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...

27. Chapter 27

Author's notes: Hey, it's that time again! Sorry this took so long, with my new job in full swing I've only been able to write a little bit per day. Thank you for your continued patience and support. No combat in this chapter, but the next three will more than make up for that!

Regarding songs for this chapter, there are four of them, but the first three aren't background; they're actually sung by Lacus. In order of appearance: "A Path" by Nami Miyahara, the second song Janice sings in the anime Casshern Sins; "Fly Me to the Moon" as performed by Claire Littley and/or Megumi Hayashibara for the ending theme of Neon Genesis Evangelion; and "Heavens Divide", the theme for Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker performed by Donna Burke. The fourth song, this one as background music like in past chapters, is "Gradus Vita" from the Hellsing Ultimate OST.

Enjoy!

Episode Twenty-Seven: Final Reprieve

"Captain," said the Archangel's communications officer, "Elysium control has granted us clearance; we're good to enter the colony."

Murrue nodded. "Helm, take her in nice and easy."

Neumann nodded. "Yes, ma'am."

Turning from her bridge crew, Murrue looked up and smiled at Heero. The Gundam pilot had come to the bridge almost immediately after landing inside the Archangel, stopping only to change into his usual jeans and green tank top.

"Well," she said, "so far so good."

Heero nodded. "I just hope the meeting with the authorities goes well."

"I think it will," Murrue replied, "This is Cagalli's turf now, and the nobles will have to yield to her authority."

She saw Heero look up and out the forward viewport, his eyes narrowing. "Maybe. From what I understand, the Seiran family has held power here for quite some time. They may be reluctant to relinquish total control to Cagalli, even if she is the new leader of Orb."

Murrue sighed. "Damn it, I hadn't considered that. Do you really think they'll attempt to keep Cagalli from taking charge?"

"I wouldn't put it past them," Heero replied, "I may not know the Seirans, but I had plenty of experience with nobility in my last war. Sometimes you get people like Treize and Zechs; well-intentioned, even honorable at times, but still willing to play dirty when necessary. A rare few are like Relena; as pure in their ideals as is possible, and willing to set aside all thought of personal gain in order to serve a greater good. Many more, though… well, let's just say they're like any other politician, elected or otherwise; they don't like to share power, they're very possessive of their territory and wealth, and their egos are the size of gas giants."

"At least you have some experience in dealing with people like this," said Murrue, "We may well need to call upon that insight should things go south."

Heero shook his head. "I doubt I'll be of much help here. My encounters with them tended to involve me fighting their armies. Diplomacy… well, it wasn't on the table. I'll do what I can, but my particular skill set may be ill-suited to our needs, unless we're planning a coup."

"I hope it doesn't come to that," said Murrue, "Cagalli's been through enough; having to fight her own people for the right to rule her country will only make things worse."

Heero nodded. "Agreed."

Murrue reached over and grabbed his hand. "Let's wait and see how things play out, ok? Cagalli and the others on the Kusanagi will take the lead here, along with Miss Clyne and Waltfeld. You and I may represent the Archangel for this meeting, but in practice we may end up being little more than observers."

"You're right," said Heero, "I'll keep an eye on the Seirans, try to judge their intentions… and I'll be on the lookout for signs of the traitor, whoever they may be."

Murrue nodded. "I'll do the same. We have to figure out who sold out the refugees. Who knows what they might try to do next?"

"Yeah," said Heero grimly, "and if they were willing to target their own people just because they were Coordinators, they might try to attack us as well; we've got plenty of Coordinators in our group."

"I know," said Murrue, "There are only a few on this ship and the Kusanagi, but it's another matter entirely with regards to the Eternal and Task Force 9.3."

Heero nodded. "Of all of us, I think Lacus is the most vulnerable. For us and many others she's the voice of the moderate resistance within the PLANTs, but to someone who hates Coordinators she's a very high profile target. If the traitor, or traitors, were willing to set up refugees for slaughter, then it's not unreasonable to assume that they'd try to kill the most famous Coordinator singer in the Earth Sphere."

"I already considered that, and I told Waltfeld as much when I contacted him earlier," Murrue replied, "He'll take the necessary security precautions."

"As long as they're on guard," said Heero, "Beyond that, all we can do is hope for the best."

"Agreed," said Murrue, giving his hand a squeeze, "So let's be ready for anything."

His eyes met hers, and she was comforted by that familiar determination she saw within them. "Roger that," he said.

They both turned back to the forward viewport as the ship entered the colony. Murrue winced as she saw the jagged edges of the hole that had been blasted in the main gate by the Earth Alliance mobile suits, a blatant reminder of their failure to completely protect the people of Elysium. As they made their way through the entryway she could see bits of charred metal floating everywhere. At the far end of the passageway Murrue saw more burn marks and impact craters, along with plenty of twisted metal.

"They really shot up the place," said Heero.

Murrue shook her head. "This isn't even the main part of the habitat. Besides, if they were trying to capture the colony then they would want to take important facilities like the docks intact, or at least in as good a shape as possible. None of this destruction would've served to further their mission; they just fired at random while they passed through here!"

She looked over at Heero and was surprised to see him close his eyes for a moment. When he opened them again there was a thoughtful look to them. "Those pilots… were they like the ones I fought?"

Murrue raised an eyebrow. "What are you talking about, Heero?"

He turned to her. "During the battle, the Earth Alliance fielded mobile suits besides the Strike-Daggers. They were new models, though still based off of the Strike design. There were twenty of them in all, with five variants. I'll show you and the others my combat data on them later. The pilots of them, or at least the ones I fought… they weren't normal."

"How so?" Murrue asked.

"They were skilled," he said, "but they didn't fight like professional soldiers. They were incredibly aggressive, displayed only rudimentary teamwork, and even that broke down as the battle went on. I even saw them attack each other. There wasn't any discipline. It felt like they just wanted to destroy everything in sight."

"Why would they give new model mobile suits to pilots like that?" asked Murrue.

Heero shook his head. "I don't know, Murrue. With the new OS you'd think they'd have no problem finding skilled, disciplined pilots to fly those machines."

He then looked down for a moment, and when he met her gaze again his eyes seemed a little darker than they were before. "I do have one idea… but it's one I don't want to be right about."

That couldn't be good. "What is it?" Murrue asked, a hint of trepidation slipping into her voice.

"The last pilot I killed," he said, "or rather the last one flying the advanced Strikes I engaged… they contacted me over the radio. Well, it was an open air transmission, but I know it was meant for me."

Murrue's eyes widened; that was unusual to say the least. "What did they say?"

Heero shook his head. "It wasn't what they said, but how they said it. They were screaming, whether from rage or fear I don't know… it was probably both. The pilot was a woman… no, that's not right; a girl, probably in her mid teens by the sound of it… if that."

Soldiers around that age certainly weren't unusual in this war; Murrue was fully aware that some of the best pilots in their group were in their teens, a few even ten years her junior, with Heero being the example that most immediately came to mind. However, even in a conflict this brutal, with both sides desperate to replenish their ranks, there were recruiting limits. Murrue knew that the absolute lowest age the Earth Alliance would go to for new soldiers was fifteen, and they had actually been reluctant to do that, asking only for volunteers at that age. Even then that was seen as skirting the boundaries, and that had been one of the reasons why Flay's sudden enlistment just prior to the destruction of the 8th Fleet had been such a big deal; the daughter of the late Atlantic Federation Vice-Foreign Minister had been the youngest of the Heliopolis students to stay aboard the ship, and at that cutoff age. The way Heero was talking about one of his enemies now implied a girl around that cutoff age… or quite possibly younger.

"I could tell they'd had training," Heero continued, "but still… her moves were raw, unseasoned; I doubt she had much built up combat experience outside of exercises. However, despite that she still had very fast reflexes... enough to put her on even footing with veteran pilots, even surpass some. It was the same with the other pilots of the advanced Strikes that I fought. To engage like that, and at that age… I can only draw one conclusion."

"Child soldiers…" said Murrue softly, horrified at what it meant, "The Atlantic Federation… they'd been training them well before they were legally old enough to fight."

Heero nodded. "Among other things. I know the Earth Alliance has been desperate for any possible edge against ZAFT. Stooping to train soldiers from a younger age wouldn't be beneath them after the barbarism and treachery they've shown us so far, but I'm not sure that's all they did."

"What else could they have done?" asked Murrue, not sure she wanted to know the answer. In fact, she was feeling sick just thinking about what Heero had already told her.

"The Cosmic Era and my old world," said Heero, "share many similarities, and are probably at or near parity with each other as far as technology goes. However, there's one area in which I believe this world has a sizeable edge over my old one; medical science. The existence of Coordinators alone is proof of just how advanced the medical field is in this world. If it's possible to alter the genetic code of people from birth to the point that there's now an entire race of them, and with considerably greater physical and mental potential than Natural humans… who can say what other kinds of alterations to the human body are possible?"

"Hold on," said Murrue, "are you suggesting that the Atlantic Federation's involved in bio-augmentation? With the fanatical hatred its leaders have towards Coordinators because of how they were genetically altered, it's hard to see how they would embrace other alterations to the human body."

Heero shook his head. "Not really. Throughout this war Azrael and the Atlantic Federation High Command have been desperate to secure some kind of advantage over the Coordinators. The development of the GAT series prototypes combined with Kira's work on the OS finally gave them mobile suits to field, with the mass produced Strike-Dagger actually exceeding the ZAFT GINN in combat capabilities. However, who's to say that technology was the only field in which they were trying to surpass their enemy? Bio-augmentation is entirely probable… in fact, based on the performance of the pilots of the advanced Strikes that I fought today, it's something I'd be willing to bet on."

Murrue shuddered. "Heero, there's been international accords signed banning the very augmentation you speak of; scientific testing in that field has harmed so many people who were used in experiments designed to enhance the human body. The only reason the creation of Coordinators wasn't outlawed was because the alterations took place at the embryonic level and were proven to not cause severe harm. However, augmentations post-birth had an almost overwhelming record of damaging the subjects long-term, both physiologically and mentally; the short term benefits were not worth the cost!"

Heero nodded. "I believe you, Murrue, but you have to admit that the Earth Alliance and the Atlantic Federation in particular have not shown much deference to international accords in this war. They've massacred civilians and surrendering soldiers, invaded neutral countries… do you really think bio-experimentation's really beyond them, even with their hatred for Coordinators… or perhaps because of it?"

Murrue sighed. "When you put it like that, I guess nothing's really off the table for them. Still, to think that they'd experiment on people so young…"

She felt Heero squeeze her hand. "I'm sorry, Murrue. I'm sure it's not easy to imagine your homeland doing things like this."

"Not anymore," she replied grimly, "The Atlantic Federation stopped being my home the moment it tried to kill us at Alaska. Besides, you're right; after nuking Junius Seven, there's no limit to the depths they'll stoop to win this war. I just wish I'd realized it sooner."

"How could you when you were trying to survive and protect the people serving under you?" said Heero, "Don't blame yourself for your old nation's sins."

Murrue nodded and gave him a soft smile. "Thank you, Heero."

"Anytime," he replied.

The two of them turned back to the main viewport, watching as Neumann brought the white warship into dock in the berth to the right of the Kusanagi. To the left of the Orb warship the Eternal had already settled in, and long white tubes had extended to both vessels' airlocks. The Archangel settled into her berth, her helmsman touching her down with such precision and skill it almost looked easy; only the sweat on his brow gave away how focused he had been on the docking.

Murrue got up from her chair and turned to her XO. "Lieutenant Tsukino; you have the bridge. Heero and I will be going ashore."

The Orb officer nodded. "Understood, Captain. Anything else?"

"Yes," said Murrue, "I want Dr. Clark and his staff prepared to leave the ship the moment I give the order; the colony's emergency and medical personnel will need all the help they can get treating the wounded. Also, have Dr. Claudia standing by as well. After what happened here today… well, the wounds that will need tending will not just be physical ones."

Her XO looked down for a moment before replying. "Of course, Captain."

A thought occurred to Murrue. "Lieutenant… do you have family here?"

She nodded. "An aunt and uncle, Captain Ramius. They're Naturals, and not refugees, so they shouldn't have been on the Alliance's target list, but still… I hope they're alright."

"When your watch is over," said Murrue, giving her a small smile, "you have my permission to contact them, Lieutenant."

Her XO bowed her head. "Thank you, Captain."

Murrue nodded before turning to Heero. "Come on, let's get going."

….

Outwardly, the Perfect Soldier looked as calm and collected as ever as he and the woman he loved waited for the docking tube to finish connecting with the Archangel's starboard hatch. Inside though, he was anything but relaxed. Heero's thoughts had not strayed much from the warning of a traitor within Elysium, and he was as alert now as he had been during the battle to save the colony. He made sure his right hand never strayed too far from the grip of his pistol; he was ready to shoot anyone that so much as looked at him and Murrue the wrong way.

Who was it?, the Gundam pilot thought yet again, Who sold out the refugees?

The deliberate targeting of civilians was a crime that had been present since the beginning of this war, with the destruction of Junius Seven being by far the most blatant and horrific example. However, there was something far more insidious about someone who was willing to set up their nation's people for slaughter. A person who was willing to cross that line could not be counted on to hold anything as sacred; no threat was out of the question now as far as Heero was concerned.

"Heero?" said Murrue, jarring him from his thoughts, "Are you alright?"

He gave her a small nod while marveling at her perceptiveness; it continued to amaze him just how adept she'd become at reading him, picking up on the most miniscule bits of body language and sensing his mood.

"I'm just focused," he replied, "I want to be ready for whatever's on the other side of that hatch… and inside that colony."

Murrue nodded. "I feel the same way." She patted her sidearm. "I haven't had to use this in so long… it's actually unnerving to think that might change today."

"No matter what happens," said Heero firmly, "don't let anyone take your gun. I don't care if Orb security forces ask for it; say no and get behind me."

"Heero, we can't afford to cause an incident," said Murrue.

"Better to do that than walk around here unarmed," Heero replied, "We'll talk Cagalli into getting us through any screening. If not, then we sit this one out, no matter what the others say."

Murrue nodded. "Ok, Heero. If things get tense, I'll follow your lead."

A green light appeared on the console beside the door; they were clear to go. The hatch opened, and the two of them made their way down the docking tube. For his part, Heero made sure to stay just a little bit ahead of Murrue, and he was ready to react the instant there was a sign of trouble.

When they reached the end of the tube and the second door opened they were greeted by none other than the delegations from the other two ships. Cagalli and Kisaka were at the front of the group, while just behind them were Waltfeld, Lacus and Aisha.

Orb's tomboyish princess was clearly distracted, and it didn't take a genius to guess that she was dearly concerned for the survivors of the attack. However, she still managed to force a small smile as Heero and Murrue approached.

"Captain Ramius, Heero," she said, "I want to thank you on behalf of the Orb people for your aid today. Without your help… things could've been much worse."

Murrue shook her head. "You don't have to thank us for this, Cagalli."

"Yes, I do," the girl replied, "You two helped save so many lives… people that I know I couldn't protect by myself, or even with what resources my country has left. You've done so much for Orb; we're eternally in your debt."

"How bad are things?" asked Heero.

Cagalli sighed. "I don't know exactly. I still haven't gotten a preliminary report, but… from what I saw earlier… even if we saved the colony, a lot of innocent people died today."

Waltfeld stepped forward. "Cagalli, we'll do all we can to help the survivors. I've got the Eternal's medical staff ready to move out as soon as you give us the ok."

"The same goes for that of the Archangel," said Murrue, "We'll take care of your people, Cagalli."

Cagalli nodded. "We'll get in touch with the colony's emergency personnel and coordinate with them as soon as possible. We just have to meet with a few people first."

"The Seirans?" asked Heero.

"Yes," said Kisaka, and the Gundam pilot noted that he did not look particularly pleased at the prospect, "Though they are not the only noble family with a presence here, they are the strongest. Lady Cagalli has to formally take over the colony; the War Powers Article of the Orb Constitution grants the Chief Representative considerable emergency powers in the event of conflict, and Lady Cagalli can use them to great effect to mobilize resources to help the people here. However…"

"The other nobles aren't exactly thrilled with the prospect of her taking charge of the colony," Heero finished for him.

He saw Cagalli nod in agreement. "The Athha family has long been the strongest of the five Orb noble households, the dominant force in both domestic and foreign policy. However, so much of that strength came from charismatic and intelligent heads of the family… my father most of all. With both him and my uncle dead, my family has lost so much power. In theory, I may rule, but… if the Seirans or any of the other noble families don't feel like cooperating, they can do a great deal to subvert my authority."

Lacus stepped forward and grabbed her hand. "Only if you don't believe in yourself, Cagalli. Your people have faith in you, as do all of us. Know that we stand behind you, and will do everything in our power to support your rule."

"Lacus…" said Cagalli.

"She's right," said Waltfeld, "If the other nobles cause trouble, we'll just have to show them that their position has changed… but that won't be necessary if you convince them that you are truly determined to lead your people in their hour of need."

"Your father trusted you with the fate of Orb, Cagalli," said Murrue, smiling, "He would not have done so if he did not believe that you were strong enough to handle it."

"You're more powerful than your fellow nobles could possibly imagine," said Heero, meeting his friend's gaze, "You survived battles with Waltfeld's forces in North Africa, against ZAFT squadrons that tried to stop us from getting you to Orb, against the might of the Alliance fleet that invaded your country, and against the strength of both superpowers after we came to outer space. You were with us at the Avalon Line, at Mendel, and at the rescue of Task Force 9.3. You fought to defend this colony from an Alliance invasion fleet no more than an hour ago, Cagalli; a few power hungry nobles are no match for you if you come at them with the same courage and determination that you've shown us all on the battlefield."

"Heero…" said Cagalli softly, her eyes widening in surprise. Heero couldn't blame her for it; he wasn't normally one to give speeches like that.

"The lives of your people are riding on your shoulders, Cagalli," Heero continued, "and not just those that reside in Elysium; the Eden colony is also your responsibility. I know you want to do all you can to protect your people, just as much as I know that you can do that far better than any noble in this colony; your father wouldn't have made you his successor if he'd thought otherwise."

Murrue grabbed Heero's hand as she joined in. "Cagalli, all that responsibility may be a heavy weight, but it is also a source of strength that you can draw upon. None of us here doubt your commitment to the safety and well being of your people. Use that, Cagalli. Let your determination to protect them, to lead and serve them as justly as your father did, be what drives you forward. Do that, and the Seirans will not be able to withhold the power that is rightfully yours; no one will."

Cagalli smiled. "Thank you… all of you."

"You can thank us by proving our faith in you," said Aisha, nodding off to the side, "It looks like you're about to get the chance to do that."

Following her gaze, Heero saw a group of four men approaching. Two were wearing black and white suits and were clearly bodyguards. The other two were wearing more fancy maroon suits, and though he'd never met them before Heero knew who they were thanks to information he'd looked up during the two-day trip to Elysium; it was Unato and Yuna Seiran.

They don't look too happy to see us, he thought, but that was expected.

Indeed, the two noblemen seemed to be quite tense. While not actively hostile, their body language was sending quiet warning signals through Heero's mind. The elder Seiran's gaze was hard and stern, fixed firmly upon Cagalli and Kisaka. Even behind the man's orange-tinted glasses Heero could see Unato's narrowed eyes, and it almost seemed like he was glaring at his nation's ruler and her military advisor. While Heero had by no means anticipated a warm reception from the man, everything about Unato seemed to hint at a quiet but quite strong hatred of Cagalli, or at the very least resentment. As for Yuna, he was actually looking back and forth between Cagalli and Heero with an expression that the Gundam pilot could best describe as poorly concealed surprise… and in Heero's case, fear.

Almost like he didn't expect us to survive, thought Heero, He clearly hasn't done his homework on me.

It wasn't just Cagalli and Heero that were drawing looks from the two men though. The Gundam pilot saw Unato and Yuna glance over at Waltfeld, Lacus, and Aisha as well. Heero's senses only heightened as he saw the elder Seiran's gaze linger on the pink-haired songstress for a moment; the nobleman's animosity was contained, but still palpable to those with seasoned eyes. Much to the Perfect Soldier's relief, Murrue did not draw the same attention from either man, but that did not change the fact that his suspicions had been aroused by their behavior. Even in those few seconds, it seemed as though they had already singled out the Coordinators in the group for scrutiny.

Shifting his focus from the nobles to their bodyguards, Heero couldn't detect any trace of hostile intent from their body language. The two men were focused, perhaps a little on edge, but it was nothing out of the ordinary for people in their position. Heero's eyes were instantly drawn to the side arms holstered at their waists, and from the way they shifted their weight the Gundam pilot could tell that they had smaller backups strapped to their right ankles. Like him, it was clear that they were ready to draw at a moment's notice, but their demeanors weren't aggressive, just wary of the people they were meeting.

They're professionals, Heero thought, That's actually a good thing under these circumstances; their moves will be rational, which makes them predictable.

"Lady Cagalli," said Unato, "Colonel Kisaka… it's good to see you alive."

Perhaps Heero was imagining it, but there was something in the man's tone that suggested seeing Cagalli and Kisaka alive wasn't as joyous an occasion to the Orb nobleman than his words might suggest. The Gundam pilot had to be mindful of his feelings; there might be something to suspicions, but it was also entirely possible that he was simply being paranoid.

Yuna smiled, but to Heero it seemed forced. "Cagalli! We were so worried about you. Someone like you shouldn't be out on the front lines like that!"

"I'm not afraid to risk my life to defend my people," she replied firmly, "Lord Unato, Yuna… it's good to see you again."

"Where are the other nobles?" asked Colonel Kisaka, "They've sent no delegates to receive their Chief Representative; hardly a warm welcome."

"The Seiran clan is the ruling authority on Elysium," said Unato, scowling at the Colonel, "That fact has been recognized by the members of the other noble families on this colony. My son and I are a sufficient greeting party; the other families are tending to their own affairs."

Sure, thought Heero as he watched the two noblemen, like making sure their holdings didn't take too big of a hit in the fighting. Cagalli's probably the only Orb noble here that actually cares about the people rather than the infrastructure and wealth of this colony.

"We've been administering Elysium quite well, and with the cooperation of the other families," said Yuna, "Our leadership has allowed both Elysium and Eden to survive and prosper even after the fall of the homeland… and the drain posed by the refugees."

"WHO YOU DID NOTHING TO PROTECT!" screamed Cagalli, taking everyone off guard with her sudden outburst, Heero included, "They were left out in the open when the Alliance broke into the colony! Do you have any idea how many of them died today?"

"Lady Cagalli, calm down!" said Kisaka, grabbing the girl by the shoulders.

"It wasn't our fault!" cried Yuna, recoiling at Cagalli's anger, "There was nothing we could do!"

"We did not leave them unprotected," said Unato, scowling at the girl, "Our interior forces were deployed to ward off the enemy."

Cagalli shook her head. Heero saw that she had regained some of her composure, but her anger was still very visible. "That doesn't change the fact that they were still out in the camps when the enemy breached the gate! I know the colony's shelters would've been at capacity, but you could still have moved the refugees to safer locations! Why didn't you do that?"

"Our resources were focused on the defense of the colony," Unato replied, "We were already stretched thin between getting the main populace to the shelters and attempting to secure the colony. It would not have been possible to move the refugees before the enemy breached the gate!"

The man's reasoning made sense, but for some reason Heero had a hard time buying it. Although he and his comrades had arrived when the battle was already well underway it had been clear that the Orb military and their allies had managed to stall the Earth Alliance forces at least for a little while. Their efforts to prevent the enemy from breaching the colony may have been doomed to failure, but they had held their foes back long enough for at least some effort to have been made by Elysium authorities to disperse or move the refugees in some manner to make them a less vulnerable target.

Waltfeld stepped forward to intervene in the confrontation. "Enough! We don't have time for an argument here!"

The firm, authoritative voice of the former ZAFT Field Marshal was enough to silence Cagalli and the Seirans, but in the latter case it was only momentarily. "How dare you!" snarled Unato, "You insolent lout! Do you know who you're dealing with?"

Waltfeld glared at the man, and the Desert Tiger bared his fangs. "Do I know, you ask?" he growled, and the Orb nobleman seemed to shrink beneath his withering gaze, "Yes. Do I give a shit? Fuck no. You're going to fall in line, you wrinkled old rat, or I'll rip your balls off and feed them to you. Is that clear, Lord Unato?" He all but spat out the last two words.

Heero was impressed, and as he shared a brief glance with Murrue he had to stop himself from smirking.

And you were worried about me causing an incident…

Now it was Lacus who stepped forward, placing herself between the two men and putting hand on the shoulder of each. "Gentlemen, please; now is not the time for this. The people of this colony need our help, and we cannot afford to let arguments distract us from aiding them!"

The pink-haired songstress's charisma was in full force, and the Gundam pilot marveled at the calming effect her words had on the two men. Waltfeld gave the young woman a nod, took a deep breath, and stepped back. For his part, Unato backed down as well, though to Heero it almost seemed as though he was recoiling from the Coordinator girl's touch. If Lacus took notice of the man's behavior, she gave no sign of it. Instead she simply stepped back and nodded at Cagalli.

Glancing over at Waltfeld, Heero saw him rejoin his lover. Aisha spoke very softly to him, and while Heero couldn't hear what she was saying he was quite adept at lip reading. Her message was simply two words; "well played." The Desert Tiger smirked before turning to Heero and Murrue and giving them a very small nod and smile.

Heero returned the nod, understanding that Waltfeld's confrontation with the Orb nobleman hadn't been just an angry outburst here; it had been a firm reminder to the elder Seiran of the kind of people Cagalli now had backing her. If the man was planning on acting in any way to obstruct Orb's young Chief Representative as she asserted her power over Elysium, retribution would be swift in coming.

For her part, Cagalli simply stepped forward. "Lord Unato," she said, "under the authority granted to me by the War Powers Article, I'm assuming direct rule of all our sovereign territory at L3. I am making the Elysium colony our nation's temporary capital in light of the current Earth Alliance occupation of our homeland, and it will remain so until the end of the war and the removal of the enemy occupation forces. Is that understood?"

"Hold on, Cagalli!" yelled Yuna, "You can't just expect us to…"

"She can and she does," said Heero, glaring at the younger Seiran, "She's the ruler of your country, and she's demanding your cooperation and loyalty. I suggest you give it to her, or Waltfeld won't be the only one you'll have to answer to."

Yuna flinched under the Gundam pilot's withering stare before taking a step back, seeming to seek shelter behind his father. He mumbled something under his breath, and to Heero it sounded like he had said "Why couldn't the Alliance have killed him too?"

Heero felt Murrue give his hand a tight squeeze, and as he looked over at her he saw that she was glaring at the Seirans, especially Yuna. The Perfect Soldier mused that perhaps he may have heard Yuna correctly, though the aristocrat and his father had done plenty already to draw Murrue's anger with their behavior without potentially wishing for Heero's death under his breath.

Cagalli nodded at Heero. "Thanks," she said before turning back to the Seirans.

"Now," she said, "as my first act with this authority, I'm ordering all emergency personnel that have not already done so to aid the survivors of the attack. That goes for both civil servants and members of the military; our first priorities are to take care of the wounded and search the debris for survivors. I've already received offers of support from Captain Ramius of the Archangel and Field Marshal Waltfeld on behalf of the ZAFT defectors to lend us their medical staff in our time of need, and I am taking them up on it. Our emergence response crews will coordinate with them."

She looked at Kisaka before turning back to the nobles. "Colonel Kisaka will act as our liaison between Orb and our allies, and has my authority to act as he deems necessary to ensure maximum efficiency in this matter. Is that clear?"

Unato nodded. "Yes… Lady Cagalli."

"Good," said Cagalli before turning to the Eternal's delegation, "Field Marshal Waltfeld, I can have maintenance crews at the docks to complete the repairs to Task Force 9.3's warships that they weren't able to accomplish while underway. If you can get a ship rotation set up and submitted to Elysium Control they can get started right away."

Waltfeld nodded. "I'll do that. I'm sure Commander Bohuslav will be glad to get his ships back up to full fighting shape."

"Yes," said Cagalli, "and I'll also have the crews top off the ammunition spent by all our ships and mobile suits during the battle."

Then she turned to Murrue and Heero. "I know the Archangel just touched down, but could you have her ready to launch again as soon as replenishment is done? She's the strongest ship in our group, and has the best mobile suit and pilot on board. Please, you two will be vital to the defense of Elysium until we can restore the colony's forces."

Murrue nodded, but Heero wasn't quite ready to go along with Cagalli's request. "I know how important securing the space around Elysium is, Cagalli, but if possible I'd like to delay for a little. Warfare may be what I'm best at, but I also have basic first aid training; every Gundam pilot does. I can't perform complex surgery, and my skills are a little rusty, but I should be able to help some of the colonists and refugees that were wounded during the attack. I'd like to help out Elysium's emergency response personnel for a little bit. The attack was less than an hour ago, which means my field skills will be most useful now in the immediate aftermath; the more time that goes by, the less I'll be able to help."

Cagalli nodded and smiled. "All right… thanks Heero."

"I'll ask for volunteers from my crew," said Murrue, "You'll need all the help you can get to rescue people trapped in rubble, and I'm sure there are other ways my people can assist yours."

"Ok," said Cagalli, "but only for a few hours; I need the Archangel and Wing Zero ready to defend the colony, especially while the ships from Task Force 9.3 and the surviving Alliance defectors are undergoing repairs. After that we can work out a better rotation."

"Cagalli," said Lacus, "I'd like to volunteer as well. I may not have any medical training, but I'm sure I can do something to help the survivors. I believe Kira would like to help as well."

Cagalli nodded. "Thanks, I appreciate that."

Glancing over at the Seirans, Heero saw them both scowl at Lacus's offer of aid. What do they have against her?, he thought.

Looking over at Waltfeld, he was relieved to see that the Desert Tiger had caught the Seirans discomfort as well. Waltfeld nodded at him, a silent message to the Gundam pilot; he'd be wary of them, and would take steps to protect Lacus.

"If that's everything for now," said Murrue, "then we should get to work. We have to move as quickly as possible if we're to save as many people as we can."

"Absolutely," Cagalli replied before turning to her right hand man, "Kisaka, get to the main control center and begin coordinating efforts between our allies and Elysium personnel. I'll go over to the colony's administrative hall and work from there to mobilize our resources as efficiently as possible."

She looked over at the Seirans. "Lord Unato, I'll require your assistance; you have more familiarity with the administration of this colony than I do."

Unato reluctantly bowed his head. "Of course, Lady Cagalli."

Watching his friend give orders, Heero could not help but be impressed by how far Cagalli had come since he had met her back in North Africa. She'd grown from a headstrong girl fighting with a pack of rebels into a true leader.

Her father would be proud, he thought, and I imagine she would've made quite an impression on some of the leaders from my old world as well.

"Heero," said Murrue softly, causing the Gundam pilot to look at her. When he did so, she gave his hand another squeeze before glancing over at the Seirans. "Be careful, ok?"

Heero nodded as he followed her gaze. He was glad that Murrue was wary of the Seirans as well, even if neither of them had any idea if they really warranted such suspicion. His feelings were telling him that they did, and it was good to know that the woman he loved was with him on this.

"I will," he quietly replied, "and you do the same. Be mindful of the docks and any personnel that work on the Archangel that aren't ours."

"You got it," said Murrue.

"Everyone," said Cagalli, "move out!"

….

Kira had known from the start that what he would see inside the colony would not be pretty. Even while in the middle of the battle and inside the Freedom the young Coordinator had gotten more than just a glimpse of the destruction wrought upon the interior of Elysium by the two advanced Earth Alliance mobile suits. After what he had seen since that fateful day at Heliopolis months ago, the boy thought that he had born witness to the worst that modern warfare had to offer, that he was now steeled against the brutality and devastation mankind could inflict upon itself.

Looking upon the carnage inside Elysium, he realized that he had been very wrong.

As he and Lacus stepped out of the car that had brought them to the park where the largest refugee camp was, Kira was completely blown away by the utter devastation that surrounded them. Rubble and the burned out husks of buildings and vehicles were everywhere, so much of the area was scorched black from where the fire had blazed before the colony's emergency response personnel had finally managed to put out the blaze, and bodies were strewn all over the place.

The smell of charred and seared flesh hit him like a punch to the gut, and it took every ounce of strength the young man possessed to not fall to his knees and vomit on the spot. His eyes widened in horror at the destruction and carnage that surrounded him, and as he looked to his right he saw that Lacus's reaction was much the same as his.

"Oh, my god…" she said softly, her already pale face now a ghostly white with shock.

Kira couldn't even manage that much; words completely failed him when confronted with the sight of such devastation.

"Miss Clyne!" called out a voice.

Kira and Lacus turned to see a young woman with short-cropped red hair and blue eyes running towards them. She was dressed in a white jumpsuit with a red cross on the right shoulder; she was part of the colony's medical staff.

"Yes?" said the pink-haired songstress.

The woman stopped for a moment to catch her breath before speaking again. "I'm Alison Rain, one of the nurses. We were contacted by Lady Cagalli a few minutes ago and told to expect you. She said you wanted to help and to direct you towards any area I thought you could do some good."

Lacus bowed her head. "I know my skills aren't well suited to saving lives, but I still wish to aid your people in whatever way I can."

Alison nodded. "We've set up an area where we're keeping children that… that lost family members today. The counselor from the Archangel is already over there, and we have others working with her too, but I know they could use your help, Miss Clyne. Please… those kids have been through far too much today."

"Of course," Lacus replied, "Just show me the way."

"Should I come too?" asked Kira.

Alison shook her head. "We've got volunteers working to shift rubble, trying to dig out survivors. You can either help them out, or go to one of the med tents and help those who suffered only minor injuries. We need more help in both those areas, so it's your call."

"I guess I'll go help the guys clearing the debris," said Kira, "I don't really have any first aid training."

The red-head pointed off to her left. "Head down the block that way. One of the apartments suffered a partial collapse; a blast nailed the building next to it, and the shockwave messed up like half structure. The fire on that block's out, so they'll let you in. They're still pulling people out of there, and they're not picky about who comes to help them."

Kira nodded. "Got it."

"Watch yourself," said Alison, "It'd be a real pain if the debris shifted and you got trapped too."

Kira was taken aback at how casual she was about that prospect, but there was nothing he could do but simply nod again. "Ok."

Alison nodded before turning to Lacus. "Follow me, Miss Clyne."

"Just a second," said Lacus.

Kira was puzzled by her delay, but only for a moment. The angelic songstress smiled at him and gave him a quick kiss on the cheek. "Take care, Kira. I'll see you later."

The boy felt his cheeks warm, and despite the surrounding devastation he could not help but return her smile with a small one of his own. "Ok."

Lacus turned back to Alison, who gave her a nod. "Right this way, Miss Clyne."

Kira watched the two women head off towards the camp before turning the way Alison had pointed and setting off. Though his destination was not far away, the street and sidewalks were strewn with debris, and the young man was forced to proceed with caution to avoid injury.

As he made his way through the city block he was given a more up-close and personal view of war than he had seen in since Heliopolis. It was one thing to witness death and destruction from the cockpit of a mobile suit, but to actually walk through the aftermath of a battle like he was doing now, to be able to reach out and touch the chunks of concrete and the twisted and warped pieces of metal, to feel tiny bits of glass crunch beneath his boots, to feel the heat from smoldering ruins, to smell the burnt flesh and see the torn, mangled corpses still lying everywhere…

It was a nightmare he could never have imagined.

He could hear the blare of sirens, the hiss of fire hoses as they put out blazes, the cries of the wounded, the shrieks and wails of those who had lost family and friends. The sights and sounds of tragedy were everywhere, inescapable... and they all served to hammer home the harsh lesson the boy had learned today, one that he had refused to learn until now.

I should've been able to stop those Alliance machines, he thought, if… if I had fought to kill from the beginning, I could've stopped them. I tried to take them down without killing their pilots, and it slowed me down. They were able to breach the gate, enter the colony, kill so many people… because I wasn't willing to have blood on my hands, not until it was too late.

Now he did have blood on his hands once again, but it was of more than just the pilots he killed. The civilians that had died today may as well have been killed by him. Kira could only wonder how many had died today… and how many he could've saved if he'd listened to his friends sooner.

Heero, Athrun, Waltfeld, he thought as he surveyed the destruction, they were right. They knew something like this would happen eventually, they tried to warn me, and I didn't listen. Now so many people are dead… and it's my fault.

Looking back, the young man grimly realized that these were not the only lives he could've saved had he been able to stomach the dark reality war like his friends had proven themselves capable of. His clash with the three Alliance prototypes during the invasion of Orb was a clear example of what happened when he held back against skilled opponents; others paid the price while he tried to avoid killing. How many Orb soldiers had died that day because he couldn't bring himself to fight like he had back when he had been flying the Strike?

The fall of Orb was not the only occasion where he should have fought lethally. That fateful clash with Creuset at L4 had lingered on his mind long after the Three Ships Alliance had departed from Mendel… and that chilling encounter with the deranged ZAFT officer had haunted him ever since. The man wanted to wipe out not just one race but all of mankind, was dangerously close to achieving that goal, and Kira had let him go. Creuset may have bragged about how his plan was impossible to stop now, but there was no way to know for certain. For all Kira knew the masked madman had been bluffing, or at least the outcome of his plan may not have been as set in stone as he had claimed.

If I'd killed him at L4, thought Kira, could I have stopped his plan? I know the Earth Alliance and ZAFT are still determined to destroy each other, and they may already be past the point of no return, but still… I don't know if killing Creuset could have made it easier to accomplish our mission.

What the boy did know was that he had let someone who was quite possibly the most dangerous man in the Cosmic Era go when he had had the chance to kill him, and that there were potentially billions of lives that could be still be in danger because of it. Now he had a better understanding of why Heero, Waltfeld, and so many of the others were so much more willing than him to take life on the battlefield, why they were able to endure the burden that came with having so much blood on one's hands. Kira knew that they all had personal reasons for fighting, namely people they cared about and would do anything to protect, but they also had their eyes on the big picture in a way that the boy from Heliopolis never had until now. They knew that for every life they took they were potentially saving so many more, that the blood on their hands was a drop in the bucket when compared to all that could be lost.

Kira had believed that with the power and precision of the Freedom, he could save everyone, enemies included. However, his friends and allies had long ago accepted that that just wasn't possible. While they strove to keep their comrades and innocent people alive, they did not make the same efforts for their foes because they knew that killing them was something that could not be avoided, and that the those they sought to defend would be endangered if they gave anything less than a complete commitment to defeating their enemy on the battlefield.

And in war, that 'complete commitment' meant being able and willing to kill.

Kira recalled with perfect clarity just how easily he had killed that first Earth Alliance pilot in the battle earlier. He hadn't even thought about; he'd done it on instinct alone. From there it hadn't taken nearly as much effort to dispatch the rest of the advanced Strike units facing him as it had to knock out their individual weapons. The sheer efficiency of fighting lethally was undeniable… but to Kira it was also terrifying. The ease at which one could take life in modern warfare made the boy very afraid of becoming a desensitized killer, someone who held human life in no more regard than that of bugs swatted aside on a hot summer night.

His friends weren't like that though. Heero, Athrun, Waltfeld, and the rest… Kira knew that, as easily as they seemed to be able to kill in combat, that power and efficiency had not blinded them to the basic value of human life. As fearsome as they were in battle, they had still held on to their humanity, and Kira knew that he had as well when he had been piloting the Strike. However, for some reason his friends had proven themselves much more capable at dealing with the burden that came with taking life than he had, or at least were much better at concealing any pain it caused them.

Maybe it's their training, he thought, I mean, I didn't have any prior experience before I piloted the Strike, but all of our other pilots did. Plenty of practice, actual battles… they were seasoned well before I flew that machine. Is it that simple?

The boy didn't know. It was just something he'd have to ask one of his friends later.

As he moved along Kira's eyes were drawn to a young man kneeling by a pile of rubble. The boy looked no older than Kira, perhaps a couple years younger. Kira wondered if he had been injured and in all the chaos no one had been able to help him yet, and as he got closer his eyes widened when he realized that the kid was kneeling in a pool of blood.

"Hey!" yelled Kira as he ran up to the boy, "Are you ok?"

He slowed down as he got closer, and it quickly dawned on him that it wasn't the boy's blood that was on the ground. Apart from a few scrapes and bruises the kid appeared fine; the blood was coming from a trio of bodies pinned under slabs of concrete.

"Oh no…" said Kira softly as he came to a stop just outside the blood on the ground.

He saw the boy trembling as his hand went through the hair of a young girl. "Mayu…" he said, and it sounded like he was choking back tears, "Mom… Dad…"

Taking a deep breath, Kira took a step forward. "You shouldn't be here. It's not safe."

The boy jumped as he turned around to look at Kira. "Who… who are you?"

"My name's Kira," he replied, "I came to help."

The boy looked down again at his family's corpses. "Help… now someone wants to help."

There was a very strong undercurrent of anger in his words, bitter intermingled with sorrow. A part of Kira wanted to back off; this was clearly very delicate ground he was treading on. However, he just couldn't leave the kid here like this.

He saw the boy glare at him. "No one helped us during the attack. The colony abandoned us."

Kira's eyes widened. "What are you talking about? The Orb military fought to drive away the Earth Alliance. Soldiers died to save the people in this colony!"

The kid shook his head. "They didn't die to protect us! The government people abandoned our camp; no one tried to get us to shelter! They didn't give a damn about the refugees… about my family!"

Those words brought to mind what Athrun and the others had talked about before; a traitor within the colony. However, this was hardly the time or place to mention that. The boy was angry enough as it was, and the last thing Kira wanted to do was set him against the Orb government… though from what he could see right now, it could already be too late for that.

Kira sighed before moving forward and putting his hand on the boy's shoulder. "Look, you can't stay here. Come on."

The kid looked down at his slain family. "Where am I supposed to go?"

"There's a place by the camp where… where other kids like you are at," Kira replied, "They'll help you out. Do you have other family in the colony?"

The boy shook his head. "No... I've got an aunt and uncle at L5…"

Kira wanted to say that he'd be taken to them soon, but with all that had happened between Orb and the PLANTs in recent months the likelihood that the Coordinator homeland would be taking refugees from L3 was quite low.

"Well… I'm sure someone will be able to help you until you can see them again," said Kira, "Let's go."

The boy looked from the three bodies to Kira. "What… what about them?"

Kira looked down, trying his best to figure out what to say. "I… I think someone from the camp will take care of them eventually. I'm sure they'll tell you. Just tell them where… where they are."

The boy nodded before finally standing up, and Kira couldn't help but wince at all the blood on his legs. It may not have been his, but it was still jarring to see so much of it on someone so young. The anger seemed to have faded from his eyes; only numb sorrow remained.

"Follow me," said Kira, and he began leading the boy in the direction he'd seen Lacus and Alison go off in earlier. There were several large white tents set up there, along with multiple ambulances taking on patients to bring to hospitals that Kira was sure were already overwhelmed.

"What's your name?" asked Kira.

The boy was quiet for a moment before replying. "Shinn. Shinn Asuka."

Kira nodded. "Shinn… I'm sorry… about your family."

Sorry that the Alliance killed them, he silently added, sorry that I couldn't save them…

Shinn's only reply was a silent nod.

….

"Are you ready?" asked Heero as he looked up at his latest patient.

The raven-haired thirteen-year old girl nodded at him. Her brown eyes held more than a little trepidation, but she was still steeling herself for what was to come. Her mother was sitting on the cot next to her, holding her hand, and a towel was clenched between her teeth. Heero certainly couldn't blame her for being scared. After all, he'd done this procedure before… to himself.

And he knew just how much it hurt.

"Ok," he said, "bite down hard."

The girl nodded again, and he saw her already tightly clenched jaw grip the towel even firmer. At the same time the girl's mother winced as her daughter squeezed her hand like a steel vice.

Now, he thought, and snapped her left leg bone back into place.

The girl's cry was muffled by the towel, but the fresh tears running down her face belied her pain. Heero wasn't exactly thrilled about putting her through this procedure, but with the colony's medical staff stretched to the breaking point they just couldn't spare anyone to help the girl's leg in a slower, gentler manner; battlefield remedies were the only option.

"Yomiko!" cried the girl's mother.

The girl let the towel fall and took several deep breaths before speaking. "I'm… I'm ok, mom. It really hurt, but… I think it's getting better."

Indeed it was; all it took was a glance for the Gundam pilot to confirm that the girl's leg had been properly set.

"The bone's back in place," he said, "but you should still take it easy for a few days."

Yomiko nodded as she wiped away her tears, and her mother glared at Heero. "Why didn't you count? I thought you were supposed to give her some kind of warning!"

"Her warning was when I told her to bite the towel," Heero replied as he stood up, "The longer she tenses up, the worse the pain is. It's better for it to be sudden."

He then turned and looked at Yomiko. "Still… I'm sorry."

Yomiko shook her head and gave him a pained smile. "It's ok… thank you."

Heero watched as the girl's mother helped her up and the two of them slowly made their way out of the tent. He'd long ago lost track of how many injuries like Yomiko's he'd helped treat since his arrival inside Elysium. There'd been broken arms, dislocated shoulders, legs that were out of place… the list went on. Time had become a blur, and the constant work was nearly as tiring as a prolonged battle. Despite the heavy workload though, the Gundam pilot did not feel burdened. Quite the contrary; it felt very good to be healing people rather than killing them.

He wasn't the only one helping the refugees in the large white tent. There were six other people tending to patients with non-life threatening injuries, doing their best to treat people as quickly and efficiently as possible. As hectic as it was, Heero knew that they had it easy; he was sure that things were much worse with the units handling critical injuries. He'd heard nonstop sirens blaring as ambulances had gone back and forth between the field treatment centers established by the civil authorities and the Orb military and the colony's hospitals, and he could only imagine just how bad the situation was at Elysium's principal medical facilities.

"Yuy, was it?" asked a voice behind him.

Turning around, Heero was confronted with a middle-aged woman with Far Eastern features. It took him a moment to recall what she had introduced herself as earlier; Dr. Miya Lang. She wasn't the kind of person one would expect to be treating wounded refugees; she was a dentist, not a surgeon. However, she'd nonetheless volunteered to help out, and she had been put in charge of the tent Heero had found himself working in.

"What is it?" he asked.

"Why don't call it good for today?" she said, "You've been at it for nearly six hours straight."

Heero shook his head. "I'm fine, doctor."

Dr. Lan leaned closer. "While the others may not have recognized you," she whispered, "I can assure you I don't share their ignorance. I've been following war news that makes its way out here; I know you're Wing Zero's pilot, and that you fought in the battle earlier today. More importantly, I've seen the online video of your duel with the Valkyrie, so I'm pretty damn sure I know what you look like."

Heero nodded. "So you've done your homework. That doesn't mean you know my limits, doctor."

"Perhaps," she replied, "but I know that setting broken bones and bandaging wounds is not your primary duty; combat flying is. I appreciate the work you've been doing, but I'm sure that your talents will be far better used in defending Elysium should the Earth Alliance try to attack again, and to do that you need your rest. We can handle things from here; no one with life-threatening injuries is being brought to this tent, after all."

Her points were valid, and between the fierce battle earlier and the hours of work in the tent Heero was definitely feeling the strain. Still, he was reluctant to just get up and call it quits.

"I can stick around a little longer," he said.

Dr. Lang shook her head. "Perhaps, but there's really no need for it. Most of the patients still here are immobile but stable, and others have only superficial wounds. We can manage them, and you have more important things to do than treat minor injuries."

"All right," said Heero, and he began making his way through the maze of cots towards the nearest exit, "If you need me to come back, just contact the Archangel."

Dr. Lang nodded and smiled. "I will. Thank you for all your help, Heero Yuy."

Heero simply nodded before leaving the tent. Upon exiting he began weaving his way through the hustling emergency personnel that rushed back and forth in the kind of organized chaos that the Gundam pilot had long ago learned to associate with disaster relief efforts. Working through the crowd with practiced ease, Heero soon found himself at the perimeter of the temporary relief center.

I can't exactly hail a cab here, he thought as he looked around at the rubble-strewn streets, and my ride from earlier is nowhere in sight.

He was about to flag down a passing member of the Orb military when he heard a familiar voice call out to him.

"Heero!"

Looking off to his left, he saw Murrue making her way down the sidewalk towards him. Heero wasted no time in getting over to her.

"Murrue," he said, meeting her halfway, "What are you doing out here?"

She smiled and leaned in for a quick kiss. "I came to get you, Heero."

While he appreciated the thought, he still found it odd that she had left the ship at a time like this, and said as much once their lips parted. "I'm glad you came, but don't you still have work to do back on the ship?"

Murrue shook her head. "Honestly, there really wasn't that much. After I sent off Dr. Clark, his assistants, and Dr. Claudia all I had to do was oversee the replenishment of the munitions we spent in the fight and write up my after-action report for Waltfeld."

She looked around, her smile fading as she observed the wreckage. "I felt useless just sitting inside the ship at dock like that, but I put off coming out here because I didn't want to get in the way. However, after all the time that's passed since the battle, I figured you'd been out here long enough. You need to get back to the Archangel, Heero; you need to eat and rest."

"The doctor I worked with said as much," replied Heero.

"How was it?" asked Murrue, putting her hand on his shoulder, "Your work, I mean?"

"All things considered, I think I got off easy," said Heero, closing his eyes for a moment, "I was helping with non-critical injuries, remember? I'd hate to be the surgeons handling the life-threatening wounds."

When he opened his eyes again he looked at Murrue. "I got to work as soon as I arrived, so I never got the chance to ask anyone…"

"How many civilian casualties there were?" she finished for him.

Heero nodded. "Have you heard anything?"

Murrue sighed. "We got a preliminary report just before I left the ship. Early estimates put the civilian death toll somewhere between three or four thousand... and that's expected to climb once the government's had more time to account for the dead, along with those that the surgeons can't save. Most of the colony's resident population was evacuated to the shelters, so the overwhelming majority of the casualties are refugees. We don't even have an estimate yet on how many people were wounded."

"I see," said Heero, his voice almost a whisper.

Almost ten percent of the refugees killed, quite possibly more, he thought grimly, I know it could've been worse, but still…

"I talked to Cagalli and Waltfeld," said Murrue, "The Archangel, Eternal, and Kusanagi will remain at the docks for another two hours. When that time's up we'll be recalling all our personnel and heading out to defend the colony while giving Commander Bohuslav's ships room to come inside and begin repairs. Task Force 9.3's medical staff will replace ours in aid efforts to the refugees; I'm not going to sortie without medics to treat my crew if something goes wrong."

Heero nodded. "I'm sure Cagalli understood."

"Yes," Murrue replied, "though I still feel bad about pulling my staff out. Still, it can't be helped, and the ZAFT medics should be able to pick up the slack. Kira and Lacus returned to the Eternal a little while ago, as did other volunteers from our three main warships; you're the last one out here apart from medical personnel, Heero. It's time to head back."

"Where's your ride?" he asked.

She pointed back the way she had come. "A few blocks down that way. I knew the roads would be bad down here, and I wanted to give the colony's emergency vehicles as much room as I could."

"Ok," Heero replied, "let's go."

Murrue nodded. The two of them began walking, surveying the destruction as they went.

"I'm not sure I could ever get used to this," she said, "It's one thing to fight from the bridge of a warship, but to see this kind of devastation up close…"

"I know what you mean," said Heero, "and I don't think we should get used to it. The day that seeing civilians attacked like this becomes the norm, that we can casually accept it, is the day we lose our humanity."

Murrue reached over and grabbed his hand. "You're right."

The two of them walked in silence for a little bit. As they reached the end of the first block they were confronted with the sight of a badly damaged apartment. The entire right side of it had been blasted away, and much of the rest of it was scorched black. Wisps of smoke rose from the structure, though the fire that had no doubt raged earlier had been largely doused. There were no rescue crews working the rubble, and no cries for help on the wind; emergency personnel and volunteers had already finished up here.

Refugees weren't housed there, Heero thought as his eyes lingered on the burnt-out apartment, and there's no vehicle or mobile suit remains that I can see. It was hit by random fire…

"I hope the people who lived there were evacuated," said Murrue.

Heero was about to respond when he felt his foot bump against something. He would've dismissed it as a bit of debris, something was off about it; it was too soft. The Gundam pilot stopped in his tracks, looked down…

…and saw a little dog lying at his feet.

Its fur was still light, with only a few black marks from the heat, but it was completely motionless. Heero absently guessed that it had been killed by the shock of the blast and thrown clear out of the building; its owner must've forgotten about it in the rush to evacuate.

His eyes widened as he took the sight in. Such an image would not normally have had that kind of effect on Heero, but it wasn't the dead little dog itself that had such an impact. Rather, it was the memories that had been stirred by the sight…

Charred ruins of a residential block…

Shrieks of sirens, the cries of the wounded, the wails of the grieving…

The smell of dead and seared flesh…

The ash falling like snow…

The feel of the dead little dog's fur as he cradled it in his arms…

Then he heard the voice of an angel, pulling him out of his old nightmare.

"Heero."

He turned to Murrue, who put her hand on his shoulder. "Don't go back there. This isn't that colony; it's not that tragedy."

"How…" he said softly, "how did you…?"

"Know where your mind had gone?" she finished for him, "I know you, Heero. I remember every detail you told me about that night, that attack in that colony. Your reaction to that dead dog was the only clue I needed."

Heero nodded. "Yeah… I guess so."

"Heero," said Murrue, her voice firm and resolute, "we did everything we could here; we both know that. The people that fell today would not want us to dwell on the past, what could have been; they'd want us to focus on today and tomorrow, on doing all we can to protect the countless others like them."

The Gundam pilot nodded again. "You're right."

Taking one last look at the little, lifeless dog and the burnt-out apartment, he turned back to Murrue. "Let's go."

Her hand left his shoulder and returned to holding his hand. "Yes."

Continuing on their way, Heero could not help but draw parallels in his mind between the man that had ordered the assault on Elysium and the one that had instructed him to attack that Alliance base inside the colony two years ago in his old world. While one fought in the name of racial purity and earth and the other waged war in the name of colonial independence, both had shared the same ruthlessness, the same willingness to destroy anyone and anything that stood in between them and their path to victory.

Dekim Barton and Muruta Azrael, he thought as he and Murrue reached a parking lot and climbed into the jeep she had taken to get here from the Elysium spaceport, They may literally be worlds apart, but the similarities between them cannot be denied. Throw Patrick Zala in there as well, and you have the makings of a very unholy trinity.

The leader of the Barton Foundation, chief financial backer of the colonial resistance and Gundam scientists, and the mastermind behind the original Operation Meteor, had been unaccounted for in the aftermath of the Eve Wars. More to the point, he was as far out of Heero's hands as he possibly be with the Gundam pilot's journey to the Cosmic Era; the Perfect Soldier could not mete out justice to him if he wanted to.

It doesn't matter, he thought, the war Dekim helped launch is over; Earth and the colonies are at peace in my old world. The threats in my new world are what matter now. Azrael, Zala, their top supporters, Creuset… they're a danger to everyone in the Cosmic Era. If they're not stopped, then the thousands of refugees killed today will be just a drop in the bucket compared to the bloodbath those fanatics are preparing to unleash. I'll take them down, save my new world… and help those who died today rest in peace.

….

"This is a disaster!" cried Yuna as he slumped down in his chair, "The Earth Alliance fleet was destroyed, Cagalli and Yuy are still alive, the refugees aren't dead, and now even more Coordinators are in our colony!"

"And now it's no longer even our colony now," Unato grumbled as he settled in at his desk, "Damn it, what a mess."

Both Seirans had finally caught a break after hours of helping their new master coordinate relief efforts for the wounded refugees, along with getting a jump on clearing the debris. Unato's foul mood had only gotten worse when he had seen the other representatives of Orb's noble families quickly fall in line behind Uzumi's daughter; there was no chance for him to align them against her now.

Not that there ever was, he thought ruefully as he reached for the bottle of bourbon he kept in the bottom drawer of his desk, not with the likes of the Desert Tiger and the Demon Lord of Avalon backing her. Orb's military wasted no time in falling in behind Uzumi's little bitch as well, and her efforts to help the refugees and the colony as a whole recover will only cement the people's support for her. All that planning, all our work to build a power base out here… it's all been undone.

Grabbing two glasses and filling them up, he scowled as he recalled the confrontation on the docks with Cagalli's entourage. The pink-haired Coordinator just seemed concerned with helping the refugees, as had Uzumi's daughter, but he hadn't missed the way the others had looked at him and his son. The Desert Tiger, that black-haired woman with him, Heero Yuy, the Archangel's Captain, even Colonel Kisaka… none of them trusted Unato or Yuna.

And the Orb nobleman knew that if they found out exactly what he and his son had done, they would waste no time in exacting retribution for the blood that had been spilt today.

"What are we going to do?" Yuna whimpered, "Azrael's going to be pissed, and if Cagalli's new friends uncover our connection with him then there's no way we'll ever hold power again!"

Taking a sip from his glass, Unato knew that regaining power was the least of his problems at the moment. The threats made by the Desert Tiger and Demon Lord were still fresh in his mind, and he had no doubt that those two men would be more than willing to make good on them.

They probably wouldn't even bother with a trial, he mused, Soldiers like them are nothing more than brutes, and they don't care about the niceties of legal procedure. They'd just shoot us and call it good.

"How do we keep them from finding out?" Yuna continued to whine, "How do we keep Azrael from coming back and killing all of us?"

"Shut up," Unato growled, rubbing his forehead, "Your incessant mewling is giving me a damn migraine. Let me think!"

A few minutes of silence followed before Unato spoke again. "We didn't use military encryption when we contacted Azrael; we hired a black market programmer to conceal the transmission. The chances of an investigation by Kisaka and his dogs turning up anything beyond circumstantial evidence is slim."

"What about your office computer?" asked Yuna, "Wouldn't the hard drive still have a record of the conversation since we contacted Azrael on it?"

Unato shook his head. "I paid that programmer damn good money to wipe the hard drive after the transmission, and we bribed the security forces to look the other way while he altered the colony's communications records. We covered our tracks, and the programmer won't double cross us; we have enough history with him that he values us as repeat customers. Besides, he knows that if he leaks any information against us that we can easily put him away for life… or six feet under."

"Why don't we make sure?" said Yuna, "We know where he is; we could send someone to silence him permanently."

"No," Unato replied, "As much as I might want to, we can't. He's a crafty bastard; he probably has a failsafe planned for the event of such a betrayal. I'd imagine a dead-hand of sorts; we kill him and the information is sent to some source we're unaware of, and then it goes public. Fortunately he's also a professional; so long as he's paid for the contract and not backstabbed, he keeps client confidentiality."

"That still leaves Azrael," said Yuna, not even trying to hide his fear, "He wanted our colonies aligned with him, and he wants all those damn Coordinator refugees dead. Thanks to Cagalli and her friends, neither of those happened! What if he exposes us out of spite?"

"He won't," said Unato, though he half-wondered if he was saying that just to reassure himself, "Azrael may not be pleased with what happened here today, but he'll realize that we still have value to him. We may not have power here now, but once the Earth Alliance has dealt with the Coordinators at L5 they'll turn their attention back to L3, and when they do Azrael will be looking for partners to make his move into our territory easier."

"Why would he wait?" asked Yuna, "He's got the power to invade L3 whenever he wants! He could attack again before he begins his final assault on the Coordinators!"

Unato shook his head. "No. After that fleet was wiped out, I think Azrael will conserve his resources, save them for finishing the conquest of Earth and the final assault on L5. For now, we don't have to worry about him."

Yuna took a swig of his glass. "So we just bow our heads to Cagalli and the rabble she's surrounded herself with? That's beneath us!"

"We'll stomach it," Unato growled, "All we can do right now is bide our time. At least with Cagalli and her allies focused on helping the refugees and defending the colony they're less likely to devote resources to investigating the 'traitor' within Elysium. That will give us room to finish covering our tracks."

Taking another sip, Yuna put his glass down and folded his arms, looking like nothing more than a petulant child. "Renegade soldiers, Coordinator freaks, Athha family sycophants… and we have to follow all of them. How disgraceful."

It was hard for Unato to argue with that assessment, but unlike his son he had long ago learned the value of patience and adaptability. The plans they'd made with Azrael may have fallen apart today, but that did not mean that they would be stuck in their current situation forever. Unato was willing to endure the current state of affairs, however distasteful they might be, if it meant that he and his family could survive politically and literally. His ambitions, the ascendance of the Seiran family to absolute power in Orb, had been set back considerably, but they had not been put in the grave.

You win this round, Cagalli, he thought as he took another drink, but if you think I'll just forget the humiliation your brutes made me endure today, you are sorely mistaken. Enjoy your time on the throne, you little bitch; one way or another, we'll bring you down in time.

….

"Sir," said the Eternal's helmsman, "we have cleared the colony."

Waltfeld nodded as he watched the Archangel and the Kusanagi out the forward viewport. The two advanced battleships had pulled out ahead of the prototype ZAFT cruiser and were already splitting up. "Move us to our part of the patrol grid. Is Priscilla ready to launch?"

The ship's mobile suit combat controller nodded. "Miss Dalca's Wraith is on the catapult; she's green for deployment."

Her machine is, he thought, I just hope she is as well. It's been about nine hours since the battle; I had her, Adaline, and Lan get some rest while Kira went into the colony with Lacus. Hopefully she got a decent amount of shuteye. I know I could use some right about now…

The military leader of the Three Ships Alliance had been kept busy long after the fighting had stopped. Once the initial meeting with the Seirans at the docks had been concluded, Waltfeld had wasted no time in coordinating both relief efforts for the refugees and repair/rearmament for his warships. Even with the three large battleships berthed in Elysium's main docks there had still been room for more vessels, and the Desert Tiger had ordered that a few of Task Force 9.3's ships be brought in for immediate repair. After that he'd spent his time going over post-action reports, reviewing the status of the surviving Orb defenders and Earth Alliance defectors, overseeing the topping off of the Eternal's munitions and supplies, along with a host of other administrative work.

Looking out forward viewport, he could see the rest of Commander Bohuslav's battered warships queuing up to enter the colony. Now that the three most powerful warships of their organization were back out in space the rest of their lesser vessels could go inside Elysium and undergo much-needed repairs. Waltfeld was also looking forward to replenishing those ships' much-reduced mobile suit complements with units built either on Elysium, Eden, or the handful of smaller resource satellites that Orb still maintained at L3. However, he knew that it would be a little while before that could happen; Elysium's resources were fully committed to recovering from the attack, and Cagalli was understandably preoccupied with that rather than putting resources into arms production. As for Orb's other L3 facilities, Waltfeld imagined that they were keen to hold onto the units they had at hand for self-defense. He knew Cagalli could command them to sent new M1s and Taurus mobile suits at will, but he wouldn't push her into doing that just yet.

"Give her the go-ahead," he said.

The flight controller nodded. "Priscilla Dalca, you are clear to launch."

The voice of the most soft-spoken of the Valkyrie's subordinates came over the speaker. "Roger that. Priscilla, launching!"

The black and red mobile suit shot out of the hangar. Glancing at his personal monitor, Waltfeld saw that the other two ships were launching machines as well. From the Archangel flew the Buster, while the Kusanagi launched a pair of M1 Astrays.

Once the Task Force 9.3 warships are at full operational status, he thought, I'll have to get us set into a patrol rotation for both mobile suits and capital ships. It's not exactly efficient to have the warships alternating every eight hours like we did with the mobile suits back at L4. Maybe have the ships do patrols of a few days each, then bring the crews back into the colony for some R&R. They could certainly use a little down-time, and I think we could all do with getting out of these ships for a few days. Of course, shore leave will have to wait until the colony's recovery has moved along a bit; not exactly sensitive to take a vacation while they're still pulling bodies from the rubble.

He felt a familiar hand fall upon his shoulder, and when he looked up to his right he saw Aisha floating by his seat. "Everything going all right?"

Waltfeld nodded and smiled. "As well as it can be, all things considered. Did you get some rest?"

Aisha shook her head. "Don't you remember? I said I'd wait on you. Come on, Andy. It's been a long day. DaCosta can take over for now; that's why you had him get some shuteye immediately after the fight. Now it's your turn; you're not going to do us any good falling asleep on the bridge."

Waltfeld chuckled. "I guess that would damage my rep a bit, wouldn't it?"

Aisha smirked before leaning in to kiss him on the cheek. "Among other things, dear."

"All right," said the Desert Tiger, getting up from his chair, "DaCosta, the bridge is yours."

His longtime XO nodded. "Copy that, sir."

Waltfeld and Aisha left the bridge. As the door shut behind them the black-haired beauty turned to her lover, her expression serious.

"So," she said, "how long are we sticking around here?"

Waltfeld sighed. "Hard to say. Short-term, the colonists need all the help they can get to recover from the attack; we can't just up and leave. Besides, we need Elysium's docks to patch up Bohuslav's ships."

"I know that," she replied, "but that won't take too long. What's the plan, Andy? We weren't exactly stealthy with our arrival here; the entire Earth Sphere knows we're at L3 now."

Waltfeld nodded. "I've been thinking about that… and that might not be a bad thing."

Aisha raised an eyebrow at that. "You're going to need to help me with that one, Andy. Both the Alliance and ZAFT want us dead; us staying at L3 just draws the Orb colonies into the crossfire."

"The Orb colonies are already targets," Waltfeld replied, "The Earth Alliance proved that today. At least with us here both sides would have to devote a considerable amount of resources for an assault; the presence of Wing Zero alone would guarantee heavy casualties for them, and that's not counting the rest of us."

"I'll give you that much," said Aisha, "but the Alliance and ZAFT have proven themselves more than willing to sacrifice tons of soldiers in the pursuit of their goals. What makes you think they won't do it again to take us out now?"

"As far as out latest intel on ZAFT shows," said Waltfeld, his good eye narrowing, "Zala's still got the forces on defensive posture; the pursuit of Task Force 9.3 was their only recent offensive action. The fleet's in full pull-back mode on all fronts, and new ships and mobile suits built at L5 are going straight to the Exclusion Grid and the Boaz forward operating base. Zala's not just digging in; he's prepping for the end game, I'd bet my life on it. He won't divert ships and soldiers to attack L3, even if he knows we're here; he's going all-in with his buildup for the final clash with the Earth Alliance. I'm betting he considers Eden and Elysium an afterthought at this point, along with us."

Aisha nodded. "Ok, I'll go along with that, but you're still leaving out the Earth Alliance. They've always had the numerical edge in this war, and are even more wasteful of soldiers and resources than Zala. Just because they lost one fleet at Elysium doesn't mean they won't throw another one at it, and based on the attack at Mendel we know they really want to take out the Archangel and Wing Zero."

"Yeah," said Waltfeld, "and I know it's harder for us to get intel on the Alliance's fleet movements since our only sources on those are a few sympathetic members of the ZAFT Patrol Fleet. I can't be as certain with Azrael as I am with Zala... but I think those two are on similar wavelengths here, so to speak."

"How so?" asked Aisha.

"I think Azrael's mind is going in the same direction as Zala's," said Waltfeld, "He's made a few offensive moves in outer space – the attacks at L4 and L3 – and has cast a wide patrol net, but for the most part his orbital forces seem to be consolidating their power around Luna, L1 and L2. As L5 is the heart of ZAFT space, those three points are the principal areas of power for the Earth Alliance off-planet, with the Moon of course being the standout example. Luna, L1, and L2 are all quite close to each other, at least as far as distances in outer space go; it would not be a challenge to gather the forces off all three points at one rally point when the time comes that Azrael decides to launch the final assault."

Aisha nodded, and Waltfeld saw her lovely emerald eyes narrow in thought. "So we're reasonably sure that Azrael's about as focused on the endgame as Zala. I can see that; those two are far more alike than they would ever care to admit. However, that doesn't account for the disparity in numbers. Even with their main battle fleets massing at the Moon, L1, and L2 they could still divert enough ships to launch an overwhelming invasion of L3 that accounted for our presence."

"The ships, yes," said Waltfeld, a sly smirk appearing on his face, "but not the mobile suits. The Alliance still hasn't completely conquered Earth yet. Right now they're besieging Gibraltar, Kaoshiung, and Carpentaria, and I'm betting Zala's remaining surface forces are dug in tight at those three bases. Even with the new mobile suits the Alliance has it will still take considerable resources to conquer those last three strong-points, which means their mobile suit forces are divided. They could make up for it number-wise with their surviving mobile armors, but it wouldn't really give them much of an edge; we've got units on our side that can take them down scores at a time."

Aisha smiled. "Those Moebius units fare bad enough against GINNs, but fighting something like Wing Zero or the Judgment is even worse; total slaughter. I know the Alliance has a huge population to draw upon, but even they have to be nervous about running out of troops at the rate theirs get killed; hard to get new recruits when they know just how easily their enemies will cut through them."

Waltfeld chuckled. "I'm betting the Alliance tries to downplay just how bad their casualties have been in this war, but it's hard to keep the families of the fallen from staying quiet. People aren't blind; they don't have to rely on official reports to have an idea of what kind of enemies their family and friends in the armed forces are fighting against."

"You know," said Aisha, her expression becoming thoughtful, "you'd think with how long this war's been going and how many casualties they've taken there would be some serious anti-war sentiment in the Earth Alliance member states by now, but I've never really heard of anything like that. How about you? Has Bristow mentioned anything like that when gives you the updates from his sources?"

Waltfeld shook his head. "No. Internal Alliance politics aren't something he's really focused on right now, but he still keeps an eye out for news on that front; you never know when that kind of information might give you an edge."

Aisha sighed. "It doesn't make any sense. Even with Zala's heavy push for decisively defeating the Naturals before pursuing peace talks like Clyne wanted, there were people that opposed him. With the attack on Junius Seven we all understood what some in the enemy's camp wanted to do to us, but there were still, are still, people in the PLANTs that would like this war to end at the negotiating table rather than with genocide. Thanks to Bristow we know that the majority of the population at L5 still wants to find a way to make peace even after Zala's non-stop propaganda effort to promote the idea of Coordinators as the 'next step in human evolution' and 'the replacements for the Naturals'. The population of the Atlantic Federation alone is so much bigger than ours, and when you add in the other member nations of the Earth Alliance the numbers truly are staggering. You can't seriously be saying that out of all those people, Captain Ramius and the Archangel's crew are the only ones who would prefer peaceful coexistence over a bloodbath?"

"I'm not," Waltfeld replied, "I'm sure there's plenty more people like them. The problem is that Blue Cosmos' grip on power is simply too tight. All the key positions in the Atlantic Federation, both civil and military, are staffed by people that are either members of the group, sympathetic to them, or in their pocket. In theory their Constitution allows for freedom of speech and assembly, but with the executive, legislative, and judicial branches of government all under their control it was a simple matter for them to pass laws in the dead of night that gave police and other agencies greater powers to deal with 'civil unrest'. In other words, if the Atlantic Federation doesn't want to see an anti-war protest, there isn't one; assembly permits are denied, organizers and participants are jailed… you get the idea. From what bits Bristow's been able to pick up it's not uncommon nowadays for prominent peace activists to simply disappear, or to be killed by a convenient 'accident'. There's a lot of rumors going around about FBI tactical units being used as hit squads, or co-opting local SWAT teams and police departments into that role."

He felt Aisha shiver as she held his hand. "It sounds like Zala's campaign against Clyne."

Waltfeld shook his head. "It's worse. As much as I hate to admit it, Zala's charge of treason against the former Chairman and his daughter had more than a bit of truth to them; it was them and their supporters that enabled Kira to hijack the Freedom, after all. Azrael's campaign to crush internal descent doesn't even have that excuse. It wouldn't surprise me if the next 'illegal' protest to spring up in the Atlantic Federation, or anywhere in the Earth Alliance for that matter, is met with a hail of bullets. Hell, it's amazing we haven't heard of something like that already."

The Desert Tiger sighed and looked down at the floor. "And the bad news doesn't end there."

"How could it get any worse?" asked Aisha, trepidation clear in her voice.

"Remember that group that pulled a coup in the Eurasian Federation right before Azrael invaded Orb?" said Waltfeld.

Aisha's eyes narrowed in thought for a moment. "The Chistaya Partiya Krovi, right? Pretty much Eurasia's version of Blue Cosmos?"

Waltfeld nodded. "As you know, they've got close ties within the Vatican and the Eastern Orthodox Church. Neither group's ever been fond of Coordinators, though their activities against our kind have been limited to fundraising for extremist groups like the CPK, and the CPK's returned the favor by providing members of its military wing to act as security and behind-the-scenes muscle. Since the CPK took over the Eurasian Federation they've also begun passing new laws that heavily favor religious interests in areas such as education and healthcare. However, last week the CPK managed to nudge them into doing something that's… well, quite frankly, it's unprecedented."

"What is it?" asked Aisha, her voice barely more than a whisper.

Waltfeld closed his good eye for a moment before meeting his lover's gaze. "The Eastern Patriarch and Pope Urban XI held a joint press conference in Warsaw. They declared a Crusade against all Coordinators; all able and willing of the faithful are to wage war against us."

"Shit," Aisha hissed, "like we don't have enough people trying to kill us already."

"It gets worse," said Waltfeld, "A lot of religious groups didn't like being shown up by the Eastern Orthodoxy and the Vatican. Anti-Coordinator sentiment's always run high among the more hardcore elements of religious society; the manner of our birth is almost as much a hot-button issue to them as abortion. Plenty of fringe groups have been calling for our destruction for years, but with the Warsaw Conference the call to holy war against us got some heavy mainstream support. From what rumors Bristow's passed on to me, the whole gamut of the hard religious right is out for our blood. Hardcore Evangelicals, Protestants, Catholics, Muslims… hell, even some Jewish extremist groups have thrown themselves into the mix. You'd think that last group would have a different perspective when it comes to calling for genocide."

"Damn it," said Aisha, "Has the whole fucking world lost its mind?"

"At a glance, it would certainly seem that way," Waltfeld replied, "but it hasn't… and that's why we need to stay at L3."

"I don't understand," said Aisha, "How's everything you just mentioned tie into us remaining at Elysium when everyone else knows we're here?"

Waltfeld smiled. "Aisha, you yourself said that it wasn't possible for all of the people in the Earth Alliance to hate us as much as Blue Cosmos does. The same goes for the PLANTs; we know full well that there are people at L5 and within the ZAFT fleet that support us. However, they're drowned out by the radicals that are in power in both governments. How do you think they feel, knowing the forces they're up against?"

"If I had to guess," said Aisha, "I'd say pretty close to hopeless. You, me, our friends and allies were able to get out of ZAFT and the Earth Alliance and join forces with the Orb remnant, but so many moderates on both sides are trapped in their nations. They must feel like they have no one to turn to, that there's no way that they can stop the madness that's consuming this world."

"Exactly," said Waltfeld, "which is why we can't hide anymore. We need to be visible, to serve as not just an actual resistance to the Earth Alliance and ZAFT, but a symbolic one as well. We've met both superpowers in battle and have not only survived, but triumphed. Moderates in the Alliance and ZAFT can look at us and see proof that the extremists ruling both sides can be fought, can be beaten… and if they want to join our cause, they know exactly where to find us."

Aisha smiled. "Now I get it; you're hoping to encourage defections in both sides' space forces!"

Waltfeld nodded. "We already know that members of the ZAFT fleet are willing to fight against Zala; we're perfect examples of that, as is Task Force 9.3. The Battle of Elysium proved that the same goes for members of the Earth Alliance with regards to Azrael; there were defectors from their ranks defending the colony against the invasion fleet. Thanks to them we know that Captain Ramius and her crew are not the only members of the Alliance fleet that have the courage to stand against the extremist regime that now rules their country. Our presence here gives them something to rally around, a place that they know they can go to join likeminded people, a force that's willing to take on the might of both the Earth Alliance and ZAFT in order to end this war without unleashing the biggest bloodbath in human history!"

"Do you really think it will work?" asked Aisha, "You and I haven't been deluding ourselves about the odds we're up against, and I doubt we're the only ones to recognize the sheer power and numbers wielded by both sides. Not trying to toot our own horn here, but it takes considerable nerve to make the stand that we have."

Waltfeld chuckled. "I won't argue with that. I'm sure there's plenty of people in the Alliance and ZAFT who have wanted to help us but are afraid of what will happen if we lose. The statistical probability of our success in this endeavor is low; only an idiot would say otherwise. Everyone that fights alongside us is marked for death by the two strongest nations in the history of the Cosmic Era, though of course if we lose then there's a very good chance that humanity itself is wiped out, especially if Creuset has anything to say about it. It's not a struggle to be undertaken lightly; if someone didn't give a hell of a lot of thought to it before joining up with us, I'd call them a fool."

Aisha laughed. "They must be a special kind of fool to be thought of as such, considering what we've gotten ourselves into."

Waltfeld smirked. "Yeah, you've got a point there."

"Still," said Aisha, becoming serious again, "there's nothing foolish about what's at stake here."

Waltfeld nodded. "I know, and I think anyone who wants to join us will recognize that. Every army has its bad apples, but most soldiers aren't of the same mold as the likes of Azrael or Zala. Most men and women in the armed forces just want to protect the people they care about. They want to believe that they're doing the right thing, that by serving they'll be helping to create a better world. The two powers fighting this war have sunk too low for the men and women fighting for them to believe that their leaders are doing the right thing now; no decent human being joins the forces because they want to commit mass murder. I know it's a gamble, but I think that if we stay at L3 and make sure that others are aware of it we have a chance to draw at least some of those decent men and women to our cause. Through us they have a chance to redeem themselves, to save their nations from the extremists that rule them. We have to give them that chance."

"I understand that," said Aisha, giving him a hard stare, "but it's also one hell of a gamble. It's one thing to play poker with our lives; I accepted that long ago, and when the others agreed to your being our military head they more or less consented to that as well. However, now we've thrown the Orb colonists and refugees into the pot as well. Have you told Cagalli or Lacus about this plan of yours?"

Waltfeld shook his head. "Not yet. I want them to stay focused on helping the survivors of the attack. The next few days are going to be difficult as it is, and I don't want to start up an argument with those two girls; this isn't a plan they'd be enthusiastic about."

"But you can't keep this from them forever," said Aisha, "Andy, these are Cagalli's people we're putting at risk; you can't just go behind her back like this."

Waltfeld nodded. "And I don't intend to, at least not indefinitely. Right now things are still fresh for her; you saw her reaction with the Seirans earlier today. She's not in the best position to think rationally at the moment; she'd reject this plan without giving it any consideration. As for Lacus, I think she'd take Cagalli's side if we presented this plan right now, and not just because they've become friends; after what the colonists and refugees just went through, she wouldn't appreciate us potentially endangering them like this."

"So," said Aisha, "how are you going to play this?"

"The only person besides you that knows about my plan," said Waltfeld, "is Bristow; I contacted him a little while ago. He's aware of the risks, but he's taking my side in this; he knows we need to take this chance to build up our strength. I had him send out feelers to his contacts within ZAFT to see who's potentially in a position to make a break from the fleet and join us. Word will get around; from there all we can do is wait and see. As for the Earth Alliance, that's entirely out of our hands; we just don't have the same kind of access like we do in ZAFT."

Aisha nodded. "That's as good a long term plan as we can get, I suppose. What about the short term though?"

"Like I said earlier," Waltfeld replied, "the colonists need all the help they can get. For now I can avoid a confrontation with Cagalli by telling her I want to keep us here to defend L3 while we help Elysium recover and plan our next move. She'll go along with that, and I think Lacus will too. From then on everything we do is playing for time until defectors manage to reach us… if they manage to reach us."

"They will," said Aisha, squeezing his hand, "Task Force 9.3 managed to make a break for it, and so did members of the Earth Alliance. Others can do the same, Andy; have faith. This is your plan, after all."

Waltfeld sighed. "I know, I just don't like there being so many variables in it. I'm no stranger to gambits, but I like to have a little more control of some of the factors in play. Here though, all we can really do is sit tight, get the word out, and hope that people are able to answer the call. Just because it's my plan doesn't mean I don't wish it could be better."

"Perhaps," said Aisha, "You can still change your mind."

Waltfeld shook his head. "I tried thinking of other plans, but everything came down to our need for reinforcements, and this way gets us potentially the biggest payoff. Of course, it also has the most risk. I guess fate just won't let us have something be easy in this war."

Aisha smirked. "I seem to recall you telling me that 'easy' was boring. Suddenly afraid you've bitten off more than you can chew?"

Waltfeld chuckled. "I've been afraid of that since the moment we went underground. The pieces just keep getting bigger, but so far I've been able to stomach them. All I can do is play the cards I've got and hope my luck holds."

"It's gotten us this far," said Aisha as they came to a stop in front of their quarters, "I think it can go a little further."

Waltfeld let go of her hand to open the door. "It'll have to. Too much is riding on it."

Aisha surprised him by pulling him in for a kiss. "We're still alive, love. Against all this war has thrown at us, we've still managed to best the Reaper. The same goes for our friends; they're no strangers to long odds, and they've come through more than their shares of close calls with death. We're all still able and willing to fight, and will follow your lead no matter what the odds."

Waltfeld smiled. "Thanks, Aisha."

….

Gray wisps of smoke rose from the ruined buildings around him. Ash fell like snow as the young man surveyed the destruction, the aftermath of that fateful attack two years ago. At his feet was the small, broken body of that little dog.

But the young man was not the same person he had been the last time, or all the times before, that he had relived this tragedy. In the past his mind had gone back to his fourteen-year old self, reliving it as he had back then physically and mentally. Now, though, he was different. The young man was aware of the subtle changes his body had undergone over the past two years, the slight but noticeable increase in height and the hardening of an already toned and athletic figure. His mental awareness was that of a far more experienced sixteen-year old soldier, the events of the two years since the day he was reliving now having forged him into almost an entirely new person.

That was how Heero Yuy knew that he was in a dream.

"Why here?" he said, his voice lingering in the cold, still air, "Why now?"

"A reminder," said a voice behind him.

Even though he was in a dream, the Perfect Soldier still acted on his fine-tuned combat instincts… all the more so given the source of the voice. In one fluid motion he whirled around and drew his pistol, immediately targeting the head of the man standing behind him.

His target seemed glaringly out of place amid the ruins of the residential block. Dressed in a blue and white uniform, with golden epaulets and a black cape artfully draped over his left side, the man looked more like an officer set for a ceremony or high society function. His immaculate brown-blond hair was slicked back, and his ice blue eyes held that same knowing gleam in them that they always did. At his waste was a very familiar saber; the blade that had been passed on to Heero shortly after the final battle in his old war.

"Treize Khushrenada," said Heero.

OZ's legendary colonel and the late head of the World Nation gave the Gundam pilot a small nod. "It's been a long time, Heero Yuy."

Heero glared at him. "You're dead."

Treize smirked. "So I am."

"This is a dream," said Heero.

"So it is," Treize replied, still smirking.

Heero closed his eyes for a moment before lowering his gun. When he opened them he met the gaze of his enigmatic old foe. "Why are you here? Why am I here?"

"As I said before," Treize replied, "A reminder."

"Like I need one," the Gundam pilot spat, "I'll never forget what happened here. Since you're just a phantom conjured by my mind, you should know that."

Treize shook his head. "It is not this specific event that I am reminding you of. Rather, it is the cost of failure. You've had your share in the past, Heero Yuy; the Perfect Soldier is far from perfect."

"Tell me something I don't know," Heero shot back.

Treize chuckled. "You've become more self-aware. During our war I saw a very interesting tendency of yours, one you were unaware of, though with the passage of time and your new experiences you can now look back and realize what it was."

"Enlighten me," Heero growled.

"Failure and success," said Treize, "walk hand-in-hand with you." He gave a sweeping gesture with his hand, encompassing the ruined residential block and nearby Alliance base. "Your mission in this colony was to destroy the Alliance facility here. You did that, but you weren't as precise as you thought you were, and innocents paid the price. For one such as you, that is both victory and defeat… and it is not the only such instance in your past."

The world around them blurred, and when it regained clarity the Gundam pilot saw another familiar sight; the critical moment in his attack on the Alliance's New Edwards base.

Wing Gundam cutting down Noventa's shuttle.

"You and your fellow Gundam pilots' attack on the New Edwards base was superb," said Treize as the shuttle exploded, "You utterly mauled the defenders; an entire Alliance army destroyed. For any other guerilla attack this would be a resounding success, but your military victory became little more than the shadow of a spectacular political defeat."

"At your manipulation," said Heero, "I've already accepted my role in killing the Alliance peace faction, but I've learned not to put it all on my own shoulders any more. I committed the act, but you set the stage. I was the gun and the bullet; you set up the target and pulled the trigger."

Treize nodded. "Well put. You've succinctly divided the responsibility for that event. I trust that you also recognize the aftermath; the cost of your simultaneous victory and defeat."

"Yes," said Heero, "I paved the way for Operation Daybreak and ensured that our war would continue with one fell swoop, despite my desire to end the conflict. It wasn't just the Alliance soldiers and members of their peace faction that I killed that day; thanks to your manipulation I provided the catalyst for the next stage of the war. I have more than just the lives of those I've taken directly on my hands; you could tie many more of the fallen in our conflict to me thanks to Noventa's assassination."

"And as you put it," said Treize, "that's a responsibility we share. It is also another instance of your unique ability to mix victory and defeat, producing devastating consequences… and it is not the last."

The former ruler of the World Nation gave another grand sweep of his hand, and the scene once again changed. A multitude of images flashed before the Gundam pilot, all with the same crimson mobile suit at the center of them, wreaking havoc on the battlefield with a blazing emerald blade and a burning red and black whip.

"Epyon..." he whispered.

"The Gundam I bestowed upon you," Treize continued for him, "I wanted to see what a soldier of your caliber could accomplish with it, and before you passed it on to Zechs you wielded Epyon in two crucial battles; Luxembourg and the invasion of the Sanc Kingdom."

Heero nodded. "I couldn't use it right, or at least not the way you intended; I couldn't get a handle on your version of the ZERO System."

"Indeed," Treize replied, "though you were still capable of piloting the Epyon with reasonable effectiveness. This led to you gaining two back-to-back instances of triumph and loss. At Luxembourg you wiped out both sides when your original intent had been simply to destroy Romefeller's mobile doll army. That army was indeed obliterated, and given the odds you were up against anyone would call that an impressive success. However, you also utterly annihilated the soldiers that had been fighting for me; lives that, in this case, you had never meant to take. For one such as yourself, a man who takes unnecessary loss of life so hard, this far outweighed your victory."

It hadn't been something Heero had considered at the time, but after the war the Gundam pilot had indeed thought back on his actions at Luxembourg. His conclusion concurred with what his mental conjuration of Treize was telling him now; the rebel pilots he had killed in that fight should not have died. Their deaths had been meaningless, an utter waste of life.

Too high a price to pay for his 'victory' at Luxembourg.

The cost of his failure to keep control.

"After Luxembourg," Treize continued, "you learned just how powerful my Epyon truly was. Unfortunately, you weren't able to completely apply your newfound knowledge to your next clash with Romefeller. You managed to avoid wiping out your allies during the invasion of the Sanc Kingdom, and you delivered significant losses to Duke Dermail's army, but you weren't what you could have been. Had you been able to fully master Epyon's system, you could have completely wiped out Romefeller's army. Instead you went berserk, attacking the enemy without regard for the overall strategic situation, and the Sanc Kingdom fell. Once again, victory and defeat walked hand-in-hand with you, and the consequences of your failure were severe."

Heero nodded. "I'm well aware of that. Things changed after I got Wing Zero though."

Treize smiled. "Indeed, for the rest of our war and beyond. Your mastery of the ZERO System helped you purge the curse of marred victory that had dogged you throughout our conflict. Though the Earth Sphere danced to the tune Zechs and I called in that final campaign, you did not let that stop you from achieving your goals. The After Colony world survives in peace today due in no small part to your efforts, to your pure triumph in the final battle. You have taken your new power to the Cosmic Era as well; though not all of your victories have been ideal, they no longer walk hand-in-hand with ruin. Even events like the evacuation of Orb have served to move you forward; you and your allies lived to fight another day, to continue your struggle to bring peace to your new world. Your fight at Elysium was an overwhelming victory, even with the civilian casualties; you know full well how bad things could have been if you had truly failed."

His gaze narrowed as he addressed Heero. "However, the price of potential failure in that last battle is now eclipsed by the storm cloud of Armageddon that now looms before you. It even dwarfs that of the final clash in our Eve Wars. Had that section of the Libra's hull impacted Earth the results would have been devastating to be sure, but the damage would not have been enough to wipe out all life on the planet; mankind would still be able to survive, both in space and on her home world. Now, though, the stakes are infinitely higher."

The leader of OZ gave another grand gesture, and new images assaulted Heero. None of them were events Heero had ever seen before, and he realized that this was his mind showing him potential scenarios for the future.

A swarm of missiles arced towards the hourglass-shaped colonies that the Coordinators called home. Fiery blossoms of nuclear apocalypse bloomed as one-hundred-nineteen colonies suffered the same fate as Junius Seven.

A magnificent city appeared before him, one situated in a lunar crater; Copernicus city. There was a brilliant flash, and the largest civilian lunar habitat became little more than cooling slag in the bottom of the crater it had once called home.

The brilliant blue and green gem that was the Earth hung in the black void of space. White light briefly flashed over it, and when Heero could see the planet again it was a charred, barren orb, completely devoid of life.

"This," said Treize, "will be the cost of failure. This war, Heero Yuy, is far beyond our old conflict in terms of sheer ferocity and hatred. Even a partial victory, one of your old mixed triumphs and defeats, cannot happen; one side wiping the other out rather than both being destroyed could never be considered a success in these circumstances, partial or otherwise. Should you fail, billions of lives will be lost, and all that you have come to hold dear in your new world will be destroyed."

A female voice rang out behind the Gundam pilot, resonating with belief and strength. "He won't fail."

Heero's eyes widened in recognition; he'd know that voice anywhere.

Turning around, he saw Murrue… in a way he'd never seen her before.

The woman he loved was floating down from the sky, and while Heero had always considered her beauty angelic in the metaphorical sense, now it was very much literal. She wore a simple but elegantly flowing, strapless white dress, baring her pale shoulders and emphasizing her already prominent bosom. Lying upon her chest was the shimmering blue stone of the necklace he'd bought her all those months ago in North Africa. Her lovely brown eyes seemed to glow with that familiar combination of compassion and strength, while her long brown hair flowed freely. What was most striking about her now though were the four white wings that were coming out of her back. They were in two distinct pairs, one slightly smaller and more streamlined, the other broader and seeming to almost wrap around her.

"Murrue…" said Heero, completely blown away at the sight before him.

She gently touched down and came up to him. Still stunned at what he was seeing, Heero was further surprised when she took him into a firm embrace, her white wings joining her arms in wrapping around him, pulling him close and shielding him from the images of devastation that he had seen before. He felt those familiar warm, moist lips meet his, and he surrendered himself to the kiss.

Still holding him, she pulled back just enough for him to look into her eyes. "You're not the same man you were in your old war. You've grown so much, have seen and done so much more than you ever dreamed you would. You're stronger now, Heero… and you're not alone."

Releasing him from the embrace, she reached out and caressed his face with her hand. "I would've given anything to be able to support you in your old war. Unfortunately, we were literally worlds apart; I didn't even know you existed, and could much less lend you my strength. However, all that's changed now. You left your old world, and have made mine your home. I'm on your side, now and forever; you will never be alone again."

She looked past him, and Heero followed her gaze towards Treize.

"Heero won't fail," she said, glaring at the man that Heero had once waged war against, "He's far more powerful now than he ever was in your old war. He may not have the other four Gundam pilots with him in the Cosmic Era, but he's made new friends to make up for that loss. I'm with him. Kira's with him. La Flaga's with him. Athrun's with him. Cagalli's with him. Lacus is with him. Shemei and Bristow are with him. Waltfeld and Aisha are with him. Dearka and Miriallia are with him. Adaline, Lan, and Priscilla are with him. Our entire alliance is with him, and we've already proven ourselves strong enough to take on the military might of the entire Cosmic Era."

Murrue smiled. "And Heero's the strongest of us all."

Treize nodded. "So he is. However, the strength of one soldier is not enough to decide a war."

Murrue shook her head. "No, it's not… but Heero's far more than just a soldier. He always has been."

She looked at Heero and nodded, reaching out and putting her hand on his shoulder. "He's not just a soldier. He's not even 'just' a Gundam pilot."

She gave him another warm smile. "He's a hero. A guardian of peace and justice. A champion of those who cannot defend themselves. A knight that can do the impossible."

Treize chuckled. "Perhaps so. We shall see."

He then gave the Gundam pilot a slight bow. "Farewell, Heero Yuy."

And with that, he disappeared.

Heero felt Murrue grab his hand. "Come on, Heero. Let's get out of here."

….

His eyes opening, the Perfect Soldier found himself back in the quarters he shared with the woman he loved. Taking a moment to catch his breath and let his eyes adjust to the darkened room, he felt the reassuring weight of Murrue's body up against his right side, with her head resting on his shoulder and her right arm draped across him.

Back to reality, he thought as he looked at her, back to where I belong.

The Gundam pilot smiled slightly as he thought of the role Murrue had played in his dream, how she had saved him from his doubts and fears. Reaching over, he gently ran his hand through her hair, pushing a few stray bangs out of her face.

"Thank you," he whispered.

Her eyes fluttered open. "Heero?" she said softly, "What's going on? You should be resting."

Heero shook his head. "It's nothing; I just woke up for a moment there. Sorry to worry you."

Murrue nodded, though as she focused on Heero he could see the concern even in her sleep-muddled eyes. "Ok. Are… are you sure you're all right?"

Heero leaned over and gently kissed her. "I'm fine, Murrue. I promise."

It wasn't a lie. While the dream certainly hadn't been pleasant, it did not have the same impact as his old nightmare once did. His mind's conjuration of Murrue had not only bolstered his resolve in the face of what the apparition of Treize had presented to him, but had also given him peace.

Murrue gave him a sleepy smile. "Alright, Heero. Sleep well."

As the two of them settled back in, the Perfect Soldier's mind went back to his dream… or more specifically, just one part of it.

Her wings enveloping him.

Shielding him.

An odd thought struck him at that moment.

Could something like that be applied to a mobile suit?

To Wing Gundam Zero, perhaps?

"I'll have to look into that," he muttered.

"Hmm?" grunted Murrue drowsily, "What is it, Heero?"

Heero gave her a small smile. "I'll tell you in the morning. Goodnight, Murrue."

Murrue nodded sleepily. "Goodnight, Heero."

….

July 27th, C.E. 71

Her eyes narrowing as she sighted down the barrel of her sidearm, Natarle took a deep breath. Slowly letting it out, she mentally replaced the black silhouette of her range target with the image of Azrael and proceeded to empty her clip into it. Even with her earmuffs on the sounds of gunfire still rang in her ears, and she made sure to keep herself braced against the recoil as she sent round after round downrange.

After the last bullet was spent she ejected the spent clip before flicking a nearby switch. Pulling off her earmuffs, she allowed herself a satisfied smile as she saw a relatively tight bunch of holes in the middle of the target as it approached her, hanging from the overhead moving rack.

It'd be so much better, she thought, if that really was Azrael that I just pumped full of lead.

"Wow," came a familiar female voice to her right, "That's… incredible!"

Natarle looked over at Flay, making a conscious effort to turn her satisfied smile into something a little gentler for her companion. "Thanks, Flay, but it's really not that great. You should see the groupings real sharpshooters can get; they make me look like an amateur."

"It's still really good," Flay replied, looking back and forth between Natarle and the target before sighing, "Better than I can get, anyway."

"Go easy on yourself," said Natarle, "You've only been training for a short time; it takes a while to build up your skill." Then she gave a small laugh. "Besides, I'm hardly a qualified firearms instructor, so it's not like you're getting the best training out there."

Natarle turned and nodded downrange at the target next to where hers had been. "Now, you go. Don't forget to brace for the recoil."

She put her earmuffs back on and watched as Flay did the same before pointing her gun downrange. The girl's eyes narrowed in concentration before she opened fire. She shot at a slower rate than Natarle had, so it took her longer to go through her pistol's clip. Eventually it went dry, and Natarle was pleased to see that Flay was quicker to eject the spent magazine than she had been last time.

She's getting better, thought Natarle as she walked over and flicked the switch next to Flay's box of ammunition, bringing her target in for review.

When the target came to a stop Natarle gave an approving nod as she examined it. The shots were far more spread out than hers had been, but they were all still within the boundaries of the target.

Natarle shook her head. "You did all right, Flay. You're definitely getting better. Don't be too hard on yourself. You've only been practicing for a week, after all."

Actually, it had been precisely eight days since the two women had encountered Azrael in the base's cafeteria. Natarle still got chills thinking about it, especially with how Azrael had looked at Flay.

The man has no shame, she thought, eying her like that… like she's some bimbo he can drag off to his quarters! This cruel lecher rules the Atlantic Federation and the Earth Alliance? My country is led by this… this perverted, sadistic, genocidal madman? How… how did we fall so far? I didn't sign up to serve people like this, and I know Flay didn't either!

Since that day Natarle had taken extra care regarding her young unofficial ward. She'd taken steps to monitor the girl's location and make sure she was never too far away. However, that had not become as big an issue as she had initially feared; Flay was very reluctant to wander about on her own, and in fact rarely left the Dominion. When she did depart the ship it was always with Natarle, and usually for one of their off-hours training sessions.

When she was not helping Flay with her training as the Dominion's newest communications officer or overseeing repairs to the badly damaged warship, Natarle was helping the young woman improve her self-defense skills. Getting her assigned a personal sidearm had been just the first step; Natarle wanted to be sure the girl could use the weapon with at least a basic level of proficiency. Her skills had improved incrementally, but Natarle always noted how uneasy Flay was around firearms. Recalling the incident in the Archangel's medical bay during the ship's journey to Alaska, Natarle supposed that the girl had more than enough of a reason to be nervous about using a gun.

At that time, she thought as she watched the girl slide fresh rounds into the clip, Flay was hell bent on revenge. She hated Coordinators; everyone knew that, which is why we found her sudden relationship with Kira to be so odd. When she tried to shoot the Buster's pilot, in her mind that was vengeance not just for Kira, but her father too, even if that prisoner wasn't responsible for either of those deaths. Something happened though, and it wasn't just Miriallia putting herself between her and the prisoner. I think… she really did come to love Kira, or at least care about him. Her reaction was too emotional for it to have just been revenge for a father she had lost earlier in the war.

As the girl hesitantly inserted the loaded clip into the gun, Natarle wondered if Flay would try to attack the Buster's pilot now if she had the chance, or any helpless Coordinator for that matter. Somehow she doubted it. Whatever hate Flay had carried before was dead; the conversation they had shared in the cafeteria was proof enough of that.

Having loaded the gun, Flay turned to look at Natarle. "Should I go again?

They'd already been out here for about half an hour and Natarle figured she'd take it easy on Flay today. "Do you want to?"

The red-head shook her head and gave her an apologetic look. "Not really."

Natarle smiled. "That's fine, Flay. We can call it quits for today. Come on, let's clean up here and grab some dinner."

The two women spent a few minutes putting away the ammo boxes and picking up stray shell casings that had fallen on their side of the firing range before leaving the practice facility and making their way through the winding corridors towards the cafeteria. Natarle wasn't particularly happy that their destination was the same place that they had run into Azrael eight days ago, but it was the closest dining area to the Dominion's dock, and as much as she hated to admit it the food they served there easily surpassed the rations that were stocked on her ship.

Not sure if the good food is worth the risk of running into Azrael again, she thought darkly, Maybe if they'd actually give the Dominion a little more variety with her rations then I wouldn't have this problem.

It wasn't like there was much she could do about that though; High Command had never shown much concern for what soldiers had to eat as long as it met minimum nutrition requirements. Natarle was well aware of tales told by fellow soldiers who had worked security shifts for the upper echelons describing the sometimes blatantly luxurious fare enjoyed by the Admirals, Generals, and staff officers, food that the front-line ranks like herself could only dream about from their warships, forward outposts, and foxholes. The fact that the leadership of her forces dined like kings while Natarle and her subordinates had to get by on whatever the higher-ups deemed the rank and file deserving of was just one small item on an increasingly larger list of complaints she had against both her superior officers and her military in general.

Of course, quality of food was a pretty small matter when compared to her now all-but-certain belief that her country was well down the road to committing the greatest act of genocide in human history.

When they got to the cafeteria Natarle did a quick look-around and gave a sigh of relief; Azrael was not there. She turned to Flay and smiled. "All clear."

The girl nodded, and Natarle knew that she was well aware of what she was referring to. "Good."

Making their way through the maze of tables and soldiers, the two ladies proceeded to dish up before grabbing themselves a seat near one of the 'windows'. Since the cafeteria was, like most of the Ptolemaeus Lunar Base, underground there were no real windows, but the designers of the base knew that people could not stay underground for so long without some view of the outside world and not have their morale effected; indeed, people going 'stir crazy' was a serious concern. To counter this, the base designers had set up a series of cameras on the surface and had networked them to screens positioned at areas where people were likely to gather off-duty such as mess halls and lounges. This helped give the illusion to soldiers who had been underground for months on end that they could still look out and see the outside world, and went a long way towards combating potential cases of claustrophobia.

As they took their seats Natarle saw Flay look wistfully at the screen. The image on it was that of the Earth far off in the distance, and Natarle wondered if the girl was homesick. She certainly couldn't blame her if she was; Natarle knew she missed life down on the planet.

They were quiet for the first few minutes as they ate before Flay spoke up. "Captain… have you heard any news about the Archangel?"

Natarle nodded. "I did actually; it was a few hours ago." She looked around to make sure no one was listening in on them before turning back to Flay and smiling. "It sounds like our old friends are really giving Azrael hell."

"What do you mean?" asked Flay.

Natarle leaned closer, her voice hushed. "You have to keep this quiet, ok? I heard it through unofficial channels, so I'm pretty sure it's not news the top brass want spreading around."

Flay nodded. "All right."

Furtively, Natarle took another look around the cafeteria to check for eavesdroppers before turning back to Flay. "Three days ago two carrier battle groups and some support squadrons were sent to L3. From what I heard, their orders were to conquer the last two Orb colonies."

Flay's eyes widened. "Eden and Elysium? Why?"

"A few reasons," said Natarle, "First, they want their industrial capabilities; although they're mainly agricultural colonies, both Eden and Elysium have manufacturing and research facilities that would be very useful to Azrael's war effort. The second is punishment for the support Orb and its government-in-exile has given to the Archangel. Third…"

Natarle's gaze fell as she thought about the last reason. She didn't want to believe it was true, but she knew that with someone like Azrael ordering the attack there could be no denying it.

"What is it?" asked Flay, "What was the third reason?"

Natarle sighed. "Flay… you know Orb has a large Coordinator population, right?"

She nodded. "Yeah. A lot of them came to Orb to avoid the war. Kira was one of them."

"I remember," said Natarle, "Well, when the Alliance invaded the Orb homeland, apparently the government evacuated all the Coordinators living there. Most of them wound up in the colonies."

Flay's eyes widened in horror as she realized what Natarle was implying. "Hold on… you mean they attacked L3 to kill the refugees?"

Natarle nodded grimly. "I'm willing to bet anything that one of the goals of the invasion was to kill all the Coordinators at Eden and Elysium, refugees and colonial citizens alike. From what I heard, the fleet concentrated its attack on Elysium. It makes sense; some of Orb's most powerful nobles after Lord Uzumi's daughter were in that colony, so if it were conquered then they could conceivably convince Eden to surrender without a fight. Once that happened, it would be easy to round up and kill all the Coordinators inside the colonies."

"But that's not what happened, is it?" said Flay.

Natarle shook her head and smiled. "Nope. Halfway through their attack, the fleet was ambushed from behind by Wing Zero and the other nuclear powered mobile suits. The commanding officer was killed right away; the invasion force was caught completely by surprise. The Archangel and the other ships showed up a little later. From what I understand, almost the entire fleet was wiped out."

It felt strange to be saying that like it was a good thing, but in her heart Natarle knew that it was. Despite the deaths of so many fellow soldiers, Natarle felt that such a loss was far preferable to having her military conquer the surviving Orb colonies and perpetrate another massacre.

From the look on Flay's face, Natarle could tell that the girl was conflicted, torn between the loss of so many Alliance soldiers and her friends' victory and the rescue of the civilians and refugees inside the Orb colonies. Natarle was actually glad the girl seemed so thoughtful about it; it was a sign of just how much she had grown since Kira had first brought her aboard the Archangel all those months ago.

"So…" said Flay, "what happens now? I mean… will Azrael just ignore that Kira and the others stopped him from taking over the Orb colonies?"

Natarle sighed. "I don't know, Flay. You and I are pretty far down the chain of command; I was lucky to hear about the attack on L3 at all. Ever since the battle at L4 we've been stuck here waiting on repairs for the Dominion, and those are still a long ways away from completion. When you're off the front lines and not in the intel loop, it's hard to figure out what comes next."

Flay looked down in disappointment. "I see. I hope the others are doing ok."

So do I, thought Natarle.

Looking out the 'window', Natarle once again found herself longing to be with her former comrades rather than with the Earth Alliance forces. Mu, Captain Ramius, the rest of the bridge crew… she missed all of them.

And being on the opposite side of them made it all the worse.

Her thoughts went back to their battle at L4… to the Hawk of Endymion's confession of love even as he had fought against her. It had hurt her more than anything to know that the man she had fallen in love with did indeed feel the same way about her, only to be unable to tell him so. To have to fight against him as well was a pain the likes of which she'd never imagined before.

Knowing that Mu was still out there, and that he loved her, was the only thing keeping Natarle together right now. Even her duty to her crew did not drive her as hard as her feelings for that reckless, easy-going, witty, and devilishly handsome pilot.

How does this end?, she thought, Will we have to kill each other? I want more than anything else to find some way to get through this war alive so I can be with him, but for the life of me I can't figure out a way to make that a reality.

Mu…

…what can I do?

….

July 28th, C.E. 71

Sitting at her desk, Cagalli leaned back in her chair and let out a long sigh.

Why, she thought, can't those two ever make things easy? Father, how did you keep the Seirans in line?

The former ruling nobles of Elysium may have ultimately yielded authority to her, but that didn't mean they were making her attempts to administrate over the battered colony any easier. With her immediate priority being to help the refugees, Cagalli had spared no effort to mobilize all of the colony's resources, and in the process she had trodden over the feet of the Seirans on more than one occasion. The two nobles had wasted no time in making their displeasure known when she'd ordered the release of reserve stocks of supplies in order to help get the refugees back on their feet, along with allocating personnel that had formerly been under the direct control of the Seirans. Cagalli had been most displeased upon learning that Unato had turned a unit of the Elysium internal security forces into essentially a Praetorian Guard, and with the combined backing of Heero and Waltfeld had quickly disbanded it.

She took some satisfaction in recalling that meeting, which had occurred just a few hours ago. Wing Zero's pilot and the Desert Tiger had stood behind her desk, and Cagalli had known that they were giving the Seirans their fiercest death glares as she had proceeded to break up the nobles' de facto private police force and put it back where it belonged; serving the interests of the Orb people. Cagalli had felt a little bad about using Heero and Waltfeld like that after all that they had already done for her people, but the two veteran soldiers had been very willing to act as silent muscle for her, and it was thanks in no small part to them that she had managed to accomplish so much for the refugees and resident civilians.

It had only been four days since the attack, but so much had already been accomplished. Treatment of the wounded was proceeding much more efficiently now the initial chaos following the battle had subsided, and cleanup of the damage was well underway. Of course, there were still plenty of challenges to overcome, chief of which being the reorganization of refugee housing in light of the damage suffered by the sites of the two largest camps. Cagalli's administrative staff had somehow managed to establish several smaller camps in parking lots, putting a strain on colonial businesses but doing much to restore the traumatized refugees to at least a small measure of normalcy. Other refugees had been moved into the barracks once occupied by members of Elysium's defense forces; with all the casualties that the Orb military had suffered trying to repel the attack, there were now a lot of empty bunks.

Reaching across her desk, she took a much needed gulp from a glass of water. Shifting around so many people and so much of the colony's resources was mentally draining; Cagalli felt more tired now than she had after any of her sorties in the Skygrasper or Strike Rouge.

I used to believe administrative work like this was easy, she thought, Shows what I knew. Father… I wish I'd listened to your advice while I had the chance. I feel like I'm drowning under all this work. So much responsibility, so much at stake… how did you ever manage to handle it? How did you even stay sane?

She looked around the office, seeing signs of her late father everywhere. Though Lord Uzumi had only paid a few visits to the L3 colonies during his tenure as Orb's Chief Representative, offices like this one had been maintained in the event that that nation's ruler stopped by. Cagalli had half-expected the Seirans to have taken up use of the room, but even those two power-hungry nobles apparently knew well enough to not step across that line; taking an office meant for the Chief Representative was tantamount to declaring a bid for the throne.

Thankfully the Seirans hadn't touched it, and because of that Cagalli could see little bits of her father's touch in the few times he had used this office. There was a photo on the desk of him, Cagalli, and her late mother, though now that Cagalli thought about she supposed 'adoptive mother' was now what she should legally call her. The desktop image on the computer was a beautiful ocean vista, one Cagalli knew quite well; it was the view from her father's house back in the Orb homeland. A small banzai tree was on a shelf along the wall, and Cagalli had been pleased to see that the cleaning staff had continued to care for it in her father's absence; tending to plants like that one had been a favorite pastime of Lord Uzumi, one he had rarely gotten to indulge in once the war had started and his efforts had been consumed by trying to stay one step ahead of the two powerful nations that were attempting to make the entire Earth Sphere there's.

Her father had always said that politicians who truly cared about their people more than their own personal gain were the exception to the rule. With the care of Orb and its citizens now in her hands, Cagalli was beginning to realize that the lesser nobles were indeed more concerned with holding onto their own power than for the common good. The other members of the aristocracy hadn't given her nearly as much grief as the Seirans had, but it wasn't hard to tell that they had simply decided that going along with her now was simply the best way to preserve their position for the future. In the unenviable position of having to look after hundreds of thousands of people, Cagalli was depressed upon realizing that her friends and allies in the Three Ships Alliance cared more about the people of Orb than the nobles who called the country home. She was increasingly aware that the representatives of the other four ruling families had gone along with her less out of the goodness of their hearts and more out of respect and fear of the fact that she had the best soldiers, most sophisticated warships, and the most powerful mobile suits in the Cosmic Era backing her up.

When looking at her situation in that light, Cagalli felt less like the legitimate Chief Representative of Orb and more like its military dictator. She could take some comfort in the fact that she had never wanted this kind of power, and that her actions were focused on keeping her people safe and helping to bring this insane war to an end. Cagalli was also reassured with the knowledge that if she went too far her friends were more than capable of bringing her back to her senses; they wouldn't give her the chance to become a tyrant.

Not that they would have to. The moment this war ended Cagalli had every intention of giving up the emergency powers she had invoked in order to secure the nobles' cooperation. It wasn't just because she was constitutionally required to relinquish that authority once the crisis was over; having the kind of authority that she had now was a combination of too much responsibility and power for her liking. While Cagalli didn't think of herself as someone who would give into the temptation offered by the power she wielded now, she was still well aware that the possibility did exist, and she hated it.

"I don't want to be a queen," she muttered, "Hell, I never wanted to be a princess…"

She wondered how many other girls would say that in her position. After all, being royalty looked pretty good if one only saw the royal families that served as symbolic figureheads of countries, who lived off taxpayer funds and didn't actually have to worry about governing. Even if she were that kind of royalty though, Cagalli suspected she'd still hate it; she was just too much of a tomboy to really love things like fancy dresses, etiquette, and high society parties. Having to put up with all that and the responsibility that came with having the legal power to rule a nation was not something she enjoyed, all the more so since she had risen to power in a country in the middle of a war.

At least she wasn't left to deal with all of this alone. She had Athrun. She had her friends and allies, who had gone well above and beyond the call of duty to aid her and her people in their most desperate hour. The burden on her shoulders remained heavy, but the fact that so many good people were willing to share it with her made all the difference.

Looking out the window, Cagalli could see the colony's lighting beginning to dim as 'night' fell upon it. She shook her head, hardly able to believe how fast the time had gone by. The day's end was no small relief to her; she'd be able to wrap up soon and meet her friends for dinner before getting some much needed sleep.

Then her computer chimed, and the face of her secretary appeared on the screen. "Lady Cagalli, there's someone here I think you should see."

Cagalli sighed. "Who is it, Kyoko? I don't have any more appointments scheduled for today, and I was really hoping to get out of here soon."

Kyoko moved to the side, and a very familiar, smiling face showed up on the screen. "I'm sorry for coming by unannounced, Cagalli. I promise I won't keep you too long."

Cagalli smiled. "Lacus! You should've told me you were coming. Kyoko, send her in please."

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

A few seconds later the door opened, and Lacus walked in. "I hope I'm not interrupting anything, Cagalli."

Cagalli shook her head as she stood up to greet her friend. "It's ok, Lacus. Sorry if I sounded rude earlier. I'm just a little tired; it's been a long day."

Lacus nodded. "I understand. It can't be easy to lead your people at a time like this."

Cagalli smiled. It was nice to have a friend who could relate with what she was going through.

"It's not," she replied, "but things are getting a little better. Thanks for all the help; I don't know what we would have done without all the aid you, Waltfeld, and the others have given us."

Lacus smiled. "It's no trouble at all, Cagalli. You know we'll do anything we can to get your people through this crisis."

The pink-haired songstress glanced over at a chair in front of Cagalli's desk. "May I sit down? There's something I wanted to discuss with you. It involves helping the refugees and the colony's residents."

Cagalli nodded. "Sure. You're already doing that though; you've been spending a lot of time in the refugee camps."

Lacus nodded as she took her seat. "Yes, and I will continue to visit the camps and spend time with the children. I've been enjoying that, and I know it's been helping them. However, I had an idea that I wanted to bring to your attention. I think it could do a great deal to help the refugees and colonists, along with many more people."

Cagalli leaned forward, intrigued. "What do you have in mind?"

….

After explaining her plan, Lacus watched as Cagalli mulled the idea over. While the songstress was positive that her idea would be a huge help in the current crisis, she also knew that to pull it off would be asking a great deal from her friend, especially given just how hard she was already working to aid her people.

"I think we can do it," said Cagalli, "It's just going to be tricky to set up. The only venue we have for something like that is the Kurosawa Memorial Center, and right now it's been converted into a refugee camp. We'll have to move everything out of there beforehand, and then move it all back in once it's over."

"I'm sorry," said Lacus, bowing her head, "I know it's going to trouble a lot of people, but I really think the reward is worth it, and that the refugees currently being housed in there will be more than willing to deal with the temporary inconvenience when they realize what it's for."

"It's not just that," said Cagalli, "We want to be sure everyone in the colony can see this. That's going to involve a lot of work with the broadcasting, and that's not even getting started with sending it to Eden and beyond. Also, a transmission like that could make us a target."

"We already are a target," said Lacus, "Cagalli, you know that the Earth forces could always regroup for a second assault. We were hardly sneaky about coming here, so I'm sure that ZAFT also knows we're here. This won't make us any more of a target than we already are, and in fact could actually help draw more people to our cause. We have to try!"

It was quiet for a moment, and Lacus was afraid that Cagalli would refuse. She was relieved when she saw her friend nod and smile. "Yeah, you're right. Something like this… it's not just Elysium and Eden that need it. Everyone does… everyone that still believes in peace."

Lacus smiled. "So we can go ahead with preparations?"

Cagalli nodded. "Yeah, I think if we work together we can pull this off. I'm sure my people will enjoy it, and they're not the only ones; our friends would like it too."

"I thought as much," said Lacus, "which is why I'd like to arrange this so that they can all attend. They deserve it, especially after all the fighting they've done."

"I agree," Cagalli replied, "Have you run this by Waltfeld yet?"

Lacus shook her head. "No, but I think this would be something that he'd be for. If we work with him I'm sure that we can arrange things so that our core group members can attend."

"It feels a little like favoritism," said Cagalli, "I mean, in order to set this up we'd have to arrange for the Task Force 9.3 ships to be out on patrol so our friends can enjoy it in person."

"I know," said Lacus, "but they've earned something like this. Think about Captain Ramius's ship alone; when was the last time they had a real shore-leave?"

"Not since their first visit to Orb," said Cagalli, "and I know it's been a while for the people on the Eternal and the Kusanagi as well. The other ZAFT and Earth Alliance defectors haven't exactly been taking it easy though; I feel a little bad cutting them out like this."

"They won't be left out," said Lacus, smiling, "After all, we can broadcast it to their ships too, right? Even if they can't be there in person, they'll still be able to listen over the radio."

Cagalli smiled. "Well, I guess that makes up a little bit for it. Alright, call Waltfeld and let's set this up!"

….

Leaning back in his chair in the captain's office of the Eternal, Waltfeld smiled as Lacus and Cagalli finished outlining their plan to him. "I like it. It'll boost morale and maybe bring us some more recruits. I'll back you all the way, girls."

Cagalli and Lacus smiled on his screen. "Great," said Cagalli, "all we need to do now is set a date and we can begin preparations."

"How about two days from now?" said Waltfeld, "It'll be the third day of our rotation inside the colony. You did want your friends to be able to see this live, after all."

Lacus nodded. "I'm fine with that. Cagalli?"

Orb's tomboyish Chief Representative nodded. "I think we can finish the prep work in that time frame. Just make sure to let the others know."

Waltfeld chuckled. "Oh, don't worry, I will. I think something like this will do them a world of good."

Lacus nodded. "I agree. Thank you for supporting this, Mister Waltfeld."

"No problem, Lacus," he replied, "but you shouldn't celebrate just yet."

Both the songstress and the tomboy princess gave him a puzzled look. "What do you mean?" the former asked.

Waltfeld smiled. "Well, you're the one the spotlight will be on, Lacus. It's been a while since you last gave a performance, and if all goes to plan on the technical side of things you'll have your biggest audience ever. You sure you're up for this?"

Lacus smiled and gave a determined nod. "Yes, I am."

"Well then," said Waltfeld, "You better start rehearsing. Expectations are going to be high once word of this gets out. Pick your material well, and practice hard."

"Don't worry," Lacus replied, "I already have a plan for what I'm going to do."

Waltfeld nodded. "I'm looking forward to it, Lacus. I'll leave it to you and Cagalli to put this thing together."

"All right," said Lacus.

"I'll get things moving on my end immediately," said Cagalli, "We'll get the word out and the stage prepped." Orb's blond-haired ruler turned to Lacus and smiled. "I can't wait to see it happen. I've heard you sing in recordings and on the radio, but never live!"

Waltfeld smiled. "Are you a fan, Cagalli?"

The Desert Tiger had the satisfaction of seeing her blush. "Uhm… yeah. Lacus's music is really popular in Orb. I've liked it ever since my country started airing her songs."

With all she's been through, thought Waltfeld, it's easy to forget that she's still a sixteen-year old girl.

"Thank you, Cagalli," said Lacus, "I promise I'll give you and your people a show they'll never forget."

"They're not the only ones," said Waltfeld, "I bet none of the people on the Archangel have ever heard you sing; the Atlantic Federation probably bans your music. I'm sure they'll enjoy the show."

"I hope so," said Lacus, looking a little nervous.

Stage fright?, he mused, From what I've heard, that's never really been a problem for her before. I guess performing for friends and comrades brings its own unique pressure, especially when they're people you've enlisted in a cause with long odds.

"Come on," said Cagalli, smiling, "Of course they'll like it! It's Captain Ramius's crew, Lacus; no way they won't be blown away by your voice!"

"She's right, Lacus," said Waltfeld, "Trust me, you'll have a very friendly audience."

Lacus nodded. "All right. Once I'm through here with Cagalli I'll come back to the ship. I'll need to figure out how I'm going to perform."

"I'll see you later then," said Waltfeld, "I'm sure Aisha and Shemei's girls would be willing to help you come up with a plan if you need some inspiration."

Lacus smiled. "I might take them up on that."

"Is there anything else you two need?" asked Waltfeld.

Both ladies shook their heads. "No," said Cagalli, "I think we're good here for now."

"Then I'll let you girls get to work," said Waltfeld, "Eternal out."

After the two ladies disappeared from the screen Waltfeld kicked back in his chair. He smiled as he looked up at the ceiling, thinking of Lacus's late father. "She's come a long way, Clyne," he said, "I wish you could see her now. You'd be proud, old man."

Turning back to the computer, he contacted Aisha. "Hey, love," he said as her face appeared on the screen, "Our little songbird's had a burst of inspiration. I think you and the girls are going to like this. I know I do."

….

July 30th, C.E. 71

"Amazing," said Murrue as she and Heero walked down the stairs towards the bottom of the amphitheater, "I can't believe Miss Clyne and Cagalli were able to get all this ready in just two days."

Moving through the Kurosawa Memorial Center for the Performing Arts, to say its recent transformation from makeshift refugee camp back to its original intended purpose was impressive would be a considerable understatement. With seating for twenty thousand people, the amphitheater was smaller than Earth-side counterparts due to it being inside a colony rather than a surface city, but that didn't take away from the grand image it presented to visitors. Painted entirely in white, the open-air concert hall bore a passing resemblance to a giant, open clam. Two days ago the large stage, the lobby, hallways, and any other part of the amphitheater with flat space available had been used as housing for several thousand displaced people, but as she headed towards the front row with her boyfriend in tow Murrue could see no sign of its prior occupation.

Now the place was all decked out and ready for a show. There were stationary cameras set up at both the front of the stage and high in the rafters, and in addition to the people checking on them there were several others with mobile cameras, ready to capture the performance from every angle possible. High above and behind the stage a massive network of lights and speakers had been assembled, and this was matched by another broad array of audio and visual effects equipment at the back of the concert hall. Along the back of the stage was a giant screen, all the better for those in the rear seats to see the angelic idol who would soon be sweeping them away with her enchanting voice. Most of the lights were dimmed at the moment, but those that were on were predominantly a mix of purple, blue, and pink. In the dim lighting she could make out shadows on the stage, and based on their profiles she determined that they were instruments and people getting them ready, but she could not make out specific details. Murrue was very much looking forward to seeing what kind of show the people controlling the lighting had in mind, though not nearly as much as she was excited to hear Lacus sing.

At the start of the war, the famous Coordinator singer's music had been banned in the Atlantic Federation, but as so many other prohibitions had demonstrated in the past this one too was doomed to failure. The banning of the young starlet's music just as she was becoming a major hit had marked the beginning of a new golden age of digital music piracy, and now that she was well clear of her former homeland Murrue could proudly and openly count herself among those that had violated those foolish laws. Even while serving in the Earth forces it had not been hard to get access to the proscribed tunes; Murrue was hardly the only soldier in need of some uplifting melodies. Pop music wasn't generally her thing, but there was something about the sincerity, that genuine, heartfelt passion that Lacus brought to her voice that Murrue simply could not deny. The girl had an incredible gift of words and voice, and Murrue could only imagine what it would be like to listen to her live.

I never dreamed I'd get the chance to attend a show of hers, she thought, smiling as she looked at her boyfriend, Now here I am, and with the most amazing young man in the Earth Sphere for my date! This will be a night to remember.

Her smile still on her face, she slipped her arm through Heero's as they continued down the stairs towards the seats that had been reserved for them. The Gundam pilot's gaze met hers, and he gave her a small smile with a knowing look in his eyes. "You're excited."

It wasn't a question, and certainly not an accusation that Murrue would deny. "I can't help it. Miss Clyne's incredibly talented, and the feelings she puts into her songs are just so… so real. She doesn't do this for fame and fortune; she does it because she loves it."

Heero nodded in understanding. "I'm not surprised. The last thing you could ever call Lacus is a fake. Even if I've never heard her sing, I can tell just from the kind of person that she is how she would approach her music. I imagine words that could be used to describe her as a person would fit her songs just as well."

Murrue pulled her boyfriend in a little closer. "Absolutely. I can't wait for you to hear her, Heero. I promise you won't be disappointed."

To her surprise, she saw him actually smirk. "I don't know. She'd be hard pressed to beat your performance back in Orb."

A very familiar wave of heat rushed to her face, and Murrue was sure that she was blushing. "Heero… please… I'm not a professional singer like Miss Clyne. There's no way I could ever measure up to her talent."

"I disagree," said Heero, "Of all the singing voices I've heard, yours is by far the most beautiful. Although… I suppose I may be a bit biased."

Murrue gave a small laugh. "Yes, you might be."

She then leaned over and kissed him on the cheek. "Still, I appreciate it."

Heero nodded. "Anytime."

As they reached the front row and began making their way down it towards their seats Murrue smiled and waved at all the familiar faces she saw in it and the rows immediately behind it. While the bulk of the seating in the Kurosawa Memorial Center for the Performing Arts had gone to refugees, Cagalli and Lacus had taken special care with regards to the seating arrangements for the crews of the Archangel, Eternal, and the Kusanagi. The bridge crew from her shift was all there, along with Murdoch and some of his mechanics, and Murrue was also pleased to see Dr. Claudia and Dr. Clark.

However, the middle of the front row, mere meters from the stage, had been reserved specifically for friends of Cagalli and Lacus. Taking their seats, Murrue had Heero to her right and Shemei to her left, while the Gundam pilot had Kira on his other side. Also seated in their immediate vicinity were Athrun, Cagalli, Eric, Aisha, Waltfeld, Dearka, Miriallia, La Flaga, Erica, and the Valkyrie's subordinates and her parents.

"Glad you two could make it," said Shemei, smiling at Murrue.

Murrue nodded. "Of course we made it. How could we say no to Miss Clyne?"

Next to the Valkyrie, the Wolf of the Far East chuckled. "She's a hard lady to turn down. I know she's glad that you two wanted to come here; she really wants to help us all move forward after all that's happened since we got here, and this was the way she came up with to do that."

"That," said Shemei, "and she was really looking forward to singing for you guys. She hasn't forgotten how well you treated her aboard the Archangel, Murrue, or that Heero saved her life when he saved your ship in that first encounter. I think she's wanted to pay you both back for that for quite a while now."

Murrue shook her head. "I never considered her to be in my debt because of that, and I know Heero feels the same way. She knows that she doesn't have to go through any trouble for us, right?"

"Oh, I'm sure she does," said Shemei, "but it's not just that."

"What do you mean?" asked Heero.

Shemei gave them a warm smile. "Simple; she really does consider you two to be her friends. She doesn't want to be seen as a leader by you guys, or even a celebrity for that matter. She just wants to be Lacus. Someone you two can turn to for advice and support, or just to enjoy life with. Her inviting us all to this concert, even though its main purpose is to raise the morale of the refugees, is her way of showing just how much she cares about us all and appreciates all we do on behalf of her cause."

Murrue looked up at the stage, thinking of the incredible young woman who would soon be taking it. "I've never had a friend invite me to a concert just out of gratitude, or perform at one for me. Miss Clyne truly is generous when it comes to her friends."

Eric nodded and smiled. "Indeed she is. Speaking of friends, I imagine she would prefer it if those friends called her by her first name. I'm sure she wouldn't mind, Captain Ramius."

Murrue smiled. "I know, and maybe when this war is over I will. For now, though… I just feel like me being so informal with her somehow reduces all she's putting herself through to bring this conflict to an end. She lost her father, but she refused to give in to grief and despair. She's so determined to lead us in the manner her father would, to guide us towards a peaceful resolution to this war. So long as she's doing that… well, it's a little hard for me to be comfortable with just using her first name."

"I understand that," said Shemei, "Plenty of people feel the same way you do… though I've noticed your boyfriend doesn't stand on formality when it comes to our songstress."

Looking over at Heero, Murrue saw him nod. "We have an understanding… and when it comes to my friends, I tend to be casual."

Another woman might have been concerned to hear that her lover had an 'understanding' with another girl, but not Murrue. Shortly after they had become a couple, Heero had given Murrue the full story about the private conversation he'd had with Lacus on board the Eternal shortly after the meeting that had resulted in their plan to take down the Avalon battle-station. Murrue had been very grateful for the Gundam pilot's honesty, as well as for the role Lacus had played in nudging him towards finally acting on the feelings he had for the Archangel's Captain. Murrue had never talked about that with Lacus, and she'd never had to; the warm, sincere smile the songstress always so readily gave her and the Perfect Soldier was enough to tell her all she needed to know.

Shemei nodded. "I hear you there, Heero."

"I know Lacus is glad to be friends with you," said Eric, "Waltfeld told me that she really values your input. Can't say I blame her. You might be one of the younger members of our group, but as far as combat experience goes you're right at the top.

"Not to mention the whole 'from another world' thing," said Shemei, "Lacus definitely likes getting different perspectives on things, and yours is as different as it gets."

"I just want to help bring this war to an end," said Heero, "and I think that working with Lacus is the best way to do that. Whether it's my combat skills or my life experience, I'll give everything I've got to aid her cause."

"And I know she's very grateful for that," said Shemei, "and for your efforts as well, Murrue. Lacus knows you're just as dedicated to this as Heero is."

Murrue smiled as she reached over to gently intertwine her fingers with Heero's. "We're all in this together," she said, "I appreciate Miss Clyne's gratitude, but it's a two-way-street; I know we could not have made it this far without her leadership. If there's anyone that can guide us through the darkness of this conflict and out into the light of peace, I know it's her."

Eric smiled. "Well said. I'm sure Lacus would appreciate that vote of confidence."

"She's more than earned it," Murrue replied, "I just hope she's ready for tonight. The refugees have had it rough. I can't imagine how many lost friends or family members in the attack. Even with all the work we've done to help them recover, their psychological wounds are still very fresh."

Heero nodded. "I'm sure Lacus is aware of that. She knows she can't completely take away their pain, but she can ease it. If there's a way to give these people some sense of comfort and peace, Lacus will find it."

"I'm sure you're right," Murrue replied.

….

It was a very strange environment for the Gundam pilot; he'd never been to a concert before. To be crammed in with so many people like this, even in an open air venue, put his combat instincts a little on edge. Even though he and Murrue were surrounded by friends and allies up front, Heero was still on alert, ready for any sign of trouble that might arise from the crowd. Although he was sure others might frown on it, the Perfect Soldier had made sure to pack his sidearm, a precaution that was second nature to him. Only Murrue knew that he was armed tonight, and Heero hoped to keep it that way, but he was prepared to cut loose the moment something went wrong.

It was more than just the huge amount of people that made Heero a little uneasy though. Guarding against a sudden attack, even from out of a large crowd, was something he had been trained for, was something he knew how to handle. A live performance like this, though… that was another matter. Like so much else that he had done since coming to this world, since falling for Murrue, this was new territory for him. It was completely outside his comfort zone.

Still, feeling a little out of place aside, the Perfect Soldier realized that he was actually looking forward for the show to get underway. Sure, the security of Murrue and his friends was something he was concerned about, but there was also a sense of anticipation within the Gundam pilot. All of his life he'd heard about people going to shows like this, but it had always been an abstract idea for him, something that didn't affect him. For a young man whose whole life had been focused on surviving from one battlefield to the next, this kind of recreation was completely alien to him… and part of that actually excited him a little. This was a venture into the unknown, and he was doing it with people who he had come to trust with his life.

Being with the people he'd gotten to know so well over the course of his time in the Cosmic Era, especially Murrue, helped immeasurably. Just seeing Murrue smile like she was now, her anticipation and excitement on display for all to see, took a considerable amount of weight off of Heero's shoulders. It had been a refreshing surprise to learn that Murrue was a fan of Lacus's music; in all the time they'd spent together it had never come up in conversation. At first the Gundam pilot had felt a little strange for not knowing it, but after a little bit of thought he'd realized it was perfectly fine. After all, the only time music had ever come up with them had been during their first date in Orb when they'd done karaoke in the seafood restaurant, and even then Murrue hadn't gone in-depth about her taste in melodies. Besides, with the two of them and their friends constantly trying to stay alive in a world where it seemed like practically everyone else was trying to kill them, songs and singers had hardly been at the top of their minds.

Of course, he was keenly aware that the purpose of this show was not just for the entertainment of the core members of the Three Ships Alliance. The primary audience was the refugees, and Heero knew that they more than anyone needed something uplifting right now. Earlier that day he had gone over the final casualty report with Murrue, and the numbers had been grim. The ultimate toll on the refugees had been 4,723 people dead, and over five thousand wounded. While Heero was well aware that the casualties could've been far worse, it was still sobering to know that it had gotten as bad as it did. Looking at all the refugees back in the crowd behind him, the Gundam pilot was sure that plenty among them had lost family and friends in the attack; it was simply a matter of odds.

For those who suffered that loss, he thought, their pain is still all too fresh. It's only been a week since the attack… Lacus will have her work cut out for her. Still, she has a gift for reaching the hearts of others. If anyone can help the refugees now, it's her.

The pressure would be incredibly high, and it wasn't just because of the audience inside the colony. In a surprising move, Lacus and Waltfeld had told the others that video and audio feeds of the performance would be broadcasted outside the colony. At first Heero had assumed that the transmissions would be directed towards Eden and friendly ships at L3, but the songstress and the Desert Tiger had gone a step further by stating that the broadcast would also be going to L5 along channels maintained by the moderate opposition, and that open frequencies would be utilized in an effort to get the show to people in areas under Earth Alliance control. It was a very ambitious undertaking, and not without its risks, but Heero had also been able to see the potential benefits to it, especially with regards to bringing more people around to their cause. If there was anyone who could sway people who were on the fence into throwing their lot in with the Three Ships Alliance, it was Lacus.

Off to his left past Murrue he heard Bristow's voice. "It's time."

The words had barely left his mouth before the lights suddenly dimmed. A hush fell over the crowd, and like all the others Heero's attention was drawn to the dark stage.

After a few seconds a light snapped on, bathing the center of the stage in white light. In the exact middle was Lacus, dressed in a pale blue strapless gown, her long pink hair tied into twin tails while an ornate hairclip consisting of three overlapping gold and silver circles artfully held her left bangs to the side. Her demeanor was one of elegant sincerity, and to Heero she seemed more like a classical singer than a pop idol.

To his right he heard Kira gasp, and with a glance Heero saw his friend's jaw metaphorically hit the floor. The Perfect Soldier certainly couldn't blame him; the young woman's beauty was stunning. Heero hadn't been blind to the growing connection between the young man from Heliopolis and the daughter of the late Chairman Clyne; word got around, even if they were on a different ship than him.

You've set your sights high, Kira, he thought, good luck.

Looking at the lone young woman on the stage, Heero had to admire her composure. If she was at all nervous about the evening's performance, there was no sign of it anywhere in her body language.

She closed her eyes and bowed her head for a moment before raising the microphone she held in her right hand. When she spoke her voice was soft and gentle, a calming tide washing over the audience, Heero included.

"Before I begin tonight's performance, I would like to take a little time to recognize just what has brought us all here together like this. The people of Elysium have suffered dearly, especially those who came to the colony as refugees. What was inflicted upon you all should never have occurred, and I offer you my sincerest condolences for the losses that you have all felt so deeply."

"So many of you," she continued solemnly, "lost loved ones in the attack. I understand the pain that kind of loss brings. This is not an empty platitude; I am speaking as a woman whose father was taken from her by this war. It may not have been in the dreadful attack on the refugee camps, but the violence that took his life was still a part of this awful conflict."

Empathizing with her audience, Heero thought, and the way she's speaking, none of them can doubt her sincerity.

"I know your grief is fresh," said Lacus, "and that your pain is at its worst. Your anguish, your despair, your sorrow… I know how it threatens to drown you. For you, this is the darkest of nights, with dawn hardly even a glimmer in the distance. I know that you feel this way because I have felt the same way before."

She paused for a moment, and when she spoke again Heero saw her smiling. "But you cannot allow yourself to give in to that horrible grief. It may feel overwhelming, but each and every one of you has the strength within you to fight it, to overcome it. I am not saying to simply forget those who were lost; I would never ask you to do such a thing. The people you cared for so deeply may no longer be with you in this world, but they live on in your hearts, your memories. Think about your loved ones; would they want you to give into despair, to be imprisoned by grief and pain for the rest of your lives?"

In the background Heero could hear murmurs rippling through the crowd; the songstress was getting to them. He admired Lacus's talent for public speaking, and imagined she could challenge even Relena in that field.

"I believe," said Lacus, "that those we have lost would want us to remember them, but not be anchored by the pain of their passing. No matter how much we may wish otherwise, the sad and unfortunate truth is that we cannot bring them back to the world of the living. However, that does not mean that they are truly lost to us. We have our memories of them, all the time we shared with them until they were unjustly taken from us. Our duty to them now is to honor those memories by moving forward and doing all we can to make this world a better place, one where tragedies like the cruel attack that took so many innocent lives will eventually become a thing of the past. This will not be easy, but I know that all of us have the power to bring humanity closer to that if we join together."

"Right now," she continued, "the two great powers in this world are led by men who want nothing less than the complete annihilation of the other side simply for how they were born. It is their firm belief that this war can only end in the extinction of Coordinators or Naturals; the thought of a peaceful resolution does not even enter their minds. Their sheer, overwhelming hatred has only further fanned the flames of this conflict, and has set the stage for a host of tragedies. The attack on Elysium is the latest atrocity in this war, and if the rulers of the Earth Alliance and ZAFT are not stopped then it will be far from the last. Time and time again we've seen the results of the hatred embraced by both sides; it only breeds death and despair, fueling a vicious cycle that ends only when all are consumed. I cannot believe that the people of this world, Coordinator and Natural alike, truly want this bloodbath!"

She paused again, giving the audience a moment to absorb the full weight of her words. It was a grand indictment of the leadership of both the Earth Alliance and ZAFT, an accusation that their actions went against the will of the majority of their people. More than that, it was a call to conscience to those populations; could they really endorse the path their governments had chosen to go down? Heero could only imagine what was happening right now in the territories held by the two superpowers. Had they already managed to kill the feeds? Was Lacus's message still being broadcast? Who was hearing it? Who was moved by it?

So much rode on that last question.

"Throughout this war," said Lacus, "Orb has shown that there is another path to travel. In this country, Coordinators and Naturals live side-by-side in peace! That is why Lord Uzumi, may he rest in peace, tried so hard to keep this nation out of the war. He did not want to risk any harm to his people, regardless of what race they may be, and I know that Lady Cagalli feels the same way! She is determined to carry on the legacy of her father, to promote the peaceful coexistence of Naturals and Coordinators. It is the same legacy that my father wanted to impart on this world, one that I will fight with all my power to make a reality. I stand with Lady Cagalli in her struggle not just to preserve Orb, but to preserve humanity itself! We can show the world that there is another way, that hatred and genocide need not be embraced, but we cannot do it alone! We need you!"

"Some among you," she continued, "may wish to fight, to join us in our struggle against those who would commit atrocities like the one that happened here a week ago. I would be the first to welcome you, but if that is your choice then you must make sure that it is for the right reason. We are not fighting for revenge. It won't bring anyone back, and it will only cause more suffering. We are fighting to defend this world and the people who live in it from the madmen that would destroy it with the flames of their hate, their unquenchable thirst for vengeance. So if you decide that risking your life to bring this war to an end is how you will honor the memories of those you have lost, be sure that your desire is not clouded by the desire for retribution."

She paused for a moment to catch her breath before speaking again. "However, one does not have to fight on the battlefield to make a difference, to advance our cause. I would say that all of you here have suffered far too much pain and death, and would not want you to take up arms unless you firmly believed in fighting for our cause. Most of you are refugees; you came here to keep your families safe, to escape this war, not to fight! I understand that, and I want you to know that there is a way for you to make a difference without fighting!"

"Show the world," she continued, "what you have long known to be true, what you do every day of your lives! Live together in peace! Throughout this war and well before it, Orb has proven itself to be a land of tolerance, where Naturals and Coordinators live side by side in friendship. Please, never stop doing that! The way you live your lives is an example to the rest of the world of the path they should be taking. That is why the leaders of the Earth Alliance and ZAFT refuse now to abide by Orb's position of neutrality; the tolerance and peaceful coexistence exhibited by the people that call it home fly in the face of everything the extremists have told their countrymen!"

She closed her eyes and bowed her head for a moment. When she looked at the audience and spoke again her voice was softer, but the message it gave was no less powerful.

"Show the world that you will not give in to grief and despair, that you will not let the pain that's been inflicted upon you drive you down the dark road of hatred and revenge. Hold on to your loved ones in your hearts, never forget the time you had with them, but do not be afraid to move forward. You are not alone in this journey… none of us are alone. If we work together in honor of those that are not here today, we can save this world from the fires that threaten to consume it. Everyone, no matter who they are, has the strength to make a difference. Believe in yourselves, and believe in each other. Hold on to your hope; the morning will come."

A warm smile graced her face. "Thank you."

The amphitheater was silent…

…until the crowd broke into thunderous applause.

Well done, thought Heero as he joined them in clapping for the songstress, You won their hearts, Lacus. Well done.

Looking to his left, he saw Murrue applauding as well. She turned to him and gave him a radiant smile, and Heero replied with a small one of his own. Her right hand slipped into his left, and the two of them turned back to the stage as they waited for Lacus to make her next move.

The songstress waited until the applause died down before she addressed her audience again. "Without further adieu, I will begin the performance. I'll be leading with a new song tonight… one I wrote for this night."

Cheers rang out from the crowd. For his part, Heero could not help but be impressed by the implications of her words.

This performance, he thought, she only proposed it three days ago. In that time, she came up with a song dedicated to it… of course, she could've had the idea for longer than that, but still…

The lighting shifted, with the single white light now joined by hues of purple, blue, and pink, bathing the stage in a gentle, soothing aura. Now that the entire stage was lit up, Heero could see that Lacus was not alone. Behind her to her right was a middle-aged man on a piano, while to her left was a small orchestra including violins and an acoustic guitar. The Gundam pilot didn't recognize any of them, and realized that Lacus must've recruited them from Elysium's population. He imagined them all practicing nearly non-stop over the past three days in preparation for this night, and his admiration for the songstress who had brought them together went up a notch from its already high perch. It was also a very surprising lineup; Heero had been expecting something more like a modern band with electric guitars, drums, and a keyboard, but this was a full classical setup.

Silence fell over the amphitheater again. Heero could practically feel the audience's anticipation building in the air, and he realized that he was among them. To his left he saw Murrue staring intently at the stage, excitement clear in her eyes. Following her gaze back to the songstress, the Perfect Soldier saw Lacus take a deep breath and slowly let it out.

The opening piano note rang out…

…and Lacus's voice joined it a split-second later.

"You listen to my voice
Listen to my heart
Now I see it clearly"

"You listen to your voice
Listen to your heart
Do you even smile?"

"There is nothing you can't do
Only you can do to make yourself happy"

"You listen to your voice
Listen to your heart
Make yourself live"

"We are free
Like water flows
We are one
As we feel the love"

"How long will it take
To find our way out?
But she never lost her way
And made herself to home"

"So we hold each other's hand
As we walk along the way
No more fears and tears to fall
We find our way to home..."

"We are free
Like water flows
We are one
As we feel the love"

"How long will it take
To find our way out?
But she never lost her way
And made herself to home"

"So we hold each other's hand
As we walk along the way
No more fears and tears to fall
We find our way to home... "

"How long will it take
To find our way out?
But she never lost her way
And made herself to home"

"So we hold each other's hand
As we walk along the way
No more fears and tears to fall
We find our way to home... "

"You listen to my voice
Listen to my heart
Now I see it clearly"

"You listen to your voice
Listen to your heart
Do you even smile?"

Her voice lingered on the air as the song faded out. Riveted in his seat, Heero realized that at some point during the last part of the song he'd actually forgotten to breath; he'd been that taken in by the performance.

"Incredible…" he said softly as the last note silent.

He hadn't heard anything remotely like that since his first date with Murrue back in Orb. The words had seemed to pass completely through his defenses, penetrating his heart and soul in a way he'd only experienced since he'd begun to fall for the Archangel's Captain. Lacus had poured every bit of her will into her singing, and Heero had been completely blown away by the sheer strength of the emotions the songstress evoked.

Feeling a familiar hand squeeze his, he looked over at Murrue. The woman he loved had an expression that Heero could only describe as wonder on her face. She looked as thrilled now as she had during their ride in the Tallgeese Kai back at L4, and Heero realized that this really had been a dream come true for her.

"Amazing…" he heard her say, her voice almost a whisper.

The silence that fell upon the amphitheater lasted only for a moment before it was utterly drowned in a sea of cheers and applause. Looking around, Heero saw the entire crowd stand up, and the Gundam pilot and his lover joined them in the ovation. Their gazes meeting, the couple shared a smile and a kiss, buoyed by the phenomenal performance that they had just experienced.

Turning back to the stage, Heero saw Lacus smile and bow to her audience. When she raised her head again he saw her smile, and the Perfect Soldier knew it wasn't because of the resounding ovation itself but rather because she had reached her audience, had uplifted them in a way that they had so desperately needed. She hadn't completely taken away their pain, but she had made it much more bearable, had given them a hope that before now had seemed like a fleeting dream.

She truly is gifted, he thought, Her voice, her charisma, her ability to reach out and touch the emotions of people, to renew their faith in the future and each other… she's as powerful as Relena. Maybe more…

Not for the first time since coming to the Cosmic Era, the Gundam pilot found himself wondering what might happen if Lacus and Relena ever met. What could the two incredibly charismatic maidens of peace accomplish if given the chance to work together? They may have been separated by time and space, literally worlds apart, but even a blind man could see that they had much in common.

Settling back into his seat as Lacus prepared to start her next song, the Perfect Soldier mused that it didn't really matter. Why distract himself with pointless speculation while the show of a lifetime was going on in front of him? The woman he loved was giving the songstress her full attention, and Heero knew that Lacus deserved nothing less than the same from him right now.

He'd only heard one song so far tonight, but that was enough. In the back of his mind, Heero noted with some amusement that tonight marked more than just his first time attending a live concert; he'd found a favorite music artist.

It was just one more new experience for him since coming to this world.

….

As the last note of the last song faded out, Murrue and the others rose to their feet in enthusiastic applause. Watching Lacus take her final bow for the night, the Archangel's Captain once again marveled at just how incredibly talented the young woman was, and just how amazing she'd made this performance. It had gone on for a little over two hours, giving the songstress time to go through a considerable portion of her repertoire, and every piece was a crowd favorite. The entire concert had been a dream come true for Murrue, made all the better by the amazing young man she had shared the experience with.

Lacus bade her farewells to the crowd, and the lights faded. The applause finally died down, and Murrue turned to Heero. "Well?" she said, smiling at him, "What did you think?"

In the grand scheme of things Murrue knew it shouldn't be a big deal, but she still hoped that Heero had not just enjoyed himself but truly liked Lacus's singing. Sitting by him throughout the show, she'd noted his subtle reactions; eyes slightly widening at certain moments, that small smile of his making appearances, a sense of genuine enthusiasm as he applauded along with Murrue, the tightness with which he'd returned her grip as they held each other's hands during the songs… still, she wanted to actually hear him say it.

Heero closed his eyes for a moment. When he opened them he met her gaze and nodded, giving her a small smile. "It was… unbelievable. I've never seen anything like it."

Murrue nodded, her smile growing at the young man's affirmation. "I know, right? I feel the same way. I've listened to her songs before, but actually hearing her live, seeing her perform… this was incredible!"

The Gundam pilot nodded. "It was. I'm glad you enjoyed it, Murrue."

And here I was worrying about him enjoying it, she thought, touched by the sentiment, and he's thinking about me. Heero…

"Hey you two," said Shemei, causing them to look towards her. The Valkyrie smiled and motioned for them to follow her and Bristow. "This way."

Puzzled, Murrue simply looked at Heero and shrugged with him before the two of them followed their friends. Looking around, Murrue saw the rest of their group coming with them, and after a few seconds her heart leapt as she realized that they were going backstage. Murrue very much wanted to thank Lacus in person for the incredible show she'd put on and inviting them to it; the young woman certainly deserved at least that much.

Behind her she heard La Flaga chuckle. "VIP treatment… I could get used to this."

"One of the perks of being friends with our songstress," said Bristow, "Best seats in the house, followed by a little backstage party. Lacus tends to go all-out when it comes to her friends."

Eventually they made their way to the point where performers made their final preparations before going onstage. They found Lacus there ready for them, smiling. A few tables were set out with platters of finger-food and drinks.

"I'm glad you all were able to come tonight," she said, "After everything you've been through, I felt that the least I could do was include you in this event even though it was meant for the refugees. They've suffered dearly, true, but so have the rest of you… in a struggle that I asked you to undertake."

"Don't worry about it," said Kira as he moved closer to her, "We all knew what we were getting ourselves into when we decided to join you."

"Well before that," said La Flaga, "The instant we went rogue at Alaska we knew we'd be fighting both the Earth Alliance and ZAFT. I don't think any of us ever anticipated that we'd end up forming an alliance with your group, but none of us regret it."

"He's right," said Heero, nodding at Lacus, "We're all after the same thing; an end to this war that doesn't involve both sides wiping each other out. It's not just your cause, or that of your father's; it's all of ours. We believe in it as strongly as you do."

"We knew it wouldn't be an easy fight," said Murrue, smiling at the songstress, "but it's one we also know that's worth fighting. Miss Clyne, please don't feel like you're putting a burden on our shoulders; we're willing to give everything we have to aid you in this struggle for peace."

Lacus bowed her head. "Thank you, all of you."

Looking up again, she smiled and waved her arm at the food and drink set out for them. "Now please, help yourselves! I felt that the best way to wrap up this evening would be a little party back here. Relax and dig in to your hearts' content!"

At that the group split up into several smaller ones, with some people dishing up and others simply hanging back, waiting their turn and chatting with friends. Murrue and Heero were among the latter, and the Archangel's Captain moved closer to Lacus with her boyfriend in tow.

"Miss Clyne," she said, "I just wanted to thank you for what you did tonight. It feels a bit selfish to say this since I know this was mainly for the refugees, but this truly was a dream come true for me; I've always wanted to see you sing live."

Lacus held out her hand. "Thank you, Captain Ramius."

Murrue smiled as she took her hand and gave it a gentle shake. "You are most welcome, Lacus." She turned to Heero for a moment before looking back at the songstress. "I know Heero liked your performance too; I think you really had an impact on him."

"Really?" Lacus asked, turning to the Gundam pilot. Her expression seemed hopeful; to know she had reached the heart of the stoic soldier must've been important to her.

Heero nodded. "I've never seen anything quite like it. You really are talented, Lacus."

"I'm glad you think so," she replied.

"How about that?" said Cagalli as she joined the three of them, "Heero's got a soft side… besides Captain Ramius, of course."

Heero simply shrugged. "I admire the passion that she puts into her singing. If that makes me soft, so be it."

Cagalli shook her head. "Nothing gets under your skin, does it?"

Heero just looked at her, his expression as calm as ever, not replying.

Murrue gave a slight laugh. "I think that answers your question, Cagalli." She smiled at her before continuing. "By the way, I haven't yet thanked you for helping Miss Clyne put this together; I know she couldn't have done it without your aid."

Cagalli smiled. "Don't mention it. I know the refugees needed that… and I think I did to. Great job, Lacus. You were awesome!"

"Thank you, Cagalli," she replied.

"So," said Murrue, "what's next for you two? You'll have a hard time topping an event like this."

"We don't plan on trying to," Cagalli replied, "Our focus has always been on helping the colonists and refugees recover from the attack. That hasn't changed."

"I'll go back to volunteering in the refugee camps for now," said Lacus, "Eventually I'll return to my full-time leadership duties. I just want to help out in the camps a little longer. To be honest, it's actually been much easier to do that than my political job in this alliance. I know it's a little selfish, but…"

"There's not as much responsibility with your role as a volunteer," Murrue finished for her, nodding in understanding, "It removes a weight from your shoulders; the burdens of leadership."

"Yes," the songstress replied, her gaze meeting Murrue's, "I should've known that you would be able to grasp my motives."

"You're still helping people," said Heero, "so don't think of what you're doing as selfish. Just be mindful of how you act and the developing situation. You'll know when the time is right to return your full attention to your responsibilities as one of the leaders of our alliance."

Lacus nodded. "I will. Thank you, Heero. I'm glad to know that I can count on someone like you to help me keep my bearings, to stay on the right path."

Heero shook his head. "Don't mention it."

He makes a good point, thought Murrue, and it's one that does not just apply to Miss Clyne. I know our efforts to help the refugees recover are right, but there's only so much we can do for them. Our larger focus needs to be on figuring out how we're going to get the Earth Alliance and ZAFT to end this war without playing right into Creuset's hands, and that's definitely going to be easier said than done. I know Waltfeld and Miss Clyne haven't forgotten that. I just hope they have a plan…

….

August 6th, C.E. 71

Transformed into its Neo-Bird configuration, the legendary mobile suit flew through space like a falcon on the hunt, ready for action at a moment's notice. Heero wasn't alone in his patrol flight. The Tallgeese Kai had launched from the Archangel as well, while the Justice flew from the Kusanagi and Priscilla's Wraith from the Eternal. The three powerful battleships were widely dispersed to provide maximum coverage for the colony, while the warships of Task Force 9.3 remained inside.

Another quiet patrol, thought Heero as he took Wing Zero through the next leg of his designated flight plan, it's almost like a vacation compared to some of the action we've seen over the past few months.

The calm week since Lacus's performance had been quite welcome as far as Heero was concerned. No action meant a smoother recovery for the colonists and refugees, and a great deal of progress had been made on that front. Clean up efforts were going very well, with most of the debris having already been cleared. Buildings that were damaged but still structurally sound were quite far along in the repair process, while wrecking crews had already wrapped up demolishing structures that had been determined to be a total loss. Rebuilding was already proceeding in some of those later areas; the modular nature of colonial buildings made the recovery process considerably easier than it would have been for cities on Earth. The progress had been so great that Cagalli was already able to redeploy some of her resources to getting Elysium's military-industrial facilities up and running again, and the colony was in the midst of producing a mix of M1 Astrays and Tauruses to replenish the mobile suit complements of Task Force 9.3's warships along with shoring up the colony's defenses.

It wasn't just the colony itself that was getting patched up. The refugees themselves were already back on their feet as a community; Lacus's concert had done wonders for their morale. Efforts were already underway to reestablish normal life in the two camps that had been hit in the attack, with new tents for housing, medical treatment, food prep, and other functions set up and operating. From what Heero had seen and heard over the past few days it seemed the refugees had found a new sense of purpose and strength in the wake of the performance. No longer were they trapped in the midst of their pain and sorrow. Their grief was still there, but it no longer dominated them as it had before. Already they were moving forward, determined to prove that the Earth Alliance could not take their spirits as it had taken the lives of their loved ones. While most continued to live their lives inside the colony waiting for the day the war would end and they could return to their homeland, some had decided to be more proactive with regards to their fates and had enlisted in the Orb military. The Gundam pilot knew that the fresh recruits would be most welcome after the losses Elysium's defense forces had suffered in the battle, but he had concerns regarding their mentality. He could only hope that Lacus's message of not seeking vengeance had gotten through to them, and that they were fighting for the right reasons.

Heero knew that the people of Elysium had not been the only ones bolstered by the combined efforts of Lacus and Cagalli. Morale had risen within the ranks of the Three Ships Alliance. Everyone was in a good mood, full of purpose and vigor even if they were not actively engaged in their mission to defeat the Alliance and ZAFT. They may have been holding position at Elysium, but idleness and complacency had failed to set in. Everyone was alert, energized, and optimistic.

Even the Gundam pilot was not immune to the new sense of electricity in the atmosphere between him and his friends and comrades, though he knew that Murrue played a large part in that. Heero had already known that she had greatly enjoyed herself at the concert, but it was only after some time had passed since the performance that he was able to truly appreciate the effect it had had on the woman he loved. Murrue had always been determined and strong, but Heero knew just how heavily the burdens and responsibilities of command weighed upon her. For her, leading the Archangel was both a privilege and a curse. The crew's loyalty and trust in Murrue had given her a great sense of accomplishment, and she was proud to command such a dedicated and skilled group of people, but Heero was also keenly aware of just how hard Murrue worked to protect them and toll it took on her. Having all of their lives in her hands, weighing on her every decision, put an extraordinary amount of pressure on her, and Heero knew from personal experience how hard she took it when they suffered from combat, with the battle in the Marshall Islands months ago being the standout example.

Now, though, things were different. Heero could see that her determination and strength had been amplified in the days following the concert. Her will to defend those around her was even more powerful, and Heero could tell that she was hell bent on more than just surviving this war; she would triumph, drive both the Earth Alliance and ZAFT to the negotiating table no matter what the odds. Murrue's concerns for her crew, friends, and allies was still there, but the burdens that had accompanied those fears seemed to weigh less on her shoulders now. Well before entering into a romantic relationship with her, Heero had done his best to alleviate that pressure on her shoulders, and he knew he'd had some success, but something about the performance of the pink-haired songstress had revitalized Murrue in a way the Gundam pilot could only marvel at.

She's even stronger than before, he thought, I did and will continue to do all I can to help her, but even I couldn't inspire her like this. Lacus… thank you.

His gratitude towards the songstress aside, Heero had to wonder just who else she had moved by her performance, particularly among the Alliance and ZAFT forces. The Perfect Soldier was well aware of the risks Lacus and Waltfeld had taken by broadcasting the concert to their enemies, and he could only hope that among those that got the message were men and women brave enough to take the next step; defection. Heero would not deny their need for allies, especially in light of the forces that they would undoubtedly have to confront before this war could finally be brought to an end. The only question now was how many would heed the call to turn against their countries, to challenge both superpowers to battle. In the week that had passed since the performance there was still no sign of reinforcements on the horizon. Heero had not lost hope that soldiers among their enemies had been inspired by the words and songs of Lacus, but he had no way of knowing how many were in a position that would enable them to break free of the warlords that ruled them.

Heero was also worried about possible retaliation from the Earth Alliance and ZAFT. The transmission of the concert into their territories amounted to a psychological attack, an effort to undermine the will of their populations. Although all of the intelligence gathered by Bristow's network of informants in the days both before and after the performance indicated that both sides were focused on building up for their final showdown there was still no way to be completely sure about their intentions. The Earth Alliance had already managed to mass one fleet to invade L3 with without Bristow's network learning of it, and had the Three Ships Alliance not saved Task Force 9.3 then the Orb colonies would have fallen and ninety thousand refugees would be slaughtered. There was always the chance that Azrael had another fleet gearing up for round two, or that Zala had decided to take a shot of his own at L3.

Adjusting his radio, he contacted La Flaga. "Status report."

"All quiet over here," replied the Hawk of Endymion, "You?"

Heero was about to answer when his sensors began beeping. His gaze shifting to his radar, he saw several contacts at the edge of his scopes. They were grouped into two distinct clusters, separate but still on the same flight path heading right for Elysium.

He switched over to the tactical channel. "I've got contacts bearing down on my position. Two groups. I can confirm capital ships in both, but not what class at this range."

Murrue immediately appeared on his monitor. "Get close enough to identify them, but don't engage. We'll move in to back you up!"

Heero nodded. "Roger that."

"Hold tight," said La Flaga, "I'm inbound."

The Hawk of Endymion faded from the screen, and was immediately replaced by the Desert Tiger. "All forces, go to level two battle stations! Be ready to go to level one if we confirm hostiles. Converge on Wing Zero and the Archangel."

His sensors became alive with activity as his allies sprung into motion. As he altered his course to bring Wing Zero into an intercept vector with the new contacts while shifting the machine back to mobile suit form, he saw more units begin to launch from the Archangel and her fellow warships. Priscilla's Wraith immediately disappeared from his scopes, and Heero knew that she was preparing an ambush in the event the new contacts turned out to be hostile. Two of the mobile suits launched from the Eternal also went dark as soon as they cleared the ship; Adaline and Lan had the same idea as their friend. The Tallgeese Kai was streaking across the map to join him, as was the Justice and the mobile suits freshly launched from the friendly capital ships.

As he got closer he was able to identify the ships in both groups. The group on the right was composed of ten Laurasia-class frigates and four Nazca-class destroyers, and Heero noted that that was the same mix of warships that Task Force 9.3 had had before it had fought the ZAFT fleet that had pursued it from L5. Shifting his focus to the group on the left, Heero saw that it was made up of twelve Drake-class escort ships and six Nelson-class battleships. Though the groups were made up of warships on opposing sides of this war, it was plain as day that the two formations were flying in synch; there were no signs of active combat between them. Their formations were close and orderly rather than fanned out as they might have been for an attack. They hadn't even deployed mobile suits or armors, which boded well as far as the Gundam pilot was concerned, though he refused to let his guard down.

Maybe this is the start, he thought as he warily eyed the approaching ships, the beginning of the break we've been hoping for. We'll know soon enough…

A new voice came over an open channel, and as he studied the frequency he saw that it was a common ZAFT one. "This is Commander Carlos Delgado of Task Force 11.5 to Elysium defense forces. Please, do not attack us! We have powered down our weapons; we're not here to fight!"

Another voice came over the airwaves, this time using Earth Alliance communication protocols. "This is Captain Alfred Hamilton of the battleship Farragut. I'm the senior commanding officer of former Earth Alliance 22nd Task Recon Group, formerly attached to the 7th Orbital Fleet. We have abandoned the Alliance and wish to defect to Orb! We encountered Commander Delgado's force en route to L3 and discovered we had common cause. Like our companions, our weapons are powered down; we are not here to attack L3!"

"7th Orbital…" said La Flaga over the tactical channel, "That's my old fleet."

"Do you remember a Captain Hamilton or 22nd Task Recon Group?" asked Heero.

"No," he replied, "but we know both sides have massively expanded their fleets over the past few months. It's possible this is a newly created squadron."

"Let's not take any chances," said Murrue, "Heero, can you confirm that both groups have powered down weapons?"

Zeroing in on the approaching squadrons with the Search Eye, Heero quickly scanned their vessels. "Affirmative. Weapons are powered down, along with active targeting arrays. Warships in both groups are only powering engines, life support, and passive scans."

"So far so good," said Waltfeld, "but we need to stay cautious. If they're really here to defect, then let's see them prove it."

"How?" asked Heero.

Waltfeld chuckled. "Watch and learn."

Another frequency popped up on his scanners; the Desert Tiger was addressing the newcomers over an open channel. "Task Force 11.5 and 22nd TRG, this is Field Marshal Andrew Waltfeld of the Eternal. If you truly mean to join our cause, you will follow my instructions. Halt your approach at once and do not move!"

For a moment Heero wondered if Waltfeld was being too blunt and potentially offending their possible new allies, but his doubts subsided when he saw both Alliance and ZAFT ships comply with the order.

"This is Commander Delgado," said the head of the ZAFT group, "We've come to full stop and are maintaining position."

"This is Captain Hamilton," said the 22nd's commanding officer, "We're at station keeping."

"Thank you, gentlemen," said Waltfeld, "Now, here's what's going to happen. My forces will set up for crossfire on yours. If you try anything stupid, you get to face the wrath of Wing Zero, and its pilot does not take kindly to treachery. Neither do the rest of us, for that matter. Am I clear?"

Both officers immediately acknowledged.

It's nice to be appreciated, Heero mused, resisting the urge to smirk. He had to wonder just how much his reputation had affected the response of the potential defectors. The Gundam pilot definitely didn't mind Waltfeld exploiting his notoriety if it got results like this.

Waltfeld's voice came over the radio again, this time back on the tactical channel. "All forces, fan out for maximum coverage. Heero, you mind splitting that rifle of yours? I want both groups in your sights if they try to pull something."

The Perfect Soldier nodded as he complied with Waltfeld's request. "Roger that. I've already traced the two transmissions to their vessels of origin; I'll lock in on the flagships."

"Just what I had in mind," said Waltfeld, "Ok, time for the next step."

The Desert Tiger shifted back to the open channel. "Captain Hamilton and Commander Delgado, you will instruct your respective groups to hold their current positions. Following that you will each board a shuttle and come to the Eternal for discussions regarding an alliance. You will each bring only one aide and the minimum crew required for safe operation of the shuttles. Weapons of any kind are prohibited, and you will be searched upon your arrival. Is that understood?"

Once again both officers acknowledged Waltfeld's demands without protest.

"We await your arrival," said the Desert Tiger, "Eternal out."

Waltfeld then addressed Heero and the others over the tactical channel. "Miss Clyne and I will take part in the talks. Since Lady Cagalli's currently on Elysium we'll video conference her in as well. Captain Ramius, I'm leaving command of our forces in your hands while I talk with our guests."

Heero saw Murrue nod on his screen. "Understood."

"Wish us luck, people," said Waltfeld, "Eternal out."

As the Field Marshal disappeared from the screen Heero turned to Murrue. "Your orders?"

"Keep the flagships under your guns," she replied, "and don't wait for instruction to fire. If you catch any sign that they're about to betray us, I want you to act on your instincts."

Heero nodded. "Roger that."

Murrue smiled. "However, I'm hopeful it won't come to that. Let's give diplomacy a chance. We need these reinforcements, and if anyone can determine that they're sincere about joining us, it's Waltfeld and Miss Clyne."

"You're right," said Heero, "and I think they are sincere. The Earth Alliance and ZAFT may hate us, but they hate each other more; I don't think they'd cooperate to eliminate us."

"What about the battle at L4?" said Murrue, "We did fight forces from both sides there, after all."

"That was manipulated by Creuset," Heero replied, "Under normal circumstances the Alliance and ZAFT would rather spend their energies killing each other, even with the proven threat we pose to them. I doubt they'd cooperate on something as big as invading L3, and if they did then the forces here today are too small to accomplish the job and not deployed right for it. We could easily wipe them out right now with the way we're set up and how they've maintained their formations."

Murrue nodded. "That's true. They haven't even launched mobile suits; we have all ours deployed. If they want to attack us this isn't the way to do it, especially considering the forces we know the Alliance and ZAFT could bring to bear on us if they were serious about conquering L3. Hell, the fleet the Alliance sent in that attack was bigger than both these groups combined."

"Yes," said Heero, "I'm not saying we let them in with no questions asked, or do that with any future new allies, but I think the chances of betrayal here are low."

Murrue smiled. "Same here. I'm glad your feelings mirror mine."

Heero nodded. "This is a big step forward for us. Two battle groups, one from each superpower, defecting to our side; word of that will get around."

"Hopefully drawing even more defectors to our banner," said Murrue.

That was definitely Heero's wish. Looking out at their potential new allies, the Gundam pilot reflected on how much their movement had grown since they had returned to outer space.

When we left Orb, he thought, we just had two ships. Then we met up with the Eternal and became the Three Ships Alliance. We've kept the name, but more ships and soldiers have joined our cause since then. With Task Force 9.3's defection we went from a small flotilla to a modest battle group. Now two more squadrons have joined our ranks. If this keeps up, we could move up to a full-scale fleet…

A fleet to challenge the Alliance and ZAFT for the fate of the world.

….

Back on the bridge of the Eternal, Waltfeld watched as the two shuttles carried Delgado and Hamilton back to their respective squadrons. Thinking back on the meeting that had just wrapped up a little over ten minutes ago, he turned to Aisha and smiled. "We did it."

Aisha leaned in to kiss his cheek. "Was there ever any doubt, Andy?"

Waltfeld chuckled as he looked down at the station that Lacus occupied. Like him, the songstress's gaze was on the returning shuttles, and he could only wonder what was going through that surprisingly cunning head of hers. "Not with her running the show."

Her performance in the meeting had been impressive to say the least. Lacus may have been a civilian, but the respect she commanded from members of the armed services could not be denied. Going in, Waltfeld could already tell that Delgado and Hamilton had been moved by the broadcast of the songstress's concert, and she had played on that to the fullest during the meeting. Her ability to move people on an emotional level was as powerful in negotiation as it was in song, and any final doubts the Alliance and ZAFT officers had had were put to rest. Having Cagalli attend via video conference had helped matters as well; the tomboyish princess's fiery will to defend her people combined with the compassion she showed those who wished to seek asylum in her territory was a potent mix. Together the two girls had dominated the proceedings, and Waltfeld had actually been surprised to find himself playing a smaller role than he had originally anticipated. He wasn't complaining though. Quite the contrary; he was proud to see just how far Cagalli and Lacus had come as leaders.

Now that the girls had finished their work though, it was time for him to start his. With the addition of so many new ships to their forces, the Desert Tiger's agenda for the day had suddenly gotten a lot bigger. Integrating the newcomers into their alliance, reviewing inventory and key personnel files, coordinating intelligence debriefings with Bristow to see if the defectors could shed new light on the activities of the Earth Alliance and ZAFT… he was going to be busy.

"So," said Aisha, "What next?"

"We gotta do some serious adjustments to our patrol patterns for starters," said Waltfeld, "I could probably split up the groups eventually, have one stay here and another go to bolster Eden's defenses. We also need to review their combat history. I need to know if we've got veterans here or if the bulk of their forces are green. And that's just the tip of the iceberg…"

Aisha smirked. "Sounds like you're going to have your work cut out for you. Having second thoughts about this plan now that the administrative bit's catching up to you?"

Waltfeld chuckled. "I might have to recruit some new staff officers to help me handle everything. It's going to be tough to get all this done… but definitely worth the effort."

Aisha put her hand on his shoulder. "Absolutely. What happened today just proved that the risks you took with this plan were more than worth the reward."

Waltfeld nodded. "Yeah… and this is just the beginning."

….

Sitting in her office, Murrue smiled as she reviewed the information that had been sent over to the Archangel after the meeting aboard the Eternal had been concluded. She didn't know what Waltfeld's plans regarding the defectors were, but she knew it was important to familiarize herself with their capabilities and history as much as she could, and had gotten started on that as soon as her watch on the bridge had wrapped up. Normally Murrue would have saved this until after a meal with Heero, but the Gundam pilot had informed her that he would be spending some time down in the hangar running routine maintenance on Wing Zero for a while, so it would be some time before he could join her as had long been their routine. He'd told her not to wait for him if she was hungry, but Murrue had insisted that she could put off dinner until he was ready. It was a small thing, but sharing their evening meal was something Murrue greatly enjoyed, and she didn't mind delaying it a little so long as it meant she could still have it with Heero.

Currently she was wrapping up her review of the 22nd Task Recon Group's history. As La Flaga had speculated, the file confirmed that the squadron was a newly created unit, formed less than a month ago as part of the expansion of the 7th Orbital Fleet. A few veteran officers were assigned to leadership positions but the vast majority of soldiers in it were green. Murrue was amazed that the commanding officer had managed to sway so many men and women into defecting from the Earth Alliance. She wondered if they had heard rumors of the massacres committed by the Alliance at Alaska and Victoria, or if their defections were influenced by the appalling disregard High Command had repeatedly shown for the lives of soldiers. While the bulk of the group may have been new recruits Murrue was sure that they were well aware of the casualty rates Alliance forces tended to suffer in battle even with the addition of mobile suits to their arsenal, and she suspected these troops did not want to be thrown into the meat grinder so casually.

Their defection may be as motivated by disgust with their superiors' attitude towards them as it is for the atrocities the regime has committed, she mused, A mixture of idealism, righteousness, revulsion and self-preservation… though considering the forces we're up against joining us may not be the best way for them to serve that last motivation.

In the end, it didn't matter. All Murrue cared about was that the defectors were willing to fight against the Earth Alliance and ZAFT to end this war. She was grateful to have new allies, especially towards the person who more than anyone else had made this possible: Lacus Clyne.

Murrue had been riding high emotionally speaking since the young woman's incredible performance. She had already respected Lacus as a leader and a person and had known she had a great talent for singing, but actually hearing her live had been an experience few could match. It wasn't a surprise at all to learn that others had been moved by her powerful words and amazing voice; in fact, Murrue would've been shocked if no one had defected from the Alliance and ZAFT after the message she had given before the concert and the subsequent performance.

The Archangel's Captain was keenly aware that she had not been the only one reinvigorated by watching Lacus perform. Of course she knew that the event had been a huge boost to morale across Elysium, but her eyes were, more than anything else, on the people she had sworn to herself to protect. Murrue could see plain as day that the concert had done wonders for her crew, even those who had not been able to physically attend it and had watched and listened from their posts on the Archangel. She was happy that their spirits had been raised as a result, though the person whose reaction mattered the most to her was of course the young man that was closest to her; Heero Yuy.

To one who didn't know him better, the Perfect Soldier had appeared no different in the days after the concert than the time before. However, Murrue was well aware of the subtle cues the Gundam pilot unknowingly gave regarding his emotional well-being, and what she had observed pointed to a renewed sense of focus and an increase in his already indomitable strength. Murrue knew that Heero had already found his purpose in defending her, in his determination to forge a new life with her, but the words of the pink-haired songstress had seemed to amplify that in a way that Murrue could only marvel at. Moreover, she was struck by how much Heero had truly seemed to enjoy the concert. It was subtle, but she had observed a sense of wonder about him as Lacus had captivated her audience, awe at the passion and power of her voice.

I guess I can safely call him a fan of hers now, she thought, I wonder what his old friends would think if they saw him at that concert…

Another, less secure woman might have been worried about the young man's attention being taken by the songstress, but not Murrue. She knew that Heero's devotion to her was as strong as hers to him and held no concerns regarding his reaction to the performance. With how powerfully Murrue had been affected by the concert, she would not begrudge Heero for feeling something similar. She was actually glad to see him touched by her songs, to know that he liked a singer that she did too, and that like her his morale had been bolstered by the performance.

Murrue was happy that Heero had both enjoyed and been reinvigorated by the recent performance, but as they spent more time at Elysium the more she felt that she should build upon that. Over the past few days her mind had begun to drift back to the last time they'd spent a prolonged period at a colony... and something very special that Heero had done for her during their stay.

Their surprise date at L4, the amazing flythrough of the debris field and the private dinner afterwards, had been forever etched in Murrue's mind as one of the most romantic events of her life. She could recall with perfect clarity every second of that wonderful day, and as she looked back on it now one moment in particular near the end of their flight in the Tallgeese Kai had her preoccupied.

"Heero," she said, "this was incredible. Thank you so much for taking me out today. I'll never, ever forget it."

Heero returned the smile. "Anytime, Murrue. I promise this won't be the last time I take you out."

"I believe it," she said, "and I'll do the same for you when I get the chance. You've more than earned it, and not just because of today. I love you, Heero."

Now that they were on Elysium and had no plans to leave for at least a little while, Murrue realized that this was her chance to make good on her pledge to repay Heero for the incredible date he'd given her at L4.

Of course, how she could do that was easier said than done. The whole date had just been so amazing, so far above and beyond anything that anyone had ever done for her before in the name of her heart, that Murrue found it difficult to imagine how she could even come close to repaying Heero for that wonderful day.

Come on, she thought, this is Heero you're talking about here. He's not going to care if you can't pull off something as spectacular as that date at L4. As long as your heart's in it, as long as you're doing it for him, that's all that will matter to him.

It was comforting, but she still didn't want to settle for giving him an average date. She wanted something special, something that was far from ordinary, that would not just stand out to him but be something he would truly enjoy.

Once again the Gundam pilot's reaction to the concert a week ago flashed through her mind, and Murrue found her inspiration. The outline of a plan went through her mind, and as out-there as it seemed she immediately knew it was what she wanted to do.

However, she would need a lot of help to make it a reality… especially from a certain young woman.

Would it be selfish to ask her to do something like that?, she thought, She's such a giving person, so generous, and I don't want to take advantage of that, especially after all she's already done. I… I think she'd be willing to go along with it. It's not like I'm doing this for myself, after all; it's for Heero. I know she'll recognize that.

Her mind settled, she closed out of the reports that remained on her computer and activated the video conference feature. Picking out a specific frequency, she hoped that the person it belonged to would be available.

There was a brief flash of static as a connection was established, and then the screen cleared up…

…revealing the smiling face of Lacus Clyne.

"Captain Ramius!" she said, "This is a pleasant surprise. How are you?"

Murrue smiled at the songstress. "I'm doing well, Miss Clyne. Yourself?"

"Quite well," she replied, "Especially after what we managed to accomplish today."

Murrue nodded. "I'm sure I speak for everyone on board the Archangel when I give you my heartfelt thanks, Miss Clyne; I know you're efforts were integral in bringing the defectors completely over to our side."

Lacus bowed her head. "You give me too much credit, Captain Ramius… but thank you."

"You are most welcome, Miss Clyne," said Murrue.

The pink-haired songstress raised her head and smiled again. "I'm sure you didn't call today just to exchange pleasantries. Please, tell me what's on your mind, Captain Ramius."

Murrue looked down for a moment before meeting her gaze again. "Miss Clyne... I feel selfish of asking this of you after all you've already done for us… but I need a favor."

The songstress looked puzzled. "A favor?"

Murrue nodded. "Yes. I don't know if you were ever aware of it, but… back at L4, Heero did something amazing for me, and for a while now I've been trying to find a way to return the favor. I know it's not something he would want me to worry about, but he deserves it. I…"

Lacus smiled in understanding. "Captain Ramius, I believe I understand what you are referring to. Miss Rehema told me some time ago about the date Heero took you on back at the Mendel colony. I think it's amazing that he was willing to put so much effort into giving you a romantic evening even in the midst of such a desolate place. In light of that, I can certainly see why you would feel so compelled to give him something just as special."

Murrue sighed in relief at her insight. "Yes, I do, and now that we're at an actual functioning colony rather than the ruins of Mendel I think I've found a way to repay him for what he did for me. However, I can't do it alone. I need help… especially from you. I feel selfish asking this of you, but…"

"Murrue, please," said Lacus, "It's ok."

Murrue's eyes widened a little. Lacus did not often call her by just her first name.

"Since the moment I became aware of your feelings for each other I've supported your relationship with Heero," said the songstress, "That hasn't changed a bit, and I know that what you're doing is not selfish. You're trying to do give the man you love something precious, to demonstrate your affection in a manner that goes far above and beyond what would normally be called for, just as he has done for you. I would be more than happy to help you with this, Murrue."

"Miss Clyne…" she said softly.

Still smiling, Lacus continued. "Murrue, you are more than just an ally to me. You're my friend. I want to help you with this. Please, tell me what you need."

Murrue smiled in gratitude. "Ok."

….

Lacus continued to smile as Murrue laid out her plan for her coming date with Heero. It was a very touching display, and the songstress marveled at the depths of her affection for the pilot from another world. Listening to the Archangel's Captain, Lacus could tell that it would take some serious effort to pull off what she wanted, but she was more than ready to rise to the occasion. In fact, she was looking forward to it; it wasn't often she got the chance to do something like this.

"I think it's a wonderful idea," she said after Murrue finished outlining her plan, "and I know Heero will appreciate that you put so much thought into it."

Murrue smiled. "I'm glad you think so. Are you sure it's not too much though? I mean… I don't want to just drag you into something like this, using your talents for a personal matter."

Lacus shook her head. "Murrue, it's fine, really. I don't mind it at all. As a matter of fact, I think it will be fun."

Murrue nodded. "All right… thank you, Miss Clyne."

"You're welcome," Lacus replied, "and Murrue? Please, just call me Lacus. I don't like to use formality when it comes to my friends."

"I'll try, Miss… I mean, Lacus," said Murrue, "I'm sorry, it's just… you're one of our leaders, and I have the utmost respect for all you've done and what you're trying to do. It's just… I guess I feel like being informal with you would just be rude."

"You're informal with Cagalli," Lacus pointed out, "and she doesn't take offense with it, nor do you seem to think she would."

Murrue sighed. "You're right. I guess I see her differently since she once flew under my command, even if it wasn't formally. Even though she's the leader of Orb now I still sometimes think of her as that fiery young woman we picked up in North Africa. If I'm still informal with her even after her elevation to such an important role, then I suppose I can work towards being that way with you."

"Give it time," Lacus replied, smiling, "I don't want you to force yourself; let it be natural."

Murrue smiled. "I'll try… Lacus."

"That's all I can ask," said Lacus, "Now, I believe you and I have some work to do. It's going to take a lot of effort to pull this off."

Murrue nodded. "Agreed… and I might need to recruit a few more people."

Lacus had already anticipated as much. "I'll talk to Cagalli about this. On your end, might I suggest Shemei and Mister Bristow? They were very willing to help Heero with his efforts towards the date you shared at L4. I'm sure they'd be more than happy to help you return the favor."

Murrue smiled. "I hadn't thought of that before… but you're right. I'll talk to them later. Can you think of anyone else we might need to involve?"

"Just a few others," Lacus replied, "but leave them to me, ok? Once you've recruited Shemei and Mister Bristow all you'll have to worry about is what you'll wear; your uniform's hardly fitting for something like this."

"You're right," said Murrue, "but I don't have anything else."

"Don't worry," said Lacus, "I'll talk to Cagalli; we'll work something out for you. You should have Shemei and Mister Bristow do the same for Heero. His uniform's certainly impressive, but I think it's just not right for this. It's not a military affair, it's a date. I think getting him some formal civilian attire is called for, and I'm certain Shemei and Mister Bristow will be happy to get him set up. We can always ask Cagalli who handles tailoring in Elysium."

"Ok," said Murrue, "but won't that ruin the surprise? I was hoping to catch him off guard with this… like he did for me."

Lacus nodded. "I understand, but the situation is different here. For what it's worth though, I don't think Heero will mind a bit that we can't surprise him like he did for you back at L4. You know how insightful and understanding he is. I believe that knowing you've put so much thought into doing something romantic for him will be enough. Shemei and Mister Bristow getting him set up with formal wear will certainly tip him off to the fact that you have something planned for him, but it won't tell him exactly what it is. That we can still keep a secret, Murrue."

Murrue nodded. "You're right. I guess when you put it that way, I'm ok with raising Heero's suspicions before we reveal what we have planned for him. I suppose the only thing left to consider now is when to do it."

"Well," said Lacus, "I know our three ships are scheduled to pull back into Elysium a little over 48 hours from now. Why don't we use the first of our three days inside the colony to lay the groundwork, and then put the final touches on it the morning of the next day? We'll have it all ready to go by that evening!"

Murrue smiled again. "I like it. Besides, it'll be fun to watch Heero's anticipation build over the course of those first two days inside Elysium. By the time night of the second day roles around he'll be dying to know what we've got in store for him!"

Lacus could not help but laugh a little. "I'm sure he'll keep his composure, but you know far better than I the small hints he unknowingly gives regarding his thoughts and feelings. I imagine it will be quite interesting to observe him as our plan progresses."

"Yes, it will," said Murrue.

Lacus nodded. "Murrue, I'll contact Cagalli and let her know what we have in mind."

"I'll do the same with Shemei and Bristow," Murrue replied.

"Call me back once they've signed on," said Lacus, "Good luck!"

"You too… Lacus," said Murrue, "and thank you."

"You're welcome, Murrue," said Lacus, "I'll be in touch."

As soon as Murrue disappeared from the screen Lacus immediately input the frequency for Cagalli's office. The young Chief Representative of Orb had continued to work long hours even this far into the recovery from the attack, and Lacus was sure she was still there.

Things will get better, she thought, and soon I should be able to talk Cagalli into taking a little time off for herself. She deserves a break after all the work she's done. It'd be best if I could convince her to give herself a little leave at the same time as Athrun, Kira, and myself. It would be nice if all of us could relax together. For now though, I need her help… though for this, I'm sure she won't mind. After all, she's been very supportive of those two.

She smiled as her friend's face appeared on the screen. "Hello, Cagalli. There's something I'd like to discuss with you."

….

August 10th, C.E. 71

Straightening out his black tie, Heero looked himself over in the mirror. Dressed in a high-end tuxedo, the young man looked more like an upper class gentleman all set for a night at the casino rather than one of the deadliest mobile suit pilots the battlefield had ever known. Running a black comb through his hair, Heero found himself reflecting on the unusual events that had led up to this point… and what the woman he loved had in store for him next.

It had been the day before that the Perfect Soldier realized that Murrue had something planned for him, starting with the fact that almost immediately after the Archangel had docked in the colony and her shift on the bridge had ended Murrue had announced that she was going to meet up with Lacus and Cagalli in town… and that Heero would not be accompanying her. When Heero had asked for details, Murrue had simply given him an amused smile and told him that there was something special she needed to take care of, and that he had something he needed to do as well. Puzzled, the only explanation the young man had gotten was that Shemei and Eric would be taking him out that day for some shopping.

"Trust me," Murrue said, "I promise to reveal everything tomorrow night. Until then… well, you'll just have to play along, Heero."

After that she'd given him a quick kiss and sent him on his way. What had followed was a very strange experience for the Gundam pilot; he'd been taken to a tailor by Shemei and Eric and fitted for a very nice black and white suit. The Valkyrie and the Wolf had taken no small amount of amusement with the power Murrue had given them over Heero for that day, and it had felt like an eternity as the two ex-ZAFT soldiers meticulously went over the details of his tux with the woman who had taken his measurements. The black pants and jacket fit him like a glove, as did the white button-up shirt. His black dress shoes had been polished to practically a mirror sheen, and the black tie felt incredibly soft against his neck. Even the silver and black cufflinks were top-notch, and Heero had quickly found himself worrying just how they were going to pay for all of it. Shemei and Eric had simply smiled and told him not to be concerned; this was all coming out of the pockets of Lacus Clyne.

That comment intrigued Heero. It had been one thing for her to recruit Shemei and Eric, but brining in Lacus as well made him even more curious as to what she had planned for him.

Things hadn't stopped with getting him fitted for a tux. As soon as they had finished up at the tailor's Shemei and Eric had taken him to a store and had proceeded to purchase him a small bottle of rather expensive cologne. Heero had never seen the need for something like that before, but his two friends assured him that he wanted to be at top form tonight, and that included more than just his appearance.

"It's not enough for you to just look like the handsome devil you are," said the Valkyrie, smirking at him, "You're gonna smell the part too. Trust me, Murrue will appreciate it all the more."

When they had finally gotten back to the Archangel Heero had immediately gone to find Murrue. He met her in their quarters, where he discovered her hastily closing the closet. When he'd asked what was up, Murrue had simply smiled and told him the same thing she had said before he'd left the ship; she'd reveal everything the following night. She didn't bat an eye at the Gundam pilot's new acquisitions, stating only that he should keep it in the closet in his old room until tomorrow night… and that she'd already set him up with a change of clothes for the following day as well, which were laid out on one of the chairs by the small table they shared. Clearly Murrue didn't want him to know what she had just hidden away, but the smile on her face and the look in her eyes promised that it would be well worth the wait to find out what it was.

Yesterday turned into today, and when the Gundam pilot awoke he had found Murrue already getting ready to leave their room. Asking what was up, she had answered by saying that she was going out with Lacus and Cagalli again today, and that she would be back later in the afternoon. Wondering what was up, the only answer Heero got from the woman he loved was a kiss and a request to trust her. The Gundam pilot certainly didn't doubt her intentions; he was just curious as to what her endgame was.

When she got back a little after three she seemed very refreshed, though she wouldn't tell Heero where she had gone with Lacus and Cagalli. Once again she'd smiled before telling him to be cleaned up and ready by five, and to use his old room for that. Apologizing, she told him she would need their room to herself for a while, and that he'd know why soon enough.

So here he was, giving himself a final once-over in the washroom of his old quarters, dressed to the nines and ready for what promised to be a very interesting evening. Although outwardly he was calm, inside Heero would not deny his excitement. However, he didn't let the thrill of anticipation get in the way of an old habit, and had made sure that his sidearm and combat knife were tucked away in his suit jacket, ready to go at the first sign of trouble.

Checking the time, he saw that he had less than five minutes until Murrue had told him to be ready. Giving his neck one small spray from the cologne bottle, Heero figured he'd done all he could to prepare. Not sure what else to do, he decided to head out into the hallway and wait patiently outside the room he shared with Murrue.

The seconds seemed to pass like minutes; the anticipation was killing him. What did Murrue have planned? What was Heero supposed to do? She had clearly set up a date for the two of them, and though he'd been on several now with her he still felt that same nervousness that had come with the previous ones. Even with his newfound romantic experience Heero would freely admit that the realm of love was one that he had only scratched the surface of; he couldn't navigate it nearly as well as he did the battlefield.

Relax, he silently told himself, this is Murrue. She knows you better than anyone else, and is doing this for you. No matter what happens, be yourself. Trust her, and trust your instincts. Act on your emotions…

By the time the door to their quarters finally opened Heero still felt like a taught wire; he had been unable to relieve his tension in any way. When the door was all the way open though, all his doubts faded, and were replaced by absolute wonder.

"Murrue…" he said softly, astounded at what his eyes beheld.

The dream he'd had the night after the battle to save the colony flashed through his mind… or more specifically, Murrue's appearance in it. What she wore now was almost exactly the same as in that dream, sans the four white wings of course. A strapless white dress, long and flowing yet clinging to her body, emphasizing every luscious curve. The blue gem of necklace lying square in the center of her chest, the light and gorgeous skin of her bare shoulders and arms accentuated by the pure white dress. Added to this was a pale blue sash tied artfully at her waist. Wafting from her was a very sweet perfume, one Heero was surprised he could identify by scent though not by brand name; white plum blossom.

The goddess before him gave him a stunning smile and did a slow twirl, showing off her wonderfully exposed upper back and shoulders. As she finally came full circle she struck a pose for him, hands on her hips, and batted her lovely brown eyes at him in a manner that seemed to raise the temperature a few degrees to him.

"What do you think?" she said.

Completely stunned, the Gundam pilot could only say one word.

"Beautiful…"

For a moment Heero could've sworn he saw her blush. She stepped forward, still smiling as she raised her hand up to his cheek. "Thank you, Heero."

Her smile became almost predatory as she took her time in examining him, running her hand down his face, neck and chest in a manner that managed to increase Heero's heart rate. Bringing her hand behind his back, she pulled him in for a deep kiss.

When their lips parted she still held him close, taking a deep breath as her eyes met his. "You look incredible. And I thought you were dashing in that uniform of yours, but this… it's a whole new level. So handsome… and that scent… you know, I'm tempted to pull you inside and skip right to this evening's happy ending."

Heero couldn't help but give her a small smile in return. "I'm all for it… but after all the work you did to get ready for this night, it'd be a shame to cut it short."

Pulling back a bit, Murrue raised her hand to her mouth and gave a small laugh. "Yes, it would, especially after you were so willing to go along with me."

Her smile became that familiar, gentle one she so often gave him. "I'm sorry I kept you in the dark for the past few days. I wanted to surprise you, even if I knew it would be impossible to keep my preparations entirely hidden from you. After all you did for me with that amazing date back at L4, it seemed like the least I could do."

Heero shook his head. "Murrue, you don't have to repay me for that."

"I know," she replied, "but I wanted to. I may not be able to take you out on a flight like you did at Mendel, but I can still give you a romantic evening. Consider it an expression of just how deeply I love you."

Heero nodded before leaning in to kiss her. Mouths opened, tongues intertwined, and the two lovers lost themselves in their passion.

All too soon though, they had to part for air. After a deep breath, Heero looked at Murrue and gave her another small smile. "So, what's next?"

Murrue looped her arm through his. "Come with me."

She gently pulled him along through the ship's corridors until they reached the starboard hatch. Exiting the vessel and going through the docking tube, the two of them saw a man in an Orb military uniform standing on the other side.

The officer smiled as they approached. "Right this way, you two."

Following the man into a nearby tram, the two of them took their seats while the Orb soldier entered commands on a keyboard mounted on the wall. There was a hiss as the doors closed, and the tram began to move.

"Lady Cagalli asked me to relay her compliments," said the officer, "I'll be taking you to your destination this evening."

"Which is?" asked Heero.

Murrue put her hand on his shoulder and smiled. "You'll see soon enough, Heero."

The Gundam pilot nodded. "All right."

Eventually the tram came to a stop. Standing up, the two of them followed the officer into a well-lit garage. Waiting just a few meters away from the tram exit was a high-end black town car.

"Nice," said Heero.

Murrue leaned over and gave him a quick kiss on the cheek. "Only the best for you… though I can't take credit for setting it up. You'll have to thank Cagalli for that."

Heero nodded as the officer opened the back door of the town car and the two of them climbed in. "I see… and what else do I have to thank her for?"

Murrue gave a small laugh as they settled into the incredibly comfortable black leather seats. "Ah, your insights… yes, she played an important role in helping me get this ready for you. The car and driver weren't her only contributions."

Heero reached over and gently put his arm around her shoulder, pulling her towards him. "So how else did she help you put this together?"

"Well," said Murrue, "she recommended the place where I got my dress, and went along with Lacus and me to pick it out. The same goes for the perfume; both of them thought that you would like it."

"They weren't wrong," Heero replied, deliberately taking a deep breath to make her well aware of him inhaling that incredible scent.

Murrue responded by running her hand through his thick brown hair as the car got moving. "I'm glad you appreciate it so much. I'll have to save it for special nights like this. You'd better do the same for that cologne you're wearing."

"You got it," said Heero.

The two of them leaned back in their seats and watched as the car wound its way through the garage and out into the colony proper. 'Night' had already fallen, treating them to a beautiful vista of lights from the city. If one didn't know where to look they'd have no idea that the colony was still recovering from a devastating attack.

"Quite the view," said Heero as the car sped towards the city center.

He felt Murrue's fingers intertwine with his. "It certainly is."

Heero turned back to her. "So, what else did you have help with?"

"Quite a bit," said Murrue, "though I can't tell you all of it. It'd ruin the surprise I still have in the bag."

Heero nodded, willing to play along. "Ok, so what can you tell me?"

"Well," she said, "when I was out earlier today with Cagalli and Miss… I mean, Lacus, we all went to a spa. It was Cagalli's idea; she wanted me to freshen up a little extra for tonight, and she knew a good place in the colony. Lacus footed the bill for all three of us. I felt bad about it, but… well, she really wanted to help out with this when I told her about, and not just in the role I had in mind for her."

"You deserved it after all you've done," Heero replied.

Murrue shook her head. "I know they both felt that way, but I'm not doing this for myself; I'm doing it for you. It may sound strange, but I considered the spa trip to actually be for you. I wanted to look and feel my best for you tonight… and give you a night unlike any you've ever had before."

"And you're well on your way to doing just that," said Heero, squeezing her hand, "You look incredible, and I know I'll enjoy whatever you have in store for me next."

Murrue smiled. "It means a lot to hear you say that. After all, that's what all this is about. To me, it's not just about repaying you for L4. It's about throwing all of myself into this relationship, going all out, just like you do for me."

She raised her hand and gently caressed his cheek. "Remember back in North Africa, when you gave me the necklace? You said that you liked seeing me smile. Well, the same goes for me with you. I know you're not the most expressive young man, and I'm fine with that; it's part of who you are. When you do smile, though… when you let your true emotions show… that means more to me than I could ever hope to put into words."

"Murrue…" he said softly.

Before he could say anything else she leaned in for a kiss. As their lips parted she once again held his hand. "Tonight is all about you, Heero. So relax, follow my lead, and enjoy the ride."

Heero nodded. "Roger that."

He saw her look out the window and smile as she caught sight of something in the distance. "We're almost there."

Following her gaze, Heero saw that they were approaching what looked like a high-society club. There was a red carpet out at the entrance, and stretching out from the building covering it almost to the street was a large steel overhang with a multitude of small lights shining down. Atop the overhang were more lights arranged into a sign: Elysium Dream.

"Impressive," said Heero as the town car began to slow, "What is it?"

"According to Cagalli," Murrue replied, "It's the premier classical and jazz club of L3, one of Elysium's biggest tourist attractions during the pre-war years. She pulled some strings and got it cleared out just for us tonight. The owner wasn't happy at first, but when she told him it was for two of the people that had saved the colony his attitude changed considerably."

"Yet another thing I'll have to thank her for when this is over," said Heero.

"Yes," said Murrue as the car rolled to a stop, "So, Heero, are you up for dinner and dancing?"

Heero gave her a small smile. "After all the thought and work you put into this, how can I say no?"

Murrue smirked. "You can't."

Up front, the officer driving the vehicle got out and walked over to Heero's door. As it opened, Heero turned to Murrue and nodded. "Shall we?"

Murrue gave his hand a squeeze. "Absolutely."

He stepped out of the vehicle and then moved to the side to give Murrue room to do the same. Heero offered her his hand in aid, and once she was out she immediately looped her arm through his. A cool breeze blew through the evening air, and the Gundam pilot was mesmerized as it caught Murrue's long, flowing brown hair and gently tugged at it.

Murrue winked at him. "See something you like?"

"You have no idea," Heero replied.

Murrue began to gently pull him along the red carpet. "Come on, I promise you're going to love this place."

The two of them proceeded into the club, and Heero was impressed by what he saw. Just labeling it a club was a mistake; Elysium Dream was clearly as much that as it was a high-end restaurant. It was much bigger on the inside than the outside had led him to believe, and the Perfect Soldier speculated that it could comfortably hold somewhere between two to three hundred people at full capacity. The floor layout consisted of an ovoid bar in the middle that appeared to be very well stocked, while white-clothed tables were spread out in a U formation around the lower half. A large dance floor and stage dominated the upper half, and just below that Heero saw that a single table with two chairs had been separated from all the others, with a server standing by it looking expectantly at them. Mellow jazz was playing on the speakers, though Heero did not see a band on the stage. However, there were people on the stage clearly prepping it for a performance, and Heero wondered just what else Murrue had in store for him.

"I figured we'd eat first," said Murrue as the two of them took their seats, "This place has a great menu, and dancing after will be a great way to work off the food."

"Fine by me," said Heero.

Murrue looked at the server. "A bottle of red wine to start with, please. One of your top shelf bottles."

The server nodded before going off to get the drink.

Murrue turned back to Heero and smiled. "Orb's legal drinking age is 16. Lucky you."

Heero nodded. "Yeah, though why do I get the feeling that if it were higher it wouldn't stop you from getting us that wine?"

Murrue gave a small laugh, and her smile became slightly mischievous. "Because it wouldn't. Besides, after all you did to save this colony, I think the least they can do is give you a drink. You didn't want something else, did you?"

Heero shook his head. "I'm good with the wine, though I'll admit I haven't really done much drinking. You'll have to help me expand my knowledge of alcoholic beverages."

Murrue nodded. "It would be my pleasure."

A few minutes later the server returned, bottle in hand. Pouring their drinks and leaving the bottle at the center of the table, he then left the lovers in peace.

Murrue raised her glass and reached out, and Heero met her halfway.

"To the most amazing man I've ever met," she said as their glasses clinked, "Heero… you truly are one of a kind. I'm the luckiest woman in the world, any world, to have met you… and fallen in love with you."

All he could do in response was give her another small smile before they drank. What words could he say that would be anything close to an adequate response to the praise she had given him?

Although Heero was far from an expert when it came to wine, he could tell as soon as it hit his tongue that the bottle they'd been given was of very high quality. It was rich and potent, and the Gundam pilot vowed to pace himself; getting drunk was never something he'd found appealing, and tonight it seemed like an insult in light of all Murrue had done to prepare for this date.

"Well?" said Murrue, "What do you think?"

Lowering his glass, he nodded in approval. "It's good. Strong, too."

"Take it slow," Murrue advised, "It's a 53 Cabernet Franc. From what I've heard that's supposed to be a very good year for Cosmic Era wines. Very powerful, too, as you so astutely noticed."

"It doesn't disappoint," Heero replied, "I didn't know you were into wine."

"I'm not a hardcore enthusiast," said Murrue, smiling, "I just did a little reading up on it before tonight. Elysium Dream is well regarded for its wine selection."

"And the food?" Heero asked.

Murrue gave a small laugh. "Yes, I suppose we should have something to take it down. I looked over the menu when Cagalli recommended this place, and I think you'll enjoy the selection."

Heero nodded as he picked up and opened the menu in front of him. "I trust your judgment, Murrue."

"Thank you, Heero," she replied.

As he browsed the menu he saw that his faith had not been misplaced. The hybrid club-restaurant had a varied and high quality selection of food. After a while the Gundam pilot settled on a steak, but decided he'd limit his side dish to just a roll. He didn't want to get too full and be unable to join Murrue for the dance she'd promised later on.

When the server came by again Heero gave him his order, while Murrue asked for the smoked salmon. The Perfect Soldier couldn't wait for the food to get there; the menu's description had been absolutely mouth-watering.

"I've never been to a place like this," said Murrue as they waited on their order, "I think the closest I've been was that restaurant we went to during our first date in Orb... though this place blows that right out of the water."

Heero nodded, fondly recalling that very memorable outing. "Same here. It's very impressive… but I wouldn't discount that other restaurant. It had its own charm to it. Your singing certainly helped."

He was satisfied to see Murrue blush. "Well… so did yours."

"When this war is over," said Heero, "we should go back there. The karaoke might have been outside my comfort zone, but I wouldn't mind doing that again as long as it's with you."

Murrue smiled and nodded. "It's a date."

The two of them enjoyed their small-talk and flirting as they waited on their meal while taking the occasional sip of wine, and Heero found himself amused at just how much he was enjoying it. A few months ago this would have been a very awkward situation for him, one that he would've had no idea how to navigate. It was still new territory for him even now, but he was slowly but surely getting familiar with it, and he couldn't ask for a better guide.

This is nice, he thought, Just sitting here like this, talking to her while our order's prepped, no worries… no fears about coming battles. It all feels so far away right now. I didn't realize just how much I needed this. It's not just a date; it's an escape. Murrue… thank you.

Eventually their food arrived, and the couple wasted no time in digging in. It was a delicious meal, and Heero could not recall enjoying one as much as this since his and Murrue's private dinner in the officer's lounge of the Archangel during their date back at L4. If Murrue had been looking to return the favor in that regard, she had more than succeeded.

As their meal wound down Heero saw Murrue glance towards the darkened stage and nod. Following her gaze, he saw a figure quickly duck back into the shadows at the edge of the stage, and assumed that the next stage of her plan was about to spring into action.

When they finished and wiped their hands Murrue stood up and held out hers to Heero. "Shall we?"

The Gundam pilot nodded as he took her hand and she pulled him to his feet. She led him out onto the dance floor, and the music that had been playing in the background suddenly stopped. Looking around, Heero saw the lights over the dance floor dim, while those over the stage were off entirely. He could make out silhouettes in the darkness, and as Murrue took him out to the middle of the dance floor he saw that her eyes were watching the stage expectantly.

Suddenly a white light snapped on, and Heero was surprised to see none other than Lacus Clyne standing at the front of the stage. She wore a simple but elegant white gown, and smiled as she saw the two of them looking up at her. Behind her Heero could make out several people in the background with instruments at the ready, and he finally realized just what the rest of Murrue's plan for him involved.

"Hello, you two," said Lacus, "I hope you enjoyed your dinner."

Both of them nodded. "Are you ready?" asked Murrue.

"Yes," she replied, "but I don't think I'm the one you should be asking that to, Murrue."

Murrue smiled before turning to Heero. "She's right. Ready, Heero?"

The Perfect Soldier nodded and gave her a small smile before reaching out to her. He gently grabbed her left hand with his right while placing his left hand at the back of her right shoulder. Murrue moved closer to him, squeezing his hand and placing her right hand on his left shoulder.

The two of them turned back to Lacus and nodded again. "We're ready when you are," said Heero.

Lacus bowed her head before giving them a surprisingly sheepish smile. "In that case, I hope you don't mind that I'll actually be doing a cover. I thought it was fitting for tonight."

"As long as we can dance to it," said Heero.

Lacus nodded, her smile growing. "Oh, you can."

The pink-haired songstress looked behind her and nodded at what Heero now realized was a small orchestra… the same one that had performed with her at the concert, in fact. Violins began to play a soft, soothing melody. They were quickly joined by a quiet drum and piano, and with the beat established Heero and Murrue began a slow waltz. Their eyes remained locked on each other as Lacus began to sing, her gentle voice the perfect complement to the music and an embodiment of everything the romantic night was meant to be.

"Fly me to the moon
And let me play among the stars
Let me see what spring is like
On Jupiter and Mars"

"In other words, hold my hand
In other words, darling kiss me"

The Gundam pilot took that line as his cue to pull Murrue in for a soft kiss. It was brief as the two of them were focused on keeping their footing, but the glowing look in her eyes as their lips parted told Heero it had had more than the desired effect.

"Fill my heart with song
and let me sing forever more
You are all I long for
All I worship and adore"

"In other words, please be true
In other words, I love you"

"She was right," said Heero as Lacus paused and the violins and piano went through an instrumental, "This song… it's very fitting."

Murrue nodded as they couple went through a slow turn. "Absolutely."

Heero responded by pulling her a little closer as the song went into its second round.

"Fly me to the moon
And let me play among the stars
Let me see what spring is like
On Jupiter and Mars"

"In other words, hold my hand
In other words, darling kiss me"

This time it was Murrue who leaned forward for the kiss. Like the last one it was brief, but as her lips left his Heero saw the restrained passion in her eyes, a promise of much, much more to come this incredible night.

"Fill my heart with song
and let me sing forever more
You are all I long for
All I worship and adore"

"In other words, please be true
In other words, I love you"

There was another break in the vocals, but the two lovers hardly noticed. The only thing that mattered right then and there was the person in front of them. They were lost in the music and each other, caught up in the romantic spell that had been cast by both melody and the flow of the dance. Giving Murrue a gentle twirl, Heero caught her as Lacus went into the final verses.

"Fill my heart with song
and let me sing forever more
You are all I long for
All I worship and adore"

"In other words, please be true
In other words, I love you"

"In other words, I love you"

The music faded out, and as the last note died Heero saw Murrue give him a radiant smile. Heero smiled as well, riding an emotional high. He recalled what Murrue had said earlier about letting his true emotions show, and he knew that he was doing that now.

"Murrue," he said, "thank you."

Before she could respond he pulled her into a deep, passionate kiss. When their lips parted he could definitely see her blushing, but her smile never wavered.

"You've more than earned it, Heero," she replied.

She then looked at the stage and nodded at Lacus. "And it's not over yet."

Lacus nodded as well before turning to Heero. "Murrue told me you'd really like this next one. It's another cover, but I know something like that wouldn't matter to you."

Heero shook his head. "Not at all, and I trust Murrue's judgment."

Lacus winked at the couple. "As well you should, Heero."

She looked back at the band and nodded. On cue a fresh song began to play, and Heero's eyes widened in recognition. It started with a harp chord. Then a piano came in, followed by a violin, and a soft acoustic guitar…

As the music started he felt a subtle shift between him and Murrue as the woman he loved gently took the lead. She moved closer, and the way she held him shifted; it was almost a slow, moving embrace as she took him through the first steps. Her face was mere inches from his, and there was a knowing look in her eyes and a warm smile on her face as that oh so familiar song kicked into gear.

The one she had sung to him on their first date in Orb.

"Petals of white
Cover fields flowing in grieving tears"

"And all the hearts once new, old and shattered now
Love can kill, love will die
Give me wings to fly
Fleeing this world so cold
I just wonder why"

"Ah," said Murrue softly, her breath on Heero's ear "this brings back memories…"

Heero nodded and found himself pulling her even closer. "Yeah…"

"Cold as the dark
Now my words are frosted with every breath
Still the heat burns wild, growing inside this heart "

"When the wind changes course, when the stars align
I will reach out to you and leave this all behind"

"When heavens divide"

The lovers swayed gently back and forth while moving in a slow, clockwise rotation. Heero could feel Murrue's hand on his back move up towards the base of his neck, pulling him in so his head was constantly brushing up against her long, flowing hair. Her heavenly scent wafted all around him, further capturing him in the unbelievable atmosphere of this amazing night.

"When heavens divide
I will see the choices within my hands"

"How can we ever protect and fight with our tiny souls
Let me shine like the sun through the doubts and fear"

"Do you feel the storm approach as the end draws near?"

"When heavens divide
Time will come to softly lay me down
Then I can see a face that I long to see
And for you, only you I would give anything
Leaving a trace for love to find a way"

"When heavens divide"

At the break in the vocals Murrue shifted her grip, looping both her arms over his shoulders and clasping her hands at the back of Heero's neck. Adjusting, Heero held Murrue at the waist. There was no space between them at all now, their bodies pressed together, seeing and feeling only each other as the song entered its second half, the music and voice of the songstress going into a crescendo and soon reaching its zenith.

"I will dive into the fire
Spilling the blood of my desire
The very last time
My name scorched into the sky!"

"When heavens divide
I will see the choices within my hands"

"How can we ever protect and fight with our tiny souls
Let me shine like the sun through the doubts and fear"

"Do you feel the storm approach as the end draws near?"

"When heavens divide
Time will come to softly lay me down
Then I can see a face that I long to see
And for you, only you I would give anything
Leaving a trace for love to find a way"

"When heavens divide"

The music softened as the song went into its last verses, and the two lovers' slow dance became little more than a tight embrace with just a slight sway. There was no need for anything fancy, no dramatic flair; just holding each other here and now was all they wanted.

"And for you, only you I would give anything
Leaving a trace for love to find a way"

"When heavens divide…"

The music faded, but they didn't let go of each other right away. Closing his eyes, Heero let his head rest on Murrue's shoulder, content to just bask in the moment. The soft brush of her hair, her smooth and warm skin, the heady aroma of her perfume... it was overwhelming. He felt Murrue run her hand through his hair as she held him, as reluctant as he was to break off the embrace.

As much as they may have wanted though, they knew it could not last forever. Slowly the two of them parted, taking their partner's hands as they waited for the next round. They nodded and smiled, knowing that they would never forget this night.

This is absolutely amazing, he thought as he looked into her eyes, Murrue… you did all this for me... you truly are an incredible woman. I still don't know how you found me worthy of your affection, your love… but I swear I'll do everything in my power to live up to it. You deserve that much…

…and so much more.

….

A small, satisfied smile on his face, Heero made his way through the Archangel's corridors with Murrue on his arm. The incredible, romantic night was on its last legs, with the two lovers about to retire to their room for the evening.

Lacus had continued her performance in their honor for a little over an hour, shifting from the two covers she had led with into songs written by herself. As he had at the concert before, Heero could only marvel at her talent and the passion she had for singing, and he knew that he was incredibly lucky that Lacus had been willing to devote herself to the date Murrue had planned for him. How many people could say that they had gotten a private performance from Lacus Clyne?

He looked over at the woman he loved, and the two of them shared a nod and a smile. Tonight had been a night unlike anything either of them had ever experienced before, one that would certainly leave a lasting impression. It was almost enough to make the two of them forget, however briefly, that they were in the middle of a war with the fate of the entire human race potentially hanging in the balance. Eventually the time would come for them to return to the battlefields, but for now the war was a distant concern. All that mattered here and now was each other.

Soon enough they came to a stop before the entrance to their shared quarters. The door opened, but before they went inside Heero gently grabbed Murrue by the shoulders, turning her to face him.

"Murrue," he said, "thank you. Not just for this night… but for everything. You've done more for me than anyone I've ever met. No matter what happens, I'll stand by your side until the very end."

Murrue raised her hand to Heero's cheek. "You don't have to thank me, Heero. We're in this together, and I don't just mean this war. Our relationship, our new life together… it's a journey I wouldn't take with anyone else. Meeting you, getting to know you, falling in love with you… it's been the greatest honor and privilege of my life, and I know it's only just begun. There's so much ahead of us, Heero… so much beyond this war. I want to experience it all with you. You, and no one else."

Heero nodded. "I feel the same way. Murrue… you've changed my life in a way I never could've imagined before coming to this world. I don't know what the future holds for me, but I know that you're the one I want to face it with."

'Then we'll do just that," Murrue replied, "We'll face whatever this war and life beyond it throws at us, and we'll confront it together. We've come too far and have been through too much to let anything stop us now."

Heero gave her a small smile. "Roger that."

Murrue smiled in return, and the Gundam pilot saw it take on a predatory hint as her hand left his cheek and made its way down to his topmost button.

"Now," she said softly as she began to undo his shirt, "this night may be almost over, but we still need to give it a proper sendoff. Don't you think so, Heero?"

"Absolutely," Heero replied as he pulled her in for a deep kiss.

She pulled him inside, and the door shut behind them.

….

August 11th, C.E. 71

"So how'd it go with Heero and Murrue's date last night, Lacus?" asked Cagalli as she dug into her chicken teriyaki.

The songstress smiled at her from across the table in between bites of rice. "Very well. I know they enjoyed it, and I had a lot of fun helping out with it."

Cagalli smiled at the affirmation that the night she had helped Murrue set up for Heero and herself had gone so well. With all those two had done for her and her country since she had first met them what felt like a lifetime ago in North Africa, she was glad that she had been able to do something for them on a personal level to return the favor. Helping out Murrue like that had been a vacation compared with her administrative responsibilities over L3, but with the recovery so far along now she had finally been able to take a little time for herself, and she was indulging in that right now with Lacus and two other Coordinators.

Sitting to her left on her side of the table at the Japanese-style restaurant was Athrun, while Lacus had Kira as her companion. An onlooker could easily view the outing as a double date, and indeed Cagalli actually considered it to be that. At the very least she wasn't hiding her feelings for Athrun anymore, though she was disappointed to see that Kira and Lacus had not moved things along on their end.

Come on, you two, she thought as she studied the two of them between bites, everyone can see that you like each other, and in far more than the 'just friends' kind of 'like'. What's keeping you two from taking the next step?

She had to stop herself from shaking her head in exasperation. Given their personalities she supposed it was only natural that neither of them had admitted their feelings to each other yet. Both were very gentle and kind personalities; they weren't naturally aggressive when it came to acting on matters of the heart. Lacus may have been an inspiring leader and a peerless singer, but when it came to her feelings for Kira Cagalli actually wasn't surprised that she was keeping things were they were now; she wouldn't want to be pushy towards Kira. As for her brother, Cagalli was pretty sure he couldn't make the first move; just watching him with Flay during that girl's time aboard the Archangel while Cagalli had been on the ship had made it clear that the red-head had been the one in charge of the relationship.

Her brother was a force to be reckoned with on the battlefield, but when it came to girls he was very passive. Cagalli supposed that wasn't entirely a bad thing; Kira would never be one to force things with a girl, and his compassionate nature made him a boy a young woman could easily turn to for support. However, it also made him reluctant to act on his feelings, and with a girl who likewise didn't want to pressure him into anything Cagalli had to wonder just what it would take to get those two to hook up.

She saw Kira look at Lacus and smile. "Have you ever done something like that before?"

Lacus nodded. "For friends and family back in the PLANTs. Honestly, I think I liked doing that more than my larger concerts."

"I remember the year before the war," said Athrun, "you sang at my mother's birthday. She loved it."

Cagalli saw Athrun's smile become bittersweet. She gently held his hand under the table, knowing all too well where his mind had gone; losing her father in the fall of Orb had given her a powerful insight into the grief he had suffered after the attack on Junius Seven, and even over a year later she could see how it still affected the young man she had fallen in love with.

Lacus smiled. "So did I. She was a very kindhearted woman. I loved spending time with her, and it was a joy to sing for her."

"Maybe you could give us another show when this war's over," said Cagalli.

"I'd like that very much," Lacus replied, "Besides, once this war's over the only shows I'll probably be able to do in the future will be private."

Kira's eyes widened. "What do you mean? Everyone loves you, Lacus! Why wouldn't you be able to go back to doing concerts after the war?"

"Because," said Athrun grimly, "too much has changed."

"That's not true!" said Cagalli, "Athrun, how can you say that? There's no reason she can't get back into her career once we've knocked some sense into the Alliance and ZAFT."

Lacus shook her head. "No, Cagalli, Athrun's right. Even after a new government takes power in the PLANT, there is no changing the fact that my actions are legally considered to be treason. It doesn't matter that everything I've done has been to oppose Patrick Zala's goal of exterminating Naturals; our treason laws consider only the actions themselves, not the motives behind them."

"That's not fair!" cried Kira, "Those laws would sentence people to death just because they tried to stand against a regime that wants to commit genocide!"

"No one ever said it was fair, Kira," Athrun replied, "There's plenty of laws that aren't. All we can do is accept that we can't return to our homeland again. It's the same for your friends aboard the Archangel, you know."

Lacus nodded. "Whether we like it or not, from the moment we made our stands against the Alliance and ZAFT, we sentenced ourselves to exile."

Kira looked around in desperation. "But… then what happens to everyone once this war's over? Cagalli and I are from Orb, but so many others…"

"Will be granted asylum in our country," Cagalli finished for him, her voice firm and resolute, "I've already spoken to Captain Ramius and Field Marshal Waltfeld about this. The crews of both the Archangel and the Eternal will be allowed to make new lives for themselves in Orb when the fighting's over. The same goes for all the other defectors from the Alliance and ZAFT. I won't let the men and women who've been willing to put everything on the line in order to stop this madness be condemned to death by the countries they were forced to turn against!"

Lacus smiled. "Well said, Cagalli… and thank you."

"Of course," said Cagalli, "it's the least I can do for my friends."

"It's going to be strange," said Athrun, "living in another country. I've spend most of my life in the PLANTs. I mean, there was that period of time I spend on the Moon with Kira, but other than that… I guess it's going to take some getting used to."

Cagalli smiled as she leaned over to kiss him on the cheek. "Don't worry. I'll help you get settled in. You'll be getting a very warm welcome, trust me on that."

She had the satisfaction of seeing her boyfriend blush. "Oh… ok, Cagalli. Thanks."

Lacus turned to Kira, and to Cagalli's surprise the smile she gave him had a hint of more than just her usual sincere self. "I look forward to living in your country when this war is over, Kira. I trust you'll help me get settled in as well."

Come on, Kira, thought Cagalli, She threw that one right across the plate. Take a swing!

Kira actually seemed to blush. "Yeah… of course I will."

Cagalli had to resist shaking her head. You could've done so much better than that, Kira…

"So," said Lacus, "What are your plans after the war, Cagalli?"

Cagalli sighed. "I'd like to say a long vacation, but since I'm the new leader of Orb that's not going to happen for quite awhile. Any peace agreement is going to involve a long process, and I'm sure there will be quite a few bumps in the road before we get something hammered out. The fact that Orb's essentially at war with both the Earth Alliance and ZAFT now only makes things even more complicated."

"It'll get done," said Athrun, smiling as he held her hand, "With Azrael and my father removed from power, I know you'll be able to help forge a peace treaty."

Cagalli smiled, though she was worried about Athrun. He was talking so casually about overthrowing his father, but she was sure that was a front for her and the others. Still, his words were encouraging.

"Thanks, Athrun."

"What about you, Athrun?" asked Kira, "I mean, what are you going to do when you settle down in Orb?"

"You could always join their defense forces," Lacus chimed in, "I'm sure they'd welcome you there."

Cagalli nodded. "Absolutely. You're one of the best pilots around, Athrun; no way you'd be turned down."

Athrun nodded. "I know I'd be good enough to get in, but… I actually wasn't thinking that."

Cagalli was intrigued. She had met Athrun as a pilot, and it was sometimes difficult to remember that he hadn't always been a soldier of ZAFT. It was hard to picture him as a civilian.

"What did you have in mind?" she asked.

Athrun looked down for a moment, and to Cagalli he seemed almost embarrassed. "I… I was thinking of being your bodyguard. You'll need security as the Chief Representative, after all… and I've got talents besides just piloting mobile suits. ZAFT training covered more than just flying… you saw that yourself when we first met."

Cagalli nodded, recalling just how easily he had restrained her during their encounter on that island in the middle of the Indian Ocean. That hadn't just been the work of his enhanced genes; his close-quarters-combat instructors at the ZAFT academy had done their work quite well.

"So, what do you think?" Athrun asked, "Could I do that? I mean… it wouldn't be awkward for you, would it?"

Cagalli shook her head and smiled before leaning over to kiss him. "Not at all. I'd love it, Athrun."

She saw him blush as she pulled away, but he still smiled. "Oh… ok, then."

Cagalli turned to Kira and Lacus. "What about you two? Any plans for when you settle down in Orb?"

Lacus smiled. "I actually spoke to Reverend Malchio about that a few days ago. He wants to relocate his orphanage to Orb, or at least an island closer to it, when the war's over; the place he has over in the Marshall Islands is just too small for all the children he's been taking in. I was thinking about helping him out there; it'd be a nice change of pace after all this."

The songstress turned to Kira and put her hand over his. "Kira, would you like to join me in helping out there when this is all over?"

Kira nodded, and Cagalli saw his face flush. "Yeah… that'd be great."

"Well," said Cagalli, "if he wants to relocate to Orb, I'd be happy to help him with that. I know my father spoke highly of him; we'd welcome him and his children with open arms, and would provide him with any funding he needs to run a new orphanage."

"You don't have to do that," Lacus replied, "I know you'll need as much money as you can get to rebuild Orb. I've already promised Reverend Malchio that I would help fund his endeavor; I certainly have the resources to do that much."

"Maybe," said Cagalli, "but I still want to help. I can at least find a good place for him and the kids to get settled in at."

Lacus nodded. "I'm sure Reverend Malchio would appreciate that."

It was an endeavor that Cagalli was truly looking forward to helping out with. However, to get there she knew that they first had to not just survive this war but force the two strongest nations in the Earth Sphere to sue for peace. It was one hell of an obstacle to overcome, but Cagalli was determined to do everything in her power to make sure that her friends and allies triumphed.

Of course, her will to fight against overwhelming odds wasn't just fueled by altruism. Looking over at Athrun, Cagalli smiled at the knowledge that, like so many of her friends now, her stake in this fight had become much more personal. It wasn't just about her people, or her own survival for that matter; it was about defending the one she loved, and making sure there would be a world where they could build a life together.

I wish father could've gotten to know you, she thought as she gave Athrun's hand a squeeze, I'm sure he would've liked you. You've done so much for Orb, Athrun, and for me… the least I can do is help you build a new life in my country when this is over.

And I'm definitely looking forward to it.

….

How long's it been, thought Dearka as he watched Miriallia rifle through the clothes on the rack, since I've done something like this? Before the war, I think… I guess it's nice to see some things never change with girls.

He shook his head, wondering what he'd gotten himself into. It had all started earlier in the day when he'd asked Miriallia if she wanted to do something with him in the colony. He hadn't actually had a plan, which in hindsight was definitely a bad thing; she'd quickly seized upon it to set the agenda, which in this case meant hitting the colony's shopping mall. Dearka had tried to think of something else on the spot but had come up empty; he just didn't know the colony well, whereas Miriallia had visited with her family in the past, both prewar and during the conflict before ZAFT had attacked Heliopolis.

He'd been worried about money, but Miriallia had assured him that they were ok; Captain Ramius had seen to it that everyone on her ship had been issued a decent amount of funds courtesy of Cagalli so that they could actually enjoy their much needed shore leave. Dearka had mentally slapped himself; he really needed to pay more attention to announcements like that.

So here he was doing something he was completely out of practice at; clothes shopping with a girl.

She turned to him and smiled, holding up a red tank-top in her left hand and a blue one in her right. "So, what do you think? Which one would look better?"

Dearka forced a smile; he hated this part. He may have been rusty, but he knew that just saying 'both are fine' was out of the question. All he could do was take a shot and hope he didn't guess wrong.

"The red one," he said, "I think that's the best."

Miriallia smiled, and Dearka breathed a sigh of relief. "Thanks. I was hoping you'd say that."

Why did that feel more stressful than the battle we had to save this colony?

The answer was simple; he was in love, and he didn't want to screw up his chances with her.

"Well," said Miriallia as she put the blue one away while the red one joined the rest of the clothes she had bought today, "I think that's enough. Come on, let's get going."

Dearka nodded, and the two of them went to the nearest cashier. Eyeing everything Miriallia had bought, the former ZAFT ace mused that she had actually shown more restraint than he had expected. There wasn't the stereotypical mountain of clothes that he had expected he would end up carrying out of the store, which was surprising when he considered that they'd been in there for at least an hour. In addition to the tank-top, Miriallia had bought a simple white blouse, two pairs of blue jeans, and a light blue skirt. Dearka briefly wondered if he ought to chip in to help her pay for it, but she seemed fine with having it all on her tab. In light of that, he supposed that the least he could do was grab one of her two bags.

"So," he said as they left the store, "where to next?"

"There's an observation lounge over by the main docks," she replied, "I went there once with my family. It's got a great café, and you get this incredible view of the Earth! Want to check it out?"

Dearka smiled. After the hour of shopping he'd just endured, a bit of down time at a lounge was fine by him. "Sounds good. Let's go."

Miriallia nodded and surprised him by looping her arm through his as the two of them made their way out of the mall. The young man certainly wasn't complaining though. To him, it was just one more bit of evidence that Dr. Claudia was right.

Miriallia had feelings for him.

Sure, this gesture by itself wasn't enough to seal the deal, but when it was included with her behavior since leaving Orb the evidence definitely piled up. The way she had become so casual and familiar with him, her genuine interest in who he was and what his life had been like before now, her willingness to share even painful memories with him… all that and more served to make Dearka more and more confident that the attraction he had for her was indeed reciprocated.

Never thought I'd fall for a Natural, he mused as they got into a cab, I wonder what Dad would say if he could see me now…

"Was Heliopolis like this?" he asked as the vehicle sped towards the front of the colony, "I mean… I only saw it when I was attacking it. I… didn't really have time to admire the view."

He knew she bore him no ill will towards the role he had played in throwing her into this war, but he still felt bad about it. Dearka understood why ZAFT had launched the attack on Heliopolis, and in the past he hadn't give it much thought, but now that he had feelings for a girl that had lived in the colony things had changed for him. It was one thing to know that he had played a part in the events that had ultimately resulted in the destruction of the Orb colony; it was another to meet someone who had once called it her home… let alone fall in love with her.

Much to his relief he saw her smile. "Sort of. There wasn't nearly as much space devoted to agriculture in Heliopolis like there is here. Still, it's the same colony design… enough to bring back memories."

He reached over and grabbed her hand. "Sorry."

She shook her head. "I already told you not to apologize for it. It's war, and Heliopolis was building weapons for the Alliance. We tried to use the conflict for our advantage, and we paid for it. I may not like the fact that my colony is gone… but I understand what led to it, and I don't hold it against you. You were doing your duty, and it's not like you went in their wanting to destroy Heliopolis."

"No," said Dearka, "but still…"

"Don't worry about it," Miriallia replied. She followed that up with a quick kiss on his cheek, taking him completely off guard and sending heat rushing to his face. "You're a good guy, Dearka. I don't blame you for what happened to the colony… or anything else."

That last part undoubtedly referred to her late boyfriend. Dearka had told her that he didn't kill Tolle, and she had believed him, but he had still been a little afraid that she held him partly responsible even though she had given no sign of it. He'd been part of the team that had attacked the Archangel repeatedly, and one of his friends had been the one to take down Tolle; guilt by association could be a powerful thing.

The incident in the med bay after the fight may have been due to her grief and anger, but Dearka knew he bore some blame; he deeply regretted his incredibly insensitive words to her, especially with her anguish so fresh. However, immediately after she had turned around and saved his life from one of her friends, putting herself in grave danger in the process. She'd risked her life to protect him, and since then he'd been determined to return the favor. In that he felt he had succeeded… but he had never imagined that he would end up where he was now as a result.

Eventually they reached the tram station near the docks and left the taxi. Miriallia led him over to a tram car and the two of them took their seats.

"Better strap in," she said, "the shift in gravity can be disorienting if you're not secured."

Dearka nodded as he followed her advice. "And here I thought it could get weird in the PLANTs shifting from one half of the colony to the other. This cylinder design makes my head spin."

Miriallia laughed as the tram car started moving. "That's right, I forgot you're not used to Orb-style colonies. Sorry."

Dearka shook his head. "Don't sweat it."

He felt himself lift up a bit in his seat, and he was glad the restraints were keeping him from going any further. The shift in orientation was surprising gentle, and before he knew it the door was sliding open and a green light above his head indicated they were good to remove their harnesses.

Miriallia took his hand as the two of them floated out of tram car. "Come on, it's this way."

It didn't take them long to arrive at their destination. The lounge was a rather simple affair, with chairs, tables, and couches spread out over a wide area while along the right wall were stands where people could get food and drinks. It more than made up for the lack of luxury though, in Dearka's opinion, with the vast reinforced glass viewport and the incredible view it offered the occupants.

"Whoa…" he said softly as they floated over towards the window.

Miriallia nodded. "It's really something, isn't it?"

He couldn't argue with that. There the Earth was, in all her glory. The vast oceans, the swirling clouds, the sprawling continents… no gemstone could come close to competing with the crown jewel of the Sol system for sheer beauty.

"Was it like this from the PLANTs?" she asked.

Dearka nodded. "Yeah, although from this angle it blocks the Moon. I think that's ok though. From space the Moon's just too close, too bare… it feels like a graveyard. When I saw it from Earth for the first time though… it was beautiful."

He saw Miriallia look out the viewport in thought. "I always regretted that we couldn't see the Moon from L3, but when you put it that way… maybe it's better that we can't"

She sighed. "Thinking of it as a graveyard now seems appropriate, and not just because of the battles that have taken place on it in this war. I know I still have a lot to learn when it comes to military matters… but one thing I do know is that the Moon is the heart of the Alliance's operations in outer space. Their bases are there, their warships launch from there… I heard they even keep their nukes there. Knowing what they want to do to your people… the Moon becomes tainted with their bloodlust and hatred."

"Maybe that's a bit harsh," Dearka replied, "I mean sure, the Alliance has bases there, but there's also that big city in the Copernicus Crater. They're civilians, or most of them are, and I can't see them wanting to wipe us out. They never asked to live under a regime like that."

Miriallia raised an eyebrow. "That's… pretty insightful, coming from you."

Dearka smirked. "Hey, I've got more than just my skills and good looks, you know."

Miriallia smiled. "Maybe… just a little bit."

The levity was much needed; things had been getting too grim for his liking.

"So," said Miriallia, "what's next for you?"

"What do you mean?" he asked.

"After the war," she said, turning to him, "Will… will you be going back to the PLANTs?"

The hesitant manner in which she'd asked her question set off a quiet alarm bell in the back of Dearka's mind. The conversation was shifting, and in his heart he hoped it was going a certain way…

"Well," he said, choosing his words carefully, "I… I don't really think I could."

Her eyes widened. "Why? That's… that's your homeland, isn't it?"

Dearka nodded. "It was, but… after all we've done since the Alliance invaded Orb… I think too much has changed."

"How so?" she asked.

"Had I only fought against Alliance forces," he said, "I might have a chance at going back to ZAFT with the expectation of a demotion for being AWOL, but otherwise allowed to rejoin. However, I've also taken part in combat against the ZAFT fleet now. The raid on the capital, our rescue of those defectors… my actions are just like Miss Clyne's and Athrun's. I've committed high treason; going back would almost certainly mean a death sentence, even with a new government."

Miriallia nodded. "I understand. I know it's the same for the crew on the Archangel; none of them can go home. My friends and I are lucky because we're from Orb, but Captain Ramius and the others are from the Atlantic Federation, and it views their actions the same way ZAFT views yours. I'm just glad my country's willing to take them in."

"They're good people," said Dearka, "They don't deserve what the Alliance would do to them if they went back."

"And you don't deserve the death sentence ZAFT would give you," Miriallia replied, squeezing his hand.

The two of them were quiet for a while as they stared out the window in thought. Looking around, Dearka saw no one else nearby, and realized that this was more than just another friendly outing. It was an opening.

And his heart had a clear message for him.

Now or never.

Taking a deep breath, he turned back to Miriallia. "Even without that threat, though… I couldn't go back, Miriallia"

Her eyes widened. "Why not?"

"Too much has changed," he said, "and I don't just mean my standing with ZAFT. It took a while for me to really notice it, but… ever since that incident in the med bay… I've become a different person. And that person can't go back to the PLANTs when this is over. It would mean leaving something… someone behind, and I've realized that I can't do that."

He looked her dead in the eyes as he continued. "Miriallia, you changed everything for me. How I thought about Naturals, this war, and what I want to do with my life. I can't go back to flying and fighting for a flag or honor, or even just protecting innocent people. The one person I want to protect more than anyone else is you… and I want to do that beyond this war."

"Dearka…" she said softly.

Dearka moved closer. "Miriallia… I think now I understand why Tolle was willing to trade bridge duty for the cockpit of the Skygrasper. On the Archangel he could support his friend, but in the sky he could not only do that but also defend you… and I can see why he believed that you were worth risking his life for. You're an amazing girl. You're smart, you're kind, you're fun, you're beautiful… and you're willing to take a stand, to risk your own life for what you believe is right."

"I know I can't replace him," he continued, "and I'd never try to do that; I know how important he was for you. At the same time, though… Miriallia, I can't deny what my feelings for you have become since the day we met."

"You… you mean…" said Miriallia, her voice now barely more than a whisper.

"I want to be more to you than just a friend," said Dearka, "I've known that for a while now, actually. I just… I wasn't sure when the right time would be to tell you. However... I realized that our time on this colony would probably be my last chance. We don't know how long we'll be here, but when we leave I'm sure we're heading right back to the battlefields, and who knows what will happen then. I want to believe that we'll make it through and stop the Alliance and ZAFT, but if we don't… then I don't want to leave anything undone."

He put his hands on her shoulders. "If you don't want this, tell me now... either that, or one good knee will be hint enough. One way or another though, I have to know."

His heart hammering away in his chest, he leaned in and kissed her.

The sudden pain he half-expected to feel below the belt never materialized. Instead he felt her tense up for a split second…

…before throwing her arms around him and kissing him back.

Nerves were replaced by surety, fear by passion, and the former ZAFT ace immediately embraced her, deepening the kiss.

Eventually they parted, and Miriallia smiled. "About time."

Dearka was stunned. "What?"

Miriallia shook her head. "Don't get me wrong; I'm glad you gave me time after what happened to Tolle. I needed that, and if you hadn't let me have it I wouldn't have fallen for you. After a while though… well, you weren't the only one whose feelings were growing."

Dearka smiled. "Well, I'm glad to hear that."

Miriallia leaned in and gave him a quick kiss. "It took me awhile, but… I think you coming back and helping us when the Alliance invaded Orb was really the start of it for me. You didn't owe us anything, you were free to go home… but you didn't. You fought alongside us then, and you've stuck with us ever since, even when we fought ZAFT along with the Alliance. I think I knew all along that part of the reason you stayed was because of me… just like Tolle did."

"You're not him," she continued, "but I don't want you to be him. You're you, and in your own way you're just as good a guy as Tolle was. If you two had met in a different time, I know you'd both be friends."

Dearka nodded. "I'd like to think so."

"Oh, you would," Miriallia replied, "no doubt about that. But… he's no longer here, so you're going to have to get along with the rest of my friends. I think you can do that."

"No problem here," said Dearka.

Miriallia released him and turned towards the window, grabbing his hand as she did so. "Dearka… I don't know what's going to happen… if we'll make it through to the end of this war or not. However, I do know that you're the one I want to make that journey with. I'm going to keep on fighting with the Archangel, see this through to however it turns out… and I want you with me. And if we do make it through this, then I want you to come back to Orb with me."

Dearka smiled and squeezed her hand. "You got it."

….

August 15th, C.E. 71

Leaning back in his chair, Creuset smiled as he reviewed the information on the screen in front of him. Occupying a temporary office in Black 9, one of the largest shipyards in the PLANTs, the masked Field Marshal was merely killing time until the ceremony began.

Zala really doesn't need me on hand for the launching of the new dreadnought, he mused, Is putting me on ceremonial duty punishment for my failure at L4, or does he really just have nothing better for me to do right now?

Creuset shrugged. It hardly mattered to him. Events were proceeding just as he'd predicted, the two great powers continuing to dance to the tune he called. At this point it really was a waiting game until both sides had completed their buildups, and Creuset supposed that pointless busy work like this could at least keep him from getting too bored.

His current reading was entertaining at any rate. Perusing the detailed post-action report on the fall of Carpentaria, Creuset took satisfaction in the knowledge that ZAFT's defeat in that battle would only further help his plans. The Alliance's victory a week ago in what they had termed Operation 8.8 had been total, and with it the last of ZAFT's terrestrial strongholds was in their hands. Now the transfer of armaments, resources, and personnel from the Earth to outer space had reached unprecedented levels, and Creuset was quite eager to get his hands on the final numbers. Azrael may have been easy to manipulate, but Creuset was still impressed with the man's ability to mobilize and coordinate such a vast force. Zala was no slouch either, and part of the reason Creuset was here today was due to the Supreme Council Chairman's determination to build an armada that would rival anything the Alliance could bring to the battlefield.

Of course, it wasn't all good news for Creuset. The recent defections from both the Earth Alliance and ZAFT to the Clyne faction's banner was an annoyance, though the masked Field Marshal could at least acknowledge that Waltfeld and his songstress had made a masterful public relations move with that live broadcast and convincing soldiers of both regimes to abandon their masters. With the Patrol Fleet and Military Intelligence preoccupied with monitoring Alliance activities Creuset knew he was lacking a solid grasp on how much the renegades' force had grown since the initial defection of Task Force 9.3, and he was interested to see just what kind of fleet they would bring to the final battle. Their original three battleships and their advanced mobile suits were formidable enough, and with supporting forces their effectiveness on the field of battle would be considerably amplified… though not enough to truly concern Creuset.

The Desert Tiger, the Wolf of the Far East, the Singing Angel, Lord Uzumi's daughter, and the Demon Lord of Avalon, he mused, They've certainly proven to be more of a challenge than anything else in this war. It's almost refreshing, really; Azrael and Zala are just too easy to manipulate. However, against the forces that are being gathered for the grand finale, even they will be powerless.

Creuset chuckled. "I salute you, Miss Clyne, Waltfeld… and especially you, Heero Yuy. You've made the past few months very interesting. However… the endgame is mine."

He was prevented from going further by a chime from his monitor. Composing himself, Creuset watched as a soldier appeared on the screen.

"Field Marshal," the young man said, "It is ten minutes until the launch commences."

Creuset nodded. "I'll be at the observation deck shortly."

Logging off the console, the Field Marshal floated out of the office and made his way towards his destination. Upon his arrival he saw a few dozen fellow officers already present, along with members of the press corps.

Giving a nod and the bare minimum of pleasantries, Creuset headed over to the large viewport. He allowed himself a small smile as he looked down upon the leviathan that would soon be joining the fleet.

The first of several, he thought, Credit where it's due, I suppose; this was one of the few good ideas Zala's had that didn't require my prompting.

Below him was a massive black warship in the shape of a giant wing, reminiscent of the formidable Everest-class Flying Fortresses that had once been fielded in the skies of Earth. The resemblance was no surprise; in fact, the hull had been repurposed from the airborne dreadnought/carriers of Project Peak.

The Everest, Fuji, and Kilimanjaro had been the only three Flying Fortresses to take the field, but that had not been the intent. Several more hulls had been manufactured, their prefabricated components prepared for orbital drops down to ZAFT's terrestrial bases for final assembly. However, the destruction of JOSH-A by Wing Zero and the Earth Alliance's resurgent strength on the surface had put ZAFT's ground operations in doubt, even after the capture of Panama. The next hulls in the line were still not ready when the Earth forces had begun their new campaign to recapture the bases they had lost to ZAFT, and the writing was on the wall when Zala had refused to orbital drop reinforcements to help the beleaguered ground units hold their territory.

The Supreme Council Chairman had determined that the final decisive campaign would be in outer space, and had adjusted ZAFT's posture accordingly. This put the continued prospects of Project Peak in serious doubt, and it had been expected that the hulls would be scrapped and the materials used in the massive fleet buildup. However, Zala had had an idea that even Creuset would admit was inspired; the Everest-class Flying Fortresses would be converted into extraterrestrial battleships. Efforts had immediately been made to clear out ZAFT's Black series of shipyards in order to accommodate this new program; they were the only facilities with the space needed to assemble and modify the gargantuan vessels.

They had been renamed Orizaba-class carrier/dreadnoughts, and it was the namesake vessel of this new class that Creuset was looking at now. The vessel used the Everest-class armaments as a base and then significantly expanded them. Accompanying the beam cannons, anti-air guns, anti-air and anti-ship missile launchers were a series of advanced new weapons. Arrayed along the dorsal and ventral surfaces of the wings were four M100 Balaena plasma cannons, the same type that was used on the Freedom, fit into turret mounts. The same had also been done with the stolen prototype's MMI-M15 Xiphias rail cannons, with four of the mounted on the vessel as turrets. Attached just above the bridge was another familiar weapon; the Fatum-00 sub-flight lifter used by the Justice. Like the Freedom's weapons it was mounted as a turret, but an operator on the bridge could detach it and use it as a drone. The number of mobile suits the warship could carry remained the same, but rather than DINNs the Orizaba and her sister ships would carry 36 GuAIZs and 4 Mirage GINNs.

"Ah, our new flagship," he said softly, "It truly is impressive."

And just in time, he thought, for the battle of Armageddon.

….

Orbiting over the dark side of the Moon, the Agamemnon-class carrier Doolittle loomed like the proverbial Sword of Damocles. The flagship of the combined Earth Alliance orbital forces, at least until the Dominion was repaired, the warship was one of the oldest vessels in the navy. Despite her age though, she was equal to any other carrier in the fleet, and her reputation was that of a survivor. Though her mobile armor pilots had taken horrific losses over the course of the war, the vessel herself had always lived to fight another day.

Admiral Sutherland fidgeted uneasily in his chair as he looked to his left. In the seat reserved for important dignitaries was none other than Azrael. The scar on the Admiral's right shoulder ached as he remembered how Azrael's goons had shot him and his fellow officers at that meeting after the debacle that was the First Battle of Alaska.

He couldn't have just watched via live feed from the base, he fumed, He had to come out here himself…

He turned to the carrier's combat controller. "What's the status of the test units?"

"White One and White Two are undergoing final preparations," his subordinate replied, "Estimated time to launch is about one minute."

"Good," said Azrael, "We've waited a long time for this day."

Sutherland nodded. He couldn't argue with that.

Looking up at the main monitor, he gave the two targets of the test one final examination. On the lower half of the screen was a live feed from the surface of the Moon. It showed a series of prefabricated lunar habitat modules spread out over roughly a kilometer. Meanwhile, on the upper half of the monitor was the cylindrical central block of a standard Earth Alliance colony, abandoned and towed out here just for this test.

If this works, he thought, then it will mark the beginning of the end of this war. It all rests on what happens here today.

"Final checks complete!" reported the combat controller, "White One and White Two are on standby!"

Sutherland looked over at Azrael. It rankled him to defer to a civilian on a military operation, but there was no way in hell the head of Blue Cosmos would miss the chance to make the order that would change everything.

Azrael smiled and nodded. "Launch the mobile armors."

(Start "Gradus Vita")

Seconds later two Moebius units flew out of the Doolittle's launch bays. Rather than conventional weaponry slung beneath their fuselages, these craft each carried a single missile that was nearly twice as long as the mobile armor itself. The two fighters split up, with one angling high towards the colony core while the other set up for an attack run on the surface target. Sutherland felt a chill go down his spine as the seconds went by, anticipation building as the mobile armors prepared to launch their payloads.

A male voice rang over the radio. "White One, firing!"

Another man's voice followed immediately. "White Two, firing!"

Two trails of blue fire raced from the craft, streaking towards the surface and orbital targets.

The bridge fell silent, the tension palpable as everyone braced for the outcome.

The missiles found their targets simultaneously…

...and released the fury of nuclear fire.

Twin red-orange flowers of atomic rage bloomed for all aboard the Doolittle to see. The fierce, burning light of the blasts overwhelmed the ship's visual sensors, and for a moment only white was visible on the monitors. Sutherland found himself holding his breath as everyone waited for things to clear up.

When the light faded the full extent of the destruction was laid bare. The habitat modules on the Moon were gone; only a vast expanse of scorched lunar surface remained. As for the target above Luna, twisted and warped bits of metal were the only signs left of the central colony block.

Sutherland breathed a sigh of relief. "Success…"

Azrael grinned. "At last… at long last."

He turned to the Admiral. "I want mass production of the devices to begin at once. Order Strategic Nuclear Command to mobilize our entire arsenal; every last warhead on Earth is to join our stockpiles on Luna and fitted with N-Jammer Cancellers!"

Sutherland nodded. "As you wish, my lord."

"Take us back to Ptolemaeus," Azrael ordered, his eyes gleaming with excitement, "The time has come to begin planning our final assault, Admiral!"

Sutherland smiled. "At once, my lord."

For the first time in a long while, his enthusiasm was genuine. Not since the strike on Junius Seven had he felt like this; the certainty of impending victory. After a year and a half of bitter restraint at the hands of the Coordinators' accursed N-Jammers, they were once again free to bring the mightiest weapons in their arsenal back into the war.

We finally have it!

The Final Solution to the Coordinator threat. We'll purge them all; cleanse the Earth Sphere with the fire of the atom!

None of them will survive!

(End "Gradus Vita")

….

August 22nd, C.E. 71

Of all the Defense Lines that made up the PLANT Exclusion Grid, none were more fortified than the one anchored by the fortress Jachin Due. While the asteroid base may have lacked the awesome firepower of the Avalon battle station it made up for it with the largest single dedicated fleet in ZAFT. The Jachin Due Line had numbered nearly a thousand warships prior to the raid on Aprilius One, five times what had been stationed on the Avalon Line and well over twice the force stationed on any other line in the Exclusion Grid. Only the Earth Alliance's Lunar Perimeter Force could match the Jachin Due Line in numbers and firepower. The fleet assigned to the fortress had momentarily shrunk in the wake of the Fall of Avalon as warships had been transferred to fill in the gap in the defenses, but now that new warships and mobile suits were coming online fresh resources had been sent to the Jachin Due Line, and her armada continued to grow with each passing day.

The space around the asteroid base was filled as far as the eye could see with frigates, destroyers, and mobile suits. Those weren't the only defenders of Jachin Due. Several smaller asteroids had also been pulled into positions supporting the base, armed with beam turrets, CIWS, and missile launchers. However, there was one area that was conspicuously empty; a patch of space behind the fortress. Through it the PLANTs were clearly visible, and to an outside observer it would seem like a fatal gap; if an enemy managed to somehow penetrate the Jachin Due Line, it was a straight shot to the colonies.

However, looks could be deceiving, and that was something Special Operations Chief Commander Anton Kupchenko knew very well.

Sitting in one of Jachin Due's lounges, the forty-eight year old ZAFT officer's gaze was fixed on that seemingly empty patch of space as he took a sip from his cup of coffee. Dressed in the white uniform of a Commander or Field Marshal, his middle-aged appearance was hardly an indicator of his formidable prowess on and off the battlefield. His black hair may have been graying, but his steely blue eyes still had the same piercing quality that they had back in his early days. He wasn't just the head of Patrick Zala's Praetorian Guard; he was the leader of its most experienced and feared squadron, Gault Team. Even then though, viewing him as just a veteran pilot and commander would be a huge mistake; the role of a combat pilot was merely one hat the seasoned soldier wore as part of his duties in ZAFT.

A First Generation Coordinator, Kupchenko had gotten his start not in the military, but in engineering. Possessing a keen intellect even by Coordinator standards, he had graduated with a Master's degree in aeronautical engineering from the University of Cambridge at the young age of seventeen. During his stellar academic career his incredible scores combined with his youth had naturally caused his peers to suspect him of being a Coordinator, and shortly after graduation he'd been forced to flee the British Isles altogether due to persecution. He'd moved around Europe for a few years, bouncing from design firm to research lab to stay one step ahead of the anti-Coordinator mobs that never seemed too far behind. Eventually he'd had enough of life on the surface and immigrated to L5.

Kupchenko's talent was instantly recognized in this new, far more accepting environment. The engineer prospered, designing ships for the growing Zodiac Alliance. By the time the organization had been renamed ZAFT Kupchenko was one of its premier scientists and weapons developers. It was during his tenure on the project that gave birth to the GINN that he first entered the cockpit, wanting to test the unit himself in order to better understand it and improve it. Kupchenko's stint as one of the GINN test pilots revealed that he had a knack for flying, reinforced by his impressive knowledge of engineering. From there he began leading two lives; the engineer and the pilot. As relations between Earth and the PLANTs continued to deteriorate Kupchenko redoubled both his piloting training and his research work, improving his skill and creating an array of new weapons at the same time, including the monstrously powerful Avalon battle station.

At the same time he'd begun to curry favor with Patrick Zala. Originally it had been an alliance of convenience, the means for the brilliant engineer to secure greater funding for his projects, but the Bloody Valentine Tragedy changed everything. The wholesale slaughter of nearly a quarter million people by the Alliance had not just been an unspeakable atrocity; it had been an all too brutal reminder of the persecution by Naturals that Kupchenko had thought he'd left behind when departing Earth. Anger and resentment burning in his heart, the engineer decided that he could make a difference not just as a weapons scientist but as a combat pilot as well. Proving his worth in battle against the Alliance orbital forces, Kupchenko secured a rise to power in the frontline ranks that was just as impressive as his ascendancy in the realm of science. When Patrick Zala had issued the order founding the Special Operations Squadrons, Commander Kupchenko was both the first pilot recruited and the organization's Chief. With him he'd brought not just his formidable experience but seven pilots who were proven in skill and loyalty; Gault Team had been born.

Kupchenko had split his time between the drawing board and the front lines, but it was shortly after the incredible breakthrough with the N-Jammer Cancellers that Gault One had been recalled home fulltime to both take part in and guard the construction of an awe inspiring new weapon… the mightiest mankind had dared to build in its bloodstained history.

My life's greatest undertaking, he thought as he watched that seemingly empty patch of space, both building it and hiding where it's being built.

The means to veil the construction of the weapon had been as big a challenge as developing the weapon itself. Kupchenko's big breakthrough in that regard had come through combining three key technological marvels; the Mirage Colloid system stolen from the Alliance, nuclear power, and N-Jammer Cancellers.

The device itself would have its own Mirage Colloid system, but the Supreme Council Chairman had demanded that the construction site of the weapon itself be concealed from prying eyes, which was no small feat given the scale of the project. Kupchenko's solution was called the Mirage Net. It consisted of an array of satellites powered by nuclear reactors and mounted with N-Jammer Cancellers and a modified version of the Mirage Colloid cloaking device. Unlike the original version of the stealth system, the emitters on the Mirage Net satellites scattered the Colloid particles across a much wider area rather than just the source of the emissions. However, to accomplish this required a vast amount of power, hence the need for nuclear reactors and N-Jammer Cancellers. Even this wasn't enough for a single satellite or a small number; the Mirage Net was composed of no less than two hundred satellites. The construction and maintenance of the array was exorbitantly expensive; ZAFT could've built two Avalon battle stations with the funds that had been spent on the Mirrage Net.

However, both Patrick Zala and Anton Kupchenko believed that the ultimate goal of the project far outweighed financial considerations, and indeed the Mirage Net had proven to be a success. The construction of the new weapon was completely concealed from all forms of scanning, and the ZAFT fleet provided ample cover to ensure that enemy scouts or unwitting civilian ships did not pierce the veil.

The deployment of the Mirage Net may have succeeded in cloaking the construction of the weapon, but it also was a serious navigational problem for the ships that were taking part in the building of said weapon. To overcome this vessels were given very strict routes to adhere to in order to pass through the veil and avoid impacting both satellites and other ships. Upon passing through the cloak communication was limited to strictly tight-beam transmissions to ensure that no errant signals got out. In addition to these measures Kupchenko had ordered additional warships and mobile suit squadrons to be deployed at key points just inside the veil, and any vessel that failed to provide the proper responses to security calls would be blown out of the sky.

From an espionage perspective though, Kupchenko knew that the Mirage Net was not perfect. The project may have been hidden from direct detection, but indirectly it was vulnerable. Redeployments of ships and personnel, massive funneling of resources and construction equipment, the gargantuan flow of funds, the unique flight patterns of vessels just outside the veil and those moving to enter it… there were plenty of ways a keen observer could deduce that something big was happening in that seemingly empty patch of space.

No doubt that traitor Bristow suspects something, at any rate, he mused, That man's not a fool. In another life he would've made a superb spymaster… then again, I suppose he's one now for the renegades. We've damaged his network, but haven't rooted it out completely; the fact that Lacus Clyne can still get broadcasts into the PLANTs is proof enough of that. How much does he know?

Kupchenko shook his head and took another sip of coffee. That was for Military Intelligence and Secret Service to worry about.

He smiled as he looked out the window again. Construction on the weapon was proceeding on schedule, and no trace of efforts to sabotage it had been discovered. Whatever the extent of Eric Bristow's network of informants and operatives was, its reach fell short of directly affecting Kupchenko's project. He needed only to focus on the continued construction progress and security of the weapon. Everything else would fall into place on its own.

Kupchenko knew that the Earth Alliance forces had broadened their reach in outer space considerably since ZAFT's pullback of the fleets. He imagined that his foes were confident that the strategic situation favored them now. Their numbers were growing at a rate ZAFT could not hope to match, and now they were fielding mass produced mobile suits that were easily superior to the GINN. Earth was now once again a pure Natural stronghold, and resources were flowing with ease to the L2 shipyards and lunar factories. It was obvious that the Earth Alliance was gearing up for its final offensive with every expectation of an overwhelming victory.

"Let them come," he chuckled, his gaze fixed on that patch of space, "It will only play into our hands. We will crush them at the gates and obliterate them with a power they could never dream of. We will have our victory… and our revenge."

….

August 30th, C.E. 71

"This is the Duel," said Yzak as he set up his approach vector, "I've finished my patrol. I'm coming in for landing."

On his screen the flight control officer of his new mother ship, the destroyer Granin, nodded. "Acknowledged, Duel. Approach is authorized, vector is clear. Welcome home."

Yzak nodded. "Duel out."

Up ahead he could see the hangar of the blue warship open, and he made the final adjustments to his landing vector. He'd done this so many times now that it had long ago become routine… on a different warship.

I know we're not supposed to get sentimental about these things, he thought, but the Granin… it just reminds me too much of the Vesalius.

After losing the vessel that had been almost his home away from home at L4, Yzak had joined Creuset on board the Patrol Fleet frigate Mata Hari. He didn't see much of his commanding officer during the voyage back to the PLANTs, but that was fine by him; the confrontation between the two of them on the Vesalius had been far too fresh for pleasantries.

Flay, he thought as he entered the Granin's hangar, where are you now?

He remembered hearing her voice over an open channel during the battle. Yzak was glad she had not been on the Vesalius when it had gone down, but he had no idea where she was now. The most likely possibility was back with the Earth forces, but for some reason that was little cause for comfort. Sure, it meant that she was safely out of Creuset's hands, but Yzak knew that the masked ace had arranged for her release, and that alone was cause for concern. Whatever the Field Marshal's plans for her were, Yzak highly doubted they had Flay's well being in mind.

Yzak shook his head as the Duel touched down in its berth. "It's not just that. Stop lying to yourself."

You miss her.

That he did. As much as he may have worried about her during her time with ZAFT, strangely enough spending time with her had also been refreshing. When he got her to talk he got a different perspective, someone who wasn't steeped in ZAFT training or the PLANT way of life. She was a complicated individual, but Yzak realized he didn't actually mind that. Getting to know her as much as he had was actually something he'd liked. Protecting her may have started out as a small measure of atonement for his failure to prevent the massacre at Panama or his colossal error in shooting down that shuttle in the orbital battle, but it had become more than that, and only now that she was beyond his reach did he realize just what it was.

He cared about her. He wanted to protect her not just for the sake of atonement, but because he genuinely wanted to keep her safe. He'd grown fond of her, a Natural, and that was a thought that mere months ago would've been out of the question.

And now the odds were pretty damn good that he'd never see her again.

"Damn it all," he muttered before opening the cockpit.

As he left the machine one of the mechanics waved at him. "Welcome back, sir! Don't worry, we'll have the Duel primed and ready by the time your next flight starts!"

Yzak nodded absently as he made his way towards the exit. He didn't mean any disrespect to the man; he just had too much on his mind to be personable right now.

He'd certainly had too much time to think of late. Things had been quiet since his return from the Battle of Mendel, as the engagement out at L4 had come to be known. Upon their arrival Yzak had been surprised to learn that he'd been granted one week of shore leave in the homeland. He'd lost track of Creuset almost immediately after, and while he was still wary of his former commanding officer he was also relieved to be away from the man for a while.

Yzak had been able to see his mother during his vacation, but it was only briefly. Her duties on the Supreme Council kept her very busy, though she'd still found a little time to catch up with her son. It had been nice but at the same time a little unnerving; with his change in thinking regarding Naturals Yzak realized that he may well be drifting in the opposite direction of her mother. Yzak may not have been a close follower of PLANT politics but he did know that his mother was a strong supporter of the Zala faction, and their hard line stance regarding the war was public knowledge. As he'd talked with her Yzak had found himself wondering just how far she was willing to go to end this war.

Would she condone the massacre that had taken place at Panama? Had she approved of it and he just didn't know? Did she simply want to defeat the enemy that threatened their homeland, or did she want to go further? Did she seek the Earth forces surrender… or their utter annihilation?

It was questions like these lingering in the back of his mind that convinced Yzak to pay more attention to politics while he was back home… and he did not like what he was hearing. Public broadcasts by Patrick Zala were a common occurrence, and the Chairman's message seemed to straddle the line between calling for Coordinator dominion over the Earth Sphere and the complete destruction of the Naturals.

'Completely defeat the Naturals'… that was one of his lines, Yzak thought as he changed out of his flight suit back into his uniform, but he didn't specify if he meant force their unconditional surrender… or to just wipe them out.

There was no talk at all about seeking peace negotiations with the Alliance; that sentiment had apparently died with Siegel Clyne. There was no debate at all, for that matter. People were either vocal in their support of the ruling party or completely silent, and the tension in the homeland was growing. It wasn't just fear of a possible assault from the Alliance that had people on edge; they were suspicious of each other.

After returning to duty in the fleet Yzak had realized that same suspicion of supposed comrades was alive in ZAFT as well. People whispered of single ships or whole task forces abandoning ZAFT and making for L3 to join the renegades that now occupied the Orb colonies. The Coordinator forces could not afford defections at a time like this, but the more Yzak thought about it the more he considered that those the hard liners so eagerly labeled 'traitors' might actually have the right idea.

His fight with Aisha back at L4 once again came to mind, her words a stinging indictment against the military he was sworn to serve.

"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!"

He shook his head, but was unable to dispel the doubts. In fighting to defend their homeland, their very right to live, ZAFT was becoming more and more like the very enemy it wanted to defeat. Patrick Zala may have been elected on his promise to bring the war to a decisive end, but Yzak had to wonder if the people who had voted for him really wanted him to go as far as what had happened at Panama. Securing their survival was one thing; descending to the level of Blue Cosmos was quite another.

Not much I can do about it from where I am now, he thought as he entered the ship's mess, I'm on defense now. I wonder if Creuset had anything to do with that…

After his shore leave had concluded, Yzak had found himself assigned to the Granin as the new destroyer, fresh from trial runs, had made her way to her first deployment in the vanguard of the Home Fleet; the Boaz squadrons. Aside from the Duel the warship carried five GuAIZs, and she was not the only ship in the fleet to be outfitted with the new models. The units may have been more expensive to produce than the GINN, but with the Earth Alliance churning out its new mass production Strike models ZAFT was hard pressed to maintain an edge, and the sophisticated GuAIZ had already proven its superiority to the Naturals' machines in skirmishes.

The fleet supporting Boaz had only continued to grow since Yzak had arrived. He was stunned by the number of vessels currently operating in tandem with the fortress; there were already over two hundred capital ships, and that figure continued to climb day by day.

Warships and mobile suits weren't the only things attackers had to worry about. In addition to her extremely durable hide, Boaz was a carrier unto herself, ready to deploy 108 mobile suits at a moment's notice. Aside from that, the fortress herself was heavily armed with concealed weapons. In combat panels disguised as asteroid surface would roll back, revealing beam cannons, missile launchers, and anti-air machine guns. Those armaments were supplemented by a series of much smaller asteroids that had been hollowed out by mining and towed into strategic positions around Boaz. Like the base these smaller asteroids were armed, though they carried no mobile suits. The fortress, the asteroid weapons platforms, and the supporting fleet were more than deserving of their informal title in ZAFT, The Boaz Wall.

If the Alliance wants to take us out, he thought as he sat down to eat, they'll have to go through The Wall first, and there's not a chance in hell we'll let them through.

An amateur might look at the strategic layout and ask why the Earth Alliance forces wouldn't just bypass The Boaz Wall. Why not simply go around, or above, or below, and attack the PLANTs directly? While Yzak didn't consider himself to be a master strategist, he did have a solid grasp of the PLANT defenses and how they could respond to any Alliance attack.

Boaz was strategically positioned at roughly the halfway point between the Moon and L5 along the most direct route to the PLANTs. In addition to her forces elements of the Patrol Fleet operated even further out and were capable of giving ZAFT ample warning if the forces positioned around Luna were preparing to strike. If the enemy chose to take the long way around ZAFT would have more than enough time to redeploy forces to intercept. In the event that the Earth Alliance sent its fleet above or below The Boaz Wall ZAFTs forces would be in the perfect position to catch the enemy in a pincer between the fortress squadrons and the main body of the Home Fleet. Thanks to the Patrol Fleet providing forward recon ZAFT would be more than capable of rushing reinforcements to Boaz in the event that the Earth Alliance decided to swamp The Wall with sheer numbers, which everyone Yzak had talked to was expecting they'd do. Fleet strategists were predicting a grinding fight at the fortress; the clash would begin with both sides' vanguards, and as the battle wore on and both sides reinforced their armadas eventually the bulk of both the Alliance and ZAFT's military might would be involved.

Boaz, if the Defense Council was to be believed, would be the sight of the final decisive battle of the war.

But what happens after we win it?

If the enemy surrendered, would it be accepted? If the war was brought to an end with ZAFT in a position of strength, what terms would they give the Alliance? If the demand was for unconditional surrender, would it be accepted, or would the Earth forces fight to the death? Would the Supreme Council seek to simply guarantee the independence of the PLANTs, or would they demand territory on Earth? Would they go beyond that?

Will I be ordered to carry out a massacre?

Will we be ordered to wipe out those who've surrendered… and then turn our guns on the civilians?

Yzak had no doubt what would happen if the Earth Alliance won. Their intentions had been abundantly clear since the start of the war. It was the actions of his side that he could not predict… that he did not want to predict.

Once again the image of a certain young woman flashed through his mind. His concerns for billions of innocent people were supplanted by fear for the fate of one girl.

Flay…

Is ZAFT… going to kill her?

Will I be the one… to kill her?

He slammed his fist on the table, startling the others in the mess but not giving a shit.

"Damn it all!" he hissed.

One thing was for sure; he wouldn't be getting any sleep tonight.

….

September 5th, C.E. 71

"Captain Badgiruel," said Flay, "Ptolemaeus Control has approved our approach vector. They're opening the main doors now."

Natarle nodded. "Thank you, Petty Officer Allster."

Watching the girl at her station, Natarle felt a hint of pride in her protégé. She'd come a long way since that day long ago when Kira had recovered her life pod. Now here she was, communications officer for the Dominion, coming to the end of her first live run.

Repairs to the black battleship had just been finished the day before, and Natarle had wasted no time in setting up a trial run to ensure that her vessel was fully operational. The vessel still had not been assigned new mobile suits yet to replenish their losses, but Natarle was sure that problem would soon be rectified. They had launched early in the morning and as they were coming in it was now late afternoon. Her crew had performed well, though Natarle wondered if part of that might be due to the simple fact that Azrael was not with them today. When the head of Blue Cosmos had been on the ship in the past Natarle had noticed the man's dampening effect on morale.

I guess I'm not the only one on this ship who sees him for what he really is, she mused, A madman, a murderer, a sadist, a sociopath… all that and more would be quite appropriate for him.

Azrael's absence was not the only welcome one. The sole surviving member of the Biological CPU team that had fought at L4 had been left back at the base under Azrael's orders. Natarle didn't know the details, only that the young man was continuing to undergo training of his own, as he had been since the return from Mendel.

Though the Calamity's pilot made her uncomfortable, at the same time Natarle realized she also felt a bit of pity for him. Both Azrael and other officers treated the young man as though he were nothing more than a tool, one that they despised but needed nonetheless. It was a stark contrast to how Captain Ramius had treated her crew during Natarle's time with her. All had been valued and respected, even outsiders and newcomers like Kira and the other students from Heliopolis. The treatment of Orga by Azrael and his followers served as one more example of the sort of behavior that had ultimately driven Captain Ramius and her crew away from the Alliance.

The more time that passed, Natarle had a clearer understanding of how her friends could leave their country behind. It wasn't just about being set up to die at Alaska, though she was sure that had played a significant role. It was the belief that no one was expendable, that soldiers were more than just pawns in the schemes of politicians, that the lives of civilians were sacrosanct regardless of their birth, and that extremists had to be stopped no matter what flag or ideology they crusaded under.

Mu, she thought, resisting the urge to smile, for all your laxness, your devil-may-care attitude... you understood the true nature of this war, and that of our superiors. You realized what's ultimately at stake here, and had the courage to make your stand against the evil that's corrupted our country. You never hesitated. What I wouldn't give to be as strong as you…

Natarle knew that her friends would need all the strength they could must to stand against the forces the Earth Alliance would soon be deploying. The trial flight had given her plenty of opportunities to observe the fleets massing over Luna. There had to have been well over a thousand capital ships, and Natarle knew that the Dominion had only covered a very small portion of space in her cruise. In addition to the rest of the lunar perimeter Natarle knew that there were also fleets out at L1 and L2, along with the warships docked at Ptolemaeus and other bases on the Moon. More were returning from far flung patrols or being launched from the shipyards every day.

How many warships would be deployed when the time came? Two thousand? Three thousand? Even more? How many mobile suits and armors would such a force be capable of fielding? Natarle couldn't say, but she was certain that Azrael would hold nothing back when he launched his final campaign.

Numbers alone will not be enough to break ZAFT's defenses, she thought as the warship entered the gates, The enemy has always held the technological edge in this war, and that hasn't changed. We may now have our own mobile suits, but ZAFT's new models are better than the Strike-Daggers, and the enemy's pilot corps has more veterans than us; attrition has depleted our ranks of our most experienced fighters.

However, if the rumors she'd heard over the past few weeks were true, it would be more than just conventional weapons that the Earth Alliance would bring to the field in the final clash. Officers and enlisted men and women alike whispered of a secret test that had taken place on the dark side of Luna utilizing technology that had supposedly been stolen from ZAFT. Turning again to look at Flay, Natarle had a suspicion that whatever technology involved in the experiment had been on that data drive Azrael had taken from her upon her arrival on the Dominion.

She recalled the gleam in Azrael's eyes that she had seen mere hours after the retreat from L4. They were limping home from a clear defeat, and yet the man looked like someone who had scored a great triumph. Her suspicions had only been compounded the day before when she had encountered Azrael on her way to inspect the fully repaired battleship. He'd been conversing with senior officers and did not seem to notice her, but what Natarle had caught in passing had chilled her to the bone.

"They'll all join Junius Seven soon enough..."

"Nukes…" she whispered, "Did they really…"

It was a considerable leap just from overhearing one sentence. Nukes weren't the only thing that could destroy a colony; the savagery of the Battle of Nova and the ruin of the L4 colonies early in the war had been purely due to overwhelming conventional firepower. However, thanks to the Bloody Valentine Tragedy the name Junius Seven was inextricably tied to the use of the most powerful weapons mankind had ever built. Natarle felt she was fully justified in her fears, especially after her country had already proven itself willing to use such weapons against civilians in the past. If the Earth Alliance was now capable of bringing its nuclear arsenal back into the war…

No wonder Azrael was in such a good mood.

Will the Dominion soon be carrying nuclear missiles?, she thought, Will I have to order a strike on the PLANTs?

She'd gone this whole war without committing criminal acts, but the more she examined her situation the more she realized how untenable it was becoming. The Dominion was the pride of the Earth Alliance orbital forces, and there was no doubt in her mind that Azrael would once again make it his flagship. It was not a matter of if she would be ordered to commit an atrocity; it was when.

And when that time came, her honor and pride as a soldier would be destroyed.

Whether she complied with the order and murdered civilians or refused it and became a traitor, it did not matter. This was what her loyalty to her country had brought her to; the inevitable destruction of herself as a professional soldier. The Alliance would not indict her if she followed through with their commands, but that did not matter; she could try herself in her heart and mind just as well as any rational war crimes court and come to the same conclusion. Refusing the order would preserve the core of her conscience, but it would forever tar her legacy as that of a traitor.

She came from a military family. The honor and pride that came with the uniform, with serving the nation… she had been raised to believe that those were the highest ideals. Obeying the chain of command without hesitation, sacrificing her personal feelings for the mission… that was supposed to be enough. She had stalwartly believed in that throughout the war.

However, her time aboard the Archangel and her experiences after had changed her outlook. She now understood just how narrow a mindset she had held, and how it made her so vulnerable to the machinations of monsters like Azrael.

When they transferred me at Alaska, she thought bitterly, they did that because they thought I'd be a useful tool. An obedient, by-the-book officer… and I've done nothing but prove them right. Damn it!

Now she rued what her faith in her country had brought her. As the Dominion moved through the cavernous base towards her berth Natarle saw further signs of the armada that the Earth Alliance would soon unleash upon ZAFT. Dock after dock was filled with warships, all being prepared for the final campaign. Carriers and battleships being loaded with the new mass production mobile suits and stocked with munitions and rations, personnel moving to their newly assigned vessels… it was almost overwhelming, and this was just one of the several bases the Earth Alliance maintained on Luna.

Natarle had to wonder just what proportion of their fleet would be made up of new recruits. How many young and green troops would be thrown into the fire? Did they have any idea what they had gotten themselves into? Did any of them realize that their High Command cared nothing about them, saw them as nothing more than cannon fodder? Did they have any inkling that their nation's leaders were about to order them to commit one of the greatest crimes in human history?

As bad as that was, it was all too easy to think up an even worse scenario; that they knew what would be asked of them, and were eager to comply.

Natarle wanted to think the best of her fellow soldiers, to believe that their basic sense of human decency could trump the propaganda the Blue Cosmos-aligned government had doubtlessly been feeding them for who knew how long… but after what she had seen since Alaska, nothing was off the table. Atrocity begot atrocity, and that vicious cycle had only intensified in this war. The leadership of both sides was howling for blood, and it would not be hard for the rank and file to get swept up in the thirst for vengeance.

Flay, she thought, are we alone here? Are you and I the only ones on this ship… the only ones in this entire military… who can see this madness for what it is?

It was all too easy to believe that was indeed the case.

And it drove her to the brink of despair.

She felt chained to her fate, dragged along and powerless to free herself from the coming nightmare. There was only a faint glimmer of hope, one chance she had to escape the darkness.

Mu, please…

…save me!

….

September 12th, C.E. 71

"So," said Azrael, tapping his finger expectantly on the arm of the chair, "he's doing well?"

On the monitor in front of him Dr. Frick nodded. "His transition from surface to orbital combat has been surprisingly smooth, as was his adaptation to the Strike-Avenger. His performance against the targeted ZAFT patrols and in the new simulations far exceeds the capabilities of our normal soldiers. He is skilled with all of the Strike-Avenger's augmentation packs, and has proven to be an aggressive fighter yet still has an eye for the tactical and strategic picture."

Azrael smiled. "Excellent, doctor. Now, how about his physical condition?"

You'd better have good news, impudent rat, he mentally sneered, Your life depends on it, and Djibril's favor won't protect you from me forever.

Dr. Frick smirked. "Worried about your legacy, Azrael?"

He scowled. "Don't test my patience. You won't live long to regret it."

The doctor chuckled. "Empty threats don't impress me. Why do you insist on playing this game?"

"Out with it!" Azrael snapped, "Or I'll have you killed regardless of Lord Djibril's input. He may be your benefactor, but even his patience has limits, and I would lose nothing from putting you in your grave. Your expertise has been valuable, but there are enough qualified people on the project now that I can cut you loose and continue onward."

Frick sighed. "If you insist on the melodrama… physically, the subject is fine. There is no sign of the early tissue degeneration that doomed the others, and this is after extensive combat performance."

Azrael grinned. "There, was that so hard, doctor?"

"Don't assume this means he's in the clear," Frick warned, "This incarnation of your Phantom Commander requires monitoring just as the other subjects did, regardless of his physical condition. It's still possible something could trigger the degeneration. This is not an exact science, Azrael; the ground we're treading here is still very much experimental."

"Yes, yes," Azrael scoffed, "I'm well aware of your concerns, doctor. Now, will he be ready for the final campaign?"

Dr. Frick nodded. "Yes, provided the new augmentation pack for his Strike-Avenger is completed and tested. I understand it's still undergoing fine-tuning with the technicians."

"They'll have it done on time," said Azrael, "He's already performed simulations with it, yes?"

"Indeed," the doctor replied, "His results have been impressive. With that pack he can outfight anything in ZAFT's arsenal."

Azrael grinned. "And that of the renegades'."

"I would not be so sure," the doctor cautioned, "His machine is not nuclear powered, after all."

"It doesn't matter," Azrael sneered, "Those race traitors and abominations can't hope to compete with him, especially with his new weapons!"

Dr. Frick sighed in surrender. "As you say, Lord Azrael."

Azrael nodded. "Continue with preparations for him, doctor. I expect him to be transferred to my flagship before we launch the armada."

"Very well," said the doctor, "I suppose I'll be joining you then?"

Azrael shook his head. "Hardly, doctor. You'll be staying at your lab; you have other projects that require your attention, after all. I want as many Biological CPUs as possible ready for the final battle, and your work on the Second Generation Extended should be more than enough to keep you occupied while the rest of us purge the Coordinators."

Besides, he thought, the last thing I want is to share a warship with that insufferable bastard.

The doctor appeared relieved. "If that will be all, I must get going. There's still much to be done."

"Be sure that it gets done, doctor," said Azrael, "Delays will not be tolerated."

He cut the connection before Dr. Frick could reply; Azrael refused to give the insolent scientist the last word.

Immediately afterwards Azrael set his office computer to another frequency. He smiled as the other party showed up on the monitor. "Rear Admiral Bernard. I trust by now the transfer is complete."

The senior officer nodded. "Strategic Nuclear Command reports all warheads have been fitted with N-Jammer Cancellers and shipped to their designated carriers. Exercises for strikes by mobile armors have been going smoothly, and final designation for delivery squadrons is complete. All Moebius units not tasked with nuclear payloads will draw fire from the ones carrying the missiles or will be supporting our mobile suits."

Azrael grinned. "Excellent. What of the new assault mobile armors?"

"The FA-X Juggernaut's limited production continues apace," Bernard replied, "Field tests have gone well, and they gave a solid performance in the skirmishes with the ZAFT fleet. We're allocating some to the vanguard fleet; more will serve with the main armada. They will be potent spearheads, I assure you."

"They'd better," said Azrael, "They were rather pricey… and a project you pushed for heavily, if I do recall. Their performance in this campaign will reflect upon you one way or another, Rear Admiral."

The Rear Admiral's expression hardened. "They will not fail, Lord Azrael. I promise you that."

Azrael nodded. "You'll be held to that. Now, what are the reports from our scouts?"

"As we expected," said Bernard, "ZAFT is heavily reinforcing The Boaz Wall, and their Patrol Fleet is pushing as close to the Lunar Perimeter as they dare. I suspect some of their Mirage GINNs have gotten a good look at our forces, though of course they have no way of knowing how much more we have in store for them inside our bases."

"Of course," said Azrael, "Still, they will know we're coming."

"We were never going to make this a sneak attack, my lord," Bernard replied, "You yourself said as much."

"Oh, I know that," said Azrael, smirking, "I want the freaks at L5 to witness the armada we're going to bring down upon them. By the time the battle begins fear of our overwhelming force will have poisoned their ranks, and that's before we unleash our little secret on them at Boaz."

"What of the renegades?" asked Bernard, "What little intelligence we've gathered on them suggests they're massing a fleet of their own at L3."

Azrael shook his head. "It hardly matters at this point in the game. If they're foolish enough to try to stop our attack on L5 our armada will be more than enough to stop them. If they've decided to simply try to defend the last Orb colonies, we'll just crush them after we've cleansed L5. Either way, they cannot hope to survive. Their luck is about to run dry, Rear Admiral, and with it this war will close."

"Very well, my lord," Bernard replied, "Do you have further instructions?"

"Only that you remain on board the Andrew Jackson," said Azrael, "With you leading the vanguard fleet I expect swift results when we hit Boaz."

Bernard nodded. "I foresee no difficulties there. ZAFT will be defending against a conventional assault. All we have to do is press their lines until we get an opening to make our strike on the fortress."

Azrael smiled. "Carry on, Rear Admiral. The time to attack will be upon us soon enough."

He cut the connection and typed for a few seconds on the computer. The image on the screen shifted, bringing up an interactive strategic map of the Earth Sphere. Azrael zoomed in on L5, taking in the full strength of the Coordinator forces.

It certainly was an impressive display. Zala's pullback of the offensive fleets combined with the Home Fleet already in place and the new vessels churned out from the PLANT shipyards had resulted in one of the largest concentrations of military firepower ever gathered in one place. The Boaz Wall had been heavily reinforced, and the rest of ZAFT's forces were orienting in that direction. The defenses along that path would only grow thicker when Azrael launched his armada; indeed, he was expecting the entire Coordinator fleet to eventually take the field in the final battle.

"Credit where it's due, even if it's to monsters," he said with a smirk, "Almost five thousand capital ships, even with their losses and defections… Patrick Zala, you have outdone yourself."

He chuckled. "Too bad I have more."

Azrael made some adjustments, and the map reoriented itself. Luna was now the center of attention, but also within view were L1 and L2. For quite some time now Azrael had been orchestrating his own pullback of sorts, concentrating the Earth Alliance's offensive and defensive fleets along with new warships from the shipyards at these three points. Very soon they would merge into a single armada.

The largest in human history.

It's time.

Entering new commands, he watched as the head of the Atlantic Federation High Command appeared on the screen.

"Admiral Sutherland. Begin final mobilization."

….

September 15th, C.E. 71

Leaning back in the chair, dressed only in a white bathrobe, Eric Bristow looked over at the nearby bed and smiled. There was Shemei, the love of his life, sleeping soundly, the tussled covers baring her dark shoulders, her disheveled hair and satisfied smile evidence of their earlier tryst. The lights were off, and only the glow from the laptop's screen in front of him provided illumination.

He saw the Valkyrie shift slightly and heard her murmur. "Mmmm… come back here, wolfie…"

Eric chuckled quietly at the private nickname she'd coined for him. "I will soon enough, my Egyptian goddess."

Turning back to the computer, his expression became serious as he reviewed the latest update from his network of informants. His eyes narrowed as he studied the intel, and as he reached the conclusion he was confronted by grim certainty.

"So," he said softly, "our reprieve has come to a close. It was inevitable, but still… I thought we had a little more time."

Much as he might wish otherwise, there was no arguing with what he was seeing now. The two superpowers had spent a great deal of time and effort in building up their forces, and now the fruits of that labor were on full display. They were awe-inspiring, breathtaking… and terrifying.

And now, at long last, they were moving.

He closed his eyes and sighed. "We've got our work cut out for us…"

A line from one of his favorite movies came to mind, and he found it quite fitting. Almost without thinking he began to quietly recite it.

"Where is the horse, and the rider? Where is the horn that was blown? They have passed like rain on the mountains, like wind in the meadow. The days have gone down in the West, behind the hills… into shadow."

"How… how did it come to this?"

He shook his head. The 'how' no longer mattered. They were here, now, and the fate of the world was riding upon what they did next.

Typing on the keyboard, Eric set up a connection with Waltfeld on a special frequency they had set up for private conversations. After a few minutes he saw he was routed to the laptop in his friend's quarters, and the Desert Tiger appeared on the screen.

Waltfeld smiled. "Hey buddy. Good timing. A few minutes earlier, and… well, you would've been interrupting something important."

Even with the gravity of the situation, Eric had to smile. The dim lighting on Waltfeld's side of the screen was hint enough that his friend and Aisha had just wrapped up the same thing Eric and Shemei had.

"I'm glad you two got to enjoy yourselves," he replied. His expression then became serious. "I'm afraid it may be the last chance you get for a while."

Waltfeld's good eye narrowed. "What's up?"

"I just got word from my contacts in the Patrol Fleet and ZAFT HQ," said Eric, "Deep scouts report that the Earth Alliance is massing its armada at the edge of the Lunar Perimeter. From their rally point it's a straight shot to The Boaz Wall… and if they punch through that, the Jachin Due Line."

"Damn," Waltfeld hissed, "I take it Zala's already moving to counter?"

Eric nodded. "Boaz has already been heavily reinforced, and I expect that to continue. That's not the big news though."

Waltfeld sighed. "Figures. What's going down, Eric?"

"Zala's already moved to Jachin Due," Eric replied, "I think it's safe to say he'll be spending the rest of the war there. Most of the Defense Council's gone with him."

Waltfeld nodded. "Makes sense. Boaz would be right at the front; too dangerous for the Supreme Council Chairman to command from there, even with its defenses. Jachin Due's a good stage for him, and he can always catch a Nazca and move forward if he's sure the battle's swung in his favor."

"Pretty much," said Eric grimly, "but there's still more."

"Isn't there always?" Waltfeld asked wryly.

Eric nodded. "About thirty-six hours ago the Defense Council issued a muster order. A total muster order."

Waltfeld leaned back in his chair and gave a soft whistle. "Damn. So they're really going to do it…"

"It's already begun," said Eric.

His eyes narrowed. "Zala's marshalling the Grand Fleet."

Preview for next time!

After months of preparation, the curtain rises on the final campaign. The Earth Alliance and ZAFT have amassed armadas unprecedented in all of human history, and the first taste of their power will be displayed in the clash of their vanguards at Boaz. The Three Ships Alliance musters all its strength and departs from L3, with the anticipation of a long, grueling battle. In the opening fight the forces of Azrael and Zala seem at parity, but the Earth forces have an ace in the hole, and are only waiting for the right time to play it. Next time, on "Journey to a New Battlefield", Episode Twenty-Eight: Prelude at Boaz.

"Now I am become Death, the destroyer of worlds." J. Robert Oppenheimer, in turn quoting the Bhagavad Gita.

Author's notes: Man, it feels great to finally have this chapter done! Thanks again for bearing with me, I know it was quite the wait to get to this point. I can't make any promises regarding when the next chapter will be done, and all I can ask is for the same patience and support you've all given me throughout this story.

By the way, if you need a refresher on what the original armaments for the Everest-class Flying Fortress were, now the base for the Orizaba-class carrier/dreadnought, please refer to Episode Nine: Treacherous Seas.

Until next time!