After Colony: Revelation

Verse VII

"I did not alert Sally to our involvement," Heero said as he looked at a virtual layout of their battlefield. The pilots, as well as a few of the Maganac ranking soldiers, stood in a large conference room with the layout on a touch-sensitive table. "The more people who know about us, the greater the risk of being found out. I'm sure CSO and Adelphie are already aware of the rebel troops preparing for attack. However, we may be able to catch them off guard with our sudden surge. At least, that's the plan." There were nods from around the room; clearly everyone agreed with this plan of attack. Wufei did not, but they all ignored his disapproving looks and occasional snide comment.

"Also," Quatre took Heero's brief pause as an opportunity to speak up, "we've been informed that, should one of the new model Gundams be sighted, and surely at least the red one will be in the field, you're advised to steer clear. Wait for one of us to arrive. Thankfully, it focuses on close range attacks, so it should be easy enough to avoid."

"He's right. Do not attempt to engage in one-on-one combat with Red Horse. Normal suit capabilities will not be enough to do severe damage, and you will only be heading for your own death. Understand?" Wing Zero's pilot said. "Prepare for battle. We leave at 1800." Their meeting concluded.

"You're concerned about something," Trowa murmured as the other soldiers cleared the room. "It's surprisingly not hard to tell."

"Just wondering how many of those men will try to be a hero and attack the red Gundam," Heero replied, shutting down the touch screen. Wufei quickly looked away, unwilling to participate in that particular conversation. "She'll have to be a priority. We can't let her take so many lives."

000

"Sally!" A soldier called out, via com link to his commander, "we've underestimated the number of CSO troops. We're going to be almost immediately overwhelmed!"

They couldn't have been in battle for much more than a half hour, already the rebel troops were starting to sweat from being in such a tight situation. "No," Po replied, "no, we didn't. They added more. They knew we were coming." She had suspected for some time that there was a rat within their group. This could only prove it. Using her laser gun, Sally, in her Aries suit, shot down two dolls by taking out their heads and control system. There were just too many. Waves and waves of CSO dolls seemed to come from just everywhere.

Just as she thought that it couldn't get worse, a high pitched, rapid beeping sound signaled the income of more targets. She turned around quickly, aiming at who she thought to be more enemy help.

"Sally!" A visual link appeared on her screen, showing Quatre's angelic face, "good to see that you've used our new programs well—"

"You mean my programs," the light, female voice butted in.

"Woman!" Wufei's com window also appeared on her screens, "stop hacking into our communication lines! Nice to see you, Po." The young man had worked with her for a short period of time as a Preventer, until they were disbanded by CSO.

"Uh, you too, Wufei," replied a confused Sally, "and who was that?"

"Just some annoying—"

"Me!" Isabella forced herself into Sally's system with an outside, distant communication link. "I was the one who developed all of the new system protection. They aren't going to take credit for my work." The rebel woman was slightly taken aback by the sudden overflow of windows and faces staring at her.

"Wait, aren't you one of Adelphie's daughters? I've heard about you..."

"Actually, funny story about that…"

"Isabella," Heero's com now popped up, "get off the visual line and stop interrupting. You're here to help stop the dolls and guide us through the base. Do your job." The blonde young woman scowled, messed with her head piece and her image disappeared. "Sally, we'll help take out the dolls. Let us handle the break in. Isabella will walk us through while she's tapped into the camera systems to get us to the holding cells and release the prisoners. Can you secure the ships to get the POW's out on?"

"Will do," she replied with a smile, "it will be nice, working with professionals and all."

The five Gundam pilots entered into the battle with the Maganac crops, the field now evened out with a one-to-five ratio for all rebel soldiers. The odds were looking much better. "Okay, listen up," Isabella's voice sounded throughout the Gundams, both Sally and Rashid's mobile suits, and a few other key rebel members' suits, "CSO is preparing to send out the Red Horse through the number three gate. If you wait there, you should be able to force yourself in. Should you get in, you'll have to abandon your suits. I will lock down the area to keep more soldiers from coming in while you let your suits sit. It's the best plan of action I can see right now."

"Roger that," Heero replied and used his thrusters to push him past the other mobile dolls and suits. Sally and Quatre covered him, shooting down enemies that would have tried to get in his way. Trowa and Wufei also neared the gate that they were to be hijacking. For a few moments, they were practically swarmed by the dolls, but Altron's double ended trident sliced through a set of enemies, cleaving into the next closest one. It gave Heavy Arms enough room to open fire. The dolls started to disperse.

They believed it was because of their own onslaught at first, but quickly found that it was not the case. The gate was opening.

CSO cleared the way for one of its favored weapons. Wufei looked up on his monitor to see the Red Horse standing by, waiting for the doors to be fully opened so that she could enter the field. The coloring shined underneath the florescent lights of Lunar Base, once again reminding him, and all others, of the resemblance to Treize's Epyon. After taking a step forward, the enemy Gundam launched up, going after the first rebel in her sights—that rebel being Trowa.

His firepower momentarily kept her at a distance, but that was about it. It was not meant to stand up against Gundanium alloy, as many of their weapons were not. Heero's beam cannon could, of course, and that was the extent of useful weapons. Unless they could cut off power to the central control unit, which was most likely the head like the rest of their suits, it was going to be a very physical battle. "Heero, go on ahead, I'll keep her busy," Trowa called out over the com through slightly gritted teeth. Wing Zero went through the gate before they could close it.

Wufei cut down more Dolls, watching the Red Horse draw a sword from her back and take a swing. Trowa would have been hit, had Wufei not pushed him out of the way to block with his thermal weapon. "Trowa," he snapped, "I will handle her. Your suit is not ideal for hand-to-hand combat with hers. I also have already had experience against this pilot, more so than you, at the very least." Truthfully, Heavy Arms's pilot also agreed. Quatre's suit used similar heat blades, and he knew how his suit faired in those sorts of battles. He did not wait to shoot off after Wing Zero.

"Hey!" Duo's voice rang out, "don't take all the fun! Po and I are coming!" Heavy Arms landed in the open gate and stood in between the panels threatening to close them out. He wouldn't let it shut before Deathscythe and Po's Aries were within the hanger. Heero was within, already causing immense chaos to the guards. They tried to get to mobile suits, but Heero crushed the controls of the other giant robots. The last two of the rebels entered into the spacious facility, allowing the gates to slam shut. The chamber pressurized, oxygen filled the room, and the pilots left their cockpits.

"I'll boot up the shuttles," Sally said, "but what if Zechs or Noin are unable to pilot them? I have to get back to the battle."

"Don't worry," replied Duo, pulling out a disk from his jacket pocket, "we've got that covered. Just load this into the secondary control system, and the autopilot will kick in like never before." He handed it over with a laugh.

"Autopilot? On the battle field? Are you insane?" Sally asked in bewilderment.

"Isabella can remote pilot them from her safe position on the satellite, almost as well as any of us could do. Don't worry." The American waved and took off running with the other pilots.

Po blinked, slightly lost in her confusion as to how quickly everything was unfolding. Well, what should she have expected?

The pilots knocked out a few guards and took control of their weapons. They had to make their way towards the center of the base, through gunfire and tear gas. "We can't get through!" Duo shouted, unloading a clip through the chemical filled smoke, and coughing into his shoulder.

"Here," Trowa called out, "there's a door here, and I think it's a conference room. I see another door, and it may lead to another hallway."

"And if not?" Wing Zero's pilot asked.

"Then I guess we'll be finding some quick alternative." Another canister of tear gas was thrown their way. Duo covered his mouth and kicked it roughly, like a soccer ball into a goal. Without wasting more time, they went into the conference room. There was a surprise waiting for them. "I swear, she wasn't here a minute ago," Trowa said, his monotone voice revealing his bafflement. Sitting in a chair at one of the elegantly carved tables was a dark haired woman in a dress suit. She was looking down at nothing, and a pen wrote on the desk. She looked up at the guns pointed at her.

"It would be useless to shoot me," she commented with a sigh, placing the pen down. It disappeared. Her 'voice' seemed to be coming from a speaker hooked up for surround sound. Duo stepped forward and reached his hand out. It went right through her the woman. "My father has placed me as head of research and development. This is simply one of my early hologram designs. I would have used a more sophisticated version, but how could I know which room you would possibly stumble into?"

"You're Moira," Heero stated, lowering his gun and scanning the room for possible dangers. There didn't seem to be any hidden weapons or explosives, or anything of the sort. There was just a projector system at work, creating a realistic image of Adelphie's eldest daughter.

"Why, yes, Heero Yuy, I am. Now," she said and sat back slightly, "I'm about to take a page from my sister's book and aid you. Before you ask, my answer is simply that I have my reasons. However, I have no intention of having you whisk me away as my saviors. The door to my left is unlocked. Go through that corridor. It is used as my father's personal entrance. It will take you through towards the eastern wing. Take a right, move about three hundred yards, and then go left. You will have to take out some guards, but I assume that won't be a problem for you, now that you know they are there. A hand print and code are required to open the doors leading to the prisoner wing. I'm assuming that my sister already programmed in one of your prints?"

The pilots looked at one another but did not answer.

"Ah, good, she has. What you don't know is that my father's technicians changed the code. Whenever you enter Isabella's bypass code, it will let you in, but lock behind you and start to cut off oxygen to the prisoners. So, I suggest you don't use her code," said the electronic sounding Moira.

"So you expect us to trust you?" Heero asked, quite seriously, of course.

A dark smile crossed the young woman's beautiful features. "Mr. Barton," she called out, "when you invaded my father's home, you were caught by Vince DeBordaris, if you recall. He checked out your name, David King, to find that your forms had been faked. Most would not know this, but he used a skill similar to that of my half-sister to hook up to the system. The application was different. Now, if you'll also recall, he told you at the party that he checked you out, but made no motion to expose you. That is because he works for me first and my father second, much like Edan does for Isabella. I told him to ignore what he found. It is because of me, therefore, that you were able to retrieve that immature girl and flee with her."

"Because you have your reasons?" Duo snorted in utter disbelief.

She folded her hands neatly. "Quite. This is for my own merit. 724538. That is the access code for the next hour and…" she paused to look off to the side at something that they could not see, "thirteen minutes. Do get a move on it." The hologram image flickered and then shut off, leaving the three pilots with a decision.

"I hate relying on these shady women," muttered the American, who put his palm to his forehead.

"Wufei would agree with you," replied Trowa.

"Do we go back out to the soldiers who know we're here, or do we walk into what could very well be a trap?" Wing Zero's pilot put his head to the secured door, listening to the voices of soldiers in the hallway. There was a loud bag on the door, causing him to back up, immediately pointing the gun at the door. Two more bangs. The three pilots went for the door Adelphie's eldest had mentioned.

Duo kicked it open, and Trowa cleared the corridor, entering first. There were yellow lights blinking along the bottom of the hallway in sync with the emergency single sounding. "Probably needs a key to turn on the main lights if this is supposed to be used just by Adelphie." The other pilots agreed. They cautiously trekked down through the dimly lit area until they reached the end of the lights. Since Trowa was in the lead, he felt around for the door, and then shoved it open. Hero checked first this time, only to find it desolate.

"They probably expected to cut us off before here," Duo offered.

"Or it's a trap," replied Heero. They turned right anyhow, running down the hallway. Their boots thumped with each of their long strides. They only had to knock out a set of CSO soldiers along the way, until they reached the turn off to the prisoner wing. They turned left without hesitation shooting the four dark uniformed soldiers. They were heavily armed. It was easier for them to overcome them with Moira's warning. Heero walked past the fallen bodies and spotted the scan pad for a handprint. Firmly pressing his hand in the center, a green light blinked, telling him then to input a password.

"724538," Trowa said, "if you want to go by Moira's word."

They paused for a moment. Heero pressed the six digit password rather than Isabella's ten digit. They held their breath while waiting for the door to open. It did, and as far as they could tell, the air was still running fine. There were a total of six cells—one with Noin, one with Zechs, and the other four were larger cells filled with almost twenty captives a piece. It would be just enough for two escape shuttles. Wing Zero's pilot went back and forth, opening doors for Duo and Trowa to help out the captives. They reached the female pilot, who looked like she was suffering from extreme vitamin D deficiency. Zechs had bruises all of his body, leading them to believe that the guards had probably beaten him numerous times. They had to carefully pull him out and lean him against Trowa. Noin hugged him before they started moving.

"We haven't actually seen each other in months. I haven't left my cell in months," she muttered bitterly. Out they went, the doors easily opening for them. Moira was right, or at least she wasn't wrong. What if Isabella's code had really locked them in? Had she known and done it on purpose? Was she untrustworthy? It had not been the first time that thought had crossed their minds.

000

Wufei's thermal weapon clashed with one of Red Horse's swords, then again, and again. She drew her second sword. He continued to clash with her, trying to lure her away from the battle so that she could not attack any of the rebel suits. He would protect those who needed protected. They continued to battle, her attention wandering every so often to those around them. Their battle was more intense and longer than their last suit confrontation. She was just as proficient with her dual blades in Red Horse as she was out of it. "Come on!" Wufei shouted, "pay attention! It's not worth it if you aren't giving it your all!" He raised his left arm and sent his dragon rocketing into her, pushing her backwards. With a swipe of his trident, he left two scars across the door of the cockpit. It angered her enough for her to push forward, diving into his suit and causing him to get shaken around roughly.

000

"Red Horse," Adelphie appeared on the left most monitor of Edan's cockpit screens. He was visibly angry, and the soldiers behind him appeared tense. "Stop fooling around with that Gundam and get to the resource satellite they're based off of. Blow it up with the charges as directed and only then return to the battle. Understood? The silent young woman gave one simple nod and their link was disconnected. When Altron withdrew enough for him to try to make a strike with his dragon-like arm attachment, Red Horse jetted back quickly, making a break from him. Whenever she set off, he followed, but had little chance of catching her. She maneuvered through with the intent of putting as many other dolls and suits between them. Since all of the Maganac and now other rebels had received the command to steer clear of the red Gundam, no one tried to stop her. All of CSO's dolls, however, attacked Altron every chance they had.

"Wufei, what's going on?" Quatre's voice could be heard over their communication line, much to Wufei's dismay.

He frowned. "She has some sort of plan, I'm sure of it," the Chinese male answered, "she's just fled from our battle and she's not even trying to attack any other rebels." He fought off two of the metallic, black dolls that tried to attack him, throwing one of the fallen into the side of another that was too preoccupied with two suits that were attacking it.

"I'll clear a path for you—you have to try to stop her. My sickles won't be able to defend against swords very well," replied Sandrock's pilot. He started cutting through as many dolls as he could, as did many of the Maganac who had also received the transmission. They were clearing the way for Wufei, who, despite his disdain for help, took advantage of the opening and shot through. The Red Horse had really sped through, however, and she was some distance ahead, reaching the resource satellite in only about fifteen minutes. When Wufei arrived, she was already unloading charges that had been stored along the suit's back.

He angled himself at a specific position then jetted at his opponent, knocking her away from the satellite. Her swords were not drawn, and she made no motion to try to retrieve them. She made no motion to do… anything offensive at all. After Red Horse's balance was regained she dodged him and went back to the satellite, dropping yet another charge while Wufei attempted to catch her. He brought his thermal weapon down on her, but she threw her arm up, trying to keep it from hitting her. Slowly, it slid down, the green of the thermal laser nearing the metallic head of her Gundam. Edan retrieved another charge and made to attach it to the torso of Altron.

"Damn it!" Wufei backed up quickly, knowing that if the explosive was attached, he would have to try to tear it off before she detonated it. Once again, she escaped, dropping a total of two more charges. They would be enough to cause internal explosions and destroy the satellite. "Don't you know that the damned Adelphie woman is in there?!"

Of course, Edan could not hear him; they had no communication line established. Isabella, on the other hand, who had been trying to hack into CSO's lines, managed to get one up and running. Without her suit, her automatic shutdown to Red Horse was useless. Revolving White Horses appeared on all of CSO's monitors (officially confirming to Adelphie that his daughter was working with the rebels) and on Red Horse's monitors. Isabella knew that since Edan was plugged directly into her suit, she did not need to see the monitors to see—she could directly view the suit's outer cameras through the custom headpiece she wore, much like Isabella's.

"Edan, stop," the blonde said sternly as her mindlessly controlled friend withdrew the detonator for the charges. "Edan! Please stop! I'm in here! You'll kill me! I know you can fight this!" Red Horse was once again escaping the scene before Wufei could get hold of her… "Edan, NO!" Isabella shrieked, catching not only Wufei's attention, but Quatre's and Rashid's and anyone else who happened to be on that frequency. Red Horse turned around, ready to hit the switch. "Oh, God," Isabella whispered and squeezed her eyes shut, bracing herself for the consecutive explosions.

They did not come.

"Isabella," Wufei said, "she's dropped the detonator."

Within Red Horse, what they could not see was that at the last moment Edan released her hands from the controls and placed them to her head in pain. Following that, she yanked the connection from her suit into the implant, biting into her lip as one would have if he or she were trying not to scream. She jerked around, almost as though she were having a mini seizure. Gasping for air, Edan settled down, draped across her pilot's seat awkward and limp. Her dead looking eyes gazed straight ahead. Red Horse slowly floated through space, incapable of moving without its pilot.

Isabella, breathing deeply, opened her eyes and looked at the monitors. "Wufei, she's out," she said slowly, "if you can bring her to me, I can help her, and she can help us. Please?" The blonde was relatively glad that the Chinese male was the one near Edan. If any other pilot found her… they would kill her. But not Wufei—he would uphold justice. He shouted and ranted and raved. He didn't want to risk it; he wanted to get back to the battle. "Wufei, please."

"Damn it, woman!" Altron cautiously neared the metallic red suit. Isabella couldn't hear him mutter, "I'm going to regret this." When Red Horse made no motion to try to ward him off, he latched onto the other Gundam. "I'm bringing her in." Carefully maneuvering the two suits to the resource satellite, he waited until Isabella opened the loading dock to make his way inside.

"She can't move. You're going to have to dock, and then get her from the cockpit with the code I give you," the blonde stated over the communication link. "The more you argue with me, the longer it will take for you to get back to the battle." Wufei had been preparing to refuse the directions, but the scholar side of him told him to make the best use of his time. The gates shut, and enough gravity was in effect to keep the suits on the floor, but have his fragile human body glide through the air.

"718408." Isabella's voice echoed over the satellite's intercom.

"I don't see—"

"Press down on the panel that's about eight and a half by eight inches with your entire hand, and then remove it."

Wufei, grasping part of Red Horse, looked around the cockpit outside for the panel. He spotted it and pressed it, waiting for it to slide up. When it did, it revealed a keypad for him to input a six digit code. He did so and quickly pushed off of the Gundam to avoid getting hit by the opening of the cockpit doors. Grabbing the edge of the opening, he used it to swing himself to the entrance. He was slightly in awe as the sophisticated controls and spacious interior designed pilot's section. "She looks…dead." Although that wasn't exactly much worse from her usual appearance.

"She's not—she… can't be. Just bring her to me," said the disembodied voice of Isabella.

Wufei frowned and inched forward, first reaching out and then snatching Edan's wrist. Checking for a pulse, he did, in fact, find her to be alive after all. He unclasped the straps that secured her in place, disliking how close he was to the woman who had humiliated him in front of so many enemy soldiers, and pulled her out. She was like a rag doll in his arms. He carried her in front of him so that he supported her head and neck, guiding both of them down to the doors that led towards Isabella's station. Once inside the next corridor, the gravity was simulated to be a bit closer to Earth's, forcing him to walk. The young woman in his arms now had some weight to her.

"What do you want me to do with her, woman?" Wufei entered into the control chamber, eager to rid himself of the female.

"Here in this chair," replied Isabella. She adjusted one of the seats, leaning it back as far as it would go, and tapping it to direct him. He placed Edan down in the seat. "She's not supposed to disobey direct orders. This is what happens when she does, when she manages to fight it at all. You don't have to wait. If you want to go back to the battle, go. I can handle her now."

"I just don't trust you."

"Yes, I know that," Isabella snapped, moving around quickly to hook up different cords both to her computer and to Edan, "even though I've never given you a reason not to trust me. I've done everything I can do to help the rebels, short of walking up to my father and sister and opening fire! This is not some scheme to destroy you from the inside out. Edan's practically the only friend I ever had growing up, and it was because both of us went through neuro enhancement. I just want to help someone who has always been there for me—she's closer to my sister than my actual sister is. She's a better parent to me than my father ever has been. Can't you understand?"

Wufei did not respond. He looked at the pathetic looking young woman who lay as still as a corpse on the now reclining seat, then he turned away with a simple hmph. He would rejoin the battle.

Isabella exhaled to try to calm down, knowing that it was not wise for her to be delving around in Edan's mind while angry. She sat down at the seat where her laptop was set up in a work station and then plugged into the system herself. Her skilled hands went to work, reversing commands and disabling parts of the chips that forced Edan to focus on achieving her task. It was hard work—so much of the poor young woman's mind was broken up with tiny chips that she had to rework much of the computerized thought processes so that Edan's mind wouldn't just… stop working.

By the time she finished, the battle near CSO's Lunar Base seemed to start to come to a close.

Noin was sitting in the pilot's seat of the second shuttle, on standby, just in case Isabella's software for her remote piloting failed. The former lieutenant did not like leaving their safety to such technological means, but was too weak to even consider being the primary pilot. The Gundam pilots were booting up their systems and the gates were being reopened by Isabella. "Lieutenant Noin, I'll be your pilot today," her voice was overly cheerful for the situation, reminding Noin very much of Duo, "so just sit back and try to relax."

Yeah. Relax. That was basically impossible.

Sally was in the lead, the three Gundams preparing to guard her and Noin.

CSO's dolls immediately turned their attention on the captives. Apparently, Adelphie had decided that he'd rather have the shuttles shot down than let them escape. Trowa was forced to break away first, staying behind to fight off a group of dolls that was trying to sneak up on them. Duo had to separate next, two that had run out of energy shots came at him from two sides, trying to cause an explosion that would cause damage to the Gundam. Heero was having a hard time keeping all of the enemies away from the front.

"Heero, I see an opening, I'm going to make a break for it—" Sally shouted, but did not wait for an answer. Shuttle two followed into an area now filled with remnants of dolls and mobile suits, and was eerily empty of 'live' attackers. They were just outside of the battlefield, so Sally did not particularly find it unusual for a doll cemetery to form. It often happened in a battle that involved the Gundams. Heero was still attempting to cover the shuttles as best as he could, but it was difficult for Isabella, who was not able to see everything in the same way as Po.

Noin sat tensely, watching the large parts narrowly avoid their shuttle. "Hey," said Noin, hoping Isabella could hear her, "hey, you've got to fall back some. We aren't going to be able to avoid that half doll coming from the upper left." Silence. She did not get a response. "Hey! Can't you hear me?!"

"We're fine, don't worry," responded Isabella, her voice static-y through the link.

"You're going to get us killed!" Noin sat up and tried to take control of the shuttle. None of the commands responded to her. "Traitor! Whoever you are, you're doing this on purpose, aren't you? You want us dead, just like Adelphie!"

"You are incorrect; I'm not anything like my father." The blonde's voice was icy, clearly aggravated with Noin. The torso of a doll closed in on them, en route to a collision. The former lieutenant continued to frantically try to take control and save them. Her eyes widened and…

And the doll was sliced in half, sending the one half below the shuttle and the other above. The metallic Red Gundam was seen by Noin. "There's an enemy here!"

"She just saved your asses," replied the voice over the link. "Red Horse is going into battle on our side now—pretty convenient since the mass CSO doll system has her in as an ally, and keeps her from being targeted."

Noin watched as the one time enemy Gundam went above their shuttle and to the nearest doll following behind them.

000

"Duo, behind you!" Heavy Arms spotted the Red Horse nearing Deathscythe.

Duo turned around, only to see what they thought to be an enemy cut down two CSO suits with her dual swords. "I don't understand."

"That woman must have successfully released Red Horse's pilot from CSO's control," Wufei stated through gritted teeth. He was a bit preoccupied with his own struggle. The Gundams were trying to handle as many dolls as they could so that they could keep the rebel-to-doll ratio in their favor. It was tiring.

"Is that why you took Red Horse to the satellite, Wufei?" Quatre asked, smiling a bit to himself. "Strange to think that you, out of all of us, were the one to have enough compassion to take that risk and try to save her, rather than simply eliminating the problem." Sandrock neared Lunar Base, deciding to aid some of his Maganac men. They were having some issues with the mass amounts of dolls.

"This is not the time to discuss the matter!" shouted Wufei, who added at the end, "it was only justice…"

Red Horse continued making her way through the field, aiding whoever seemed to need it. Eventually, she found her final position near Wufei. The two were swarmed, though she was remaining un-attacked. Wufei did not particularly like the fact that the woman had chosen to stop by him, but there wasn't much he could do about it anyhow.

000

"Damn it!" Adelphie shouted and threw his now empty coffee mug, shattering it into a million little pieces. "Why hasn't Red Horse blown up the satellite?! Why is she attacking our troops?!" The Prime Minister was on the bridge, pacing back and forth. He did not like the turn in events.

"We are unsure, sir," said the scientist-soldier who had taken over the input of Edan's commands after Isabella had vanished.

"Sir, bad news," another solider spoke up.

"Bad news?" Adelphie said, "two of my most expensive and important projects have gone rogue. How much worse can it possibly get?"

"Gate four is opening, sir. None of us granted permission." What that meant was that Isabella was remote accessing their systems and sending her Gundam to her aid. Everything was going to hell.

No matter how hard CSO soldiers tried, they were going to fail—Isabella had successfully landed her shuttle, and was easily moving White Horse to the resource satellite. Not only would there be five rebel Gundams, but the two CSO Gundams would also be joining with them.

"Send orders to boot up the main beam cannon. We'll just wipe out the majority of the rebel troops, even if we have to sacrifice some of our own force," Adelphie demanded. He was avoiding the use of the powerful weapon to keep the numbers of dolls filled, but not it seemed as though he had little choice if he wanted to deal any real amount of damage.

"Yes, sir."

000

"I'm going back out," Sally Po stated, "there are wounded out there. I've got to go get them."

"It's too risky," Isabella shouted over the satellite's intercom. "You won't be able to attack if you're carrying people back!" The soldier disregarded the hacker's warning and activated another spare mobile suit. She wasted no time in leaving through the open hatch.

Po burst as far as she felt comfortable, passing many in need of rescue, then picking up a handful (quite literally) and returning to the satellite. After a quick drop off, she returned to the battlefield.

Edan focused her attacks on the masses that swarmed Altron (he had worked his way up relatively close to Lunar Base, so he was seen as one of the most immediate threats). An alert came up on one of her screens, since she was still technically hooked up into CSO's system, telling her that the beam cannons were being prepped. She reached out, pressed a few buttons, and linked herself into the other Gundams. "Region three beam cannons have been activated. It is advised that you split." Her alterations allowed her to transmit basic thoughts into words. Clearly, this only proved how advanced CSO's systems had truly become. Red Horse's pilot's image appeared on their monitors, the sentences forming in a window next to it.

The pilots looked slightly in disbelief, but started relaying the information. "Everyone!" Quatre shouted, getting the attention of the rebels, "clear the area! Beam cannons are preparing to be fired. You have to get away from anywhere that might be hit by the region three!" The commands' effects were almost instantaneous. Rebels located the spoke-of-region and moved their battles a safe distance away. At least, those who could move did. In almost the dead center, there was a suit unable to move due to vitally damaged thrusters.

Lights could be seen, signaling only moments until the base weapon was fired.

The blonde pilot spotted the injured suit and couldn't bring himself to leave the rebel behind. Sandrock changed directions, going back to the stranded Aries. "Don't worry, I've got you," reassured Quatre, "I'll pull you out of the way."

Sally continued to make her saving runs as well, though some distance behind Quatre.

Edan cleared the way, but saw Sandrock's return to the danger zone.

Sandrock pulled the suit as fast as he could, but it he wasn't as fast as he would have been, had he not been using his power to move both his and the other suit.

The beam cannon was fired, wiping out a few dolls that were close by, then proceeding onwards.

Quatre and the rescued suit most likely wouldn't have made it, had Red Horse not used every last bit of power she could to push past her limits and ram into Sandrock. The group of three jerked forward. Pilot 04 was mostly unharmed and the rescued pilot was also safe. Edan was alive and well, but most of Red Horse's lower half had been destroyed upon the beam's contact.

She fared better than Sally Po. She was caught in the beam cannon's line, as were two rebels with her—one Maganac and one of her own men.

"Sally!" Quatre totally disregarded his narrow escape from death to cry over hers.

It took a few moments for the rubble to clear, but in the end, it was just that. There was only rubble. Anything that had been in the line of fire was no more. The mobile suits were obliterated.

Quatre quickly scanned the area, visually and through his radar, but there was nothing. There were no survivors. He dropped his head into his hands, grasping at a handful of his hair. "No, Sally…"

"Return to the satellite," Heero shouted over their communication line, "CSO's getting desperate. The battle is not in our favor when they turn to—"

"—dishonorable battle tactics," Wufei finished through gritted teeth. He, who had worked with Po as a preventer for so long, was easily the most upset. When he had seen that she was not oing to make it, he had tried to turn back to pull her from the line of fire. He had been too far away, In the end..

"But—but—"

"Quatre, we need to leave the battlefield," Trowa said, "they'll fire up the other cannons. We'll only lose more soldiers. We have all of the POW's."

The blonde squeezed his eyes shut, a few tears slipping into the zero gravity air. "Of course, you're right," he responded, exhaling. "Wufei, will you help me drag Red Horse back?"

"Do what—?"

"She saved my life. I can't possibly leave her behind now." Sandrock, with one arm already grasping the Aries suit and the other with the arm of Red Horse, went in the direction of the resource satellite. After a few moments, Altron glided up next to Edan's Gundam, taking her other arm.

The troops retreated as quickly as they could. Adelphie did not want to lose more of his dolls, apparently. Of course, the revels were bitter that they had lost their comrades while he only lost some resources. Thirty-two hours after the battle, the forces were split up among small colonies some distance away from any enemy bases. They needed time to make repairs and decide their next plan of attack.

000

Author's Note: I apologize to Sally Fans, but not everyone is going to make it out of this story alive. Of course she was a good pilot, but she was not like the gundam pilots—or Zech or Noin, for that matter. She was a doctor, first and foremost. In this piece, she used her experience as a Preventer and forever-rebel to lead forces. However, her kind hearted nature and desire to save others got the best of her.

Well, at least Zechs and Noin have been saved, right? Though they are very weak, if that was not clear. CSO did what they could to keep their POWs from ever rising up against them.

Thank you for the kind review, ShineyWurmple and Pat! I do love to respond to reviews when I can, though obviously I can only do that for signed in, registered users!

I always love your thoughts, everyone!

Always your obedient servant,

A.F