Last Resistance to Peace
By Scarlet Eve
AC 205
May
Wufei stepped onto the streets of L5 and glanced around. The architecture of the colony resembled a modern version of Chinese architecture from Earth. Wufei could appreciate the colony's attempt to keep the culture alive in space after leaving Earth. Wufei walked the streets, feeling a sense of familiarity settle over him as he looked at the buildings and people around him.
He happened upon a coffee shop, the inviting window display pulling him in through the doors. Inside, the smell of coffee filled his nose. He stepped up to the counter to order a black coffee, when he overheard a couple of patrons talking.
"I heard some of the colonies are going to try and appease the Gundams."
"That's sick. How can they support such evil monsters?"
"Scared for themselves, I suppose."
Wufei tightened his lips and turned away, trying to tune out the talk of the patrons. He wasn't an evil monster. OZ wasn't trying to take over the colonies. Their goal was to protect Earth from attacks by the Colony Alliance. If they couldn't understand that, then…
Wufei badly wanted to dismiss the patrons' words and explain to them the correct way of thinking, but he resisted. Instead, he waited until the barista handed over the paper cup of coffee to him and immediately exited the building. Stepping back onto the street, he heard his communicator beep. He stuck the device in his ear and pressed the button to accept the incoming communication.
"Wufei." It was Lady Une.
"What?"
"Have you arrived on L5?"
"Yes."
"I have an important mission for you. You must destroy that colony."
Wufei blinked, and his hand tightened around the cup of coffee, hard enough that the plastic lid popped off. It tumbled to the ground and landed on the sidewalk.
"Why must I do that?" he asked.
"They have sent us a message, threatening retaliation against OZ. They have mobile suits on the colony, and they must be destroyed."
Wufei's body shook. How could Une just order the systematic murder and destruction of a colony filled with people. But his sense of pride in OZ took over. He shook his head and straightened his back and shoulders, determined to fulfill the mission. If the people of the colonies were a threat, they must be eliminated.
"I'll destroy it immediately." Wufei swallowed hard, tossed his coffee in the garbage and stalked back towards the shuttle terminal.
When he arrived back at his shuttle, he donned a spacesuit and entered the cargo bay of the shuttle. Shenlong, Nataku, lay in the cargo hold, waiting for him. Wufei took a deep breath of oxygen and exhaled. Goosebumps formed along his arms at the actions he was about to condone. With a final push towards Nataku, he climbed into the cockpit, closed the hatch, and activated the Gundam.
The cargo bay doors of the shuttle opened, and Wufei flew Nataku out of the shuttle, through the docking bay, to the immense surprise of those working in the bay. He smashed through the bay door and flew out into space.
Once he was a safe distance from the colony, he fired up the dragon head fire blast, an extension of his Gundam's arm. A beeping sounded in the cockpit, indicating that the dragon head was powering up too much, to dangerous levels. Nataku shuddered with effort, until the beeping increased in frequency. He pressed the button on the control panel, and the blast erupted from the dragon head.
It flew through space and hit the colony, melting away the metal, igniting the inner workings of the colony's exterior. A chain reaction erupted, blowing at increments along the colony, until the entire colony was consumed by flames and explosions. Debris flew out in all directions, starting a never ending journey through space.
Une voice came over the communicator.
"Is it done?"
Instead of responding, Wufei disconnected the communicator. He watched the explosion through the cameras of Nataku. Regret and sadness fell over him, tightening his chest and throat. When he closed his eyes, memories wavered before his eyes, of his time before OZ. His family. His martial arts training. His home.
And he realized.
He'd just destroyed it.
He destroyed the only place he'd ever called home.
AC 205
May
Trowa walked towards the tent, feeling drawn towards the stripes, the smells, and the sights to be had. Around the exterior of the tent were food stands, with all kinds of delicious treats. Off to one side stood a smaller tent, on which hung a sign indicating that the live animals were inside. Sounds of cheers resounded from inside the big top. The sounds toyed with Trowa's memory, bringing back the same sounds but from earlier days.
He made his way to the flap in the largest tent and stuck his head through. The lighting was dim inside, save for the spotlight illuminating a young woman, who stood in the middle of the ring. She wore a pink tutu and had a feather fascinator in her hair. Her dark brown hair curled around her face, softening the concentrated expression on her face. She held several knives in each of her hands, which she lifted, and aimed towards a poor man, dressed as a clown, who stood against a wooden circle.
The woman lifted her arm, and threw three knives at once. The knives cut through the air, and stuck into the wood circle with three thuds - one by the man's neck, one by his left bicep, and the third by his right hip.
Trowa's mouth fell open. Of course, it wasn't the first time he'd seen an act like this one. In fact, Trowa felt a strong sense of deja vu, like this had all happened to him before. Except that he was the clown standing against the wooden circle, having knives expertly thrown at various points of his body.
A sharp pain invaded Trowa's mind. His hands flew to either side of his face, pressing against the pain that twisted down to the space behind his eyes. He heard the crowd cheer, but he didn't know if it was coming from the gathered crowd or some memory that flooded into his brain.
Trowa opened his eyes again against the pain, and saw the young woman standing in the center of the ring. She was facing him now, and for a moment, their eyes locked. The pain flared in Trowa's head, and he cried out, his vision dark. He felt himself fall until he felt nothing at all.
AC 205
May
Quatre's Gundam approached L4, following the runway lights that extended out into space, guiding into the colony. He carefully navigated Sandrock into the docking bay. The bay doors closed behind him and a spacesuit clad person directed him towards a nearby docking port. He cut the engines and used the thrusters to push the Gundam into the through the docking bay, and felt Sandrock shudder when the grappling arms latched on, holding the Gundam in place. Quatre stood up from the pilot's chair and pulled his space helmet over her head.
Exiting Sandrock, he leapt down onto the catwalk leading towards the L4 Welcome Center terminal. He passed through security and saw a group of men, presumably waiting for him. They were dressed in suits and had nervous expressions on their faces. Quatre scanned them, but none of them looked familiar.
Except…
Maybe one looked a little familiar. The man with the short-cropped brown hair and mustache, standing a little apart from the rest of the group. Quatre narrowed his eyes slightly, but the man's name eluded him, or even where Quatre recognized him from.
He neared the group, and one older man broke away, closing the distance between himself and Quatre. With a hand extended, he said, "You must be Quatre Winner, the Gundam pilot."
Quatre nodded and returned the gesture. "And you are?"
"Mayor Fred Burns," he said, bowing his head. "These are my assistants and confidants." He swept his arm out, including the group of men standing behind him. The gathered men bowed to Quatre in greeting.
"Pleasure to meet you," Quatre said. The brown-haired man approached Quatre, an expression in his eyes that Quatre didn't understand. Sadness perhaps?
"Zayeed Winner," the man said, a forced smile on his face. Quatre's eyebrows rose.
"No relation, I presume," he said, and a nervous chuckle escaped him. Zayeed frowned, but said nothing else. He released Quatre's hand and backed away, rejoining the group of assembled men.
"We wanted to greet you first, and ask for a chance to talk to you," Mayor Burns said. "We want to show you that our colony means no harm to Earth or OZ." There was a nervousness in his voice, something like fear. If they only cooperated with OZ, they had nothing to fear.
"Alright," Quatre conceded. Mayor Burns smiled and turned, leading the group of men towards the doors of the terminal. Two waiting cars idled outside the terminal. Quatre, Mayor Burns, and Zayeed climbed into the first car while the others slipped into the second.
Quatre couldn't help that his gaze continued to land on the man who shared his last name. Where had he seen Zayeed Winner before? Perhaps during Quatre's brief time of living on L4, before joining OZ?
Quatre tried to remember his life before OZ, but only wisps of memories came to him. A woman picking him up off the ground, a shadowed man laughing with him, and then… the Gundam. Sandrock. His intensive training to be a Gundam pilot for OZ. Quatre's brow furrowed. He didn't remember choosing to join OZ. He just always had been part of the organization. But he must have made the commitment at some point.
A pain behind his eyes formed, throbbing and stabbing at his brain. He cried out at the sudden pain and pressed his hands to either side of his face. He could feel his heartbeat beneath his fingertips.
"Quatre!"
He cried again in pain, the memories flooding into his brain like a dam bursting. Images, faces, and names washed through him crashing like waves. He looked up, his eyesight bleary, and his eyes met those of Zayeed.
"Father?"
A/N: I apologize for the hiatus on this story. But the words are flowing again, so look for more updates soon!
-SE