formality when she dearly wished to do otherwise, "Do you… hold the same commitment?"

The man she loved gave her a nod, an anguished grimace on his face. "Natarle… I'm sorry, I really am… but I can't go back. Not after Alaska, and certainly not after what the Earth Alliance has done since then. They're too far gone, Natarle, and they're going to drag you down with them! Please, don't let them pull you under! I know you, Natarle; you're nothing like that son of a bitch Azrael and his ilk! You're far better than they are, and I know you don't agree with what they're planning to do! I'm begging you, Natarle, don't let them destroy you! I can't watch the woman I love become a mass-murderer!"

"Mu…" she said softly, paying no heed to the cruel gaze of her superior. It tore at her heart to know that she could not simply abandon her crew and fly to the Hawk of Endymion right at that moment. As painful as it was to hear him decry the nation that they had both sworn to serve, she also could not deny a sense of exultation within her heart as she heard him verbally confirm what she had privately prayed for. Even after all the time that had passed, after encountering her here as an enemy combatant, he still loved her. It was hardly the ideal place to receive an affirmation of continued, loyal affection, but she would take what she could get. It was the only comfort she could find in her impossible situation.

"Don't do this, Natarle!" yelled Mu, "It's not too late, you can still-"

The faces of her former comrades suddenly vanished from the screen, replaced by a standard tactical display. "I think that's enough of that," a familiar voice said with an icy edge.

Natarle looked over at Azrael, who had cut the feed via the console on the arm of his chair. He gave her a smile that just reeked of arrogance and cruelty.

Azrael chuckled as he spoke. "If we could simply solve our problems by talking about them, then we wouldn't be at war, would we Miss Captain?"

"Sir…" she said, grimacing. She hated it when he called her that. Despite the outward formality, there was no hiding the disdain and mockery with which he used the title. Natarle was willing to ignore the insult to her personally, but Azrael's sarcasm and derision undercut her role as the commanding officer of the Dominion. It showed the crew that their superiors were not necessarily operating with a level of mutual respect, and that disharmony could easily infect the lower ranks and have a negative effect on morale.

"They simply can't understand the necessity of our actions," Azrael continued, "They don't have the guts to do what needs to be done. They're soft and emotional, so they have turned against us. They are our enemies now, and we must eliminate our enemies. Isn't that right, Miss Captain?"

Damn you, Azrael, she fumed, it's not that simple…

Unfortunately, her hands were tied. Whether she liked it or not, Natarle on had one course of action available to her now… the one she had dreaded since before leaving the Ptolemaeus lunar base.

The time for talking was over.

She had to fight.

Mu, Captain Ramius, everyone, she thought, I'm sorry. Please, forgive me… there's nothing more I can do now.

She gritted her teeth as she steeled herself for what she knew would be the hardest battle of her career. "All forces," she said, "advance! Reengage the enemy!"

….

"Captain," said the sensor officer, "The Alliance forces are moving forward again! They'll be engaging our mobile suits soon!"

Murrue nodded, her heart already steeled to the reality that she would now have to do battle against her former Executive Officer… and the woman one of her pilots was in love with.

I'm sorry, La Flaga, she thought, there's nothing for it now. Fate's forced our hand; we have to fight Natarle.

Heero appeared on the main monitor. "I'll punch through their ranks and hit the Dominion," he said, "Everyone else, back me up."

It was a straightforward and solid plan, and Murrue knew it normally would've met with no resistance. However, this was hardly a normal battle, even by their standards, and the objection she'd predicted was swift in coming. The screen split as the Hawk of Endymion appeared on the right side, pushing Heero to the left.

"Hang on!" yelled La Flaga, "Natarle's on that ship! You can't destroy it, Heero!"

"We don't have a choice," he replied, and Murrue saw his gaze turn away from the cockpit camera; no doubt he was already moving to engage. "That ship's the biggest threat to the Archangel and the rest of our ships; it has to be taken down."

It was exactly the sort of response Murrue would've expected from Heero. Doubtlessly he was aware of her distress at facing her former XO in combat, but his determination to protect her had top priority in his mind, and if he had to kill a former comrade to accomplish that, so be it. Murrue appreciated the dedication, but she wasn't completely convinced that Natarle was beyond saving, that this confrontation could only be kill-or-be-killed. Still, now was no time for an argument; glancing at the side of her personal monitor that showed the tactical situation, she could see the Alliance mobile suit teams already beginning to engage Heero and the others.

"Damn it, Heero!" yelled La Flaga, and Murrue could see the Tallgeese Kai flying towards Wing Zero, shooting down a Strike-Dagger and a mobile armor as it did so, "I won't let you kill her! I love her!"

"I'm sorry," said Heero, and Murrue could indeed detect a hint of regret in his normally stoic demeanor, "She's forced our hand, La Flaga."

"Only because hers has been forced by her superiors!" La Flaga shot back, "She was transferred at Alaska; she wasn't give the chance to make the choice that we got to make! I know she doesn't support Azrael and the others, and you know that too! What if Captain Ramius was on that ship?"

There was a flicker in the eyes of the Gundam pilot, one that Murrue knew that few people would've picked up on. Though he remained calm and in control, Murrue could tell that La Flaga's words had hit Heero like a bullet.

Glancing at her personal monitor again, she saw several enemy units closing on Heero, and she feared that the distraction he faced with La Flaga would put him at a disadvantage in this fight, perhaps a fatal one. Two of the enemy mobile suits were destroyed by a low-power shot from Wing Zero's Twin Buster Rifle, but to Murrue that alone was no guarantee that Heero was truly in form, completely focused… and any distraction was a potential avenue for the Zero System to try to take control of him again.

However, as she looked up at the main screen again she saw the hesitancy disappear from Heero's eyes, replaced by determination. It wasn't the grim resolve one might've expected to see in this kind of situation though; it was fierce, intense, and energetic.

He had a plan.

And so did Murrue, the desperation of the situation combined with seeing Heero's new determination enough to provide a spark of inspiration that she had lacked before. She did not know if her boyfriend was thinking along the same lines as her, but she was sure that whatever his idea was she could make it work with hers.

"Everyone, listen up," said Heero, "I'll hit the Alliance battle group head-on, tie up their resources. La Flaga, you, Athrun, and Dearka engage the Alliance prototypes and keep them off me. If we inflict heavy casualties on them, we can get them to withdraw. Cagalli, you and your team harass the Dominion."

"Hold on, Heero," Murrue chimed in, "I want Cagalli and her team supporting you while you hit the enemy force. I'll bring in the Archangel on the flank and keep the Dominion tied up."

"Murrue…" said Heero.

"Don't worry," Murrue replied, smiling, "I won't engage her head-on. I'll focus on outmaneuvering her, keeping both our ships from being able to use the Lohengrins on each other while taking shots at her backup. Besides, with all us engaging them, the Alliance will have more important things to do than try to attack the Kusanagi; this will buy Colonel Kisaka time to get his ship loose and join the fight."

If the battle went head-to-head, Murrue knew that it would come down to which ship could fire their Lohengrins first, and she refused to let that happen. She had a chance to not only get her people through this fight alive but push Natarle back rather than kill her, and she was going to take it.

"Wolf One here," Bristow chimed in, "we'll keep the Archangel covered and take potshots at the Dominion while we're at it, keep her off-balance."

Heero nodded. "Roger that. Wing Zero out."

As the Gundam pilot vanished from the screen, Murrue saw La Flaga nod. "Thanks, both of you."

"You're welcome, La Flaga," Murrue replied, "however… I can make no promises regarding the engagement. I'll do what I can to keep Natarle alive, but if things go south…"

"I… understand," La Flaga replied, his voice heavy, "At least this way she'll have a chance to get away. La Flaga out."

Murrue wasted no time in issuing new orders to her crew. "Helm, pull to starboard, long arc. I want us coming up on the battle group's left flank."

"Got it," said Neumann.

"Weapons," said Murrue, "begin acquiring targeting solutions on the closest enemy ships unit we move within range of the Dominion. CIWS and Helldarts are to coordinate with Wolf Team in close-defense; make sure data's flowing between us and Bristow's squad."

"Captain," said Lieutenant Tsukino, "what about the Dominion herself? What do we engage her with?"

"Conventional armaments," Murrue replied, "Gottfrieds, Valiants, Sledgehammers; all the toys weaker than the Lohengrins, Lieutenant." Her gaze hardened. "However… be prepared to utilize the positron cannons if the situation deteriorates."

"Aye, Captain," Tsukino replied.

As her ship began moving she glanced at her personal monitor. She watched as Heero began his assault on the battle group.

Be careful, my love, and I shall do the same. We have not come this far just to die here!

….

(Start "Deeply Fast")

Despite his earlier words, Heero was not technically aiming for a head-on assault. The Gundam pilot had broken to port, and his attack angle would take him into the right wing of the battle group. This was intentional on Heero's part. His plan was simple, the kind that he and his fellow Gundam pilots had gotten used to coming up with on the fly over the course of their own war. He would start from the right wing and work his way through the Alliance battle group, destroying everything in his path.

Gunning Wing Zero's engines, he rushed headlong towards a formation of two Strike-Daggers and two Moebius units that were between him and his first target, one of the eight remaining Drake-class escort ships in the task force. The two mobile suits had their beam rifles in their left hands and yellow beam sabers in their right and were already moving to meet him, while the mobile armors were angling for flanking shots with their cannons. It was a very logical setup; the mobile suits were better suited to direct engagement, while the mobile armors were ideal for potshots and quick strikes.

A sensible deployment, he thought, which also makes it predictable.

Rather than hit the threat in front first, Heero moved on the flankers. While the Moebius units may have been faster than the Strike-Daggers, Wing Zero was faster than both, and Heero used that to his full advantage. He closed the gap on the mobile armor coming in on his left, jinking to evade fire from its beam cannon, and swiftly sliced it in half with his verdant blade. He then whirled the Gundam around and side slipped to the left to dodge fire from the second mobile armor, which had been setting up to attack him from behind, along with shots from the mobile suits. Heero shredded the mobile armor with gatling fire before turning to block a strike from a yellow beam saber on his shield. He struck back, impaling the attacking mobile suit before pulling back to evade a slash from its partner. With his trademark efficiency, Heero quickly countered with a diagonal slash, and the Strike-Dagger exploded.

More mobile suits and mobile armors were swift in coming. Weaving between chunks of debris to present a harder target, Heero sighted in on the Drake-class ship and opened fire with the Twin Buster Rifle. No sooner had the vessel been destroyed when Heero was already fending off saber attacks from another pair of Strike-Daggers while dodging fire from several more units. On his sensors he could see several of the Alliance capital ships moving to back up the squadrons engaging him.

He swiftly cut down another Strike-Dagger with his beam saber and shot down a mobile armor with his shoulder gatlings as he worked his way towards another Drake-class vessel. The space around him was getting crowded as the Alliance squadrons began converging on his location. Heero had figured from the start that Wing Zero would be one of the enemy's priority targets, if not the main one, and so far the Alliance wasn't disappointing his expectations. Of course, just because he was used to being the one everybody was shooting at did not mean it would make his job easier.

However, this time he wasn't alone; he had backup.

A flurry of emerald beams cut into a squadron moving in on his left flank, taking down three Strike-Daggers and scattering more units. Heero only had to glance at his sensors to know where the shots had come from; Cagalli and her escort were already moving in.

"Don't think we're gonna let you take these guys on by yourself, Heero," said Orb's tomboy princess as she appeared onscreen, "This time you don't get to go solo."

Heero nodded. "Thanks for the support."

"Anytime," she replied, "Strike Rouge out."

Coming around a slab of scrap metal, Heero rushed a Strike-Dagger from the right, blindsiding the mobile suit and cutting it in half with his emerald blade. Whirling around, he then blocked a downward swing from another mobile suit's yellow beam saber on his shield before striking back with his own energy blade. His foe showed a bit more skill than his previous targets and managed to catch the blow on its shield, but Heero simply countered by pulling back and firing the Twin Buster Rifle. Even at low power, the shot was strong enough to completely vaporize the Strike-Dagger; its shield may as well have been tissue paper.

"Aw, crap," said Cagalli over the radio, "we've got one of those advanced Alliance machines coming in; the blue one with the big guns."

"Don't engage it," said Heero, preparing to intercept the prototype mobile suit, "Its pilot and those of the other units were good enough to fight Kira and Athrun at Orb; you'll get torn apart. Watch my back while I deal with it."

However, before he could even take aim at the blue unit he saw another familiar machine coming in fast, this one friendly. "I'll take him on," said Dearka, "he's an artillery unit, and that's my game. You've got a fleet to trash, Heero."

Heero nodded and got himself back on track towards the escort ship. As he did so he saw the Buster combine its Gun Launcher and beam rifle to form its heavy weapon. He opened fire in its sniper mode, and while he did not land a hit his shot did force the blue heavy artillery mobile suit to turn its attention to him. The Gundam pilot was not sure what the outcome would be as the two mobile suits began trading long-range fire. While he did not doubt Dearka's skills, the new Alliance unit was obviously built for the same purpose as the Buster and had more weapons than the machine built at Heliopolis. Heero was sure that it was a successor unit, more advanced than its predecessor. He would just have to trust in the former ZAFT pilot's abilities. If nothing else, the young man had proven his skills by surviving the artillery duel he'd waged with Heero in the Marshall Islands, so it was the kind of fight that he was well prepared to wage.

According to Kira, he thought as he checked his sensors, that unit fought as part of a team with the other prototypes. That means the other two machines can't be far behind… there they are.

The red and black unit and the green mobile suit were moving towards him as well, apparently unconcerned about their ally's battle with the Buster. Heero did not adjust his heading to intercept them, though; his sensors also showed the Tallgeese Kai and the Justice moving in swiftly to head off the Alliance units.

"This is Athrun," said the Justice's pilot over the tactical channel, "I'll take the black and red machine."

"Got it," said La Flaga, "I'm on the green guy. Watch your back; there are still plenty of regulars out here to take potshots at us."

"Copy that," Athrun replied, "Justice out."

Confident that his allies would keep the more advanced enemy mobile suits off his back, Heero sighted in on the escort ship. Unlike the previous vessel, this one had managed to turn to face him, and its four ten-barrel missile launchers proceeded to empty their stock of warheads at Wing Zero. Heero's counter was simple but devastating; he increased the charge of the Twin Buster Rifle and cut loose. The large blast vaporized the incoming missiles and turned the ship that had fired them into ashes.

"Cagalli," said Heero as he evaded beam fire from several Strike-Daggers, "I'm going to cut in and make a run on the nearest battleship. Cover me."

"Roger that," the girl replied.

Raising his shield to block a beam, Heero then tore apart the mobile armor that had fired the shot with his shoulder Gatlings. The closest Drake-class ship in the enemy formation was already setting up for a missile barrage on him, but it soon found itself set upon by the Strike Rouge and its four escorting M1 Astrays. Cagalli and her comrades flitted around the ship like mosquitoes, evading fire from its three 75mm Vulcan cannons while pouring energy beams into the craft. Within short order the vessel's missile launchers had been knocked out before Cagalli dived in and pierced the bridge with her beam saber.

Cutting down a Strike-Dagger with his beam saber and maneuvering around debris to throw off the aim of the many other units trying to line up shots on him, Heero picked out his target; the Nelson-class battleship Philip II. The warship's gunners wasted no time in opening fire on him with everything the vessel had, and between the shots fired from it, the attacks from the enemy mobile suits and armors, and all the floating debris, the space around Heero was becoming very crowded.

Heero broke to the left, taking Wing Zero into a wide arc that would put him into position to hit the Philip II on its starboard side. As he did so he blocked a yellow beam saber strike from a mobile suit with his shield before striking back with his emerald blade, slashing the enemy in two. At the same time, Cagalli and her team opened fire on the horde of units that were converging on Heero. Their opening volley only destroyed one mobile suit and a mobile armor, but it forced several more machines to scatter and go on the evasive, disorganizing their efforts to take Heero down.

With a quick glance at his sensors, Heero moved into position to fire on the battleship. At the same time he also made note of the Archangel's current position and trajectory. Murrue was moving her ship along the opposite side of the Alliance battle group. While her primary goal was to keep Natarle's ship occupied, Murrue was also not ignoring the chance to help Heero's mission of inflicting damage on the rest of the Alliance force. The Archangel opened fire with her portside Gottfried heavy dual-beam turret and the Valiant Linear cannon that was also on that side, and the precise volley obliterated a Drake-class escort ship.

The Dominion was already reacting, moving along with two Nelson-class battle ships to engage the rogue vessel. One of the smaller ships was going high and the second was going low, and Heero knew that they were angling to catch Murrue in crossfire. Several mobile suits and armors were also moving to engage the Archangel. Despite the situation, Heero did not allow himself to worry or break to help. He trusted Murrue's abilities, as well as those of Bristow and his pilots. They knew what they were doing and what the enemy was trying to do; they were more than capable of dealing with the Alliance's moves. Heero knew that the best way he could help Murrue right now was to focus on his own objective. The sooner he inflicted intolerable losses on the Alliance forces, the sooner Natarle would be forced to withdraw.

Unless Murrue had to kill her before then.

Side slipping right to dodge the thrust of a Strike-Dagger's energy blade, Heero stabbed the unit through its side. Pulling the blade out, not even bothering to look as the mobile suit exploded, Heero brought the Twin Buster Rifle to bear on the Philip II and opened fire. The golden-yellow wave of energy slammed dead-center into the battleship's starboard side, turning the vessel into a two hundred fifty meter-long frag grenade.

Now I've really got their attention, he thought as he dived to avoid a barrage of emerald beams. The majority of the remaining Alliance capital ships were changing course and heading right for him. The lion's share of mobile suits and armors were swarming all around him, though there were still enough left to support the three prototypes in their respective fights as well as to back up the Dominion and the two battleships working with her.

"Cagalli," he said as he impaled another Strike-Dagger through the chest, "if it gets too hot, break off and reinforce one of the others."

"Hey," she replied as she appeared on his screen, "we're not just going to leave you to fend for yourself, Heero. You're my friend, and I don't run out on my friends!"

"It's not like that," said Heero as he dodged enemy fire, raising his shield to block the shots he couldn't dodge, "This is the kind of fight I'm used to. You're getting better at it, but you're not at the level of a Gundam pilot. There's a difference between bravery and getting yourself in over your head. You have to recognize your limits."

"I do!" she shot back, "And I know I can keep backing you up here! Besides, Captain Ramius ordered me to help you out, and the only way I'm leaving is if she tells me to!"

Stubborn girl, he thought as he dove to dodge a shot from a Moebius before turning his gatlings on the craft and destroying it. Still, he had to respect her loyalty and tenacity.

"Suit yourself," he replied, "Wing Zero out."

He continued his evasive flying, the battle group's barrage becoming more intense as more ships managed to bring their weapons to bear on him. It couldn't compare to the storm of fire Avalon and its accompanying warships and mobile suits had unleashed upon him during the raid on Aprilius One, but it was still no small feat to deal with, especially given the environment that he was flying in. Heero had the Zero System and Wing Zero's incredible maneuverability in his corner; Cagalli and her team had neither. Both the Strike Rouge and the M1 Astrays were solid machines, but the scope of their abilities and the skills of their pilots were just not as great as Heero's. It wasn't an arrogant belief on the Gundam pilot's part; it was a simple statement of fact.

Heero threw himself deeper into the enemy force, bearing down on the next Nelson-class battleship in his sights, who's IFF identified it as the Richard Lionheart. Weaving through weapons fire from warships and mobile weapons, Heero cut down two more Strike-Daggers with his beam saber as he set up for his shot on the battleship. He took Wing Zero into a climb, bringing it above and to the right of the vessel. The ship poured everything it had at him, and as Heero fired the Twin Buster Rifle one of the missiles launched from the vessel's VLS hit the Gundam in the right shoulder.

Though the Gundanium alloy was more than capable of withstanding the force of even heavy missiles, the impact did throw off Heero's shot. Unfortunately for the battleship, it was not enough to completely save it from taking the shot. Rather than hit the bridge as Heero had intended, the blast of golden-yellow energy washed over the front half of the vessel, vaporizing it but leaving the aft section, which housed command and control, many of the weapons, and the engines still intact.

Damn, thought Heero as he recovered from the hit he'd taken and dived to evade fire from the mobile suits and armors swirling around him, I wounded it, but it's still in the fight.

Indeed, though the ship had taken a major hit, it was still pouring out fire. Since the forward maneuvering thrusters had been lost it could not turn as well as before, but it was still capable of acting as a firing platform. Making a judgment call, Heero set himself up for a second shot, cutting a mobile armor in half as he took aim. A squadron of Strike-Daggers was closing in on him from the right, but a flurry of shots from Cagalli and her teammates took down two machines and forced the rest to scatter and try to regroup.

"You're clear, Heero," said Cagalli, "Let them have it!"

Heero nodded and opened fire. This time his shot was true to target, and the rest of the vessel was annihilated. However, just before the beam hit it the warship managed to get off one final volley. The shots were sloppily fired, coming nowhere near Wing Zero… but one emerald beam did hit an M1, turning it into a fireball.

"No!" cried Cagalli, "Daisuke!"

"Stay focused," said Heero, "You won't do him any good by grieving here."

"Damn it…" hissed Cagalli.

Despite the coolness of his reply, Heero did sympathize with Cagalli. She had just lost a subordinate, something Heero knew had hurt Murrue deeply in the past. While he did not know how well Cagalli knew the pilot that had just been killed, he did know that Cagalli shared Murrue's care for the people fighting for her, whether it was under her personally or for her nation as a whole. However, the battlefield was no place to give comfort. He could only hope that her friends and confidants on board the Kusanagi would help her deal with it after the fighting… and that she would not lose any more subordinates over the course of the engagement.

The Gundam pilot was also aware that it was indirectly his fault that Daisuke had died. After all, if his shot had wiped out its target on the first attack, if he had managed to avoid the impact that threw his aim off, the vessel would not have been able to get off the lucky shot that had killed the Orb pilot. However, Heero could not let himself get distracted by any feelings of responsibility in the matter; he still had a battle to win, not to mention the very dangerous Zero System to control.

The Alliance will regret coming to L4, he thought as he speared a Strike-Dagger through the cockpit, I'll make sure of that.

(End "Deeply Fast")

….

"Damn it," hissed Kira as he raised his shield to block a beam fired from a modified GINN, "these guys are persistent."

The Freedom's pilot was continuing to give ground in order to keep himself from getting boxed in. He was still managing to get shots in, but thanks to the scattered debris he could not so easily dish out the large, precise volleys that he'd been able to give the enemy in his past battles. He had a lot of obstacles to shoot around, and the only way for him to guarantee that his shots were disabling ones rather than lethal was for him to go for single targets; the group of five GINNs that he'd been able to send packing at the start of the fight were the only exception to that, and only because he'd met them in a part of the debris field where the trash was more spread out.

Diving to set himself up for a better angle, Kira lined up his Xiphas railguns and fired. One round destroyed the GINN's beam rifle, while the other one knocked out its head camera.

Yes, he thought as the unit turned tail, he's out of the fight!

Unfortunately, that was just one more enemy out of the dozens that were on the field. No sooner had Kira sent the GINN packing when he was set upon by several move machines, including the more advanced GuAIZ units. The latter mobile suits were a minority, but the skill with which they fought was enough to tell Kira that they had been assigned to elite pilots and officers rather than the rank and file.

Suddenly a crimson blast tore through the space to his left, destroying one GuAIZ and one GINN. Kira only had to glance at his sensors to find the unit that had taken the shot coming in fast to reinforce him.

"Hey, kid," said Shemei as the Judgment closed in, "Sorry I'm late. The traffic was murder."

Despite the gravity of the situation, Kira had to smile at her levity. "Thanks for the help," he replied as he dodged fire from the ZAFT mobile suits before slashing off the rifle arm of a GINN.

"Anytime," she replied as she downed another GINN with her shoulder cannons while opening up on a GuAIZ with her DRAGOONs. The latter unit was actually able to keep the gun drones at bay, but those were just distractions for the Valkyrie's real attack. A volley of six micro-missiles flew forth from one of the Judgment's launchers, and the GuAIZ was overwhelmed. It managed to shoot down two warheads with its head-mounted CIWS, but the other four slammed into the mobile suit and obliterated it.

"Where are the others?" asked Kira as he blocked a GuAIZ's beam claws on his shield while disabling a GINN with his plasma cannons.

"Waltfeld's setting up for his attack," said Shemei as she cut down a GINN with her beam saber and another with her DRAGOONs, "as for the girls… ah, there they are."

Checking his sensors again, Kira saw the Nazca-class destroyer on the right wing of the ZAFT task force get hit by eighteen Lancer Dart missiles that had seemingly come out of nowhere. Six hit the bridge, the bow beam cannons were nailed by three apiece, and the engines were ripped apart by the final six.

Wow, thought Kira as he shot the head-camera off another GINN with his beam rifle, a cloaked coordinated barrage. They would've had to keep radio silence to ensure the maximum element of surprise, but they still managed to get into positions that would allow them to inflict the highest amount of damage possible. Their teamwork's phenomenal!

The ravaged destroyer was now drifting, with scattered gunfire coming from its CIWS. Even if the crew on the auxiliary bridge managed to regain control of the vessel though, Kira knew that it was out of the fight. Adaline, Lan, and Priscilla must have recognized that as well, because the Freedom's pilot did not see any sign of a follow-up attack; the girls were already moving on to their next target.

"Damn it," snarled Shemei as she took out a GINN with her shoulder cannons.

'What is it?" asked Kira as he took a GuAIZ's beam claw on his shield before striking back with his saber, taking the arm bearing said shield off at the shoulder. He quickly followed up with a shot from his beam rifle and plasma cannons, taking out the units rifle and head-camera.

"Check your sensors" she replied as she downed a GINN with her DRAGOONs while swarming another GuAIZ with six micro missiles. The unit managed to shoot down three with its CIWS and took another on its shield, but the last two managed to get through and nailed it right in the cockpit, destroying the mobile suit.

Kira did as Shemei said, and his eyes widened as he saw the front line of the ZAFT battle group begin to swing to its left… towards the Eternal. Waltfeld was just about to lay down fire on the destroyer at the end of the left wing, but even if he took it down in the first volley he would be vulnerable as the rest of the task force came down upon him. As all this unfolded Kira saw a Laurasia-class frigate suddenly take a barrage of eighteen missiles, and he knew that the Valkyrie's subordinates had struck their second target. They may have expended the rest of their missiles, but it was well worth it as the green warship was pummeled by the attack, losing its bridge, main guns, and engines. He then saw the Wraiths decloak, and he realized that with their missiles now depleted the girls would not be able to do as much damage in their opening shots, and lucky return fire from their targets could take them down. Deactivating their Mirage Colloids sacrificed their element of surprise, but allowed them to once again make use of their Phase Shift Armor for maximum protection.

However, that still left four more frigates in the front line that was now swinging towards the Eternal, along with the destroyer Waltfeld was about to engage and two more of the vessels further back in the enemy ranks. Several of ZAFT's mobile suit teams were likewise angling for the warship.

"Kira," said Shemei as she destroyed a GINN with her heavy plasma rifle, "we've thinned these guys out, can you handle the rest by yourself? Waltfeld and Aisha are about to get swarmed!"

Kira nodded as he disabled another with his railguns. "Go, I'll take care of things here and then reinforce you!"

"Roger that," Shemei replied, "Valkyrie out!"

The Judgment gunned its engines, swiftly leaving the ZAFT mobile suits in the dust. That didn't stop the remaining units from trying to take potshots at her, but they were quickly dealt with by Kira. A series of precise shots from the Freedom disabled three of the modified GINNs, and as Kira whirled around he was surprised to see the few remaining mobile suits in the area begin to back away from him.

Fearing that they would join their comrades in attacking the Eternal, Kira prepared to open fire on them. However, before he could line up the shot a volley of emerald beams forced him to go evasive and raise his shield. Where did that come from?, he thought.

Checking his sensors, it wasn't long until he found the source. It was a group of six mobile suits. Normally such a force would not be too much of an obstacle for Kira, but its makeup was cause for concern. The group was composed of five GuAIZs, one of which had a custom gray and white paint scheme, and the Duel. Just like in the past confrontations on the Earth, the stolen Alliance prototype had an extra set of armor installed on it, along with a railgun on its right shoulder and a missile pod on its left.

Though Kira had dealt with the Duel easily during the Freedom's debut at Alaska, this time he was sure the confrontation would not be such a quick affair. After all, it was accompanied by five of ZAFT's new model mobile suits, and as Kira had observed in both this battle and others before it since coming to outer space the Coordinator military had apparently placed a priority on getting those units to skilled pilots before the rank and file. The custom paintjob of one of the units did not make the situation any better; Kira had learned enough about ZAFT to know that only exceptional pilots were allowed that degree of customization with their mobile suits.

The incoming group quickly split, with the Duel leading two mobile suits and the white GuAIZ leading two green machines. Their formations were loose to give them room to maneuver through the debris field, but they were still well maintained enough to denote the high skill level of the ZAFT pilots.

Putting his beam rifle away, Kira quickly drew his second beam saber. Wielding a violet blade in each hand, the Freedom charged towards the group led by the white and gray GuAIZ. Kira opened fire with his plasma cannons and railguns, and while his barrage did rob two of the regular GuAIZ's of their beam rifles it was unable to do the same for their head-cameras, which they had defended with their composite shields. As for the custom painted GuAIZ, its pilot had actually managed to evade the volley entirely and was already returning fire with its rifle.

Damn, thought Kira as he blocked the shot with the shied mounted on the Freedom's left arm, that guy's really good! Gonna have to watch out for him.

He rushed the custom machine and attacked with his beam sabers. The enemy took the blade from his right hand on its composite shield and was actually able to redirect the attack just in time to move out of the way of the second strike from the left sword entirely. It retaliated with its hip-mounted arrestor claws, and Kira had to gun his engines in reverse in order to get out of range. He then went into a frenzy of evasive maneuvers as the other two GuAIZ's tried to catch him in their arrestor claws while the Duel and its supporting units opened fire on him with their guns, sending both energy beams and in the case of the stolen Alliance mobile suit railgun rounds as well in his direction.

Diving to evade a precise volley from the white and grey GuAIZ's beam rifle and to get away from the other two machines' beam claws, Kira swiftly turned his guns on the second group and opened up. Plasma fire from the guns slung over the Freedom's shoulders robbed the GuAIZ's of their beam rifles, while heavy rounds from the Xiphas railguns slammed into the Duel's chest, knocking it back. Kira knew that the Duel could withstand the physical rounds thanks to both its extra armor and the Phase Shift Armor underneath it, and was relying upon the sheer force of impact to stun the enemy pilot for a few valuable seconds.

He charged into the Duel's formation. Striking out with both his beam sabers, Kira managed to rob the two GuAIZ's of their head-cameras in the blink of an eye. However, before he could do the same to the Duel he was forced back on the defensive by the white and gray GuAIZ as it fired more shots at him with its beam rifle.

At least those two machines will have to leave, thought Kira. Indeed, both units were backing off. While their pilots were indeed skilled, they apparently lacked the same level of ability as those of the Special Operations Squadron that he had fought during the rescue of the Eternal; they could not engage effectively with their lower resolution backup cameras.

The fight was now four-on-one, but Kira didn't let it go to his head. He knew he wasn't out of the woods yet.

….

"Sir," cried the sensor officer, "the enemy forces are changing their posture. They're focusing on us!"

"So I've noticed," Waltfeld replied. He had to commend whoever was leading the ZAFT battle group; they'd managed to keep the Freedom occupied and had even forced the Desert Tiger to send the Valkyrie to back it up and prevent it from being overwhelmed. It was classic divide and conquer, and even with the three Wraiths having taken down two of the enemy's warships and moving on to a third ZAFT still had plenty of firepower left to focus on the Eternal… and they were moving into position to do exactly that.

I thought they'd split their capital ships, he mused, sending some to go after the Archangel and Kusanagi while pouring more mobile suits onto the Freedom to take it down. Looks like that's not their game. They sent enough to keep it busy, but they didn't devote the majority of their units to it. The Eternal's their main target.

He glanced down at Lacus's station.

Or rather, she is.

Zala's vengefulness knew no bounds. Of course, Waltfeld was aware that Lacus's popularity as a singer and her considerable charisma were a potent threat to the PLANT radicals in their own right, but he was sure that the Supreme Council Chairman wanted her dead primarily for the theft of the Freedom and the Eternal… and making him look like an idiot in the process.

It wasn't just capital ships that were setting up to attack the Eternal. There were plenty of GINNs flying around the warship as well, along with some of the more advanced GuAIZ units. The hijacked vessel's CIWs and missiles were getting a workout, as was Aisha in her GuAIZ. Both warship and mobile suit had scored a few kills, but the enemy units continued to press their attack, and more were incoming.

Waltfeld's original plan had been operating on the assumption that ZAFT was after his entire group and that they would keep pressing forward towards Mendel, allowing him to hit their left wing while Adaline, Lan, and Priscilla hit the right. Right now the Eternal was setting up to rake the Nazca-class destroyer on the tip of the left wing with its beam turret and METEOR weapons, but the enemy's shifting posture meant the Desert Tiger would have to make some quick adjustments.

"DaCosta," he said, an idea forming in his mind, "Our missile launchers; can we target capital ships with them?"

"Sir," his longtime aid replied, "those are for anti-air and anti-missile interception! They're not heavy weapons!"

"Not the point," Waltfeld shot back, "Can we target ships with them?"

DaCosta nodded. "Theoretically yes, but only at close range!"

That ought to work, he thought, risky, but if we hit them from just the right spot….

"Helm," he ordered, "get us on that destroyer's flank, and rotate us so our dorsal missile batteries are lined up on her! Keep her between us and the rest of the enemy ships!"

"Aye sir," replied the helmsman.

"Weapons," said Waltfeld, "hold back on the missiles until we're in range of the destroyer. The CIWS and Tigress will have to be our anti-air defense until then. Rotate the METEORs up ninety degrees and bring the main gun to maximum elevation!"

"Yes, sir," said the gunnery chief.

A chirping sound came from his personal monitor, and as Waltfeld checked it he saw the face of his lover appear on it. "I seem to be lacking missile support now," she noted dryly, as if she was commenting on sudden rainfall on a spring day, "Andy, I know we need to make ammunition last longer, but this seems a bit much given the circumstances."

Despite the seriousness of the situation, Waltfeld couldn't help but smirk. Aisha's wit in the face of danger was one of the many things that had drawn him to her. "Hang in there, love. There's method to my madness, I assure you."

"I'm holding you to that," she replied, "Tigress out."

The small screen reverted to its original task… which had happened to be following Aisha's GuAIZ during the fighting. Waltfeld watched as the Tigress shot down a GINN that had been setting up for a run on the Eternal before she engaged a GuAIZ in close-quarters-combat. Her foe was quite skilled, and the two machines proceeded to trade beam claw strikes, grappling attempts with their arrestor cables, and even CIWS fire.

"Sir," said the helmsman, "we're coming up on the target!"

Waltfeld nodded. "Weapons, be ready!"

He watched through the main viewport as the Eternal came up alongside the Nazca-class destroyer. The enemy ship was attempting to maneuver into firing position with its bow guns, but the Desert Tiger's vessel was so close to the ZAFT destroyer that it was proving to be a very difficult task.

Eventually the Eternal hit the exact spot Waltfeld had been aiming to place her in, with the ZAFT ship's portside completely exposed. "Fire!" he yelled.

The support cruiser ripped into the destroyer in a fearsome barrage. No less than forty missiles flew forth from the ship and raced towards their target. At the same time, the main beam turret and the METEOR batteries opened up. Their emerald beams naturally hit before the missiles, cutting into the destroyer's portside. As for the swarm of small missiles, they came down upon the vessel like a plague of locusts. While they may have lacked the punch of heavier warheads like the Archangel's Sledgehammer anti-ship missiles, they made up for it with sheer numbers and from being fired at point-blank range. The projectiles impacted not just on the destroyer's portside but along the top as well, and Waltfeld saw that several of the warheads had actually managed to strike the bridge.

Lucky hit there, he thought, no way could we have deliberately targeted that with this kind of ordinance. I'll take what I can get though. Thank you, Lady Luck.

The destroyer was ravaged by the assault and began pulling away from the Eternal. Waltfeld had no time to rest on his laurels though. Three Laurasia-class frigates and a Nazca-class destroyer were setting up for shots at his ship. The Desert Tiger noted another destroyer in the battle group as well, but it was not preparing to attack the Eternal. Instead it was pressing on towards the other side of the battlefield, where the Archangel and Orb forces were engaging the Earth Alliance battle group. It was odd behavior, especially when the Eternal appeared to be ZAFT's main target, but Waltfeld had no time to worry about it. He could only hope that Captain Ramius and Colonel Kisaka would find a way to deal with it in addition to the Alliance forces that they were fighting.

"Helm!" he yelled, "Down thirty degrees and hard to port!"

The ship began its maneuver, and not a moment too soon, for the ZAFT ships were already opening fire. Waltfeld was rocked in his chair as the vessel took a hit, but it seemed that he had managed to evade the rest of the salvo.

"Damage report!" he yelled.

"Hit was aft, starboard side," replied DaCosta, "Armor's holding, but no promises if they hit there again with that kind of firepower."

And they very well might, thought Waltfeld as he looked at the tactical display. Already a frigate was lining up for a shot at the very place DaCosta had just told him had gotten hit. There were still several mobile suits trying to make runs on the Eternal as well, and despite Aisha's best efforts and the fire of the CIWS and missile batteries Waltfeld knew that would not be enough to keep them back.

"Hard to starboard!" he ordered, "METEORs, main gun, open fire on that frigate!"

The ship began to move, and its volley of emerald beams pounded the frigate, but it wasn't enough to knock the enemy out of the fight.

Damn it, he thought, we can't dodge this next one. He glanced over at Lacus. To her credit, the songstress looked very determined, but Waltfeld was sure that deep down she was scared. All he could do was pray that the bridge wouldn't get hit in the coming salvo.

Suddenly a crimson lance of plasma speared the frigate, detonating the vessel like a mortar round. At the same time twelve-micro missiles impacted another frigate, not causing serious damage but grabbing its attention.

"Waltfeld!" said Shemei as her face appeared on the main monitor, "You guys ok?"

He nodded. "Yeah, though things were looking dicey there for a second. Thanks for the help."

"Thank me later," she replied as she cut down a GINN with her beam saber and destroyed another with synchronized shots from her DRAGOONs, "we're not out of this yet!"

Agreed, he thought as her face vanished from the screen, we've still got a tough road ahead of us if we want to survive this battle…

….

(Start "Assault")

"Starboard and down, thirty-two degrees!" ordered Murrue, gripping the arms of her chair, "Portside Gottfried and Valiant, lock in on the low battleship. Have all missiles target the battleship coming in on high, prepped for staggered volleys! Wombats and Corintoss warheads first, then the Sledgehammers! I want the first two locked in on the same trajectory, while the latter takes a separate path."

To her XO's credit, Lieutenant Tsukino only raised an eyebrow before she followed her Captain's orders. Murrue knew her second command was unconventional; of the three heavy missile types the Archangel carried, only the Sledgehammers were meant to be used against capital ships. The Corintoss and Wombat missiles may have had longer range than their lighter cousins, the Helldarts, but they were anti-air missiles; their stopping power was much reduced against warship-level armor. However, Murrue was a woman with a plan.

The Archangel's current maneuver would give her a good firing angle on both the warships trying to pincer her while at the same time keeping her out of the line of the Dominion's bow. To Murrue, that was the most important goal in this clash of capital ships; to keep Natarle's vessel from being able to draw a solid bead for her Lohengrins to fire. The beautiful Captain knew this put her at a severe handicap, but she was determined to try to avoid having to kill a friend this battle, not to mention the woman one of her pilots loved. It was a consideration and restraint she knew that most Captains would not have in such a situation and Murrue could only pray that her skill and the capabilities of the Archangel and her crew would be enough to see her through this battle.

At least I have good coverage from the enemy's mobile weapons, she thought. While the Alliance had focused most of their mobile suits and armors on Wing Zero, they had still reserved enough units to attack the Archangel. Strike-Daggers and Moebius units flew all around the Archangel, much like ZAFT's mobile suits had in so many of Murrue's past battles. This time though, her anti-air defenses were much more formidable, thanks both to Bristow's Wolf Team and the new targeting system co-developed by Heero and Shemei.

The CIWS, for starters, were far more accurate than they had been before. The Archangel's 16 multi-barrel Igelstellung 75mm automatic guns had been designed to be mostly automated weapons, with the weapons specialists simply entering target identification data and making sure allied craft were not registered as hostile. Heero and Shemei's new targeting software kept that framework intact, as it did for the Helldart anti-air missile launchers on the bridge tower. However, both guns and missiles could now acquire targets with greater efficiency and precision, and could track them with considerably greater speed. The advanced targeting system incorporated a degree of the predictive abilities of the much more sophisticated and dangerous Zero System, allowing for enemy flight paths and the trajectories of incoming missiles to be estimated and countered with far greater success than the Archangel's original system could ever have hoped to achieve.

Those improvements were being demonstrated now as the Igelstellungs and Helldarts ripped into Strike-Daggers and Moebius units alike. While the Alliance's mass-production mobile suits had shields just like the original Strike, they still lacked Phase Shift Armor, rendering them very vulnerable to the physical shells and missiles. When one Strike-Dagger managed to block CIWS rounds with its shields, that unit would soon find itself faced with a Helldart missile coming in on its flank, while units unable to even manage that would be ripped apart by bullets.

However, even with the improvements made by Heero and Shemei, the Archangel's anti-air artillery could not make a seamless umbrella. There were blind spots, especially on the flanks, the rear, and underneath the vessel. The ship could make up for those simply by rolling, but that would simply shift both the coverage and the openings. The most effective way to ensure close in protection, of course, was to combine ship-base anti-air weaponry with escort units, and the Wolf Team was more than fulfilling that role.

The GuAIZ Werewolf and the three M1s transferred to the Archangel by the Himiko were mixing it up with the Strike-Daggers and Moebius units that had been able to evade the warship's anti-air weapons. Bristow's custom machine was in the thick of the action, slashing mobile suits with its beam claws and shooting down mobile armors with its shoulder-mounted Hydra Beam Gatling Cannons. Occasionally it would grab an enemy with its hip-mounted arrestor cables, immobilizing them before impaling them on its beam claws. As for the M1s, their pilots were less aggressive than their leader, hanging back and using their beam rifles as their main tools of engagement, only utilizing their beam sabers as last-resort weapons. Their approach was a perfect complement to the bolder style necessitated by the GuAIZ Werewolf's close-quarters oriented design, and together the Wolf Team was making sure the Alliance units could not strike vulnerable areas like the bridge or engines.

"Captain," said Lieutenant Tsukino, "targeting locks confirmed!"

"Open fire!" ordered Murrue.

The portside Gottfried and Valiant cut loose with a pair of emerald beams and a heavy rail cannon round, respectively. At the same time the volleys of Wombat and Corintoss missiles flew from the rear launchers, followed up by the Sledgehammers. Naturally, the energy beams and rail cannon shot hit their target first, and the near-simultaneous impacts ripped the lower Nelson-class battleship in half. The second warship had time to begin evasive maneuvers, but there was no way it could break the lock the Archangel's missiles had on it, and it could only hope to shoot them down with CIWS fire. The battleship's guns cut loose in wild fire as the Wombat and Corintoss warheads closed in, and a few of the missiles were taken out. The remaining Wombats burst over their target, raining their heavy buckshot round down on the vessel. The attack posed no real threat to the battleship, although a lucky hit could take out a sensor or anti-air gun, and the Corintoss missiles that impacted the vessel likewise were not capable of taking it out.

However, those first two sets of missiles were mere diversions for the third; the heavy Sledgehammer anti-ship warheads. The Nelson-class battleship had reoriented itself so that the majority of its CIWS could be brought to bear on the initial wave of missiles, and thus it was horribly out of position to deal with the real threat. The wave of Sledgehammer missiles slammed into the battleship along its portside, punching deep into the bulkheads and leaving gaping holes in the vessel. A large secondary explosion told Murrue that a lucky warhead had detonated the vessel's ammunition stores, and the Nelson-class battleship was ripped apart by the blast.

It was a superbly executed attack, but Murrue had no time to rest on her laurels or congratulate her crew. She still had the Dominion to contend with, and with Natarle in command of the vessel it would not be an easy fight.

"Helm," she ordered, "Climb twenty degrees and break twenty five to port! Lieutenant Tsukino, go for missile and gun locks on the Dominion, but avoid the bridge."

Her subordinates acknowledged her orders. Murrue's instructions to Neumann would take the ship through a particularly thick section of the debris field with many large pieces of scrap metal. The beautiful Captain's hope was to play for time in this area, drawing the Dominion into a game of cat-and-mouse while Heero and the others continued to engage the main body of the Alliance forces.

This would be so much easier if the Kusanagi were in the fight, she thought. Unfortunately the ship had yet to join the engagement and Murrue had been unable to spare a check to see if the vessel had gotten free of its entanglement. She would just have to hope that Colonel Kisaka could get his ship free and into the battle soon.

The Archangel pulled around a large slab of scrap metal, moving out of the Dominion's line of sight for its main weapons. On the tactical display Murrue could see the ship going into a wide arc as it attempted to move into better firing position.

"The Dominion's launched missiles!" cried the sensor officer, "Two waves; it's a pincer attack!"

The incoming warheads appeared on the display, sixteen of them in all. One was arcing around towards the Archangel's bow, while the other was angling for the engines. Murrue saw that Natarle had mimicked her earlier move by firing Corintoss and Sledgehammer missiles, though she had left the Wombats out of the equation. The Corintoss missiles were heading for the engines, while the Sledgehammer missiles were the ones angling for a head-on attack.

Murrue knew she had to act fast if she wanted to counter the move. "Dive fifteen degrees!" she yelled, "Have Wolf Team split; the M1s to the rear, Werewolf in front! CIWS, prepare for interception!"

Murrue's decision would put the Archangel in better position to deal with the missiles coming in from the front, but the ship's rear would be vulnerable. Murrue could only hope that Bristow's subordinates would be able to make up for the gap in the CIWS coverage.

The four mobile suits had barely got into position when the Dominion's missiles came into range of the Archangel's weapons. The white warship opened up, and Bristow's Werewolf joined it as CIWS rounds and small emerald beams spat from the mobile suit's gatling guns. The incoming Sledgehammer missiles were ripped apart by the barrage.

At the Archangel's rear the M1s opened up with their beam rifles and head-mounted CIWS as the Corintoss missiles came into range. The three Orb pilots made a valiant effort, and several of the incoming missiles were destroyed. However, two survived the onslaught, but they were unable to hit the Archangel's engines. One of the M1s had gotten in their path. It took the first one on its shield and for a moment Murrue thought it would be able to do the same with the second, but it was not to be. The M1 failed to block the second missile and was hit on its right shoulder. The warhead exploded, and the mobile suit was destroyed.

"Captain," yelled Lieutenant Tsukino, "I've got an opening coming up for the starboard guns, and I can get a missile lock!"

"Take it," ordered Murrue.

A few seconds later the Orb Lieutenant's voice rang out again. "Open fire!"

The starboard Gottfried and Valiant opened fire, and a volley of Sledgehammer missiles flew forth from the launchers. The emerald beams and heavy round impacted the Dominion on her portside, and while Murrue it would take more than a single salvo to penetrate the vessel's laminated armor it was still something. As for the Sledgehammer missiles, the Dominion's CIWS were able to shoot down half of the projectiles but the hit the warship on its portside fin, just above the Valiant Linear Cannon. Like the salvo fired from the Gottfried and Valiant, Murrue knew the missile impacts would not be enough to force Natarle to withdraw, but they would keep her on the defensive, and that was enough for now.

The Dominion returned fire with her portside guns and a fresh volley of Sledgehammer missiles. Murrue gripped the arms of her chair tightly as the ship shook from the impacts of the beams and linear cannon round. Fortunately the CIWs and the three surviving members of Wolf Team were able to shoot down the incoming missiles.

"Damage report!" Murrue yelled.

"None," replied Lieutenant Tsukino, "Armor's holding, they just rattled us."

"Good," said Murrue before turning to Neumann, "Helm, keep us moving in and out of the debris. Do what you can to minimize our target profile and keep us out of the way of their bow guns."

Neumann nodded. "Aye, Captain."

"Lieutenant Tsukino," said Murrue, "take shots as you get openings, but do what you can to avoid the bridge."

"Yes, ma'am," her XO replied.

Murrue took a moment to glance at her personal monitor. On it she saw Heero blast a Drake-class escort ship with his Twin Buster Rifle before resuming his engagement with the Strike-Daggers and Moebius units that were trying to take him out. Cagalli and her accompanying M1s were still with him and lending their arms to the fray, but the fighting around Heero was fierce… perhaps too fierce, Murrue feared, for the Orb princess and her subordinates. The Archangel's Captain saw an emerald beam pierce an M1, destroying it and leaving Cagalli with just two wingmen left in the battle. While Murrue was grateful for Cagalli's willingness and determination to back up Heero, she knew that her boyfriend's tendency to throw himself into the thickest part of a battle put the daughter of Orb's late leader into considerably greater peril than she normally be in for a fight like this. There was no denying that Cagalli's piloting skills had grown considerably since the days of the North Africa campaign and the journey across the Indian Ocean, and her having the Strike Rouge made her an even deadlier combatant, but she still did not quite have the ability needed to be truly at home in the heart of such a hard fight.

I hope she'll be alright, Murrue thought. She was tempted to order her to pull back, either to cover the Kusanagi or back up one of the other pilots that was engaging the Alliance prototypes and not at the center of the fight, but at the same time she knew that the girl's backup was proving to be a major help to Heero. It kept at least a few of the enemy units occupied, allowing the Gundam pilot to be more efficient when it came to taking on the Alliance battle group.

Of course, the Orb princess wasn't the only person Murrue was worried about. She naturally was concerned for Heero as well, but it was the same worry she'd had every time he'd gone into battle after she's realized that she was in love with him. It was a fear that she had vowed to work past, to not let interfere with her responsibilities towards her subordinates and her allies. Murrue knew that all she could do was keep her faith in the phenomenal skill of the man she loved and the indomitable strength of his Gundam.

Be careful, my love. You will survive, and come back to me… and I will do the same for you!

(End "Assault)

….

Creuset smirked as he blocked railgun rounds from the Freedom on his shield. "You're good, Kira," he murmured as he returned fire with his beam rifle, "You're very good... but you're also naïve."

The boy's skill combined with the overwhelming power of the Freedom should've been enough to end the battle already, but as Creuset had observed in reports and was now seeing firsthand, the First Generation Coordinator had undergone a significant change since his days piloting the GAT-X105 Strike.

He wasn't willing to kill.

Oh, sure, the display of precision shooting the young man from Heliopolis was giving Creuset and his fellow ZAFT pilots was very impressive. Two of the elite pilots from the Field Marshal's flagship had been forced to quit the field, and two more had been robbed of their units' beam rifles, thanks to Kira's incredibly accurate use of the Freedom's fearsome array of artillery. Not only that, but he had disable several other mobile suits before Creuset and his squadron had even engaged the Freedom, significantly weakening the fighting strength of the ZAFT battle group.

However, as Creuset saw Yzak open up on the Freedom with his beam rifle and shoulder-mounted railgun while the other two GuAIZ's moved in to strike with their beam claws, the masked Field Marshal knew that the situation would be quite different if the boy had shown the same killer instinct that he had demonstrated while piloting the Strike. Creuset considered himself to be an excellent judge of piloting talent, and he ranked the boy's current abilities as nearly equal to his own. However, the power of the Freedom should've tipped that balance overwhelmingly into Kira's favor; by rights, Creuset knew that the boy should've killed him by now. The incredible sophistication of the stolen ZAFT prototype should've been more than enough to erase the gap in skill between them.

If it were Wing Zero facing me, thought Creuset as he saw Kira block a beam claw strike from one of the GuAIZ's on his shield, parry the attack from the second unit with his beam saber, and put the Duel on the defensive with a volley from his plasma cannons, I would certainly be dead; Heero Yuy hasn't shown any hesitation to kill, and it was only because he saw Athrun and his comrades approaching that I was able to survive our first encounter. Kira should be able to fight with that same lethality, but he's not.

It was strange, but Creuset wasn't about to complain. The boy's unwillingness to kill meant that he was putting more effort into his shots to make sure that they were non-lethal ones. That increased conscious effort actually slowed Kira down just enough for the masked ace and other sufficiently skilled pilots to be able to defend themselves against his attacks. It wasn't perfect, of course; the damage suffered by the GuAIZs along with Creuset's and Yzak's inability to land a killing or even damaging blow on the Freedom was testament to how difficult fighting the boy still was. However, it was still a critical bit of weakness that the Field Marshal had been able to exploit so far.

He fired off another round of shots from his beam rifle, and just like before Kira was able to block the attacks on his shield. However, this gave Yzak and the two GuAIZs an opening to rush in for close-quarters-combat. One of the GuAIZ's launched its arrestor anchors while the other took a swipe at the Freedom with its beam claw and the Duel moved to stab it with its beam saber. Kira reacted swiftly, diving to avoid the arrestor anchors while parrying the Duel's beam saber with the violet blade in the Freedom's right hand and blocking the attack from the second GuAIZ with the sword in his left hand. He then opened fire with the Freedom's plasma cannons and railguns and knocked out the head-cameras of both GuAIZs.

"Damn," said Dimitri, one of the GuAIZ pilots, "sir, Paul and I are out."

Creuset nodded. "Understood, Dimitri. Return to the Vesalius."

As the two pilots withdrew and Creuset was forced to block a beam saber strike from the Freedom on his shield while the Duel set up to hit the enemy from behind, the masked Field Marshal could see his flagship continuing to push towards the opposite side of the debris field where the Earth Alliance forces were. At the same time he saw on his sensors that his own battle group was in trouble. Two of the task force's destroyers and a frigate had been knocked out of the fight, while another frigate had been damaged by a barrage of micro-missiles from the Valkyrie and another frigate was taking beam rifle and railgun fire from the three decloaked Wraiths. The situation was clearly deteriorating, and Creuset needed to buy himself some time if his plan was still going to work.

The Field Marshal contacted his flagship while Kira was forced to break off his attack in order to counter the Duel closing in behind him. "Ades," he said, "what's the status of the rearguard? Are the other ships with the Mata Hari?"

"Yes, sir," the Captain replied, "We got word from the Mata Hari a few minutes ago. The other warships you contacted are now on station."

"Good," said Creuset as he took a few shots at the Freedom with his beam rifle, "send them in."

"Sir?" said Ades, "I thought they were being held back in case they had to cover our withdrawal."

"The situation's changed," said Creuset as he dodged the return fire from the Freedom's plasma cannons, "without reinforcements, the battle group won't survive much longer. We still have a chance to accomplish our mission, but only with more firepower at our disposal. Call them in, Ades. Tell them to join the fight with the Eternal and her mobile suits."

"Understood, sir," said the Captain, "and my… other assignment?"

"I'm going to draw off the Freedom towards the colony," said the Field Marshal as he watched Kira hit Yzak's machine with a pair of railgun rounds, "That should remove your last obstacle. Once that happens, you may launch the pod at your discretion. Just remember where it has to go."

"Aye, Field Marshal," said Ades, "Vesalius out."

As the Captain signed off Creuset charged the Freedom, firing his arrestor anchors at the mobile suit. Kira managed to avoid being grabbed, but the move drew the boy's attention back to the Field Marshal… which was exactly what Creuset wanted.

"Yzak," he said, "I'll keep the Freedom occupied. Go back to the battle group and reinforce their attack on the Eternal."

The young man's face appeared on his screen. Creuset was expecting a protest, but to his surprise Yzak simply nodded. "Understood. Duel out."

The masked ace smirked as the stolen Alliance prototype bugged out of the fight while he engaged the Freedom up close, attacking with his beam claws. Not even bothering to wish me good luck, he mused, he really doesn't like me now… he probably wanted to get away from me. No matter…

As Yzak pulled away Creuset made his move to begin drawing the Freedom towards the Mendel colony. As the Freedom blocked the GuAIZ's beam claws on its shield Creuset once again pulled back and opened fire with his beam rifle. Kira evaded the shots easily enough, but it gave Creuset the space he needed to move around the Freedom and make for the derelict colony. As he did so he continued to fire his beam rifle at Kira while he got on the radio.

"Is that all you have, Kira Yamato?" he said, "I'm disappointed."

"Who are you?" the boy replied as he put away one of the Freedom's beam sabers and got its rifle back out, "How do you know who I am?"

"You don't think we made efforts to find out who the pilot of the Strike was?" Creuset shot back as he blocked beam rifle fire on his shield, "Of course, Athrun was helpful in that regard while he was still with ZAFT. I had thought you killed in the Marshall Islands for awhile, but Miss Clyne was sloppy when she helped you steal the Freedom; her friends failed to disable the security cameras."

The boy closed in to attack with his beam saber. Creuset managed to parry the attack with his beam claws and retaliated with his arrestor cables. Once again the Freedom managed to avoid getting entangled, but that was fine by Creuset; all he wanted to do was keep the stolen machine occupied.

"But that hardly matters," Creuset continued, "I knew who you were long before you entered our war, Kira Yamato."

He pulled back and fired his CIWS. While the machine guns would have absolutely no effect against the Freedom's Phase Shift Armor, Creuset knew that most pilots would still instinctively react to the rounds, and Kira did not disappoint. The boy slipped to the right to evade the rounds before being forced to raise his shield to block Creuset's attack with his beam rifle.

"What are you talking about?" Kira asked as he returned fire with his beam rifle and railguns.

Creuset laughed as he took the railgun rounds on his shield and dodged the rifle shot, "You still don't know, do you? And you've been here all this time… the ruins of your true homeland."

"What do you mean?" Kira replied. The boy cut loose with the Freedom's plasma cannons, but the shots were sloppy, and Creuset knew that his words were having an effect on the lad. He was getting distracted, preoccupied with what Creuset was telling him… just as the Field Marshal had planned.

"If you want to know the truth," said Creuset as he fired at the Freedom with his beam rifle, "why don't you follow me?"

He saw the Freedom block the shots on its shield, but it did not immediately move to follow. That was to be expected, of course; the young man may have been naïve, but he would still be suspicious of Creuset. However, the masked ace knew the boy would have little real choice in the matter. Creuset's heading may have been for the colony, but it was still in the general direction of the legged ship and her clash with the Alliance forces. They could hardly afford him entering the fray given his level of skill… something the boy would be well aware of.

Indeed, a second later the Freedom began to give chase, firing its guns as it did so. Creuset weaved through the twisted scraps of metal to keep one step ahead of his foe. While the Freedom was considerably faster than the GuAIZ, Creuset could still make use of his unit's maneuverability and the unique environment they were fighting in to keep his foe from running him down. Of course, the boy could always try to get out in front of the Field Marshal, going around him and placing himself between the GuAIZ and the colony, but Creuset was certain that his words had addled with the young man's mind; he wouldn't think clearly and his focus would narrow, becoming blind to other strategic options. Based on the amount of fire the Freedom was sending his way, his single-minded intent on disabling him, Creuset had ample evidence to back up that belief.

As they approached the colony Creuset felt a familiar tingle in the back of his mind, a sensation that he had long ago learned to associate with another pilot… one he had clashed with several times over the course of this war.

"Ah, La Flaga," he muttered, smiling as he continued to dodge fire from the Freedom while sending a few shots back at it with his beam rifle, "I was wondering when I'd sense your presence on this battlefield. Can you feel mine as well, my old friend? I hope you can. This little visit to Mendel just won't feel right if you're not with us as well…"

….

The Hawk of Endymion cursed under his breath as he brought up the Tallgeese Kai's Planet Defensors to block yet another curved plasma blast from his foe. Damn it, he thought, it takes energy to deflect shots like that. I've gotta find a way to get the upper hand against this guy before I end up exhausting my power supply.

Unfortunately, dealing with this particular machine was proving to be a case of easier said than done. The green Alliance prototype was a very unique mobile suit, and its sophisticated weapons and equipment provided La Flaga with some very vexing challenges in this duel.

He fired his beam rifle as the Planet Defensors returned to their mounts, only for his shots to be deflected by his foe's energy shield. That was challenge number one. The unique defensive system had proven itself capable of blocking both energy beams and Vulcan cannon fire, though it was not resistant to beam sabers, evidenced by the three black scars running along the mobile suit's 'backpack' where the Hawk of Endymion had managed to land a few glancing blows with his violet blade.

La Flaga charged in, hoping to land a more decisive blow with his beam saber this time, only to be forced to go evasive as the machine once again opened fire with its plasma cannon. Unlike before, the beam did not curve, but this blast was wider and more powerful. That was challenge number two. The unit's plasma cannon apparently had two settings; a powerful straight-shot and a weaker but much more difficult to evade curving shot. La Flaga had seen the space around the gun shimmer when it had been fired at both settings, and he theorized that the technology that was used to generate the mobile suit's energy shield was also linked to the plasma cannon, amplifying the power of the straight-shots and somehow manipulating the beam for the curved ones.

Making another run at the Alliance prototype, La Flaga managed to get within striking range with his beam saber. He came in on the unit's left side and lashed out, attempting to impale his foe. However, a swing of the mobile suit's scythe forced him to pull back. That was the third obstacle he faced. While the scythe may not have been a beam weapon, and indeed La Flaga had actually cut off part of the blade with his saber, it had greater reach than his own close-quarters weapon. Complicating the matter were the heavy machine guns mounted on the unit's forearms, whose fire forced La Flaga to pull back again and gave the Alliance mobile suit an opportunity to line up shots on him with its pair of railguns. The Hawk of Endymion once again had to use the Planet Defensors to block the rounds, draining even more precious energy from the mobile suit's battery.

The situation was a stalemate. The enemy pilot was not the best foe La Flaga had come across over the course of his career; as far as pure skill went, he knew that Creuset could put his current nemesis to shame. The Tallgeese Kai was faster and more maneuverable than its Alliance rival, and the combination of beam rifle, Vulcan cannons, beam saber, and Planet Defensors gave the Hawk of Endymion a variety of options to use in this fight. However, the unique armaments and equipment of his foe were well-situated to negate La Flaga's advantages. What the enemy pilot may have lacked in technical skill they made up for lightning-fast reflexes and a very aggressive fighting style, one that struck La Flaga as downright vicious.

As La Flaga fired another volley with his beam rifle only to watch as the shots were once again deflected by his foe's energy shield, he knew that this was not a duel he could afford to continue forever. While he was keeping a very dangerous enemy occupied, La Flaga was sure that his skills were needed in other parts of the battle as well, and he had hoped to take his foe out by now. There was also the threat of his unit running out of power. While the Tallgeese Kai did not utilize Phase Shift Armor like his foe did, repeated use of the Planet Defensors still took its toll, and of course his beam saber and rifle also took energy from the unit's battery. Orb may have dramatically increased the power and efficiency of their battery technology, but La Flaga knew he could not fight forever, and he had no way of knowing if whether or not he could outlast his adversary. It was entirely possible that the Alliance had installed their own improved batteries on their prototypes; indeed, the fact that his current foe had been able to keep fighting despite utilizing both Phase Shift Armor and some incredibly sophisticated and powerful weaponry suggested to him that they had done so with at least this mobile suit.

He charged back in, attempting to spear the unit through its cockpit with his beam saber. La Flaga zigzagged to avoid fire from the enemy's railguns and arm-mounted machine guns and thrust out with his blade. His foe managed to pull back, barely getting itself out of range. At the same time it took a swing with its scythe, and while the weapon was missing a good chunk of its blade thanks to an earlier strike from La Flaga's beam saber it was still quite dangerous. The Hawk of Endymion countered with his energy blade and sliced roughly half a meter off the large metal blade, but there was still enough of the weapon left to prove a threat. Before La Flaga could make a second strike his foe opened fire with his arm-mounted machine guns. At such close range it would be impossible to dodge the rounds, and La Flaga was forced to use the Planet Defensors to block the bullets.

The enemy followed up their barrage of rounds with a shot from its plasma cannon. La Flaga hit his thrusters and climbed to evade the shot, but the beam curved to follow, and only a quick slip to the right saved the Tallgeese Kai. While he was regrouping from the onslaught, La Flaga felt a familiar tingle in the back of his mind… a sensation that hadn't occurred since the First Battle of Alaska.

Creuset!, he thought, He's here! La Flaga did not have concrete proof of course, but he had felt this sensation too many times in the past to doubt it now, especially since each feeling had soon been followed up by an encounter with the enigmatic masked ace.

As he dodged rounds fired from the Alliance unit's railguns, La Flaga scanned his sensors, trying to associate the feeling in the back of his mind with a unit on the battlefield. Eventually his eyes fell upon the Freedom chasing a mobile suit towards the Mendel colony, and the tingling sensation in the back of his mind became sharper, like a pinprick.

That's gotta be him, thought La Flaga as he fired at the Alliance mobile suit with his beam rifle. Predictably, his shots were deflected, but he didn't care about that; his move was simply meant to give him a little bit of breathing room while he tried to figure out just what the hell his longtime rival was doing out here.

The contact that the Freedom was chasing came up as a GuAIZ. While the new model mobile suit was a formidable machine, La Flaga knew that Kira should've had no trouble taking such a unit down thanks to the fearsome combination of his skills and the capabilities of the Freedom. The fact that he was still pursuing the GuAIZ was further proof to the Hawk of Endymion that it was indeed piloted by none other than Creuset.

It made sense that Creuset would be flying with the ZAFT task force. After all, the Three Ships Alliance was as much the enemy of ZAFT as it was the Earth Alliance. However, that did not explain why Creuset was making for the ruined Mendel colony when all the combat was taking place outside it. Something didn't smell right, and it got all the worse when La Flaga recalled exactly how he had encountered Creuset inside the Atlantic Federation base at Alaska. Somehow, the masked ace had known about the Cyclops bomb planted by the Alliance; looking back on things now, it was clear to La Flaga that Creuset had simply been confirming the presence and arming of the weapon before he had shot it out with Creuset and gotten the hell out of Dodge. Now he was on a battlefield where both ZAFT and the Earth Alliance had come calling at the exact same time. To the Hawk of Endymion, that just could not be simple coincidence.

He's got something planned here, he thought as he dodged another curved plasma beam from the Alliance mobile suit, and whatever it is, I doubt it bodes well for us. Damn it! Kira's good, but he's in over his head going up against Creuset, even with a mobile suit as powerful as the Freedom! He doesn't know what Creuset is capable of! I've got to get in that fight!

However, his current situation with the Alliance prototype made a speedy flight over to assist Kira impossible to do. If he broke off, the deadly machine would pursue him, engage the Archangel or her active mobile suits, or go after the Kusanagi. This wasn't a matter that La Flaga could leave undone. Unfortunately, he could not break the stalemate by himself.

As much as La Flaga hated to admit it… he needed help.

However, it would be hard to find someone that would be able to help him in this situation. He had no idea what the status of the Kusanagi was, and more to the point bringing in a full warship to attack a mobile suit was wasteful when one considered that both ZAFT and the Earth Alliance still had their own capital ships on the scene. Calling upon his fellow mobile suit pilots was his only real option, but even then he was limited.

Dearka was still mixing it up with the blue prototype. Both the Buster and its foe were units clearly designed for long-range combat, and while Dearka was giving a good show it was clear that his foe was stronger. It had greater firepower than the Buster and it was being quite free with the use of it. La Flaga feared that the new mobile suit had greater energy reserves than the older unit, and there seemed to be some weight to that fear when he saw that Dearka was using the Buster's beam rifle and Gun Launcher separately rather than in their more powerful combined form. The Coordinator was clearly trying to conserve power, and while even in their weaker state his guns could still take out the Alliance machine the former ZAFT pilot was hard-pressed to take the fight to his foe amidst the heavy barrage said foe was putting out. The blue unit was cutting loose in a pure frontal assault, while Dearka was flitting in and out of cover, taking shots where he could but very much on the defensive.

Matters weren't much better for Athrun Zala. Though the Justice did not have to worry about running out of power for its Phase Shift Armor and weapons thanks to its nuclear reactor, the son of ZAFT's Supreme Commander and the de facto military dictator of the PLANTs was engaged with a lethal opponent of his own. The black and red machine he was fighting was very swift, and La Flaga suspected it was the fastest of the three new model Alliance mobile suits. Its armaments were well suited to close and mid-range combat, and like La Flaga's foe the pilot was very aggressive. However, with his beam rifle, beam boomerang, and two beam cannons, Athrun had an advantage in long range combat. The young man was also better suited for close-range combat than his foe, as the Justice had beam sabers while the Alliance unit wielded a large sphere-breaker. While the humongous spiked ball had greater reach than Athrun's beam sabers, the violet blades were a threat to the Alliance mobile suit's melee weapon. Indeed, the Justice had actually managed to slice roughly a third of the ball off since their fight had started, though what remained of the weapon was still a threat due to the great force with which it was swung. An impact would be bad news even for a mobile suit like the Justice, and Athrun was doing his best to avoid suffering such a blow. The enemy wasn't just limited to the spiked ball for attacks either; it had a beam cannon in its mouth and a dual hyper velocity cannon mounted on the shield on its right arm, and it was using both. Those guns may have inferior to the beam rifle and cannons of the Justice, but they were still not to be trifled with.

Also, unlike La Flaga and Dearka's respective fights, Athrun's foe was not giving the former ZAFT ace the luxury of a one-on-one fight. Every so often a few Strike-Daggers or mobile armors would move to take shots at the Justice, forcing Athrun on the defensive when he was close to striking a killing blow. While the mobile suits and armors were no match for the powerful ZAFT prototype, a lucky beam shot to the cockpit would be enough to take out the machine, and Athrun was forced to deal with the interlopers in addition to his main foe. It may only have been a few of the large force of mobile suits and armors the Alliance had brought to the engagement, but when combined with the more advanced prototype it was enough to hamper Athrun's progress.

Heero, La Flaga thought as he attempted to strike his foe with his beam saber, only to score a glancing blow on the left section of the 'backpack' before a swing of its scythe forced him to break off, it's gotta be Heero.

Wing Zero's pilot may have been engaged by far more enemies than La Flaga and the others, but they were normal units, and it only took the Hawk of Endymion a second to glance at his sensors to see that the pilot from another world was mauling his hapless foes. La Flaga could not begin to estimate how many mobile suits and armors Heero had taken down, but he did know how many warships had fallen to the Gundam pilot. Wing Zero had destroyed three of the main force's escort ships and two of the battleships, while Cagalli and her team had nailed another escort ship and the Archangel had blasted one more Drake-class vessel before it had begun to engage the Dominion and the two warships accompanying her.

Two battleships and three escort ships remained, and the enemy's mobile suit forces had been severely depleted, but there was still enough to engage Wing Zero, the Strike Rouge, and the two surviving M1s with them. La Flaga knew it would be difficult for Heero to line up a shot on the green prototype with all the other Alliance units still trying to kill him, even with Cagalli and her subordinates backing him up… but he also knew that, with the fearsome power of Wing Zero's rifle, Heero would only need one shot.

Sure, thought La Flaga as he fired a few beams at his foe, only for them to be deflected by the energy shield, this guy can block conventional firepower… but let's see him try that against an anti-colony weapon!

"Heero," he said as he dodged a salvo from his foe's railguns, "I don't suppose you can spare me a second?"

"What is it?" Heero replied as he blocked a beam saber strike from a Strike-Dagger before ripping the unit apart with his shoulder gatlings.

"Remember that ZAFT commander I told you about?" said La Flaga as he moved in to attack with his beam saber, evading a curving plasma beam as he did so, "The one I encountered inside the Alaska base?"

"Creuset," said Heero as he slashed another mobile suit in half, "What about him?"

"He's here," said La Flaga as he lashed out with his violet blade, landing a glancing blow on the right section of the Alliance unit's 'backpack' before a swipe from its scythe forced him to pull back, "I can't tell you how I know, but I know. He's heading towards the colony."

"The unit Kira's chasing," said Heero as he dodged beam fire from mobile suits and armors, "Why would he go to the colony when his force is engaged with the Eternal?"

"I don't know," La Flaga replied as he blocked machine gun rounds with the Tallgeese Kai's shield-drones, "but he wouldn't go there without reason. The guy's cunning as hell, and I'm sure he's drawing Kira in there on purpose. The kid's good, but he's in over his head here!"

"You want to go after them," said Heero. It wasn't a question; Wing Zero's pilot had already leapt ahead to where La Flaga was heading.

"Yeah," said La Flaga as he evaded another round of railgun fire, "but I don't want to leave this guy behind to strike you guys, either. I can't get through his defenses. Can you dust him real quick for me?"

"Keep him at range," Heero replied, "I'll set up for a shot. Cagalli, cover me."

"Got it," came the girl's voice over the tactical channel.

"Don't hold back on the juice," said La Flaga as he opened fire with his beam rifle to distract his foe, "he's got shields."

"I know," Heero replied, "Kira sent me the combat data on him after the battle at Orb. I'm sending you coordinates. Lure him there and I'll take the shot."

La Flaga glanced at a side monitor and saw data coming in from Wing Zero. "Ok. Tallgeese out."

Gunning his engines, La Flaga made for the point Heero had designated. At the same time he continued to pour fire from his beam rifle into his foe. Shot after useless shot was deflected by the Alliance mobile suit's shield, but La Flaga's intent was not to damage his foe, merely keep his attention on him. A powerful straight-shot from the machine's plasma cannon as the mobile suit retaliated indicated that it was working.

That's it, he thought as he dodged the attack before sending a few more emerald beams back at his enemy, keep your eye on me, pal.

The machine responded with fire from its railguns. At the same time it increased its speed in an attempt to close the distance between it and La Flaga's unit. The Hawk of Endymion was sure that the Tallgeese Kai was the faster machine, but he couldn't just gun his engines and run. He had to stay within firing range of his foe if the trap was going to work.

Can't just rush ahead full bore anyway, he thought as he weaved in and out of the scattered debris, not with all this crap floating around here.

He brought up his Planet Defensors to block a curved shot from his foe's plasma cannon. The move may have saved him, but it also drained even more precious energy from his suit's battery.

"Come on, Heero," he said, "anytime now…"

"Adjust your heading five degrees up and to the right," said the Gundam pilot, "Then, on my mark, break left and gun it."

"Got it," La Flaga replied, already altering his trajectory.

Then he heard Cagalli cry out over the tactical channel. "Marcus!"

Glancing at his sensors, he saw one of the M1s get stabbed in the back by a yellow beam saber. The Orb unit blew up, but its death was swiftly avenged as a shot from the Strike Rouge's beam rifle destroyed its attacker. Still, there was now only one M1 left to help out Cagalli, and La Flaga knew he bore some responsibility for the latest death of an Orb pilot.

"Sorry, Cagalli," he said grimly.

"Just make it count!" she yelled back.

Then he heard Heero's voice. "Mark."

La Flaga pushed the throttle to maximum as he veered sharply to the left. The astounding force of the acceleration slammed him into his seat, and he could feel his chest getting almost cripplingly tight. Damn, Tallgeese, he thought, a painful cough wracking him, you're a real monster… La Flaga was loath to push his machine and his body like this, but he needed to get the hell out of dodge if he wanted to survive what was coming.

A split second later, a massive golden-yellow wave of energy washed over his foe, completely engulfing him. La Flaga's eyes widened as his mind flashed back to the last time he'd seen a blast of that size and magnitude in person; the First Battle of Alaska.

"Maximum power…" he wheezed out, his breath coming in ragged gasps even as he eased up on the throttle, "Overkill much, Heero?"

"You're welcome," the Gundam pilot replied, "You target is eliminated. Get going."

La Flaga smirked. Cold as ice, he thought, but he did what I asked, so I can hardly complain.

There wasn't a trace of the green mobile suit left, not so much as a single sliver of metal. If there were any remains of the machine and pilot, they were on the molecular level… if that.

"Thanks," said La Flaga as he turned towards the Mendel colony, "I owe you one. Good luck."

"Roger that," said Heero, "Wing Zero out."

The Hawk of Endymion once again gunned the Tallgeese Kai's engines. He didn't want to subject his body to the pummeling he knew he would take again as a result, but he knew that time was short. On his screen he could make out the Freedom chasing Creuset's GuAIZ towards one of the colony's docking bays. Whatever trick La Flaga's rival had planned there would not be pretty. While the Hawk of Endymion did not doubt Kira's incredible skills or the Freedom's awesome power, he knew that the young Coordinator did not have the same kind of experience with Creuset that he did. There was far more to fighting that man than just raw piloting talent. It was like engaging in a very high-speed game of chess, one where both players fought like mad to get four moves ahead of each other. It was a game that La Flaga knew Creuset was a master of; the man could turn any situation, any battlefield, to his advantage. His cunning, his ability to read the flow of a fight, to manipulate people and circumstances alike, was unmatched.

La Flaga knew that Heero had survived and even forced Creuset to withdraw during the orbital battle, and he attributed that to the Gundam pilot's experience and skill as much as he did the incredible power of Wing Zero, but the situation now was different. Like Heero, Kira had both a powerful machine and great skill, but even with all the battles he had fought in since Heliopolis the boy was still a student in the art of war. He had only been fighting for a few months; from what little La Flaga understood, Heero had been on the battlefield practically his whole life.

The boy from Heliopolis and the soldier from another world also differed in another key area; mentality. Heero was hardened, accepting of his role as a soldier and what it required of him… of the necessity of taking life in combat. Kira had seemed to be growing in that direction prior to his apparent demise in the Marshall Islands, but since his return from the grave the boy had changed. He still kept all the considerable skill he had built up over his journey, had even improved upon it by no small margin, but paradoxically he had regressed in terms of his mindset. While La Flaga was loath to see the innocence and softness that made Kira such a kind and gentle young man be consumed by the fires of war, without the grim determination to take the life of his foe in order to achieve his objective the Hawk of Endymion feared that the boy was no match for a man with the deviousness and ruthlessness of Rau Le Creuset. There was nothing wrong with being gentle and kind outside of battle, but in combat one had to embrace their darker side, their killer instinct… and Kira seemed to have lost his.

La Flaga did not know if the boy could win against such a foe without it.

He doubted it.

Hang in there, Kira, he thought as he rushed towards the colony, the tingling sensation in the back of his mind growing stronger as he approached, I'm coming!

….

Creuset smirked as he saw another mobile suit making for the colony. He did not know what the unit was called, but he had seen enough recordings of it in action to know who the pilot was… as if the growing tingling sensation in the back of his mind wasn't proof enough.

Ah, good, he thought as he continued to dodge fire from the Freedom, I'm so glad you're able to join us, La Flaga. Now all the players are in position. Time to start the next part of this performance.

He contacted the Vesalius. "Ades, I'm about to enter the colony. Once my pursuers have followed me inside, launch the pod. Keep it under your guns and open fire if the renegades or their allies attempt to retrieve it. That pod must be captured by the Alliance, and no one else, is that clear?"

"Understood, sir," the Captain of the flagship replied.

"Creuset out," said the Field Marshal.

He lined up for his final approach to the main docking bay. Running a quick scan of the interior, he saw that beyond the entrance there was still emergency power functioning inside the colony, including atmosphere.

"Good," he murmured as he began typing on a keypad, "that means these should still work."

He entered and transmitted a code that had not been used for several years now. He smiled as he saw a massive door at the far end of the docking bay begin to slide open, the first of three such portals that allowed access into the heart of the colony.

"And so," he said, "The prodigal sons return. It's been a day long in coming."

He chuckled as he saw the Freedom hot on his heels, with La Flaga not far behind. "Welcome back to Mendel, Kira Yamato."

"Welcome home."

….

(Start "Black Paper Moon")

"Freedom's entered the colony," said Miriallia, "Tallgeese Kai's right behind it!"

Damn, thought Murrue, now's hardly the best time to lose two of our best pilots.

La Flaga had contacted the Archangel to inform her of his pursuit of Creuset and Kira, but the communication had been brief, with no explanation as to how he knew the masked ace was here or why he was chasing him when the Freedom was already after him. Murrue hadn't even been given time to object before the Hawk of Endymion had cut the transmission, and she suspected that had been intentional on his part. 'Easier to beg forgiveness than ask permission' was practically the motto of pilots like him. All she could do now was trust him and tend to the situation with the resources she had left on the field.

The balance of the battlefield, at least in her area, was tipping into the Archangel's favor. While the Buster and Justice were still engaged with their respective foes, Heero was once again ripping into the surviving members of the Alliance battle group. His brief sideshow with La Flaga had at least eliminated one of the Alliance prototypes, and even in the midst of her tense clash with the Dominion it had been impossible for Murrue to miss the titanic display of power that was the maximum charge of Wing Zero's Twin Buster Rifle. Now the Gundam pilot was back to savaging the regular enemy forces, and as she glanced at her personal monitor she saw Heero obliterate a Nelson-class battleship with his fearsome rifle. The once formidable force of Alliance capital ships had been reduced to a single battleship and three Drake-class escort ships, and the number of mobile suits and mobile armors was a shadow of the battle group's former glory. The enemy formations were shattered, the surviving ships and units uncoordinated and scattered about the battlefield, their attempts at counterattacking desperate and sloppy. Once again, Heero was more than proving himself worthy of his reputation, and Murrue could only imagine the dismay his foes must be feeling now.

However, the effort had not been without cost. Murrue knew that Cagalli's team had taken casualties as they had fought to cover Heero and give him enough breathing room to carve into the heart of the Alliance force. She could only hope that the girl would not beat herself up too badly over the losses, though given her own experience and the kind of person she knew Cagalli to be she was sure that it would be very hard on Orb's princess after the fight when they did an accounting for their dead. The girl had managed to hang onto one of her wingmen, and the amount of mobile suits and armors they were fighting now was significantly reduced from what it had been earlier, but that did not change the fact that they were still engaged with the enemy; there was always the chance for more casualties before the battle was over.

Things weren't perfect on Murrue's end either. While she had managed to keep the Archangel and Dominion locked in a stalemate, circling each other like sharks, her ship's escort had suffered another loss when an M1 from Wolf Team had been destroyed by a Strike-Dagger. The death had been swiftly avenged by Bristow, but now he was down to just one teammate. Murrue could only take comfort in the fact that her escorts had performed their duties superbly, with the last of the mobile suits and armors trying to attack the Archangel having just been finished off by the former ZAFT Field Marshal moments ago. Murrue now had a choice to make; keep Bristow and his teammate with the ship to aid in missile interception, or send them forth to harass the Dominion.

The choice was made for her a second later. "Missiles inbound!" yelled the sensor officer, "Two waves, Corintoss and Sledgehammer warheads. Angle is a high arc!"

"Prepare for interception!" ordered Murrue.

As the missiles came into range, the Archangel opened up with her CIWS and Helldart missiles. The GuAIZ Werewolf and the last M1 added their weapons to the mix as well, and the incoming warheads were wiped out by the barrage.

"Gotta hand it to Heero and The Valkyrie," she heard Lieutenant Tsukino say, "That new targeting system is a beast."

No argument there, Murrue thought. There was no time to rest on their laurels, though; missiles weren't the only weapons the Dominion attack with.

"Down ten degrees, and thirty to starboard!" ordered Murrue, "Starboard weapons, prepare for broadside!"

"Targeting solutions acquired!" yelled Tsukino.

"Open fire!" ordered Murrue.

The new targeting system's benefits did not solely extend to interception. The Archangel could acquire targets faster and more accurately with her heavy artillery as well, and in an environment such as the L4 debris field could still strike with pinpoint precision. It was a crucial advantage over the Dominion, which naturally lacked Heero and Shemei's new program, and Murrue was putting it to good use in this fight.

The starboard Gottfried and Valiant cannons roared to life, spitting emerald beams and heavy rounds at their target. At the same time all the Archangel's heavy missile launchers opened fire as well, sending a swarm of Sledgehammer, Corintoss, and Wombat missiles at the Dominion. While the impacts from the latter two missiles would be negligible against the vessel's heavy laminated armor, they still served as valuable distractions for the heavier Sledgehammer missiles. Besides, there was always the chance that one of the lighter missiles could take out a CIWS or damage the sensor array. Natarle had not used her Wombat missiles when it came to the ship-to-ship combat, following Alliance protocol that they be reserved for formations of mobile suits or aircraft, though she had shown some flexibility by supplementing her barrages with the Corintoss warheads.

Murrue was much more willing to act outside the standard playbook.

The large beams and rail cannon rounds slammed into the Dominion's portside, and the ship was visibly rocked by the hits. At the same time, the Archangel's missiles came in from on high, and the black battleship spat out CIWS fire and Helldart missiles in an attempt to counter. Some of the missiles were destroyed, but the Alliance warship was not saved from the barrage. The Wombat missiles erupted over their target, showering the vessel with their heavy buckshot rounds. The surviving Corintoss and Sledgehammer missiles rained down around the bridge tower, though Murrue was relieved to see that none actually hit the command center.

There was no time to celebrate; Murrue knew she had to act quickly to mitigate her foe's response. "Climb twenty degrees!" she yelled.

The ship began to pull up, and not a moment too soon. Murrue could see the Dominion's weapons angling to fire, and they soon opened up. Natarle's vessel cut loose with its portside Gottfried and Valiant, while the rear missile launchers once again fired Sledgehammer and Corintoss warheads.

However, this time Natarle had moved too late. Murrue's climb had not been random, and the Archangel was just pulling behind a large chunk of what she assumed had once been part of a colony's central block. She saw it crack and rupture as the Dominion's shots hit it, but the attacks did not get through.

All that mapping Heero and the others did on their patrol flights paid off big time, thought Murrue, We've got the whole field charted on the tactical display; Natarle can't match that advantage.

Unfortunately, while the debris had blocked the shots from the Gottfrieds and Valiants, the missiles had been fired on different courses. They curved around the debris towards the front of the ship.

"CIWS, open up!" yelled Lieutenant Tsukino, "Wolf Team, intercept!"

Bullets and beams ripped through space. Most of the incoming missiles were destroyed, but two managed to get through the umbrella and hit the Archangel's upper deck.

"Damage report!" yelled Murrue as the ship shuddered.

"Topside armor's holding," replied Tsukino, "we're good."

For now, Murrue thought, but how long can it last? None of us have managed to land a concentrated barrage yet in this fight. On my part it's intentional, but I doubt Natarle's operating with the same level of restraint. We've got to find a way to end this fight quickly!

Suddenly Colonel Kisaka's voice came over the radio. "This is the Kusanagi. We've broken free."

Finally, Murrue thought. She was about to issue orders to the Orb ship, but someone else beat her to the punch.

"Kusanagi," said Heero as he slashed a Strike-Dagger, "engage the survivors of the Alliance battle group. Cagalli, fall back to the ship. Support the Kusanagi and her M1s."

Murrue contacted her boyfriend. "Heero, what are you doing?"

"Freeing myself up to do something I've wanted to since the battle began," Heero replied, "knock the Dominion out of this fight."

"Hold on!" said Murrue, "Heero, you can't destroy that ship!"

"I'm not planning on it," he replied, "trust me, Murrue. I won't kill Natarle, I promise."

Murrue nodded. "Alright, Heero. What's your plan?"

"You'll see soon enough," said the Gundam pilot, "Just keep the Dominion distracted like you've been doing. Wing Zero out."

Alright, Heero, she thought, we'll play it your way. Whatever plan you have, I'll place my faith in it.

"Captain Ramius?" said Colonel Kisaka, "What are our orders?"

Murrue smiled. "You already have them, Colonel. Carry on."

"Understood," he replied, "Kusanagi out."

Murrue turned to Neumann. "Keep us weaving through the debris; try to put as much scrap between us and the Dominion as you can. We have to keep our distance but still make sure they're focusing on us."

"Got it," said the helmsman.

"Lieutenant Tsukino," said Murrue, "keep up sporadic fire on them, whenever you get an opening."

"Aye, ma'am," her XO replied.

I'm counting on you, Heero, she thought as the Archangel pulled to port, Neumann doing his best to match the Dominion's shifting trajectory while keeping the ship out of the firing line of the enemy's Lohengrins, and I know you won't let me down!

(End "Black Paper Moon")

….

You've improved, Captain Ramius, thought Natarle, You're putting up one hell of a fight.

Of course, Natarle should not have expected any less from the woman who had led her former warship through ZAFT's gauntlet to get to Alaska and all the battles after it had gone rogue. Despite her deepest desires to avoid such a confrontation, Natarle was now giving her fight with her former comrades her utmost effort, and had been trying to get the Archangel into the firing path of the Lohengrins since the battle had begun. That she had been unable to do so was a testament to the skills of both Captain Ramius and her crew. In a way, Natarle felt a strange sense of pride as the Dominion battled it out with the Archangel; her old comrades were once again demonstrating that their abilities were not to be trifled with.

While both warships had traded shots, no one had been able to land a decisive hit. Natarle was certain that it was intentional on her old Captain's part. The Archangel had not once tried to line up a shot with its Lohengrins on the Dominion since the fight had begun, instead opting for broadsides and missile bombardment. While it was still quite possible for such tactics to take out the bridge, Natarle had realized that Captain Ramius had deliberately avoided targeting that specific point. She was playing for time, trying to outlast Natarle's ship until the Alliance forces had to withdraw.

If I had it my way, she thought, we would be retreating now. Our losses have been severe, and the situation is only continuing to get worse.

The main body of the battle group had been utterly thrashed. Only four capital ships and a handful of mobile suits remained. All of the mobile armors had been wiped out; in the end, equipping them with beam cannons had not been enough to compensate for their inferior defenses and maneuverability.

The lion's share of the kills had of course gone to Wing Zero, and Natarle wouldn't have expected less from the Reaper of North Africa. Despite her familiarity with the carnage Heero could wreak on the battlefield, she still could not help but marvel at his powers of destruction… even as he unleashed them on her fellow Alliance soldiers. Wing Zero had such a simple weapons layout, but it was utterly devastating. The power of the mobile suit and skills of its pilot had only been enhanced by the team of Orb mobile suits that had been fighting with it, helping to keep some of the Alliance units away from it and giving it openings to do what it did best.

The astounding power of Wing Zero had been perfectly demonstrated when the Gundam had obliterated one of Azrael's prized prototype mobile suits in a single shot. Natarle's feelings had been mixed on that. On the one hand, it was another one of her pilots lost. However, it would be more accurate to say the young man, like his two partners, was one of Azrael's pilots, him being the only real authority they displayed any real deference to. The pilots of the new model machines were practically impossible for her to really integrate into her battle plans, or indeed her chain of command. Azrael hadn't helped much in that regard, giving them the simple instruction to engage the enemy mobile suits but beyond that nothing particular. Natarle would've preferred that all three gang up on Wing Zero, and indeed they had moved to do so early in the fighting, but they had been intercepted by other mobile suits and drawn into individual engagements. Wing Zero's shot had just ended one of those fights, and Natarle had actually been relieved as said fight had been against none other than Mu La Flaga. Now the man she loved had actually left the field, heading towards the ruined Mendel colony. Natarle did not know why La Flaga had gone off to the colony, but considered it a blessing; she did not have to fight him now.

Her personal situation may have been marginally improved, but the strategic situation of her battle group was rapidly deteriorating. The blue Orb warship had finally gotten free of its entanglement from the debris it had gotten snagged upon and was now moving to engage the surviving Alliance vessels. Three M1 Astrays flew with it, and between them and the firepower of the warship Natarle knew they were the quintessential final nail in the coffin for the task force. The Raider and Calamity were in no position to change that, as they were still engaged in their respective duels with one of the ZAFT nuclear powered mobile suits and the Buster.

"Lord Azrael," said Natarle, "we have to withdraw."

The true power behind the task force and the Earth Alliance as a whole shook his head. "I'm disappointed in you, Miss Captain. We're not done here yet."

"With all due respect, sir," Natarle countered, "we are. This ship is locked in stalemate with the Archangel, and the rest of the battle group is being annihilated. We have no strategic reserve to bring into the fight, and our losses have been catastrophic. We have to retreat!"

Azrael waved his finger at her, a smug smirk on his face. "Of course we have a reserve, Miss Captain. Call in the Priam and her escorts. That should help turn the tables back in our favor."

"The Priam's a carrier!" Natarle yelled, her eyes widening, "She's not meant for frontline combat!"

"I don't know what you're talking about, Miss Captain," Azrael shot back, "She still has guns, and she's still a warship. She can still fight, and she will fight. Call her in!"

You son of a bitch!, Natarle seethed in her head, Against a ship like that Orb vessel or a mobile suit like Wing Zero, the Priam's nothing but a giant target! Her escorts are little better; there are only two Drakes and two Nelsons with her, and all of them have already launched their mobile suits and armors into the battle. Five conventional warships at this point won't make a difference; they'll be slaughtered!

Natarle had heard stories about Azrael's ruthlessness and his callous disregard for the lives of others. The vibes she'd gotten from him since leaving the Ptolemaeus base had only served to reinforce that impression, and how he'd reacted to her attempts to reason with her former comrades had done little to improve her perception of him. Still, to listen to him now, to see how he was so willing to throw good soldiers into a fight that was impossible for them to win, to watch him send them to all but guaranteed deaths without the slightest shift in his demeanor, a single hint of concern or regret… it made her want to puke.

Unfortunately, regardless of her personal feelings on the matter the fact remained that Azrael was her superior even if he held no formal military rank. His authority over the battle group was final… and he had given her an order.

"Comm," she said grimly, "have the Priam and her escort move in. They're to engage the Orb ship and Wing Zero."

"Aye, Captain," the communications officer replied.

Damn it all, she fumed silently, god fucking damn it all…

The ship shuddered as it took the Archangel's latest salvo, and Natarle mentally berated herself for having gotten distracted from her main engagement. "Damage report!" she yelled, "What hit us?"

"Gottfried and Valiant fire," said one of the bridge crew, "Impacts were along the port leg. Armor's holding, and there's no damage to the linear catapult, Lohengrin, or Gottfried."

Still, thought Natarle as she checked her tactical display, the fact that they were able to hit us at all from such range in an environment with so many obstacles is troubling. They've done that several times now over the course of this battle, opening up before we're able to, with greater precision at extreme range… I don't know how, but their targeting capabilities have been upgraded.

She was about to order a counter barrage when she heard her sensor officer cry out. "Energy spike, twelve o'clock high! It's Wing Zero!"

"How'd it get over here so quickly?" one of the other bridge officers cried out in shock.

Natarle felt her blood chill. Had her foes finally decided to take the gloves off?

She saw an image of the Gundam appear on the main monitor, its monstrous rifle split into two weapons, the barrel of each gun glowing with golden-yellow hellfire.

"Hard to starboard!" she yelled.

Even as she gave the command, she knew it was too late. Heero wouldn't miss at this range.

Two pillars of lethal light ripped forth from the guns. They rushed forward and engulfed the front of the Dominion, their light so bright that Natarle closed her eyes reflexively. She felt the ship rock violently, and despite her bracing herself she was thrown from her seat. The impact with the hard steel floor was painful… but Natarle was shocked to realize that she was still feeling anything right now.

I should be dead, thought Natarle, what… what happened?

Grimacing as she opened her eyes, the first thing she saw was the complete disarray of her bridge crew. Like her, the others had been tossed about by the tumultuous tremors, though Natarle did not see any signs of serious injury among them. She took some comfort from the sight of Azrael sprawled ignominiously on his face, his ass hanging in the air. Natarle had to fight the strong urge to kick it.

Then she looked out the main viewport, and her jaw felt like it had hit the floor again. Her eyes widened larger than they ever had in their life as she surveyed the destruction wrought by Wing Zero.

The forward 'legs', one of the signature design features of the Archangel-class General Purpose Assault Battleship, were gone. The fire from the split Twin Buster Rifle had completely obliterated everything from the Dominion's Gottfried turrets forward. The beam cannons, the linear catapults, the Lohengrins… there was nothing left of them. The armor plating around the foremost section of the central hull was charred and warped, twisted and distorted, but it seemed to have only caught the edges of the blasts.

Looks like the hangar's still intact, she thought, her mind still struggling to process what she was looking at, but… our heavy weapons have been wiped out. We can't fight the Archangel with what we have left.

It was horrible to see her ship like this, but Natarle could at least take comfort from the fact that the damage was decisive, that her ship had been essentially defanged. It meant that she could withdraw. More importantly, such extensive damage would take a long time to repair, meaning she'd be off the front lines; she wouldn't have to fight her friends.

Recomposing herself as she took hers seat, she turned to her communications officer. "Signal the rest of our forces. We're retreating."

"No," growled Azrael, "We're not."

Turning to him, Natarle saw his face twisted into a truly ugly visage. It was not from physical injury; his expression had been warped simply by his rage. His eyes were narrowed, his mouth open in a nauseating sort of half smile, half grimace, his teeth showing, his breath shallow, drool gathering at the corners.

"I will not leave here empty handed!" Azrael snarled.

"If this keeps up," Natarle retorted, "we won't leave here at all!"

"We're not beaten, Miss Captain," said Azrael, his voice taking on a high pitch, "Look at that; Wing Zero missed! So much for the legendary Heero Yuy; he doesn't have what it takes to kill us!"

Idiot!, she mentally screamed, Heero did that on purpose! If he wanted us dead, we would be!

The ship shuddered again, forcing Natarle to turn her attention to other matters. "What was that?" she yelled.

"Portside Valiant is gone!" replied an officer, "Wing Zero cut it right off!"

Removing our lesser weapons, she mused, resisting the strange urge to smile, thank you, Heero. Go ahead, disarm my whole ship; leave me completely incapable of hurting my friends. Give me no choice but to run.

"Incoming transmission, open channel!" said the communications officer.

An offer of surrender?, she thought, Heero, you're more generous than I gave you credit for.

"Is it Wing Zero?" she asked.

"Negative," the officer replied, "It's coming from ZAFT!"

That certainly hadn't been what she was expecting. "What do they want?" she asked.

"They said they've launched a pod containing an Alliance soldier," said the officer.

Natarle's eyes widened. "You've got to be kidding me! A prisoner transfer in the middle of a battle?"

"We've got a visual," said the sensor officer, and the main monitor shifted to show a standard, single occupant ZAFT life pod.

"Captain," said the communications officer, "we've got an open transmission coming from the pod!"

"Patch it through," she ordered.

A female voice came over the speakers… one Natarle was startled to realize that she knew.

"Archangel, help me! This is Flay Allster!"

Impossible!, thought Natarle, She was transferred at Alaska! She should be back in the Atlantic Federation!

But there was no denying what she was hearing now. The voice was unmistakable; it really was Flay.

Her being in a place like this when she had no business being anywhere near a battlefield was strange enough, but what she said next made Natarle's already confusing, tumultuous day even worse.

"I… have the key. I hold the key that can put an end to this war."

"The key…" said Natarle, "what is she talking about?"

"How interesting," said another familiar voice.

Natarle turned and saw Azrael thoughtfully stroking his chin, the ugly rage that had a hold on him before replaced by curiosity. It was such a sudden switch, and it was almost as disconcerting as his ruthlessness and outright sociopathy.

"I've never heard that expression before," he said, "the 'key' to ending the war… how very interesting."

Natarle's stomach fell. She knew what was coming.

Azrael stood up and made a bombastic, over the top gesture at the image on the screen. "Retrieve that escape pod!" he ordered, "Capture it at all costs!"

Natarle sighed but made no move to object. At this point it would be pointless to argue with the man.

"Comm," she said, "contact all surviving mobile suits and ships, including the Priam and her escorts. All forces are to head for that escape pod; it must be captured!"

"Aye, Captain," the officer replied.

"Wing Zero's preparing to fire again!" cried the sensor officer.

Natarle's eyes widened and she prepared to give an order, but the warning had come too late. The ship rocked again, though not as violently as before.

"Portside heavy missile launchers have been destroyed!" yelled one of her crew.

He'll be moving onto the starboard ones next, she thought. It was strange how she actually didn't mind Heero continuing to attack her ship and strip it of its weapons, but she could not convey that sentiment to the crew or Wing Zero's pilot. Whatever she might have felt privately, publicly she still had to at least give the appearance of wanting Heero dead.

"Get him off us!" she yelled, "Fire CIWS and Helldarts!"

"Already on it, ma'am," said the weapon's officer.

Natarle knew it wouldn't do any good. Against Wing Zero's Gundanium alloy hull, the bullets from the CIWS would do little more than scratch the paint. The Helldarts would likewise have a minimal effect, and that was only if they weren't shot down by Wing Zero's gatling cannons. Natarle gave silent thanks to whatever deity existed that Heero wasn't actually trying to destroy the Dominion. Enough losses had already been suffered today, and she was sure more good soldiers would fall before this dreadful battle finally ended.

And all for what?, she thought as she watched the Orb warship open fire on the main monitor, destroying a Drake-class escort ship with her Gottfried beam cannons, To hunt down a renegade warship and her allies? To retrieve a single prisoner? I don't know what this 'key' Flay spoke of is, but it had better be worth all the lives that have been and are going to be sacrificed in order to get it.

….

Yzak's eyes widened in shock as he heard that familiar voice over the radio. "Flay?" he said, "Why is she out here? What's going on?"

It was a distraction that almost cost him his life. The ZAFT pilot's foe, a black GuAIZ with green trim, rushed in with its beam claws, and Yzak was barely able to raise his shield in time to block the blow. A fresh jolt of adrenaline shot through his system at the close shave he'd just had with death, and it helped him to refocus on his current fight, though he was still very much bothered by what he had just heard.

Creuset, he thought as he unloaded his missiles on his foe, only for them to either be shot down by CIWS fire or blocked by the Composite Shield, this is your doing, isn't it? What's your game?

Suddenly he heard another familiar voice over the radio as he raised his shield to block fire from the GuAIZ's beam rifle. "It's usually not my style to give advice to the enemy, but you really should keep your focus, boy."

His eyes widened; he hadn't heard that voice since the North Africa campaign. "You! Aisha Marlene!"

"Been a long time, Yzak Joule," the Desert Tiger's lover replied as she closed in with her beam claws, "You've actually gotten better since the last time I saw you fight."

Yzak had heard that she had survived the final battle in the Sahara and had gone renegade like Waltfeld, but he still had not expected to run into her out here. "Why have you turned against us?" he asked as he blocked her beam claws on his shield, "Why have you all betrayed ZAFT?"

"ZAFT has fallen from the path it was supposed to follow," said Aisha as she slipped to the left to doge fire from Yzak's railgun, "I joined the military to protect my people, not to kill others just because of how they were born!"

"That's not what ZAFT's fight is about!" replied Yzak as he shot at her with his beam rifle, only for her to evade his attacks.

"You don't really believe that now, do you?" she asked as she returned fire with her rifle, "The butchery in East Asia that went unpunished, the slaughter of surrendered soldiers at Panama… Zala has taken ZAFT down the path of genocide. We saw that even back during North Africa; his hatred for the Naturals even then knew no bounds. We refused to take part in a campaign of vengeance and murder! That's why we left; that's why we're fighting ZAFT!"

Her words hit home for Yzak even as he focused on avoiding her attacks. The massacre at Panama haunted his dreams every night, a stain on the honor of his military that he knew could never be washed away, an atrocity that he had done nothing to stop.

Still, regardless of his shifting feelings, his distrust of Creuset and his disgust over the new policy regarding Naturals, Yzak could not bring himself to simply abandon ZAFT. After all, the Earth Alliance had made it perfectly clear that their intention was to wipe out all Coordinators. He had joined ZAFT after the attack on Junius Seven, like so many other young men his age, to prevent that kind of atrocity from ever happening again, to defend his family, friends, and people. Even with his new doubts, that was still the reason he was fighting, and it was not something he could set aside lightly or sympathize those who had done that like Aisha, Waltfeld, and those that had joined them. They were traitors, and Yzak had been brought up to view treason as one of the ultimate offenses, regardless of the reasons for which it was committed.

"You know there's no going back from this, right?" said Yzak as he lashed out with his beam saber, only for his foe to deflect the attack with her beam claws, "Even… even if you're right, when this war is over you can never return to the PLANTs again!"

"Fool!" Aisha shot back as she fired her arrestor claws, forcing Yzak to pull up to avoid getting ensnared, "From the moment we began opposing Zala, we knew that there was no turning back. Don't insult our sacrifice by acting as though we've forgotten it!"

She pressed her assault on him with renewed ferocity, beam rifle blazing and violet claws ready to tear him apart. The guardian of the Eternal had Yzak on the defensive, and he was hard pressed to stay alive.

Things weren't going well for the ZAFT pilot, and he knew that the same could be said for the rest of his battle group. While Field Marshal Creuset may have succeeded in drawing the Freedom away from the engagement, the ZAFT forces had their work cut out for them in their fight against the Eternal and her escorts. The main force had taken significant losses since the battle had begun. Of the original four Nazca-class destroyers that had entered the debris field, two had been critically damaged and forced to pull back, while the Judgment had just destroyed a third with its deadly heavy plasma rifle. The Vesalius was still intact, but it wasn't in a position to help its comrades. Matters weren't much better for the original five frigates either. Two had suffered extremely heavy damage and were essentially out of the fight, while a third had been destroyed by the Judgment and the remaining two were sporting moderate damage as a result of fire from the Eternal or the three Wraiths. Their mobile suit teams had been decimated, with only a handful of individual units left on the field and no hint of squadron cohesion among them.

However, the ZAFT forces weren't done yet. On his sensors Yzak could see the four frigates and the destroyer from the rear guard Creuset had assembled making their way towards the fray. Three of them, the Patrol Fleet frigate Mata Hari and two of the regular fleet frigates, had already launched their mobile suits into the battle with the main task force, but the fourth frigate and the destroyer were late arrivals. Their mobile suit teams were still intact, and they were now flying in with the reinforcements. Unfortunately, they were only standard GINNs, and twelve of them at that; Yzak did not see how much of a difference they could make in this fight. The Mata Hari still had her three Mirage GINNs, but their physical rifles would be no good against Phase Shift Armor and the vessel's Captain appeared to be holding them back to defend his ship. In short, if ZAFT wanted to turn this fight around they would have to do it with their capital ships, but against nuclear powered mobile suits that had proven themselves capable of mauling such vessels Yzak knew their success was in doubt.

This whole battle's just one mess after another, he thought as he struck back at Aisha with his beam saber, only for her to block the blow with her beam claws, I know what our mission is, and there's still a chance we can accomplish it, but the price would be too high. We should retreat.

Unfortunately, the only person that could issue a withdrawal order for the ZAFT force was Field Marshal Creuset, and now he was out of contact inside the Mendel colony. Yzak did not know what his commanding officer was doing inside the ruined habitat, but whatever it was he did not feel it was worth continuing this battle and continuing to sacrifice the lives of good ZAFT soldiers.

Why are we really here?, he thought as he blocked beam fire on his shield, Our main goal is supposedly to destroy the Eternal, but if that were really the case then Creuset would be leading the attack on the ship. Instead he's run off and the flagship launched Flay towards the Alliance forces. None of this makes any sense! What's going on here?

….

"Where are you?" yelled Kira.

"Damn it, Kira," said La Flaga as he ran behind the young Coordinator, "don't give away our position. He could be around the next corner for all we know, just waiting to shoot us!"

The thought that this whole thing could just be a trap had occurred to Kira as he had chased the ZAFT pilot into Mendel, but the man's words had rattled the former student from Heliopolis. He had thrown caution to the wind, single-mindedly pursuing the enigmatic pilot into the colony, desperate to find out just what his foe knew about him. Kira knew that it was natural that people in ZAFT would know his name; after all, he had fought against Athrun while his childhood friend was still a member of that organization, and he would've been obligated to tell his superiors that he was fighting against someone from his past. However, the fact that he had been identified now as the pilot of the Freedom, and what his enemy had said regarding his past, had been enough to convince Kira that this man was worth following. Ever since that fateful day in Heliopolis, when he had first taken control of the Strike, when he had entered the war, he had been asking himself why his parents had made him a Coordinator. He hadn't been able to work up the nerve to ask them when he had the chance during the Archangel's two stops in Orb, hadn't even been able to face them. Now he had another chance to get some answers, and he wasn't about to let it go to waste.

It was that desperation for answers, for the reason of his birth and his abilities, that was propelling the boy to such recklessness and short-sightedness. When he had entered the main block of the colony, it had not taken him long to spot the enemy GuAIZ. It had touched down on the long-dead grass in front of what had appeared to be a large facility of some kind. The architecture was a mix of blocks and cylinders, and it had a very utilitarian feel to it. Kira had quickly proceeded to land his mobile suit not too far away from the GuAIZ, pausing only to make sure that his unit was locked down before racing into the doorway closest to the ZAFT machine. Had he been thinking clearly he would have at least disabled the GuAIZ to prevent the enemy pilot from taking off again, but his focus on finding his foe and getting some answers prevented him from even considering doing that.

Kira had his pistol drawn, but deep down the boy was unsettled at the thought of using it. He hadn't held a gun since Banadiya, and when Blue Cosmos had launched their attack at the outdoor restaurant he hadn't even been able to fire back in self-defense, instead throwing the gun at one of Waltfeld's attackers while Heero and the Desert Tiger did most of the shooting. Now here he was in unknown territory, chasing a dangerous enemy who he knew nothing about and seemed to know the layout of the place much better than he did, and if it came down to a shootout Kira was afraid how things might turn out. While the boy's enhanced abilities as a Coordinator meant that he was in theory an excellent shot with a pistol, his new desire to fight his foes without killing them clashed with the realities of gunfights. After all, while he could in theory aim for the arms or legs of a person and try to disable them much like he did enemy mobile suits, there was always the chance that he could hit an artery and cause whoever he hit to bleed out.

Of course, none of that would matter if his mysterious foe wound up killing him first.

He was about to charge around a corner when La Flaga grabbed him by the shoulder and stopped him. Kira was amazed that the former Alliance ace had managed to keep pace with him and actually close the gap, and that quickly turned to gratitude as a pair of gunshots rang out, followed by the sounds of the bullets ricocheting off the nearby wall.

"Told you," La Flaga gasped, letting go of Kira and catching his breath, "charge ahead blind and you're going to get killed. Let me take point."

"Why did you follow me in here?" Kira asked as La Flaga as the Hawk of Endymion sidled up along the wall, his sidearm at the ready.

"Because," La Flaga whispered back, "if you're chasing who I think you are, you're in way over your head."

Before Kira could ask what his friend meant, La Flaga aimed his gun around the corner and opened fire. Just as before, the boy heard the rounds hit something hard, but he didn't know for sure that La Flaga had missed until a voice came from that direction.

"Nice try," it said, the same voice that Kira had heard over the Freedom's radio, "was that you, La Flaga? I think you'd be more willing to shoot than the kid."

"Creuset!" yelled La Flaga, "What are you doing here?"

"Oh, wouldn't you like to know?" their foe replied, his voice dripping in mockery, "Come after me, if you dare!"

La Flaga grimaced, but he did not go around the corner right away. Deciding to take his cues from the more experienced soldier, Kira waited on him. As he did so he took the opportunity to actually look around the interior of the building. It had clearly seen better days, but despite its dilapidated state Kira could make out some basic features. The architecture was very plain, and the place had a very utilitarian feel to it. The walls were a faded grey and pockmarked with dents, scratches, and holes. There were no signs as to what sort of purpose the facility had served during its active days.

After a few seconds of silence Kira saw La Flaga once again peer cautiously around the corner. He then raised his left hand and motioned for Kira to follow him. The two of them proceeded down a long hallway, lit by dim emergency light panels along the side and ceiling. The corridor was lined with doors on either side, and Kira had no idea which one the man La Flaga had called Creuset had gone through.

"What is this place?" Kira whispered.

"I don't know," La Flaga replied, "but I've got a bad feeling about it. Call it a hunch, but I don't think Creuset chose it at random."

"You're quite right about that," came Creuset's voice from down the corridor. La Flaga shoved Kira to the side, and the two of them squeezed into one the doorways. However, no gunfire followed the voice.

"I'm so glad the two of you could make it," Creuset continued, "this has been a day long in the making, and it would just be tragic if the three of us could not be here together."

"What the hell are you talking about?" yelled La Flaga.

"Why don't you come and find out?" Creuset replied, "Just keep following the hallway. It's not too much further." There was laughter, and when Creuset spoke again his tone reeked of sarcasm. "Trust me, you're in for a treat."

"I'll just bet," La Flaga shot back, "You've got bullets with our names on them, Creuset?"

"Oh, hardly," said the strange man, "killing you at this point would be a waste. It would completely defeat the purpose of bringing you here. No, Mu La Flaga, Kira Yamato, I want you to understand the true madness behind this war. The sick ambitions, the monumental arrogance, the disgusting lengths to which man will go to elevate himself in this world."

As Kira and La Flaga continued down the hallway, they soon saw a door at the far end. It was slightly ajar, but not enough to offer a clear view as to what lay beyond it.

"Take a look at the legacy of Mendel's researchers and scientists," said Creuset, "Take a look at the results of human greed."

What the hell is he talking about?, thought Kira as the two of them approached the doorway.

When they came up to it, La Flaga pressed himself against the wall to the right of the door while Kira mirrored him on the left. The Hawk of Endymion peered inside, and Kira saw his eyes widen and his face pale.

"What the…" he said, his voice trailing off.

"La Flaga?" asked Kira, worried, "What's wrong?"

La Flaga grimaced. "This whole place for starters, kid. Check it out."

La Flaga pushed the door open and entered the room. Kira followed him in, and his jaw dropped as he saw what was inside.

"What the hell is this?" he cried out, completely aghast.

They were in a large room, and unlike the rest of the facility it was very well lit. The layout was simple, with a central walkway lined on both sides by metal rails running from the door to a T-shaped intersection. On the other side of the rails the walkway fell off into shallow pools of water. Coming up out of those pools were several rows of large cylinders, with at least a dozen cylinders per row. They were clear, full of a light blue-green liquid. Floating in that liquid…

… were human infants.

There was one per cylinder, each anchored to the base by an umbilical cord. Each appeared to be a very late human embryo, as one might appear in the final weeks leading up to birth. However, they weren't moving as one might expect them to. They were completely still, just floating in the liquid, and those whose eyes were open had an empty glaze to them. Their umbilical cords were shriveled up, only a fraction of the thickness that they should've been; whatever nutrient stores they had been drawing from had dried up long ago. They were all dead, for how long Kira couldn't say.

Holy shit, he thought as he took in the sickening sight, how many are there? All these cylinders… there must be almost fifty of them!

"I think you already know what this is, Kira Yamato," said Creuset, causing the boy and La Flaga to raise their guns and frantically look around the room.

"After all," he continued, laughing as he spoke, "this is where you were born!"

Kira's eyes widened even further at that announcement. "What are you talking about? I was-"

"Don't listen to him!" yelled La Flaga, "He's just messing with your head! Focus, Kira!"

"Messing with him?" Creuset's voice echoed through the room, "Come now, La Flaga, I'm not that cruel!"

"Looking around here, I'd say otherwise," La Flaga shot back, "This was your doing, wasn't it?"

"Don't lump me in with the selfish creatures that built this place," Creuset yelled back, "I'm not that arrogant, that greedy!"

"What does greed have to do with this?" yelled Kira.

"Everything, boy!" said Creuset, "And we're the fruit of it! The parents you know now are not your true mother and father! For that you should be grateful; I would imagine they're far better excuses for life than those that did bring you into this world!"

Kira could feel himself wavering, automatically lowering the gun he held. What this man was saying… it could not be possible.

"Kira!" said La Flaga, grabbing the young man by his shoulder and shaking him, "Block him out! Don't let him get in your head!"

"Come now, La Flaga," said Creuset, "you would prevent a child from learning who their real parents are? And you think I'm such a devious and cruel man… how amusing."

"Kira," the ZAFT pilot continued, "Your real parents are the people that built this facility."

Kira vehemently shook his head. "That's not true! You're lying!"

"Now why would I do that?" Creuset asked, his tone one of faux innocence, "Would I really put myself at such risk to bring you here just to fill your head with lies? What would be the point in that?"

As much as Kira hated to admit it, the man had a point. Unfortunately, that only meant that Creuset's words had that much more weight behind them.

"Your father," said Creuset, "was Professor Ulen Hibiki. He was a brilliant geneticist, perhaps the greatest mind that field of science has ever known. His wife was Via Hibiki. At the peak of the Professor's research, she was pregnant with twins."

The picture Cagalli had showed him after leaving Orb flashed through his mind. No way, he thought, a chill running down his spine, it can't be…

"The Professor's brilliance was matched only by his insatiable greed and ambition," Creuset continued, "He was obsessed with creating a 'perfect being', a creature that would be considered the apex of human potential… and make sure that his name would live forever. He experimented on countless embryos in his efforts, taken from women who had been paid to conceive for precisely this purpose. None of those efforts bore fruit, and resulted in the macabre display that surrounds you now."

La Flaga grimaced as he looked around the room, trying to find their foe. "Disgusting."

"On that we're in agreement, old friend," said Creuset, "but Hibiki was unconcerned with the casualties. To him they were merely sacrifices on the altar of science and his glory… and they provided him with useful data. Call it a murderous process of trial and error."

"Finally," Creuset continued, "when Hibiki was convinced that he had unlocked the key to creating his 'perfect being', he took one of the embryos carried by his wife and placed it in an artificial womb."

From what Creuset had told them thus far about the Professor, Kira doubted his wife had been given much of a choice in the matter.

"After all those that came before," said Creuset, "this embryo successfully developed into a baby, a healthy Coordinator… the Ultimate Coordinator. A flawless creation, surpassing all that had come before it."

"Kira Yamato," cried Creuset, his tone becoming harsh, almost accusatory, "you are Professor Hibiki and humanity's ideal creation! The Perfect Coordinator! The only one that was ever truly a complete success!"

"What…" said Kira, his face paling, sweat matting his brow, his eyes wider than they had ever been in his life. His heart was caught in his throat, and even breathing felt like a monumental challenge.

"But before the Professor could celebrate," said Creuset, "the Blue Cosmos caught wind of what he had done. For them, it was bad enough that the current crop of Coordinators had been brought into this world. To hear that a new breed of the creatures that they so despised had been brought into this world by the man who may as well be the Cosmic Era's very own Doctor Frankenstein… they could not abide by such a creation, nor allow those that had given it life to remain among the living. The Blue Cosmos went after the Hibikis and all associated with them. The family and the research staff were murdered in the ensuing purge. I was certain that all of them had died… especially you."

Kira couldn't focus. Creuset's words were the only thing in his head now, along with all of their implications. It was overwhelming the boy, and he barely noticed as La Flaga closed his eyes.

He then saw those eyes snap back open. Whirling around, the Hawk of Endymion aimed his gun at one of the doorways along the back wall. "Over there!" he yelled as he opened fire.

Following La Flaga's gaze and raising his gun, Kira caught a brief glimpse of a white uniform and long blond hair as Creuset ducked out of sight. La Flaga ran ahead to catch up.

"La Flaga, wait!" cried Kira.

"Wait out here, Kira!" yelled La Flaga, "You're not focused; he'll take you down easy!"

Another gunshot rang out, and Kira was shocked to see La Flaga drop his gun and clutch his right shoulder. "Mu!" he yelled.

Not waiting for a reply, Kira began firing wildly in the direction the shot had come from. At that moment he didn't care about whether or not he might kill his target; his mind was in such turmoil that he didn't know what to think.

Creuset returned fire, and La Flaga tackled Kira into a nearby doorway. The Hawk of Endymion quickly got up and moved to take cover behind a nearby couch. He had apparently recovered his gun just before he had tackled Kira, and it was now held in his left hand.

"Are you alright?" Kira asked as he got up.

"I'm fine, it's just a scratch," the blond pilot replied, "If you see Creuset, don't hesitate, just shoot!"

Kira nodded. "Ok!" However, he wasn't sure if he could follow through with it. His hands were shaking, and it was taking all his effort just to focus on his current surroundings. Also, despite La Flaga's reassurances, he was still concerned. The Hawk of Endymion had taken the shot in the right shoulder, and blood was seeping from the wound.

As he looked around, he saw that they were in a very large office. There was the couch La Flaga was taking cover behind, several chairs scattered around, along with a few tables, bookshelves, and a large desk. It was that last item that instantly grabbed Kira's attention… or rather, what was on it.

It was a photo of a brown haired woman lying in a hospital bed… holding two newborn babies.

The same photo Cagalli had shown him after they had left Orb.

What… what's that picture doing here?

Another gunshot rang out, and Kira's pistol was shot from his hand. The boy grabbed his hand by reflex, but thankfully it hadn't been hit. Before he could recover the gun though, another bullet struck the floor by his feet. Kira froze and turned toward the doorway, where the man he had caught a glimpse of before was standing.

"I won't kill you," he said, "at least, not until-"

He was forced to duck back behind the doorway as La Flaga fired off two shots with his pistol. His aim was unsteady though; he was not used to shooting with his left hand. The rounds hit the wall, but it was still enough to force Creuset to hide behind the doorway. Kira used the opportunity to grab his gun before diving behind the couch with La Flaga.

"Really, La Flaga?" said Creuset, "Interrupting me again? You are quite rude. No matter, I know you two can hear me just fine from there."

"Come out, Creuset!" yelled La Flaga, "This time I won't miss!"

"Perhaps," Creuset replied, "but I wonder… would you really be able to kill me if you knew the truth?"

"What are you talking about?" asked La Flaga.

"Who are you?" yelled Kira.

"You wouldn't know, boy," Creuset replied, "but you, La Flaga… I'm surprised you haven't figured it out already. All the times we've fought, all the times we've spoken in the midst of combat… not once did you make the connection. The battlefield was not the first place we've met; you've known me all your life!"

Before La Flaga or Kira could ask what the man was talking about, there was the sound of something being thrown through the air. For a moment Kira feared it was a grenade, but as it hit the ground behind the couch with a thud he saw that it was a photo album. Several pictures spilled out, and both Kira and La Flaga's eyes widened as they saw their contents.

"No way…" said La Flaga softly, "that's me… and my father!"

Indeed, Kira was easily able to spot a much younger Mu La Flaga, along with an older gentleman that bore a very distinct family resemblance.

La Flaga stood up and looked at the doorway, Kira following his lead. The Hawk of Endymion was not aiming his weapon towards his foe though. His eyes were wide in shock, as thrown into turmoil as Kira had been mere moments ago.

"Where did you get this?" he yelled.

Creuset stepped out from behind the doorway, apparently quite confident that neither Kira nor La Flaga was going to shoot him. His assumption was very much correct; neither of his foes was in any mental shape to attack him right now.

"It's quite simple," said the masked ZAFT soldier, his gun pointed at them, "I'm a failed clone created by Professor Hibiki… for your father, Al Da Flaga."

"A clone…" said Mu, his tone stunned, rocked to the core.

"I'm sure you recall," said Creuset, "how your father disinherited you from his vast fortune, La Flaga. Did he ever tell you why?"

Mu shook his head. "There was nothing. He never gave a reason, he just cut me off… and I never saw him again. It was just a little while after he left my mother."

"Yes," said Creuset, "Al Da Flaga's wealth was matched only by his ego, his monumental arrogance. He wanted a perfect son, a legacy that would bring glory to his name, and in his eyes that meant that the son had to be like him or better in every way that counted, right down to his DNA. So he contracted with Professor Hibiki, funding the Ultimate Coordinator Project in exchange for a direct, modified clone."

"Direct cloning…" said Kira softly, "but… that's illegal!"

"And you really think something as trivial as the law would stop a man as powerful, rich, and conceited as Al Da Flaga?" sneered Creuset, "After all you've seen of the true, disgusting nature of humanity in this war, Kira, you are still pathetically naïve. Even Mu La Flaga would tell you that his father would not be above pulling such a stunt."

Looking at his friend, he saw the former Alliance ace nod grimly. "Yeah… that sounds like something the old man would do."

Creuset nodded and smiled. "I'm pleased to see you're more realistic in your appraisal of others than the boy, Mu La Flaga, even when the person in question is someone as close as your father. Yes, Al Da Flaga commissioned Hibiki in a backroom deal for a clone; a Coordinator Clone, to be precise. After all, he did want his legacy to have every possible advantage, to be above all others. That arrogance was something he had in common with the Professor; perhaps its why they got along so well."

"However," Creuset continued, his tone becoming harsh, tinged with fury, "I was only meant to serve as the prototype, the template for which Al Da Flaga's true successor would be based off of. My telomeres were shortened, increasing the rate at which I aged! This was done so I could both surpass you and die off in time for my successor to take my place. Even without that deliberate alteration though, I was already doomed. The process that created me was highly experimental due to Al Da Flaga's specific standards and Hibiki's desire to use it as a means to test some of the procedures he would later use to create you, Kira Yamato! My cells and tissue are flawed, defective. They do not recover from stress and trauma as well as even a Natural's would, and the effect is cumulative. Over time they break down and fail regardless of the care I take. No matter what happened, I was doomed to be rejected! I was as expendable to Al Da Flag as you were, Mu! I was cast aside, just as you were!"

"This is bullshit!" yelled Kira, "Mu, you can't seriously believe this guy?"

"If you still have your doubts, my old friend," said Creuset, "then allow me to put them to rest."

Kira tensed as he saw the man reach up with his left hand and remove the mask from his face. When his face was revealed both Kira and La Flaga could not help but gasp at what they saw.

"Mu…" said Kira.

No… father…" said La Flaga, his voice barely more than a whisper, his face incredibly pale.

The man standing before them did indeed have a striking resemblance to the Hawk of Endymion. His light blue eyes, his brow, his facial structure… it was all nearly identical. However, what truly set them apart was the way their eyes looked. Kira had always seen a good-natured light in Mu's eyes, witty confidence combined with a relaxed and friendly demeanor. Creuset's, however, were glaring, piercing, and burning with menace… with malice…

…with hatred.

"I did not understand at first," said Creuset as he put his mask back on, his voice becoming a low and furious growl, "why I was abandoned. I was young and lost, suddenly adrift in the world. So I did some research. I learned about whom I was, and much more besides. I learned just how dark and twisted the ambitions of others can get… and I found out just how ugly human greed can be!"

"What are you talking about?" asked Kira.

"Don't play dumb, boy!" Creuset yelled at him, "No one can be blind to it! I've seen how humans desire to create the strongest, the best. That insatiable hunger for power, the desire to propel themselves above others, led them to the research that resulted in the birth of the Coordinators, not to mention the twisted experimentation that took place here, which brought you and me into this world, Kira Yamato!"

"Humans, Naturals and Coordinators alike," Creuset continued, clearly building up to something, "have created a world of jealousy and hatred. Even before the Coordinators were brought into the Earth Sphere it was like that, but now it is so much more blatant. The bloodbath that is human history has only turned to its latest chapter with this war; a conflict that few would openly admit is not about ideals, power, territory, and wealth as so many others have been, but about how the other side was born. Mankind has only grown more and more depraved and disgusting as they have advanced into outer space, and all out of the same revolting sense of greed and hubris! The depths to which they'll stoop to make themselves superior to others in this so called 'modern age' knows no bounds, and it was because of that that I was born and my future stolen from me from the moment I entered this world!"

Kira was completely blown away. He'd seen fury before, felt it before, but this was so much different. The sheer rage, malice, and vindictiveness with which Creuset spoke were absolutely chilling. The closest thing Kira could compare it to was his and Athrun's fateful duel in the Marshal Islands after each had lost a friend, but even that fearsome fight and the burning rage that had driven it seemed like little more than a temper tantrum compared to the pure hatred displayed by Creuset.

"My birth, my abandonment, my failing body," snarled Creuset, "they may have been brought upon by Hibiki and Al Da Flaga, but I know that they are just expressions of the ugly heart of humanity, the limitless ambition and greed. I am full of hatred, every fiber of my being devoted to it! But the hate that fills me is not just for Hibiki and Al Da Flaga!"

"I HATE THE ENTIRE HUMAN RACE!"

….

Mu La Flaga stared in astonishment as Creuset went on his tirade. Here he had followed Kira and his rival into the Mendel colony fearing that the boy from Heliopolis was getting in over his head… but now the Hawk of Endymion knew that he had been as unprepared as his friend for what they would find in the ruined habitat.

Looking at his masked foe, images of what he had seen just moments ago kept flashing through his mind. The face of his father, a man whom Mu had thought he'd left behind in his past as he'd gone forward with his life, now would not leave him alone. To know that throughout the course of his encounters with Creuset that he'd actually been fighting a clone of his father, someone created by that man's arrogance and greed… it seemed like the cruelest sort of joke. He still retained enough presence of mind to note that what Creuset had said at least partially explained the strange sensation he got whenever he was close by. The two of them were connected, though Mu did not understand how he would have a semi-telepathic ability to sense the clone's presence, especially when they were in separate vehicles engaged in active combat.

The shock of it all was almost enough to distract him from their very dangerous situation. He could've smacked himself as he realized that he had abandoned perfectly good cover; standing up as he was now, he was an easy target for Creuset. Matters weren't helped by his wounded right shoulder. While the injury was not serious right now, if left unattended for too long there was the very real chance that Mu would bleed out. To cap things off, his gun was held in his hand and angled down at the floor rather than at his foe, and Mu mentally berated himself for not keeping it up and on Creuset. He wasn't right handed; bringing it up with the left hand would be slower, and there was no way his rival would not shoot him before then.

His only hope for a quick draw was Kira, but the boy was still badly shaken. Mu did not know if Kira could muster the focus to shoot Creuset before the ZAFT soldier decided to take them out. With the recent revelation regarding both Kira and Creuset's origins, Mu was reasonably certain that Kira was faster than Creuset, but without concentration and the will to kill behind his actions the boy could very well be doomed.

Damn, he thought, we're in a real mess now…

"Mankind," said Creuset, "has written its entire history in blood. Humans have advanced to where they are today only by climbing atop a mountain of their dead! They lie, scheme, and betray each other at every opportunity to get ahead in this world, putting themselves above all others. It's a foolish and sickening pattern; one that they cannot see is leading them to their own destruction. Humanity is guaranteed to wipe itself out; indeed, the process has been playing out at an accelerated pace since the advent of Coordinators. However, it's not progressing fast enough…which is why I have decided to help it along."

"You can't be serious…" Kira whispered.

Mu's eyes widened as his mind flashed back to his last encounter with Creuset. "Alaska…" he said softly, pieces of the puzzle falling into place, "High Command abandoning the base, setting up the Eurasians and the Archangel… you leaked the true target of Operation Spitbreak to them! You knew they'd use a Cyclops bomb, just like they did at the Endymion Crater!"

A cruel smile appeared on Creuset's face. "Yes, though I'll admit I was not completely sure that they would use a Cyclops system for their trap. That was why I had to enter the base to double check. If I hadn't run into you, Mu, I imagine the bomb would've detonated and destroyed not only the surviving Eurasian forces, but that pesky legged ship and Wing Zero as well."

"Too bad for you I was there," said Mu, smirking, "and Heero managed to put the kibosh on your plan."

"To an extent," Creuset replied, "I did underestimate the firepower of Wing Zero, but I was still able to turn events to my favor. It was I that convinced Zala to divert some of our surviving forces from Operation Spitbreak to attack Panama… leaving those that remained behind at Alaska vulnerable to the Alliance's counterattack."

"The Second Battle of Alaska," said Kira, "that slaughter… you set that up!"

Creuset chuckled. "While I had no part to play in the Alliance's actions during that battle, their conduct was what I expected of them. Their High Command and top levels of government are firmly in the hands of Blue Cosmos, staffed either by sympathizers, actual members, or people that have been paid off by them. Their near-complete destruction of the Spitbreak survivors served as wonderful fuel for the vengeance delivered upon the Alliance forces at Panama, and has done a superb job of escalating the hatred and fanaticism embraced by both sides in this war. Their rage has further fed the vicious cycle of attack and revenge, accelerating mankind's downward spiral. This war will be humanity's last! Naturals and Coordinators alike are caught in a vortex of their own making, a symphony of hatred and madness that is building to its grand crescendo, the destruction of the entire human race!"

The masked soldier grinned as he laughed. "The two superpowers have danced this whole war to the tune that I've called, and will continue to do so until they've wiped each other out, and the rest of humanity along with them! My judgment will soon fall upon all of mankind, and none can escape it!"

Mu felt his blood chill as Creuset spoke. It was sheer insanity, what the man was saying, but it was madness with a plan, one that had thus far been brilliantly executed. It was twisted and reviled on so many levels, a sick fantasy that by rights belonged in the head of an inmate confined to an asylum or prison, but in the capable hands of Creuset it was fast becoming reality. The Alliance and ZAFT had both committed atrocities over the course of this war, and those acts of brutality and wanton murder had only escalated since the First Battle of Alaska. With the pace at which they were building and the new weapons that both sides were bringing to the playing field, Mu realized that if he, his friends, and their allies could not find a way to stop it soon, Creuset would indeed have his 'revenge'… and all of humanity would pay the price.

"You're nuts!" said Mu, "What makes you think you can judge mankind and then pass a death sentence on them?"

"Because I am the product of their ambition and greed!" Creuset shot back, "I may have been created as a modified Coordinator clone, but I am truly neither Coordinator nor Natural. I belong to neither race, my very existence due to the insatiable desire of human beings to get ahead in this world, to be better than others. I may be a member of ZAFT, but they are only a tool; the flag of the Coordinators has no meaning for me, just as that of the Naturals! I am outside of both groups, and unlike the rest of them my fate was decided before I was born thanks to the experiments of Hibiki and selfish desires of Al Da Flaga! I am the only one fit to pass judgment upon mankind!"

"We won't let you!" cried Kira, "We'll stop you!"

"You're already too late, boy," Creuset sneered, "Both sides are already rushing full speed down the path to annihilation. Armageddon is inevitable. Before the year is out, mankind will burn in the fires of their own hatred. I have already won; all that remains is to wait until the grand finale."

The masked man looked between Kira and Mu. "I had considered letting the two of you live, at least long enough to watch the final inferno consume the human race. However, you've both caused me no small amount of trouble in the past few months. I suppose it was enough to bring the two of you here, to where it all began for the three of us. Yes, I can be satisfied with that…"

Shit, thought Mu, we're out of time.

He knew he couldn't bring his gun up fast enough to kill Creuset before he took the first shot… and looking at Kira, he knew the same went for the boy.

This was where they would die.

"Well," said Creuset, "it's been fun, especially in your case Mu, but all good things must come to an end. Give your father my regards when you meet him in Hell!"

He turned the gun on Mu… but before he could steady his aim, his arm began to tremble. A gunshot rang out, and Mu could practically feel the wind from the bullet as it flew past his right cheek… but he was still alive.

"Damn it!" growled Creuset, clutching his right arm with his left, "Now? FUCK!"

Mu didn't know what was going on, but he wasn't about to let this opportunity go to waste. He raised his gun and fired, but by the time he did Creuset had already ducked out of the room, and the bullet only took off a few strands of hair.

"Get back here!" Mu yelled, charging after him, "Come on, Kira!"

The boy nodded, snapping out of his funk and rushing to follow the Hawk of Endymion. "Where's he going?" he asked.

"If I had to guess," said Mu, the wound in his right shoulder aching as he ran, "I'd say back to his mobile suit. I don't know what just happened, but he's vulnerable now; we have to take him out!"

"Hold on!" said Kira, "You need to get that wound treated!"

"No time!" he shot back, nevertheless wincing as he spoke, "Taking down Creuset's our top priority! There's too much at stake!"

I don't care what his damage is, what happened to him, thought Mu as he ran, he's got no right to take it out on the human race! We have to stop him!

….

Shit, thought Creuset as he slipped the bottle of pills back into their pouch on his belt, that was too close. Bad enough that I couldn't kill them, but they almost got a chance to take me out! I can't die yet… not before the firestorm reaches its peak.

As soon as he'd gotten out of the room he'd grabbed the pills he'd taken along with him for just such an occasion, fumbling with his left hand before he managed to force a few down his throat. It had been made even harder as he was doing it on the run, but now his body was stabilizing again and he was making haste for his GuAIZ.

Did I spend too much time back there?, he thought as he exited the building, I took the medication before we entered the debris field, it shouldn't have happened that quickly.

Rushing up to his mobile suit and grabbing the retractable cable, riding it up to the cockpit, he came to the grim realization that his body was now deteriorating faster than he had originally anticipated. The shortened telomeres responsible for his accelerated aging combined with his cellular and tissue defects from the cloning process were ramping up their assault on his body, and he would have to take larger doses of his medication to compensate, and at more frequent intervals.

"I have to hold on," he said as he entered and sealed the cockpit, "Surely I can last long enough to get to the endgame…"

He fired up the thrusters the instant they were online and made for the main docking bay that he had used to get into the colony. While it would've been prudent to destroy the Freedom and La Flaga's machine while they were still on the ground, Creuset did not have time for it; he had to make sure the rest of his plan was still on track.

He punched up the radio, but he could not establish a clear connection with the Vesalius. Creuset guessed that he would have to leave the colony before he could make contact with Captain Ades… if the man was still alive.

So long as that girl is on her way to Azrael, he thought, nothing else matters.

His sensors began beeping as he flew towards the exit, and it only took a glance to confirm that La Flaga and Kira had reached their machines and were taking off. Under other circumstances Creuset might have been concerned; fighting both the Freedom and the Hawk of Endymion's new mobile suit was hardly a winning proposition when he only had a GuAIZ at his disposal. However, with the former distracted by the revelations regarding his past and the latter wounded, their fighting capabilities were substantially diminished. Creuset wasn't sure if it was a stretch to call the playing field even between the three of them at this moment, but he was also confident that their advantage was not overwhelming under the circumstances.

He smirked as he went through the first portal to the main docking bay. "You two think you have what it takes to stop me? Come on, then; let's have at it!"

As long as you're focused on me, he thought, you'll be blind to the real prize…

… Flay Allster.

….

"Oh, no!" Murrue heard Miriallia cry, "Dearka!"

"Calm down!" said Lieutenant Tsukino, "What's happened?"

"He's been hit!" she said, fear clear in her voice, "The Buster's badly damaged, and it's almost out of power!"

"Get me a visual!" ordered Murrue.

The main monitor shifted, revealing the green and tan machine. Murrue grimaced as she saw that it had indeed taken some bad hits. The left leg was gone, as was the right arm and the Gun Launcher with it. Dearka's mobile suit was still moving, but in its current state there was no way he could continue his clash with the Alliance's newer heavy artillery unit.

"Tell him to get out of there!" she yelled, "Fire Corintoss missiles at the blue unit; give Dearka some cover!"

Thanks to Heero's efforts, the Archangel no longer had to contend with the Dominion. The black warship had been mauled by Wing Zero. Its Lohengrin, Gottfried, and Valiant cannons were completely destroyed, as were both sets of heavy missile launchers. In addition to the Alliance vessel's artillery, Heero had also taken a low-power shot at the Dominion's engines, and the ship was now limping away from the field; Natarle was out of the fight. Murrue had wasted no time in moving the Archangel in to provide support for the main engagement, and her ship was in a fairly good position to give Dearka some cover fire as he pulled out.

"Missiles away!" yelled the gunnery officer.

Four Corintoss heavy anti-air missiles flew forth from the rear launchers. Arcing over the ship, the warheads sped towards their target. The blue mobile suit turned on the incoming missiles and opened fire with its shoulder-mounted beam cannons and the bazooka in its right hand. Three of the warheads were destroyed, and the machine took the fourth on the Composite shield mounted on its left arm. The shield withstood the impact and the enemy was completely unscathed, but the attack had the desired effect; the Buster had been able to pull away and was now limping towards the Archangel.

"Follow up with Wombats!" Murrue ordered, "If they pursue, open up with the guns!"

"Wombats are away!" said Lieutenant Tsukino, "Getting targeting solutions for Gottfrieds and Valiants!"

Like the Corintoss missiles that had come before, the Wombats followed the same trajectory to the Alliance prototype. The four projectiles burst before the enemy could shoot them down, showering their target with anti-air buckshot. However, as with the previous attack the barrage had no effect due to the target's shield and Phase Shift Armor, though the impacts would be a drain on its power supply.

"Target's breaking off!" said the sensor officer, "No, wait… it's heading for the ZAFT pod!"

For Flay, Murrue thought, damn it…

The girl's open air transmission had caught Murrue and her crew completely by surprise. Her words regarding the 'key to ending the war' had thrown the Captain for a loop, but that was a secondary shock compared to the fact that she was out here at all. Murrue's first instinct had been to order the retrieval of the pod, but a quick assessment of the overall situation had made her realize that she did not have the resources to do that.

The Alliance forces may have taken heavy losses since the battle had begun, but they were not out yet. After his attacks against the Dominion, Heero had gone back to strike the enemy force along with the Kusanagi, and together the Orb warship and the Gundam had destroyed two of the remaining Drake-class escort ships, leaving just one of those craft and a single Nelson-class battleship left from the original enemy force. Unfortunately, reinforcements had now entered the fray in the form of two more escort ships, two more battleships, and an Agamemnon-class carrier.

That last one had caught Murrue off-guard; carriers rarely entered direct combat as they were only armed with two beam turrets and several CIWS. It was standard Alliance protocol to keep such ships away from heavy combat, though circumstances could conspire to force them into the fray as they had done so with the orbital battle and the fall of the 8th Fleet. Murrue knew that the enemy's situation was quite desperate, but she was sure that Natarle would've ordered a withdrawal rather than commit more ships to what had clearly become a losing battle for her side. Murrue suspected that it had not been Natarle's call to make; someone else in the battle group had authority over her and had brought them in. She noted that no additional mobile suits or armors accompanied the vessels, and she guessed that they had already launched their craft prior to the start of the battle and that they had joined the main body of the Alliance force… meaning that they were now all but wiped out.

As soon as the reinforcements had come into range they had angled towards the ZAFT pod, but as Wing Zero, the Kusanagi, and now the Archangel were along the most direct path to Flay the Alliance was forced to engage Murrue and the others. With the Buster now out of the fight, Bristow and his last remaining teammate acting as support for the Archangel, La Flaga still inside the colony, and Heero directly engaged with the enemy reinforcements, Murrue did not have anyone to spare for retrieving Flay. The situation was the same for the Orb forces. Their warship and surviving mobile suits were fighting alongside Heero, and Murrue was loath to change that. While it was true that she could've dispatched Cagalli and her wingman to retrieve the pod, if the Alliance prototype was making for it as well then they would be outmatched. Murrue knew that the machine in question had been able to give Kira a rough time of it during the invasion of Orb, and though that was with the cooperation of the other two prototypes she still considered that a testament both to the mobile suit's power and the abilities of its pilot. Sending Cagalli after it would be a suicide run for the girl, and Murrue would not give a pilot an assignment that she was certain would result in their deaths. She was not her former superiors; she did not throw lives away casually, and she certainly would not send soldiers into fights she knew they could not win.

The only mobile suit from the Kusanagi that stood a chance against the Alliance machine was the Justice, but as she checked her tactical display she saw that Athrun Zala was still engaged with the black and red mobile suit. The former ZAFT pilot had inflicted damage upon in his foe, removing the Alliance unit's right arm and the dual hyper velocity shield cannon mounted on it with a well-thrown beam boomerang, but that still left the mobile suit's head-mounted beam cannon and the sphere-breaker to contend with. Even in its damaged state the massive weapon was still a force to be reckoned with, and it would only take one solid impact to the cockpit area for Athrun to be in trouble.

Murrue wanted to call upon Waltfeld and ask if he could send someone to retrieve the pod, but the Eternal and her mobile suits had their own enemies to contend with. Just as the Alliance had brought in backup, ZAFT had gotten reinforcements of their own in the form of four frigates, a destroyer, and a handful of GINNs. From the enemy's perspective, their arrival had been timely; only one battle worthy frigate from the original task force had been left on the field, and it had been destroyed by the Judgment's fearsome Tartarus rifle soon after the reinforcements had come into the fray.

There was still one destroyer from the original group that was undamaged. It was the vessel that had launched Flay's pod. Murrue saw it on the tactical display standing off from the engagement with the Alliance, its bow still oriented in the direction it had launched Flay. She did not know what to make of this behavior; she would've expected the ship to return to help its comrades in their fight against the Eternal or to attack the Archangel and the Kusanagi. Something was not right, and Murrue was not comfortable just leaving the ship be when it could potentially strike her and her allies at any moment.

She saw the Kusanagi destroy the last of the original Drake-class ships with her beam cannons and missiles on the tactical display. Checking her personal monitor, Murrue also witnessed Heero taking down the last Nelson-class battleship of the original Alliance task force with its powerful rifle. That just left the five ships from the Alliance reinforcements to go, and Murrue decided that now was the time to shift some of her resources.

"Get me the Kusanagi and Wing Zero," she ordered, "Lieutenant Tsukino, acquire targeting solutions on the Alliance reinforcements."

The main monitor split into two, with Heero appearing on the left side of the screen and Colonel Kisaka on the right. "Colonel," said Murrue, "I want the Kusanagi to engage the destroyer that launched the pod. After that's done, move on to reinforce the Eternal. Heero, we'll back you up while you engage the Alliance reinforcements."

The Gundam pilot nodded. "Roger that."

"Captain Ramius," said Kisaka, "should we try to recover the pod?"

Murrue grimly shook her head. "Negative, Colonel. The Alliance unit that was engaging the Buster is already heading over there. It has too much of a lead. Any recovery effort on our part would involve engagement, and there's too much of a chance for the pod to be destroyed in that event." She sighed. "We have to let it go."

I'm sorry, Flay, she thought, forgive me… stay safe.

Kisaka nodded. "Understood, Captain. Kusanagi out."

Both the Colonel and Heero disappeared from the screen, their faces replaced by the main tactical display. The Orb warship immediately began to come about while Heero moved between the vessel and the incoming Alliance forces.

"Captain," said Lieutenant Tsukino, "we're getting targeting data from Wing Zero; Heero's aiming for the Drake-class ship on the right."

Murrue nodded. "Then we'll hit the one on the left. Acquire target and fire at will, Lieutenant."

"Aye, Captain!" said the Orb officer, "Gottfrieds, open fire!"

The ship's two large and powerful beam turrets cut loose, spitting emerald death at the enemy. Their large beams slammed into the center of the escort ship, ripping the vessel apart. At the same time Murrue saw Wing Zero open fire with its Twin Buster Rifle, taking down the second Drake-class vessel. It was an impressive display of synchronized shooting, but Murrue was not about to declare victory yet. Despite their catastrophic losses the enemy was still on the field; the fight wasn't over yet.

Still, Murrue could feel the tide of battle now firmly behind her side. They just had to survive a little while longer; she was sure the enemy was fast losing taste for battle.

We're almost through this, she thought, we just need to hang in there a little more. Come on, Heero; come back to me alive!

….

Damn it, thought Waltfeld as the ship shuddered from an impact, how many ships did ZAFT bring to this party?

"How bad?" he asked, turning to DaCosta.

"Portside missile launchers One through Six are out of action!" his second in command replied.

"METEORS and main turret firing!" yelled the gunnery officer.

Waltfeld watched as the Eternal opened up on its attacker, a Laurasia-class frigate. Its emerald beams slammed into the upper superstructure of the ZAFT warship, knocking out the starboard heavy beam turret and some of the nearby secondary weapons. The Eternal's attack was followed up as a rain of twenty-four micro missiles slammed into the frigate from above, along with four emerald beams. The impacts ravaged the vessel, obliterating the rest of its heavy weapons and ripping gashes in the ship's armor. Glancing at his personal display, Waltfeld saw the source of the barrage coming in from on high; the Judgment.

The Valkyrie's face appeared on the small screen. "Sorry I didn't hit that thing earlier; I was dodging fire from one of the other frigates. You guys ok?"

Waltfeld nodded. "We're holding." He glanced out the main viewport before turning back to her. "Looks like your target is pulling away; they're out this round."

"Good," replied Shemei, "nice to see they're not fanatics."

"Maybe," said Waltfeld, "but the enemy as a whole hasn't thrown in the towel yet either. Given the losses they've taken, they really ought to at least begin withdrawing by now."

"You're right," said Shemei, and Waltfeld saw her glance to the side for a second, "damn it, where the hell is Kira? We could use a little more firepower to chase these guys away."

No argument there, he thought.

There had been no word from Kira since he had chased a GuAIZ into the Mendel colony several minutes ago. Waltfeld was aware that Mu La Flaga had followed him in as well, which to him only further compounded the situation; the Three Ships Alliance was now missing two highly skilled pilots and their advanced mobile suits at a time when it could ill afford to.

The Desert Tiger's clash with the ZAFT forces was still in full swing, and though the enemy mobile suit forces had been decimated they still had several capital ships left on the field. The frigate that had been struck by the Eternal and Shemei may have been forced to retreat now, but that still left three more ships of its class and a destroyer in the fight. Adaline and Lan were double-teaming one of the Laurasia-class frigates at that moment, strafing it with beam and railgun fire. Priscilla was engaging some of the surviving GINNs, downing them one at a time with precise shots from her guns. Aisha was still fighting the Duel one-on-one, but Waltfeld was sure their clash would not last much longer; since the GuAIZ did not have Phase Shift Armor it did not consume energy as quickly as the stolen Alliance prototype, and after how much time had gone by since the start of the battle Yzak's energy reserves had to be dwindling. The boy would have to withdraw soon if Aisha did not kill him; either outcome suited Waltfeld just fine. The balance of the battle was slowly moving into Waltfeld's favor, but he would prefer to wrap things up quickly, and having the Freedom in the mix would've gone a long way towards accomplishing that.

Kira's absence from the field was not just being felt from a tactical or strategic standpoint. Waltfeld knew that his lack of communication since entering the abandoned colony was stressing out Lacus to no end. Outwardly the songstress had kept most of her composure, but even at a glance the Desert Tiger could see signs of the concern she was trying to mask from the others. She was gripping the arms of her chair tightly, her eyes darting to her personal display every few seconds, her jaw was tense, and a bead of sweat was working its way down the left side of her face. Her private monitor was keyed to whatever camera at that moment had a visual on the Mendel colony, and her radio was tuned to the Freedom's frequency.

Waltfeld could sympathize with the girl. To have the person you loved be out of contact in the middle of a battle was not a pleasant experience by any means, nor was having them flying in combat while you were on the bridge of a warship. The Desert Tiger's training and experience gave him a better handle on those emotions than a civilian like Lacus, but it still hurt to know that he could only support Aisha from the Eternal rather than fly with her in a mobile suit. For a girl like Lacus, an exceptionally bright young lady who nevertheless did not have an ounce of military training or experience in her body, Waltfeld could only imagine the fear that gripped her heart at the moment. He hated seeing her like this, especially after he had sworn to her father that he would look after her.

Kira, Waltfeld thought, you're a good kid, one that I don't want to get mad at, but you've got some explaining to do when this fight's over. Bad enough you're off the field right now, but what you're doing to Lacus…

"Contacts coming out of the colony!" cried the sensor officer, "One, two... three units! IFFs confirm one GuAIZ, Freedom, and Tallgeese Kai!"

"About damn time," said Waltfeld.

"Kira…" said Lacus, sighing in relief.

"Good to have them back," said Shemei, "now we can wrap this up. I'm out of missiles, but I've still got my guns. Let's do this!"

Waltfeld nodded. "Agreed. Eternal out."

Turning to his personal monitor, the Desert Tiger zoomed in on the three mobile suits as they left the colony. The GuAIZ was heading towards the ZAFT forces, with Kira and La Flaga in hot pursuit.

The two of them couldn't take out one GuAIZ?, he thought, That pilot must be good. What happened in that colony?

He shoved the matter aside for the moment; he could figure things out later when he debriefed Kira.

In the meantime, he had a battle to win.

….

Grimacing as he pushed the Tallgeese Kai's engines, the punishing acceleration not doing any favors for his shoulder wound, Mu homed in on the gray and white GuAIZ with single-minded determination.

"Creuset!" he yelled over the radio as opened fire with his beam rifle, "You're going down!"

He heard a chuckling in response as the GuAIZ side slipped the shot. "Fool. The child cannot hope to defeat the father, or even the father's phantom for that matter."

"Shut up!" he snarled as he rushed at the machine, beam saber drawn, "You die here!"

Despite the Tallgeese Kai being by far the faster unit, Creuset was still able to block Mu's overhand strike, and he did it with apparent ease. "Hardly," the masked pilot replied, "and certainly not by your hand."

Mu had no time to reply. He immediately dived as the GuAIZ opened up with its CIWS and launched its arrestor cables, barely able to evade the attacks.

"You're machine's better than mine, old friend," said Creuset as he fired with his beam rifle, forcing Mu to block the beams on his Planet Defensors, "I've no trouble admitting that. However, your condition is in doubt? How's the shoulder, Mu? I imagine it hurts like hell right about now, eh?"

Mu grimaced, unwilling to admit what he knew was the truth. The pain was excruciating, and it was slowing him down. Worse, the blood loss was starting to get to him. He was beginning to feel lightheaded, and his situation would only keep deteriorating if he kept this up.

He couldn't win this fight.

It was foolish to continue the engagement in the shape he was in, but Mu could not bring himself to pull back. After what he had learned inside the colony, he knew that there was far more at stake than just his own life in this fight. He couldn't allow Creuset to take all of mankind down with him in his suicidal temper tantrum; he had to stop him here and now.

The Hawk of Endymion charged right back at his foe, swooping in with his beam saber and lashing out in a horizontal slash. As he was making the attack though he felt a rush of dizziness to his head, and his strike was executed sloppily as a result. Creuset easily deflected the blow with his beam claws and immediately struck back. Mu was barely able to block the counterattack on the Tallgeese Kai's shoulder shield, and he could feel his concentration slipping as blood continued to run down his right arm.

"Pathetic, Mu," Creuset sneered as the former Alliance ace pulled back, "is this really all you have?"

"Damn it…" growled Mu as he brought his shield-drones up to block fire from Creuset's beam rifle, "son of a bitch…"

The energy barrier took the shots, but the impacts were swiftly followed by a shrill alarm going off. Glancing at his display, Mu saw that his mobile suit had gone into emergency power. He'd used up too much energy fighting the Alliance prototype earlier and he was paying for it now.

He took down the barrier and frantically weaved through the debris to avoid his foe's shots, but the maneuvers were rough, and he found himself scraping against bits of metal that he would normally have avoided. His ability to keep flying was falling by the second; he would not last much longer.

Creuset took another shot with his beam rifle, and Mu was forced to once again use the Planet-Defensors to block the shot. As he did so he saw the unit's energy meter dip even further into the red. The shield-drones returned to their sockets and Mu took the next shot in his mobile suit's right leg, blowing it off at the knee. He tried to return fire with his beam rifle, but he lacked the power to take the shot. At the same time his beam saber extinguished on its own. All he had left in his arsenal were the head-mounted Vulcan cannons and the Armor Schneider knives stored at the hips. Against the GuAIZ's beam rifle and claws, those might as well have been rocks.

Putting the beam rifle and saber away, Mu drew the pair of knives and prepared to charge his foe. He knew it was a gesture in futility, but he was determined to take down Creuset even if that meant a mutual kill.

Before he could attack though a familiar barrage of crimson plasma, emerald beams, and yellow railgun rounds tore through space. Creuset was able to block or dodge most of the shots, but one of the plasma beams destroyed the GuAIZ's rifle.

"La Flaga!" cried Kira as the Freedom rushed in, "Get out of here, I got this guy!"

Mu sighed, reluctantly acknowledging the boy's words. "Fine… watch yourself, kid."

He pulled away as the Freedom engaged the GuAIZ with its beam saber and headed for home. "Archangel," he said, "this is Tallgeese. I'm damaged and on emergency power; I'm out of the game."

Miriallia's face appeared on the screen. "Understood, La Flaga… oh my god!"

The girl's eyes widened in shock, and Mu knew she had seen the blood running down from his shoulder wound. "Calm down, little lady," he said, forcing a smile, "It's not that bad."

"The hell it's not!" she replied, "We'll have a medical team in the hangar when you arrive!"

He nodded. "Thanks, kid. Tallgeese out."

Mu took one last glance at the fight between the Freedom and the GuAIZ as he headed for the Archangel. Though Creuset may have lost his beam rifle he wasn't beaten yet, and was keeping the battle a close-quarters one, lashing out at the Freedom with his beam claws and arrestor cables.

Good luck, kid, he thought, you're gonna need it.

….

Kira pressed his assault, striking out with his beam saber the instant after blocking a strike from Creuset on his shield. However, the boy wasn't entirely focused, and the masked pilot was able to block his attack on his Composite Shield.

Damn it, he thought as Creuset struck back, firing his arrestor cables, why can't I take him out?

Kira wasn't sure if he was trying to disable and capture Creuset or attempting to kill him. His mind was in such a jumble, the ZAFT pilot's revelations regarding the boy's history and his mad plan whirling through his head like a cyclone. The clear threat Creuset posed to both Kira's friends and the Earth Sphere as a whole clashed with his resolve to avoid killing his opponents, and the confusion was only made worse by the fact that the young man was now filled with doubts and questions regarding his very existence. To suddenly find out that he was the product of experimentation by a man obsessed with creating a 'perfect being', that dozens or even more lives had been lost before they were even born in the effort to make him, that everything he had ever known about himself had been a lie… Kira couldn't handle it.

I don't understand, he thought even as he continued his clash, why wasn't I ever told? What… what was it all for? What was I supposed to do, to be? Was I really made just to satisfy that doctor's greed? Am I just a product of ambition?

He heard a cruel cackling over the radio as Creuset moved to impale Kira on his beam claws. "What's the matter, boy?" he said as Kira barely managed to dodge to the right, "Is it too much, knowing just what you really are?"

"Sh-shut up!" Kira yelled as he struck back with his plasma cannons and railguns.

The barrage was sloppy, and Creuset easily evaded the shots before diving back in for an attack of his own. "Come now," said the ZAFT pilot as he unleashed his arrestor cables, "you can be honest with me, Kira Yamato. After all, you and I are both products of Hibiki's research. We're practically brothers!" His voice dripped with mock sincerity as Kira pulled back to avoid getting entangled. "It must be such a heavy burden, knowing how sick and degenerate your father was, how you were born just to prove a point. Why don't you let me take it off your shoulders… along with your head!"

"Shut up!" cried Kira as he fired with his beam rifle, only for Creuset to dive and avoid the shots before rushing in to strike with his beam claws.

His foe laughed as their clash continued. "You were supposed to be the embodiment of perfection, the pinnacle of human evolution, the Ultimate Coordinator, Hibiki's magnum opus! You have every advantage a human could possibly want, and yet you cannot defeat a flawed clone such as me! Oh, how the good doctor must be rolling in his grave right now!"

Kira brought up his shield as the GuAIZ opened fire with its CIWS. While the bullets possessed no direct threat to the Freedom, the shots had been aimed at the mobile suit's head and were more than capable of taking out the primary cameras mounted there.

"Killing you will be my greatest revenge against Hibiki!" snarled Creuset as he pressed his assault, once again striking with his beam claws and keeping Kira on the defensive, "He wouldn't give a shit about the rest of humanity following you to the grave; just the knowledge that his prized creation was beaten by a dying man would be enough to kill him were he not dead already!"

Kira could not spare his foe a reply; he was too wrapped up in defending himself. It was all the boy could do to keep himself alive; he was in no shape to fight right now with his current mental state. Against a foe driven by such a singular, overwhelming hatred, a fury that had been refined and focused to a razor's edge and was now concentrated solely on him, Kira could not effectively fight back. Without a similar concentration, a concrete motive that would let him break through his inner turmoil and drive him to end this battle, Kira could not win. Mobile suit specifications or biological ability did not matter in this clash; it all came down strength of will, and Kira's was sorely lacking.

Suddenly another voice came over the radio… one that Kira had not heard in months.

"Archangel! Please, help me!"

His eyes widened in shock as he blocked Creuset's latest strike on his shield. "Flay!" he said, stunned by the realization. What was she doing here? According to Captain Ramius, Flay had been transferred back to the Atlantic Federation once the Archangel had arrived at Alaska. There was no way that she could be here.

But there was no mistaking that voice. Kira had heard it too often in the past… and in the most intimate way imaginable. It was Flay, she was here… and she needed help.

Glancing at his sensors, Kira quickly traced the origin of Flay's transmission. It was coming from an escape pod, and he was shocked to realize it was the exact same kind that he had recovered Lacus from so many months ago during the Archangel's trip through the Debris Belt.

That's a ZAFT pod, he thought, how'd she wind up with them?

His question would have to wait. Not only did he still have Creuset to contend with, but much to his horror he saw that the pod was in a precarious situation. One of the Alliance prototypes that he had fought during the invasion of Orb was heading for it, and at this distance Kira did not know if he could make it in time to save her. There was also the fact that the pod was not too far away from a raging firefight between a Nazca-class destroyer and the Kusanagi. The Orb warship appeared to have the upper hand and was pounding the ZAFT vessel with beams and missiles, but the destroyer was not down for the count yet.

I have to get over there, he thought as he took another beam claw slash from Creuset on his shield, I have to save her!

His desire to rescue her had little to do with the relationship he'd once shared with her. Kira had already begun to realize prior to the battle in the Marshall Islands that something was not quite right with her behavior towards him ever since the orbital battle. His time with Lacus recovering in the PLANTs had given him an opportunity to really think on the matter, and his interactions with the lovely songstress helped put things into perspective. He'd come to realize that the relationship he'd had with Flay had been characterized by her need for control and his desire for comfort combined with the infatuation he'd had for her back on Heliopolis. Flay had been the one steering the relationship and had in fact initiated it, but Kira had eventually realized that something was off with her mental state and how she had come onto him and had casted Sai aside so easily. Whenever Kira had done something that she had disagreed with, her reactions had been sharp, and she had readily withdrawn. There had seemed to be an unspoken condition for him to get her affection, though Kira did not know what it was.

The affection Lacus had showered upon him, by contrast, had been entirely unconditional. She had looked after him without asking for anything in return, without ever saying that it was a way to repay him for saving her back when they had first met. Her feelings for him, whether they were the result of friendly affection or something much deeper, were completely selfless, and he had felt much more at ease with her as a result.

Kira no longer loved Flay the way he once did… but he still cared for her. Regardless of what had happened between them, he still considered her to be his friend, and protecting his friends had been the whole reason he'd decided to fight in the first place.

That was his purpose, that was what had driven him up until now, and recalling that helped Kira find his center amidst the storm of doubts in his mind. It did not banish them, of course; far too much had happened, had been revealed, on Mendel for that confusion and doubt to go away in the blink of an eye. However, Kira could at least find the strength to push them aside for the moment and reassert his power on the battlefield.

Everything else faded from his mind at that moment. A familiar sensation swept over him, and he saw a vision in his mind's eye, one he had not witnessed for quite awhile…

… a seed bursting in his mind.

….

Creuset grinned as he pressed his assault on the Freedom, raining down blow after blow on the mobile suit with his beam claws. Kira continued to take the hits on his shield, but it did not matter to the masked Field Marshal. The boy's resolve was weak, his focus practically non-existent; it would only be a matter of time before his defenses slipped.

The ZAFT pilot pulled back before launching another attack, this time firing his arrestor cables. The Freedom climbed, but that had been Creuset's intent from the start, and he rushed in to strike from below with his beam claws.

"You're mine!" he cackled as he thrust up with his violet blades, intending to skewer the Freedom from the sternum up.

However, his strike failed to connect. The Freedom slipped to the right, its movements suddenly much sharper than they had been a moment ago. As Creuset whirled to follow he saw the mobile suit level all its guns at him and open up.

He brought up his Composite Shield to protect his head-cameras as he attempted to evade, but he still took hits. The GuAIZ's right arm was blown off at the shoulder by a plasma beam, along with the maneuvering thrusters mounted there. At the same time railgun rounds ripped through his machine's legs, tearing both them off at the knees.

"Damn!" he snarled as his machine shuddered. Where had this come from?

He barely had time to react as the Freedom rushed in. He kept the Composite Shield up as Kira fired with his CIWS, but he realized too late that he had played right into the boy's hands. The Freedom had put away the beam rifle and drawn its second beam saber, and as Creuset kept bullets from taking out his head-cameras the boy lashed out with the blade it now held in its left hand as it flew past the GuAIZ's left side. The violet blade slashed into the unit's left shoulder, taking out the arm along with the maneuvering thrusters mounted on that shoulder as well. As if to add insult to injury, the boy opened fire again with his CIWS, this time succeeding in riddling the GuAIZ's head full of holes.

"I don't understand!" said Creuset, cold sweat running down his face around his mask, "What the hell's going on here?"

He may have lost his main cameras, but he was still good enough to fight with the low-resolution backups. Creuset fired his arrestor cables, hoping to use the small energy blade generators mounted at the ends to rip the Freedom apart limb from limb.

However, the Freedom swiftly dived beneath the claws as they flew out from the GuAIZ. The stolen ZAFT prototype then proceeded to slash the cables apart with its twin blades, leaving the GuAIZ completely defenseless.

"No…" he growled as the Freedom flew towards him, "It can't end here…"

He dove at the last possible second, but to his surprise the Freedom never even tried to attack him. Instead Kira flew right past him without a second thought. It only took Creuset a moment to figure out the boy's intended target; Flay's life pod.

Creuset gave a cruel grin as he began to withdraw. He didn't make for the Vesalius; from the pounding that vessel was taking from the Orb warship, he knew his flagship was doomed. Instead he set his course for the frigate Mata Hari; it was keeping its distance from the Eternal and her allies, providing moderate fire support while trying to stay out of the main brawl, as was the doctrine for ships in the Patrol Fleet.

"Foolish boy," he said, "You should've killed me when you had the chance. You'll never reach her in time. Her fate is sealed. I've already won."

On his sensors he could see the IFF from one of the Alliance mobile suits joined with that of the ZAFT pod; Flay Allster had been captured. Even with the sudden burst of skill Kira had shown in the last few seconds of their fight, Creuset knew that the boy could not attack the enemy without risk to the girl he wanted to save.

"Enjoy your gift, Azrael," he said, smirking, "I can't wait to see what you do with it."

His smirk became a grin again, and the masked pilot began to laugh. Years of work and planning, of careful adjustment and manipulation, of seething hatred long concealed in the name of his grand goal… soon it would all pay off. With the successful retrieval of Flay Allster by an Alliance mobile suit, the final member of Creuset's cruel and twisted opera had at long last taken her place in the cast.

Now it was only a matter of time before the curtain would rise on the final act…

… and nothing could stop it.

….

Cold sweat went down Flay's face as she felt the pod shudder. She knew the pod had been recovered, had seen via the small monitor the mobile suit that had retrieved it, but it was not one that she recognized. There had been no effort from its pilot to contact her as it had approached, and Flay felt that if it had been from the Archangel a message would've been sent by now.

Still, she had to be sure. She keyed the communications system again, eying her small monitor to see if anyone responded. "Hello? Who is this?"

A face appeared on the monitor, but it was not one she recognized. It was a young man wearing a blue, black, and gray flight suit. Through his helmet she could make out blond hair and green eyes. His gaze was harsh, and Flay felt like she was being viewed as more an object or prize than as a person.

The pilot's reply was cold and curt. "Keep quiet. You'll be on the Dominion soon, you can talk then."

Flay's eyes widened in fear; that was not the ship she wanted to go to. "No, wait!"

"Shut up!" he snarled before cutting the connection.

Getting back on the console, Flay desperately yelled into the microphone, praying that one of her friends would hear her. "Archangel! Help me! Please, save me!"

The reply to her plea was from the last person she'd expected. "Flay! Hang on, I'm coming!"

Her face paled and her heart hammered faster than it ever had in her life as a very familiar face appeared on her small screen… one that belonged to a boy she'd long thought was dead.

Kira Yamato.

"Kira!" she cried, the fear in her heart replaced by shock and overwhelming joy, "How… you're alive!"

"It's a long story," he replied, smiling at her, "Don't worry, I'll save you!"

"Oh, Kira…" she said. She was surprised to realize that she was actually fighting back tears. After what had happened to him, how she had treated him, how bitterly she'd regretted how things had been left between them before the battle in the Marshall Islands… now she had a chance to make up for it.

"Kira, listen," she said, "there's something I need to tell you."

"Sorry," Kira replied, "but can it wait until the fight is over?"

"No!" she cried out, "It can't!" She'd lost one chance to apologize to him; she'd be damned if she would lose another.

Before she could speak though, another voice cut into their conversation. "Damn it," said the pilot of the mobile suit that had captured her pod, "you two are annoying. Shut up already!"

She was thrown back in her chair as she felt the pod suddenly move, and she feared what was coming next. "Kira, look out!" she yelled.

….

Rushing headlong towards the blue mobile suit that had captured the pod, Kira was determined to rescue his friend. However, he knew that doing so would not be easy. The blue Alliance prototype had proven itself to be a formidable foe back during the Orb invasion, and fighting it now would be even harder since it was carrying Flay. With the pod held close to its chest it could not use the Scylla multi-phase energy cannon mounted there, along with the guns on the shield mounted on the arm that was cradling the pod. However, it still had plenty of other weapons to bring to bear on the Freedom, and it was doing so now.

Kira raised his shield, and not a moment too soon, for the enemy unit opened fire with the heavy cannons on its shoulders and the bazooka it carried in its right hand. The Freedom rocked as the shots were taken on the shield, such was the power of the barrage.

As soon as there was a break in the fire Kira sighted in on his foe, attempting to target the mobile suit's weapons. However, the Alliance prototype was weaving in and out of the debris, constantly shifting and making it difficult for Kira to get a shot that would not pose a risk to Flay. After a few seconds he gave up on accomplishing his objective through ranged combat; he'd have to get up close to save his friend.

He charged his foe head on, and the enemy wasted little time in opening fire again. The barrage was thick, and even with the Freedom's superior maneuverability and large shield Kira had a hard time working his way through the fire.

Still, it was not enough to deter the young Coordinator. Soon he had closed the distance and was preparing to lash out with his beam sabers… when all hell broke loose.

"Kira, incoming!" yelled Athrun.

Kira caught a glimpse of the black and red Alliance prototype rushing towards him in its bird-like mobile armor mode before it attacked. A crimson beam shot from its 'mouth' and slammed into the Freedom's right hip. Kira was thrown back in his chair by the shot, and one of the monitors exploded. The young man cried out as he felt shrapnel cut into the right side of his torso. Fortunately for him his helmet saved his head from similar trauma, but that did not change the fact that Kira was in a world of hurt.

"Kira!" he heard Flay shriek over the radio.

….

Athrun's blood turned to ice as he saw his best friend take the shot from the black and red machine. In that moment two things filled his mind; fear for his friend, and guilt for Kira getting attacked by that mobile suit in the first place.

I screwed up, he thought, I wasn't able to kill it…

He had been slowly but surely wearing his foe down over the course of their duel, but the machine's agility and unique weapons had still made it a formidable foe, and it had been able to pull a surprise attack against Athrun that had put him off balance for the few crucial seconds the Alliance unit had needed to break away and move on the Freedom. When it had lashed out with its damaged sphere-breaker Athrun had prepared to block it as he had all the other attacks he had done so from that weapon. However, this time his foe had thrown the weapon, and though he had taken the bulk of it on his shield the rope had gotten entangled on his arm. Though it had not taken Athrun long to rid himself of the encumbrance, it had been the opportunity his enemy had needed to break off and rush to the aid of its comrade.

Now Kira had suffered the consequences, and Athrun's face paled as he saw the damage. The beam fired from the Alliance prototype had ripped a gash in the Freedom's right hip. The leg below it was still attached, but from the torn and twisted metal Athrun knew that it wasn't by much. Armor was torn and warped further up the mobile suit as well, and Athrun feared that the damage may have extended to the cockpit.

He saw the black and red machine come around for another attack, spraying bullets from its three machine guns. The rounds could not pierce the Freedom's Phase Shift Armor, but the impacts could not have been helping Kira's condition, and it would only take a few lucky bullets to rip into the spot where the beam had hit before to exacerbate the damage.

No, thought Athrun, his mind flashing back to the grief and pain he had felt after that fateful battle in the Marshall Islands, I lost Kira once; I won't do it again!

Instinct took over, and for a second Athrun had a vision, one he had not had since he had watched Nicol die in front of him…

A seed spinning, touching a pool of water and sending ripples outward…

… and bursting in brilliant light.

….

Cackling madly, Clotho dived towards the black, white, and blue mobile suit that he had just attacked. "You're mine now!" he yelled.

Before the battle, Clotho and his fellow pilots had been given orders that they were to attempt to capture one of the enemy's nuclear powered mobile suits. However, he no longer cared about that now. Shani had been killed, and Clotho had gotten pissed as a result. It didn't matter that he and the Forbidden's pilot had almost constantly been at each other's throats; they were still teammates, and Clotho would not let his death go unpunished.

He knew that Wing Zero had been the mobile suit that had taken down the Forbidden, but that unit wasn't close enough for Clotho to strike out at. However, the nuclear prototypes that had fought his team during the invasion of Orb were, and he had decided to take his fury out on them.

He sighted in with the Raider's Zorn energy cannon and prepared to fire. His foe was drifting, but sensor readings still showed power flowing from its reactor to weapons, armor, and thrusters; it wasn't beaten yet. Clotho gave a maniacal grin; he would fix that by blasting the mobile suit right through the cockpit.

Suddenly there was a flash of pink and the Raider rocked around him, throwing off his shot. Clotho's eyes widened in mixed shock and outrage as he saw the right wing from the machine gun over get completely sliced off. It only took him a second to find the culprit; the unit he had been fighting earlier. He saw it catch the beam boomerang it had thrown at him before drawing its second beam saber and combining it with its first, creating a double-bladed weapon.

"You!" he snarled, practically frothing at the mouth as he moved to target his old foe, "Fuck you!"

His foe was silent, preferring to let their actions do the talking. The backpack that held the unit's two beam cannons detached and broke to the right. The mobile suit itself went to the left, setting up for a pincer attack.

Before Clotho could respond to the move the backpack opened fire with its two beam cannons, two small machine gun turrets, and four fixed machine guns. The emerald beams ripped off the Raider's claws, each of which also held an Ahura Mazda short range energy cannon. At the same time the bullets from the machine guns pounded the mobile suit, draining precious energy from the Phase Shift Armor.

Too late, Clotho saw that this was all a distraction for the real threat. He tried to dive and evade what was coming, but the damage to his machine had hampered his maneuverability. In the end Clotho could only watch in horror and rage as the enemy mobile suit swung down with its beam saber. The first strike slashed into the Raider's engines, and with a quick reversal his foe brought the second blade down on him… right through the cockpit.

There was a brief flash of fire and light…

…and then eternity.

….

"Kira!" yelled Athrun as the Justice recovered its Fatum-00 backpack/subflight lifter. He rushed to the side of the Freedom to stabilize the machine. Its thrusters were still active, but it was clear that the pilot was not focused on flying the mobile suit, no doubt due to his injuries.

His face paled again as he saw Kira appear on the screen. "Athrun…" he groaned. There was blood seeping from at least a dozen tears in the right side of his flight suit, and Athrun could only take comfort in the fact that Kira's helmet at least appeared intact and that his cockpit seemed to be keeping its integrity; with his pilot's suit in such condition, Kira could not afford exposure to vacuum.

"Hang on!" said Athrun as he came up alongside the Freedom, grabbing the mobile suit, "I'll get you back to the Eternal!"

Kira shook his head. "Wait… the pod… Flay…"

Athrun shook his head. "Kira, it's too late. That blue mobile suit's taking the pod back to the Alliance flagship. You can't get to her; you need medical attention!"

"But… I told her I'd save her!" said Kira.

Athrun sighed, his heart heavy as he knew he was acting against his friend's wishes. "I'm sorry, Kira, but you can't. None of us can; she's beyond our reach."

"No…" he groaned, and Athrun saw his eyes flutter, "Flay…"

Damn it, thought Athrun, pouring on thrust as he began moving Kira towards the Eternal, he's losing blood fast. Gotta hurry!

Fortunately for him the fighting was beginning to wind down. The surviving ZAFT warships were beginning to withdraw. One was a frigate that Athrun recognized as being modified to serve in the Patrol Fleet, and it was the only one that was not sporting any signs of damage. The other surviving vessels from the reinforcing group, a frigate and a destroyer, were both heavily damaged and limping to join the remaining warships from the main task force, which were almost at the edge of the debris field. Among those vessels Athrun counted two destroyers and two frigates, all of which were severely damaged. He saw that the Eternal's mobile suits had all gathered around her, preferring to stick with the ship and watch the enemy retreat rather than pursue and wipe them out. As ZAFT pulled out the Justice's pilot saw the Judgment part ways with the Eternal's complement and begin heading towards the Archangel. Athrun also caught a glimpse of the Duel fleeing with the ZAFT force, and aside from a badly damaged GuAIZ and three Mirage GINNs flying with the Patrol Fleet Frigate it was the only surviving ZAFT mobile suit.

The only ZAFT warship that was still on the field actively engaged was the Vesalius, but Athrun could tell that it was not long for this world. There were gouges ripped in the armor all over the ship by the Kusanagi's guns, and the Orb warship was joined in its attack by the Strike Rouge and the four surviving M1 Astrays. Athrun felt a pang in his heart as he watched the vessel that he had once served on get pounded into submission with no sign of surrender.

Captain Ades, he thought, please, give up…

But Athrun knew the Vesalius's commanding officer would do no such thing. The man was old fashioned, and like the naval officers of old would likely be determined to stay with his ship to the end. Some might have seen it as a valiant last stand, but Athrun could only shake his head at the loss. To him, there was no honor and valor in the display; it was just a waste of life.

I can't save them, he thought as the Nazca-class destroyer went into its death throes, armor rupturing as missiles and bullets detonated in their magazines and power systems began to overload, but I can save Kira.

It was the least he could do.

….

"What's the status on the Freedom?" asked Murrue, "How's Kira?"

"Athrun Zala reports significant damage to the machine," said the communication's officer, "Kira's wounded, and it sounds serious. He's being taken back to the Eternal."

Damn it, thought Murrue, first La Flaga, now Kira… I just hope they're ok.

The Tallgeese Kai had just set down in the Archangel's hangar bay, and a medical team had been ready the instant the cockpit was opened. Murrue had no idea what La Flaga's status was, but given the outburst she'd heard from Miriallia earlier she had plenty reason to be worried.

Murrue grimaced, knowing that she had to bury her concerns for her wounded friends for the moment; the battle wasn't over yet. Wing Zero had knocked out one of the remaining Nelson-class battleships and the Archangel had dispatched the other with a combined barrage from her Gottfrieds, Valiants, and missiles, but there was still the Alliance carrier to deal with. Murrue would've expected the vessel to begin pulling back as the Dominion was doing, but the warship was still pressing forward and was in the process of bombarding Wing Zero with its two beam turrets. None of the shots had been able to hit the Gundam; the guns were not designed for such precision targeting, and their limited firing rate and arc meant that Heero was able to evade the shots with relative ease. Still, it was more than enough to set a fire in Murrue's heart, and she was about to make the carrier pay dearly for attacking her boyfriend instead of retreating when it had the chance.

"Target acquired," said Lieutenant Tsukino, "Lohengrins fully charged!"

Murrue's response was immediate. "Open fire!"

Twin blasts of crimson energy ripped forth from the bow and tore into the portside of the Agamemnon-class carrier. The positron beams melted through the armor as if it were little more than paper, and the warship was blown in half by the subsequent explosion.

Only one ship left, she thought.

"Status on the Dominion," said Murrue.

"Continuing her withdrawal," replied the sensor officer, "the mobile suit that captured Flay's pod is moving to dock with the ship."

"Captain," said Lieutenant Tsukino, "What should we do?"

"Any word from the Eternal?" asked Murrue.

"Ma'am," said the communications officer, "Field Marshal Waltfeld reports that the ZAFT forces are in full retreat. We've also received word from the Kusanagi that they've destroyed the Nazca-class destroyer that they engaged earlier."

Murrue nodded. "Get me the Field Marshal."

A few seconds later the Desert Tiger appeared on her screen. "Captain Ramius," he said, "excellent work on your end."

"Thank you, Waltfeld," she replied, "I'm going to recover my pilots, unless you need assistance."

"No, I think we're good here," said Waltfeld, "I'm pulling ours back as well."

"Any word on Kira's condition?" asked Murrue.

Waltfeld sighed. "We'll know soon enough; the Justice is setting up to bring the Freedom in right now. From what Athrun's told me though, it looks serious. However, the kid's survived worse than this. Don't worry, Captain; we'll get him through this."

Murrue nodded. "Thank you, Waltfeld. We've lost Kira once… we can't do so again."

"You won't," he replied, "We've got some of the best medics in the Earth Sphere on my ship. He'll pull through; count on it."

"Alright," said Murrue.

"How's the Hawk?" asked Waltfeld, "I heard got hit too."

"Apparently he was wounded inside the colony," Murrue replied, "He just arrived on the ship; our medics should be treating him now."

"Hope he comes out ok," said Waltfeld.

Murrue nodded. "Same here."

Waltfeld sighed. "This was an ugly fight... Avalon was squeaky clean by comparison. Darkly ironic, considering the difference in opposition."

Murrue nodded grimly. The Archangel and Kusanagi had both lost two of their M1s and their pilots, while Kira and La Flaga were both wounded and their machines seriously damaged. When compared to the casualties suffered by the enemy it was a clear victory, but Murrue was reluctant to think of it that way. She hated the thought of losing any of her comrades, regardless of the very real possibility of that which came with every battle.

"Yes, you're right," she said, "So, what's our next move? I think we've overstayed our welcome at Mendel."

"Agreed," said Waltfeld, "we'll pull out of L4 and move around for the next few days. Bristow and I will put our heads together; we should be able to come up with another idea for a hideout. Captain Ramius, I want the Archangel and Kusanagi to form up on the Eternal; we'll take point for our cruise out of here."

"Understood," Murrue replied, "anything else?"

The Desert Tiger shook his head. "Not at this time, Captain. I'll keep you in the loop. Eternal out."

As the former ZAFT Field Marshal's face disappeared from the screen Murrue began issuing new orders.

"Miriallia," she said, "oversee mobile suit recovery."

"Aye, Captain," the girl replied.

"Helm, lock in on the Eternal's position and get over there," Murrue commanded, "Coordinate with the Kusanagi regarding formation."

"Yes, ma'am," said Neumann.

"Lieutenant Tsukino," said Murrue, "bring us down to level two battle stations for the time being. If the coast stays clear when we leave the field, take down the alert. Keep weapons ready though; ZAFT or the Alliance could still have additional forces inbound."

"Copy that, Captain," said her Executive Officer.

"Get me the medical bay," she ordered.

One of Dr. Clark's assistants, the Chinese girl from the Orb Navy that had accompanied the doctor during Heero and Shemei's duel, appeared on the screen. "Yes, Captain Ramius?" said Fan Li.

"What's the status of La Flaga?" she asked.

"He's suffered a gunshot wound to the right shoulder," the young lady replied, "Stress from piloting the Tallgeese Kai in active combat only served to exacerbate the injury, and he's lost a considerable amount of blood. However, with transfusions he should make a full recovery. I'm afraid he will be out of action for a few days though."

Murrue nodded. "I see. I'll be down to speak with him later; I need to debrief him regarding what happened inside the colony."

"Understood, Captain," said Fan Li, "he's on painkillers, but the dosage is light, so he will be lucid. However, I ask that you please give us some time to at least finish our immediate work before you come down."

"Of course," she replied, "let me know when I can talk to him."

"Yes, ma'am," said Fan Li, "medical out."

The girl had hardly disappeared from the screen when the communications officer made an announcement. "Heero's on the line, Captain."

"Put him through," said Murrue.

The Gundam pilot appeared on the screen. On the surface he was the same cool combat professional Murrue and her crew had known since day one, but the beautiful Captain could detect a slight softening to his eyes; he was worried about her.

"Is everything ok over there?" he asked.

Murrue gave him a small smile. The wording may have been neutral, appearing to encompass the Archangel as a whole, but she'd gotten the underlying message; the question was really meant for just her.

"We're alright, Heero," she replied, "Our damage is minor; nothing Chief Murdoch and his crew can't repair." She looked down. "I wish I could say the same for the pilots we lost."

"It's not your fault, Murrue," said Heero, "They knew the risks going in, and your deployment of them was sound tactically and strategically. Blame the enemy, not yourself."

Murrue nodded, her lover's words helping to ease her guilt. "Thank you, Heero."

"You're welcome, Murrue," said Heero, "I'll come inside after Shemei; I want to cover the ship until we're in formation with the Eternal and the Kusanagi."

"You don't have to," said Murrue, "the enemy's retreating, Heero, and I'm sure you could use some rest."

"I can wait a little longer, Murrue," said Heero, nodding and giving her a small smile, "but I appreciate the concern."

Murrue returned the smile. "Alright, Heero."

The Gundam pilot's expression became serious again. "Any word on what happened inside the colony with Kira and La Flaga?"

Murrue shook her head. "No, though I'm assuming they fought someone in there; La Flaga took a gunshot wound to the shoulder. I was going to debrief him once we got underway and the medics stabilized the injury."

"Mind if I join you?" he asked.

"I was going to ask you to do that anyway," Murrue replied, "I'm sure your experience and insights will come in handy as we piece together where all this fits in the big picture."

"Roger that," said Heero, "Wing Zero out."

The Gundam pilot's face disappeared from the screen, and as Murrue looked out the main viewport she saw Wing Zero approach the warship. The mobile suit took up position over the Archangel's bridge, the most powerful sentinel the vessel could hope for.

Despite the losses and injuries that had been suffered by her friends and comrades today, Murrue could not help but give another small smile as one thought above all others echoed in her mind.

You came back to me, Heero. Thank you, my love.

….

"Kira!" cried Lacus as she rushed up to him.

The Justice had just departed the Eternal after bringing the Freedom into the hangar, and the pink-haired songstress had been waiting anxiously at the entrance for the cavernous holding area to be repressurized. She'd been through the door the instant she got the green light, pausing only to let the medics go ahead of her before following hot on their heels.

Her heart had been hammering away at lightning speed as she'd approached the Freedom, the damage it had suffered serving as an ominous sign for the health of its pilot. It was all she could do to keep herself back as the medics got Kira out of the cockpit and onto the stretcher, and Lacus could not suppress a gasp as she saw the extent of his injuries. The right side of his blue and white flight suit was covered in blood, and as the medics began to remove it for better access to his wounds Lacus could see at least a dozen cuts were shrapnel had torn into him. His head was unscathed, but his face was pale and sweaty, and his eyelids were fluttering, as if the boy was hovering between consciousness and darkness.

Lacus managed to squeeze in on the stretcher's left side as the medical team began to rush it out of the hangar. In the background she was dimly aware of mechanics swarming over the Freedom to commence repairs, but she paid them no heed; it was the pilot she feared for, not the mobile suit.

"No..." she heard him murmur, "hang on… Flay…"

Her eyes widened as she recognized the name as belonging to the red-headed girl she had met during her stay on the Archangel so long ago.

She's out here?, Lacus thought, What's going on?

"Kira!" she said, bringing her hand to his cheek, "Kira, it's me! It's Lacus! Please, answer me!"

The young man turned towards her, his violet eyes full of pain and guilt. "Lacus…" he said softly.

He held her gaze for a second before his eyes closed and the boy groaned.

"Kira, hang on!" cried Lacus, taking his left hand in a death-grip, "We'll save you, I promise! Kira!"

….

The pod's hatch hissed open, and Flay was greeted by the sight of two mechanics wearing the familiar orange jumpsuits of Alliance technical personnel. "You ok in there, girl?" asked one, holding out his hand.

She nodded hesitantly as she took it and he pulled her out of the pod. "I'm ok." She looked around as she floated out of the pod, taking in the hangar and its sole occupant, the blue mobile suit that had brought her here. "Where… where am I?"

"The Atlantic Federation battleship Dominion," said a familiar female voice, "It's been a long time, Flay Allster."

The girl's eyes widened as she saw none other than Natarle Badgiruel approach, while a man with blond hair, blue eyes, and a light blue suit followed not too far behind her. "Lieutenant Badgiruel!" she said.

The black-haired woman shook her head. "It's Captain now, Flay; the Dominion is under my command."

Flay saw her glance back at the man behind her before she gave a slight shake of her head. "Nominally, anyway," she muttered.

"Sorry, Miss Captain," said the man, his voice smooth and cultured but with a barb of arrogance, "what was that?"

Natarle sighed. "Nothing, Lord Azrael."

Flay gasped. She knew that name; it was one her father had spoken of before.

The head of Blue Cosmos smiled as he approached the girl. "Welcome aboard, Miss Allster," he said, but despite the outwardly pleasant welcome Flay took no comfort in it, "I'm so glad we were able to rescue you from those abominations."

"Some rescue," she heard Natarle mutter, "they gave her to us and we still lost our entire fleet in the process…"

"A necessary sacrifice, Miss Captain," said Azrael, his tone chastising and smug, "especially if this girl bears what she claims to be holding."

Flay nodded, hesitantly passing Natarle the disk that Creuset had given her. However, before she could give it to the Captain Azrael snatched it from her fingers.

"I'll take that, dear," he said, his voice dripping with mock sincerity, "Miss Captain, please see to our guest while I examine this."

"Yes, sir," Natarle replied, glaring at the man as he headed for the exit.

The woman sighed before turning to Flay. "What are you doing out here? You should be back in the homeland, Flay! The battlefield's no place for you!"

Her words sounded harsh at first, but Flay was startled to realize that there was an undercurrent of concern to them. Natarle was genuinely worried about her!

"It's a long story," she said, "I'm sorry, I… I don't know how to explain…"

Natarle shook her head. "It's ok, Flay. For now, let's just get you settled in; I'll debrief you later, and we'll take our time. No need to rush things; with the damage we took in the battle, we'll be out of action for quite a while."

Flay nodded, and the woman held out her hand. "Come on," she said, "I'm sure we have quarters we can spare for you, and I'll get you a change of clothes; can't have you wearing a ZAFT uniform on an Alliance ship, after all."

Flay took her hand, comforted by the gesture. This may not have been the Archangel, but it was still good to find someone she knew and was apparently willing to look after her.

Kira, she thought, Miriallia, Sai, everyone… please, stay safe.

….

Azrael smiled as he sat down in his office and put the disk the girl had given him into the computer. The telltale nuclear symbol on the data storage device alone had sent a jolt down his spine, but he had to be sure of what he was now in possession of.

His smile became a maniacal grin as schematics and data began flashing across the screen. "At last!" he said, unable to contain his excitement, "We've got it!"

"This war is ours!"

Preview for next time!

Fleeing L4, the Three Ships Alliance tends to its wounded and processes the revelations and results of the melee with the Alliance and ZAFT. While they now understand the guiding hand behind the recent actions of the two superpowers, they are still no closer to stopping either side from unleashing Armageddon. On the move and in search of a new hideout, Heero, Murrue, and the others seek to avoid engagement with their enemies for the time being, but events conspire to force their hand. Rushing to rescue a group of ZAFT defectors fleeing the forces of Zala's regime, Heero soon finds himself locked in fierce combat with a pair of mercenary hellhounds. Next time, on "Journey to a New Battlefield", Episode Twenty-Five: Dogs of War.

Is it merely money that they fight for…

… or is it the fight itself?

Author's notes: Thanks for being patient with me; I'm glad this chapter didn't take quite as long as the last one to get out. It's almost been two years since I started writing this fic, can't believe I've come so far, and I'm not done yet!

As you can tell from the preview, 25's a battle chapter, though it will also be mixed with some romance, plot, and character development. 26 will be another fight chapter, then there will be a final interlude as I set up the grand showdown between the Alliance and ZAFT, with the Three Ships Alliance throwing themselves right into the thick of it! Don't want to give away too much right now, but I will say this; if you thought the original Second Battle of Jachin Due was big, then you're really in for a treat when MY version finally kicks off!

Of course, I've still got a ways to go before then. Can't make any promises regarding the length of chapter 25, though I'll try to make it shorter than 24 was. Emphasis on TRY, again, not making any guarantees here…

As always, please review! Thanks a lot everyone, until next time!