After Colony: Revelation

Verse IV

Their plan would continue. There wasn't enough information to suggest it was a trap, and since they really needed the software to protect their Gundams, it was a chance that they had to be willing to take. So, they got all dressed up for the party, though not in the garb of party attendees. Quatre wore a valet's uniform, Trowa in a waiter's suit he had stolen the previous day, and Wufei and Heero wore CSO uniforms—the lowest possible ranking outfits that they could wear without drawing any attention to themselves. Wufei already had to stay as inconspicuous as he could, as he could be recognized as a former prisoner, if he wasn't careful.

The evening fell and they broke through the lines of mobile dolls by passage of the White Horse—a certain set of Seal dolls standing guard were temporarily deactivated while the four drove in on a jeep. The pilots could see that they were deactivated—the dolls' heads blinked in a steady pattern, signaling standby. They walked only a few hundred yards before they reached the party. They were near the parking lot that was set up for those who did not use drivers, or who wanted their drivers to stay close by. "Damn," Heero muttered as Quatre broke off to take his post: procuring a suitable getaway car.

"What?" Wufei snapped, looking around for any signs of being spotted.

"Relena and Dorothy are here. Look, their pink and gold limos just drove away."

"She'll recognize you, obviously," Trowa responded, "and us. I'll have to stay away from both of them while I'm inside. While I don't think they'd be foolish enough to give away our cover, they could cause us trouble when we try to leave. There's a group of waiters heading to the back. I'm going in." He quickly veered off and joined the others in white serving jackets.

"Women make things so complicated," Wufei muttered as they continued to the other side of the great manor.

000

"Relena," started Dorothy, who tapped her finger against her cheek thoughtfully, "do you really think he'll be showing up here? With all of these soldiers?"

"It's Heero."

"Good point, he'll definitely be here." Dorothy gave a giggle and grabbed a glass of champagne from a nearby waiter.

Relena Peacecraft stood by idly in her floor length gown. The cunning blonde, who very often seemed to follow her around, was right next to her. She didn't want to be at the pointless party, but she couldn't refuse Prime Minister Adelphie if she wanted to maintain control of the Sanc Kingdom—not to mention the fact that she wanted to organize the release of her only brother. Zechs and Noin were arrested after aiding rebels and were now being held at one of CSO's lunar bases. "Oh, look, isn't that Trowa Barton?" Dorothy asked in almost a whisper, nudging the other girl in a particular waiter's direction. Relena pulled her arm away, scowling at Dorothy.

"Yes, I see," she snapped, "you aren't taking this seriously. There could be real trouble or danger, and we're right in the middle. We've got to stay weary of—"

"Relena! Dorothy! You made it!"

"Oh. Hello, Isabella," replied the Sanc Kindom's princess dully, "I haven't see you for a while. How have you been?" Interrupting her had been a girl with platinum blonde hair in an icy blue, rhinestone dress: a girl Relena had met with while she was still running a young ladies' academy in her kingdom. She didn't particularly like Isabella Vespasian Valentinian.

"It has been a while—probably since you kicked me out of school for changing my grades," Isabella responded and laughed.

"It was cheating," said the princess.

"Oh, yes, yes," Isabella said and waved her hand, "but I wasn't learning much anyhow. Your school wasn't fast paced enough for me. I think I forgot more than I actually learned."

"You're offending Miss Relena," Dorothy stepped in, glaring at the other blonde. Isabella continued to smile.

"She should get used to it. She'll be hearing much more from me in the time to come," she muttered and moved past Dorothy. Though she stood next to Relena, Isabella was staring off at some of the waiters. "How does it feel to be completely useless while a dictator takes over mankind?" She did not wait for an answer. Isabella walked away from the former Queen.

000

"There are Relena and Dorothy," Heero grunted from his third floor balcony position in the atrium of the large manor. The entryway looked more like the entrance to the Paris Opera House than anything. It was gaudy and detestful. Wufei nodded from his spot, partially hidden behind a red velvet curtain.

"And Isabella, wait, no, she's gone."

"That must be Adelphie's other daughter, his heir, Moira. The guy that Trowa mentioned is with her—he looks like the description he gave, at least," said Wing Zero's pilot.

"I don't recognize him. If I ever saw him, it was only in passing." Wufei also spotted the apparent couple—a woman with dark hair in a curled up-do and a black fitted gown, and on her arm (it wasn't hard to tell that she was in full command of whatever their relationship might have been) was a man who looked like a mafia bodyguard. He had a rose tattoo on his left hand, and Trowa had mentioned that he had clearly seen that same marking earlier in the day.

Suddenly, every soldier in the vicinity snapped to attention, and it only took a split second for the pilots to follow suit. Prime Minster Dorian Adelphie entered through the main doors. He was escorted in by a line of soldiers, the one leading standing out more than the others. It was Edan, Wufei noted, and she was actually in a uniform. It was a deep ruby color which contrasted with the regular, grey CSO uniforms greatly.

"Everyone," Adelphie called out, commanding the attention of everyone who had previously tried to ignore his entrance, "I bid you welcome! I know that many of you, my guests, have matters that you would like to discuss with either my daughter—" Moira and her escort walked to her father's side, "—or myself, but tonight is a night meant for socializing and relaxation. So, without further ado, let the celebrations begin!" Music was soon cued up from the ballroom, which had two sets of double doors and both were now fully open. The Adelphie's starting making their way from one country's leader to another.

These leaders, most of them anyways, were not happy with Adelphie. He had turned them more into governors who reported to him. They were not thrilled, nor eager, to speak with him when he came their way. However, to maintain their power, they had to play his game.

Soldiers dispersed to pick up extra posts and add security to the Prime Minster. The young woman in the red uniform was one of the few to stick with him as he made his rounds. "We just have to make it for the next three hours," Yuy commented and stood at ease with the other soldiers. It would be a nerve wracking three hours, but it wasn't as though this was their first infiltration mission.

000

"It's 23:30," Wufei said, sliding his phone from his pocket to answer a text from Trowa. "No suspicion has, as of yet, to arise. No extra activity to be seen that indicated anyone is expecting us."

"Post change has already started. As soon as two soldiers come to take the post next to us, we'll go to the tower post. If we leave now, the soldiers who have seen us here all night will be suspicious," replied Heero. They waited only another five minutes, until the change occurred, before they slipped off to the other side of the manor.

Trowa was gliding around through the ballroom, offering up champagne and catching bits of conversations when he was waved down by a soldier near Adelphie. He was lucky he had already sent his message to Wufei because he knew that once he approached the Prime Minister, eyes would be on him for some time. Immediately, he left his route to enter Adelphie's circle, which he didn't want to do in the least.

Vince DeBordaris—the CSO member who had tried to stop him earlier—was standing with the Prime Minster and both of his daughters. Trowa had no desire to get mixed up with him. He was an ex special-ops member, dishonorably discharged after killing numerous innocent people in what was to be a retrieval mission. It was suspected that it was a cover up and that he was actually working as a professional assassin for OZ. Now DeBordaris was in the CSO inner circle. Barton didn't need to delve any further to know that he did most of the Adelphie's dirty work. "Champagne, sir?"

"Ah, yes, thank you," the Prime Minster replied and smiled. He looked like a normal middle aged man who was enjoying himself—hardly like a cruel tyrant. "Moira? Vince?"

"I'll take some!" The blonde daughter said brightly and outstretched her hand to take a glass. Another hand shot out to snatch Isabella's wrist back. Trowa glanced over to see that Edan had stopped her. "Oh, fine. It's ridiculous that a grown woman can't have any champagne when celebrating."

"You're nineteen," Moira responded coolly and took a glass of the golden, bubbly liquid from Trowa, "you're not a grown woman."

"I'll be twenty in like a month!"

"Isabella," Adelphie sighed, apparently a little annoyed with his younger daughter, "you know that your age has nothing to do with why I don't let you drink."

"Yes, I know," she mumbled, almost in a pouting sort of way. "I won't try it again."

"Sure," the older sibling replied with a huff, "because you've never promised that before."

"Moira, leave your sister alone. Isabella, did you not mention to me that your software is set for a midnight update, tonight?" Dorian Adelphie stated, sipping his champagne. Trowa stood by silently, waiting as he should have to be properly dismissed. DeBordaris reached over and took a glass, looking over Trowa with a raised brow.

"You, you're David King, aren't you? The caterer employee I caught with a phone earlier."

Barton had only a few moments to ready himself for the coming questioning he was sure to receive. "Yes, sir, I am King, but I promise you, it was just an iPod. I left my phone with everyone else. You can check the logs, I'm sure you'll see that I checked it in and checked it back out."

"Vince," the eldest daughter of the Adelphie line groaned, "we're well protected. Relax, or I'm going off with that young Lieutenant who keeps staring at my ass." And, indeed, she was right. Trowa could spy a decorated, ranking soldier some distance away from them and behind Moira, continuously looking up and down her lovely, shaped figure. For her to have noticed with her back turned, well, the pilot knew that she had to be rather observant.

"Isabella," the Prime Minister interrupted the squabbling couple, "it's after eleven-thirty. Go to the tower. Do not return until you have finished with all of the updates." The blonde frowned, her lips pursed and her brows furrowed.

"But—father—" she said, almost whining.

"You're becoming annoying," he responded, "the party will still be going on when you return."

"We'll see about that," muttered Isabella, who turned to stomp away. Adelphie placed his now-empty champagne glass on Trowa's tray. Taking a new glass, he put it to his temple. He closed his eyes, giving him the appearance that perhaps a headache was coming on.

"Edan, go with her. Keep her safe," he sighed and nodded to dismiss both the soldier in red and the waiter in white. As much as he would have liked to text Wufei or Heero about the two approaching women, Trowa could not risk the suspicion. He took his time getting a new tray of drinks, making an effort to stay as close to the kitchen doors as he could. He would have to meet Quatre out back when they were ready to make their escape, so it was best to stay relatively close by.

000

"I'm going to go up in case it's a trap. You've already been captive of CSO, you don't need to be going back," Heero said as they approached the heavily secured door that led to the Southern Tower. The previous set of guards left and Heero and Wufei took over. They cut off the two soldiers who were meant to take the shift, knocked them out, and left them tied up in a women's restroom that would surely go unused.

After all the soldiers had reached their new posts, and the chances of someone noticing that only one guard was standing outside of the door had gone down, Yuy opened the door. Luckily, their contact had thought to include the three access codes necessary to unlock the metal door. It was disguised to be a wooded door to fit the stylish Victorian décor. When the light turned green above the electronic keypad, the door unlatched from within and Heero entered.

While Altron's pilot stood like a true soldier outside, the other scaled what had to have been a hundred stairs, in a circle, up to the room that was the Southern Tower. The room itself was almost two stories high at its tallest point—the point at which everything came together to make the cone-like tower roof. It was crammed with the latest technology and customized machines. There was a cupboard filled with color coded portable hard drives, and dozens upon dozens flash drives with different colored strings. They were dangling down on a few hooks above a particular table that was set up to be someone's workstation.

Well what was he expecting, really? For the software he needed to be sitting on a pedestal with a mysterious light glowing form the heavens and a sign pointing to it that said 'For the Gundam Pilots!'? No. Apparently he would actually have to search for it.

000

"I can't believe everything has gone so smoothly," Isabella sighed and then smiled. Her companion was silent, as always. "Just a little bit longer and then everything will be really exciting." The two young women continued down the hallways and as they passed, all soldiers stood at attention—some even saluting. However, as they reached the corridor that took them to the tower, they both stopped.

Chang Wufei was getting trouble from a CSO solider who had realized that he was actually an imposter. "Great," Wufei muttered as the soldier motioned to another patrolling soldier nearby. The two started to reach for their weapons when a pair of women came into view—one being the silent warrior that had already disgraced him once.

"Edan, go," Isabella said quietly. The brunette nodded and stalked forward, coming up on the two CSO soldiers. They turned to her and saluted.

"Ma'am," the first addressed, "I believe this is a Gundam pilot that we had previously held captive at the Main Base in the L3 region. Would you like us to inform the Prime Minster and escort him to the temporary holding cell?" They wanted to have their golden moment.

Edan did not respond with words, but instead, after looking between the two, she grabbed the first soldier, pulled him down as she kneed him in the stomach. While he wrapped his arms around himself, dropping his gun, she brought her arm down on him and knocked him unconscious. The second was slightly in shock and did not know what to do when the young woman turned on him. He was down within moments, and Wufei was left in confusion—but not before he grabbed one of the discarded weapons, aiming at her. She just stared at him. Isabella came up behind her friend and looked around thoughtfully.

"Edan, you should probably drag the bodies and set them behind one of the larger window curtains," the blonde suggested, "now, Mr. Chang, if you will, please lower the gun. We are not your enemies. I need to go up and meet with Mr. Yuy, I believe. I'm sure he's going through all of my stuff, eagerly searching out your new software."

"You're our contact?" He responded, his eyes narrowing. He completely ignored the silent woman as she hid the unconscious bodies of the soldiers.

"It had to have crossed your mind at least once. We'll have more time to talk later, trust me," said Isabella. She entered the code into the keypad, opened the door, and turned back to Edan, all while Wufei continued to point his gun at her. "Wait here. When I return with Yuy, cover our exit." The brunette nodded and took the empty spot near the door.

The Adelphie girl, with her long blonde hair pulled up in ringlets and her icy blue dress, pulled off her heels and started up the stairs. There was no elevator—this was her father's way of ensuring that she stayed in shape, or so she supposed. She didn't want to ruin her dress, so Isabella took her time going up.

Wufei stood as far away from the red-coated woman as he could without looking suspicious. She did not move an inch. A few soldiers, some even of relatively high rank based upon their merit medals pinned to their jackets, passed by and saluted to her. She nodded appropriately, and they left. A few may have been unsure about the Gundam pilot, but because of the woman to his right, no one was willing to question him.

000

Heero pulled a gun from its holder at his side and quickly aimed. Someone had just entered the second tower door, catching him off guard since Wufei was supposed to be guarding the lower door. Had something happened? Had he been caught and figured out to be an imposter? "…You're Isabella."

The blonde walked in, disregarding the weapon that was pointed at her, just as she had done when Wufei had aimed at her. "If you remember me, then why are you still aiming at me? This is the second time you've drawn your gun on me, you know, and I don't think that's fair, since I've helped you so much," she said, her voice showing her annoyance after he did not lower the cold, metal weapon. Crossing the room, she went right to the laptop that seemed to be the focal point of the room, unplugged it, and put it in a canvas bag that was under the desk. Isabella pulled out the chair, sat down on it, and tossed her heels beneath the desk. There was a pair of grey tennis shoes waiting for her.

"Trowa believes you are our contact," Heero said, indirectly asking if she was, in fact, their contact after all. He was still pointing his gun at the back of her head.

"What do you think?" She pressed a button on a nearby monitor, letting the pilot see the same revolving white horse that he had seen on a few other occasions. He lowered his weapon. "I'm not surprise Barton guessed it was me. Edan saw him taking the pictures of my tower. She wanted to try to step in and stop Vince from hassling him, but obviously couldn't. So she went ahead and got me instead. Anyhow, we've got to get going. The fireworks will be starting soon, and everyone will be heading out to the veranda to watch. That will be the best time to escape."

"You think you're coming with us?" Heero asked, brows furrowed. "No, you can't. It will draw too much attention. Just give me the software."

"I can't."

"Why not?"

"Well," Isabella sighed, standing to make sure her shoes were comfortable with her stockings, "I haven't developed it yet. You think I would just give something like that away? Really? Uh-uh, you have to rescue me from my father's clutches. Then I will personally develop and install state of the art software for each one of your suits. CSO won't be able to do anything without me, so their old programs will be obsolete against you. You'll be free to fight fair."

"No," the pilot grunted.

"You have no choice."

Heero stood still for a few minutes, staring the woman down. She stood… almost… as still. Her hand was on her hip, occasionally shifting back and forth. Well, he supposed he could always get rid of her later, if need be. "…Fine."

"I knew you'd see it my way." The blonde grabbed her colorful flash drive set, two hard drives, some cords that had previously been under heavy lockage, and a set of discs. She placed her messenger bag on her shoulder and looked around once more. "Right—shall I lead the way?" The two of them went to the door and she looked around for one last time before shutting out the light. Heero shut the door behind both of them. When they finally reached the bottom, Wufei was not at all happy to hear the major change in plans. With three sets of eyes glaring at him, he crossed his arms and silently thought horrible things about all of them. They had only walked a few yards away when Isabella stopped and turned around to the other woman.

"Edan, you've got to stay here and make sure we get away safely," the blonde explained as if talking to a small child. The other woman frowned and opened her mouth as if she wanted to say something, but then shut it and nodded, her face wiping of all temporary emotion. "Do you understand? You are to protect me, like my father said, so you'll have to go to the Red Horse because they're going to know that I've sabotaged the system in about ten minutes. Go. Now." The brunette slinked away without further instruction.

"What did you do to the systems?" Wufei asked as they started walking again, now at a much brisker pace. "And what is wrong with her? She's like a—"

"—mindless zombie? I know," finished Isabella. "She can no longer speak. She must follow orders. That's what you get when my father gets his hooks into you. Now isn't the time to talk about that. I've sent a worm into the system so it will send everything haywire at approximately 12:15, when the systems restart from supposed updates. This whole house is configured to the same system, so it's going to be complete chaos and everyone is going to get stuck outside. Then the sprinklers are going to kick on at full force and everyone will rush to their cars to keep their expensive dresses and tuxes from getting soaked. When we try to pull away, they'll be increasing security. We'll probably have to crash right through the entrance checkpoint with the car that Quatre procures, and Edan will handle the suits that try to stop us. They'll be so distracted by her that we'll get away unnoticed." She smiled, quite satisfied with herself, in a devious sort of way.

"You've thought this all out," Heero said as they made their way through back corridors that she led them into. They needed to reach Trowa at the kitchens, "I didn't understand at first why would couldn't take the jeep we came here in, but you knew we'd be spotted trying to get back to it, didn't you?"

"Yes." She stopped them so that they could avoid some passing officers, then they continued off. Fiddling in her bag, she pulled out a phone, looked at the time—12:10—and then tossed the phone in a nearby plant. She couldn't take it with her since it had a GPS locator within it, she knew. They waved down Trowa, who was not entirely surprised to see Isabella with the group. They hurried through the kitchens, towards the back entrance. All were relieved to see their blonde companion pilot leaning casually against a sleek black Jaguar that belonged to a particularly annoying General. Underneath of it, a hand stuck out limply. Barton raised a brow at Quatre, who shrugged.

"He was giving me some problems so I just knocked him out. Aren't you Miss Valentinian?"

"Oh, just call me Isabella," she giggled in response, and the blonde male smiled in return. He opened the back door for her, deducing from her bag and shoes that she was coming with them, and offered his hand like a true gentleman. She took it and slid in, he after her. Trowa abruptly followed in after both of them. Wufei dragged the unconscious soldier out from beneath the car, so that he would not be harmed when they pulled away, and Heero went to the driver's seat. He didn't even reach the door before all of the lights went out in the house simultaneous, and the fireworks started. The house doors slammed shut. They were all set up to go into lock down mode after a power outage—they were more like vault doors than actual doors.

Though they could not see from their position, the group of five could hear screaming over the fireworks. One by one, the sprinklers kicked on everywhere, and the alert was sounded. Mobile Dolls and a select few piloted suits roared to life from their forest positions to guard the premises. Just as Isabella had predicted, drivers rushed to their cars to pick up the wealthy persons whom employed them, while the pilots worked on blending in with the rest of the moving cars. It was a difficult task, maneuvering through the sudden traffic, but Heero somehow managed.

"Put on station 87.9," Isabella leaned forward and demanded.

"No," Wufei snapped, "this is not the time to be worried about music."

"Oh, just do it!"

"No."

"Wufei, if you don't, I will," Heero butted in with his monotone voice, "and that's probably not a good idea while I'm driving." Everyone in the back agreed. Muttering to himself about stupid women, the Chinese young man complied. At first, there was only static. Isabella pulled out her iPod though and soon sound could be heard. It wasn't music, but CSO's communication line.

[White Horse subject, Code name Plague, has gone missing, as well as Red Horse subject, War.] Adelphie's voice spoke. [Check all vehicles. Do not let them escape.] He was eerily calm about the situation.

"You told Edan to go to her Red Horse," Heero stated.

"Mmm, yes."

"Is that a mobile suit? Is she a pilot?"

"Yes, new model Gundams," Isabella responded. "You've seen it with mine. The White and Red Horses. Mine is controlled differently than yours. Hers is closer to the original Gundam models. She has dual blades."

"That was her?" Wufei grumbled, sinking lower in his seat, arms still crossed with a frown planted firmly on his face. He was disliking that woman more and more.

"What is the difference between the White Horse and Plague. They said both," Quatre asked, completely ignoring Wufei.

"I am Plague, the actual Gundam is White Horse. The names come from—"

"The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse," Quatre replied, nodding eagerly. "Yes, I know of them. But you are only two of them. What about the others?"

"Explanations later," said Heero, "we're forcing our way through. Hold on." He hit the gas as soon as he found an opening and slipped past all of the other cars. He ignored the soldiers that tried to stop them. They broke through the checkpoint, forcing the closed gates open. Gun fire started up, but, thankfully for the General whom they stole the car from, it was reinforced. They were safe.

[Sir! A black Jaguar just broke through our gates. It must be them!]

[All suits, pursue but do not, I repeat, do not destroy!]

[Copy, Lamb. Will pursue and retrieve.]

[Sir! Red Horse has just risen from her mountainside hanger. Has she been sent out to aid in the pursuit?]

[Negative,] Adelphie's voice said, [she has receivedno orders from base.]

[Then she's acting on her own! Everyone, be warned that Red Horse's motives are henceforth undetermined. Let's hope she's here to help…]

[Soldier! You're speaking out of line! She cannot be acting without orders! It's impossible.] His cool voice momentarily broken because of the rogue CSO Gundam pilot.

"What's going on, Miss Isabella?" Quatre asked, and she shook her head.

"No need to call me 'Miss,'" she answered firmly. "My father's very angry that Edan, while she does follow his orders, follows mine first. She prioritizes her objectives by what I tell her. They're trying to get her to stand down, but she's doing what I told her to, and covering our exit. See?" Pointing out of her window, a mobile doll that started to close in on them was destroyed by a single slash of the Red Horse's blade. "Sadly, they will probably pull an emergency shutdown, and she'll go into a temporary coma until she recovers from the power surge. I feel terrible that I'm putting her through this, but there just is no other option."

"You sound like you're talking about a computer and not a person," Trowa commented, watching as anything that came close to their escape vehicle was cut down.

"Yes, well, there isn't much of a person left to her."

"Hn." Heero veered off to the right and hit the gas, hoping to get away from the manor and to civilization as quick as possible. Their travel plans would have to be adjusted immediately, if they were taking an extra body with them.

000

Author's Note: once I hit six chapters, the updates will slow down. Hopefully there will be a few people interested so that I will stay motivated!

A little caveat I should throw out there… This story was started in early 2008. Almost seven years ago. My writing has… matured over the years. While I have had Beta readers go through some of the chapters, and I have tried to go back and correct some of the earlier stuff as well, readers are likely to notice a shift starting at about chapter seven. I hope you can hold out until then!

An anonymous reviewer mentioned the other women in the gundam realm. I agree that there are strong women—though it is mostly restricted to Noin, Sally, and Une. Dorothy and Hilde are debatable. Relena is hardly a favorite of mine, though there will be no Relena bashing in this. Most of these women will make an appearance in this story, but as this chapter has shown, at least one of them is currently in prison. As of Endless Waltz, Une took more of a desk job, so she isn't as involved with the rebellion—directly at least.

As far as one of the original characters seeming to be 'too perfect'… if something seems too good to be true, it's likely just that. I cannot divulge too much more from there! But I will say that those who I have had preread this for me have all come to the same consensus: they extremely dislike one of the women, as they should, and they come to enjoy the other. So… I hope you'll give them a chance!

As of today, I have surpassed 100k words for this fic, and 220 pages, and I probably have at least 50 more pages to go…

Thanks for reading! I love getting your opinions, even if it is Isabella bashing!