Trials And Lies

Chapter 2

AN: This is the first Gundam Seed Fanfic by me and I deliberately wrote a Yzak & Shiho fanfic cause it is not so active... I also love this couple... And I don't own Gundam SEED or any of its counterparts... Too bad for me...

As per my previous attempt at this story, I will use the same format...
Italics represents a radio transmission from outside of the character's immediate location, as well as names of ships/mobile suits/vehicles.
Bold & Italic represents the time jumps or current location (but I plan to reduce the focus on this, I'm sure it disrupts reading flow, doggamnit!)...

Cosmic Era 75

ZAFT Elite Pilot Shiho Hahnenfuss, along with Dearka Elsman, sat quietly with her legs crossed as they waited for their Commander to come around. Despite the easy odds that they faced against during the 'reconnaissance' mission, they were thoroughly beaten and thrown aside thanks to that new Mobile Suit. Shiho quietly flipped through another page of the book she was reading, even though her mind was seemingly elsewhere. Dearka noticed this, and sighed before opening his mouth.

"Shiho? You thinking about that enemy Mobile Suit again, aren't you?" he asked, his voice serious this time as he looked quietly at the young Lieutenant. The girl shrugged his question with a simple 'nope', and continued on reading her book. She was definitely pissed and he could tell. Who wouldn't? Under any circumstance, one would be pissed if the person one respected most were to be put down in insult.

"I respect the enemy's piloting skill, that's all," she claimed with a blank face as she turned another page, monotonous and void of any real devotion to the conversation. As if her mind really wasn't there. Dearka sighed deeply as he leaned back against the wall, giving up trying to get her mind out of it. He learned over the years they were together in the same squad, that when he tries to get Shiho out of her deep thought, it's like trying to pull a lioness away from her sleeping corner. You can only try once, but the next will see your own torso torn clean off.

So that was that. Until of course, the much awaited Commander Yzak Joule stepped out of the infirmary. He looked fine, and not on crutches so Dearka held back a grin. Instead he quietly stood up, but not as fast as Shiho did, who quietly walked up to Yzak's side with a slightly concerned look.

"Goddamnit. I only need one med-check to get by. I don't understand these doctors," Yzak Joule complained, ruffling his hair. He smiled slightly with a word of thanks to Shiho. They were lucky they even got away from the crazy glowing Mobile Suit. The two warships, Rousseau and Voltaire, would have been ripped to shreds if it had continued its rampage. But thankfully, the enemy seemed to have held back. It was also a stroke of luck that the lack of oxygen from the GOUF did not spark an explosion or Yzak would've been space toast. Deliberate or not, Yzak'll never know, but that pilot really wasn't human. Even so, Dearka could tell Yzak was pissed he was given a stab in the back treatment, literally. And the fact that someone was better than him at piloting pushed him even more down Anger Lane.

"I dunno. Something seems off about things lately. Speaking of which...Yzak what are we doing in an outpost all the way out here, far away from PLANT?" Dearka asked as they began walking towards the Bridge of the Voltaire. Yzak calmly explained as he rubbed his shoulder, that due to them finding a squad of enemy stragglers all the way out here showed high probability that the enemy's main force was nearby. And with ZAFT's intelligence net, they were able to quickly locate it within a few days from their last battle...which was, needless to say, really peculiar since most of ZAFT is now devoted to peacekeeping on PLANTs and Earth.

Dearka noticed that Shiho wasn't really paying attention as they entered the busy bridge. Leaning against the wall, the tanned blonde began his inquisition into the unknown Mobile Suit. And this sparked Shiho's attention fully. She quietly slipped her seasoned book into her coat as she listened in on what Yzak was about to say, standing at attention with her eyes devoted to Yzak.

"There's no such Mobile Suit in the ZAFT manufacturing history that matches that description. But...it was definitely similar to the Infinite Justice. I will have to go after Lacus Clyne when I get back to my office. In the meantime, focus on the mission. Intel will be given out as it comes," Yzak ordered before he pointed out the nearby docking bay as a familiar Mobile Suit began its descent into the Voltaire.

"The Destiny? We getting that guy as a transfer?" Dearka jokingly said as he straightened out his uniform, feeling quite puzzled at how ZAFT higher-ups were doing their job. If what Dearka said was really true, they're sending in one of the most talented albeit immature pilot to Yzak's unit, a unit built around discipline and selflessness while Shinn Asuka is centered on impulse and misdirection. A combination made for chaos, one would say.

"I have to agree, Commander. Although I do not doubt his skills, he's not exactly...cooperative," Shiho herself commented as she folded her arms across her chest, aura of disapproval emanating from just her body language alone.

"No way, he's just joining for the ride to link up with his new ship. And I know what you're thinking, Dearka. Don't worry, he's learnt his lesson," Yzak Joule claimed as he turned on the communications channel.

"Might also be a good chance to gauge the enemy's strength, if it's against the Destiny. We can't afford to lose anymore people," the young female brunette said more to herself than others, and Dearka fretted over this. He knew she was obviously obsessed with trying to keep her comrade's life in safe hands that she would think of any and every possible scenario against said nemesis. Maybe even neglecting herself sometimes. Even if on the surface, she doesn't even display any emotions.

She was never the bloodthirsty type. In fact, she's more of a pacifist than anything else.

"Although I am disappointed to say this, with the two ships and enough Mobile Suits and pilots, we could have taken over the area in less than an hour," Yzak made a frown as the pilots looked at him directly, "But considering the presence of superior weaponry and pilots they had, we were outmatched easily. Kinda reminds you of the Battle of Thermopylae doesn't it?"

"The hell is Thermopylae?..."

Yzak Joule quietly tapped the datapad in hand as he tried to remember what to say, ignoring what one of the pilots just asked. As expected, the two ships will be returning for a round two against the same but larger group of enemy they encountered a few days ago, but this time, they will be reinforced with a brand new battleship that just came out of the shipyard on its maiden voyage. Even though he doubted the new crew and ship would do much in terms of assistance, he remained optimistic, and for good reasons too.

"Commander, just to confirm," Shiho voiced out, "With only three warships, we'll be facing a whole armada of well armed and equipped terrorists? No offence Commander, but that sounds like a suicide mission more than anything. Like I said, we can't lose-"

"Lieutenant...relax. Our reinforcements are more than adequate. We'll be linking up with a Minerva-Class Battleship, call-sign Athena. There's the famous Destiny and Impulse on board too. I agree its a difficult mission, but its not impossible," he gave a stern reply, "Nothing like our usual missions before the armistice after Destiny Plan's destruction. You people are trained for it, its time you earned your pay."

As soon as the room emptied, he sat back against an empty chair and huffed in relief, letting the silence of the briefing room envelop him in a moment of reprieve.

To be honest, Yzak Joule really didn't fancy big battleships, especially on the front lines. He liked it more when his warship could blend in with the rest of the fleet as if it was a normal ship. To a civilian, the Minerva-Class Battleship Athena would be a magnificent and grandiose sight of black and grey arsenal, a game-changer, you may call it. But to a hostile soldier, its more of a flag that says "I'm the helm of the fleet" all too obviously. If Athena were to go down fighting, morale would fly far, far away like a piece of paper in a maddening typhoon.

"Commander Joule? I'm putting the transmission to the Athena on channel one," the Communications Officer said while pressing a few keys on the board. Yzak nodded to the officer quietly, before standing aside the Captain's seat. If he heard right, the Captain of the Athena was too young to even captain a small warship...or so the rumors go.

"Good afternoon, Commander Joule. Captain Ryuzaki Kidouya, Commanding Officer of the Athena. Linking up with the battle group now," the Captain of the Athena sounded off into the communication video channel. Yzak nodded and returned the greeting. He had a feeling this guy was serious and downright devoted to ZAFT, but something about him spelled comfort. He did seem young, albeit a little older than Yzak, with furious blonde hair and charismatic sapphire eyes.

"Good to have you with us, Athena. We are approaching the engagement zone in one hour. Are your men battle-ready?," Yzak asked out of concern rather than belittlement. He was worried the crew wouldn't be accustomed to a new vessel sent into its first battle. The Captain however...Yzak has heard of Ryuzaki Kidouya when Yzak was just that impulsive brat during his time in ZAFT Academy. Ryuzaki was one of those top honor students with the best personality. AKA the popular guy of the academy. But that's all academic. As far as Yzak was concerned, Ryuzaki was never seen in front-lines before. At least not by Yzak himself.

After much exchange of information on their combat statuses and intel, Yzak and the Captain closed the conversation. It was now only a matter of time. All the plans, contingencies even backups were already made and disseminated to the pilots. Whether or not this next battle succeeds, depends on the tendency of the pilot of the glowing Mobile Suit. Yzak got pissed all over again after remembering what happened. Of all things and people, that had to happen to him. And because of the damage on his machine...and the headache...he can't go out for the next battle.

...Damnit...

The battle was intense. To the point that Shiho's hands were trembling with adrenaline as she shielded herself from enemy fire. The enemy seemed numerous in number but even so the situation was looking good for ZAFT. Explosions erupted here and there as the affected pilots screamed in agony and pain. She could see Dearka trying to bring down a few ZAKUs, but heard him growl in frustration instead. The bulk of the enemy wasn't skilled in any particular way, but their undwindling numbers were a sore on ZAFT's side. As if they were able to afford the loss of such numbers.

"Gaius-2. Don't go too far off, you might get yourself killed," Shiho reminded the tanned blonde with a soothing calm voice as she defended the Voltaire. It was quite easy to dispatch these idiots, its like they're lining up to die as they tried dealing damage to the Voltaire. The plan was going well thanks to the presence of the Athena too, bolstering the area's strategic hold.

"Gaius-3, this is the Voltaire. Do you see a Nazca-class warship among them?" Yzak's voice filled Shiho's helmet, prompting her to zoom the cameras of her ZAKU.

"I see it, Commander. Tagging the ship now. Sync-ed?"

"Affirmative. All units, enemy flagship will be tagged as 'Tango 1'. At all cost, I want this ship disabled for capture, along with its Mobile Suit, designated callsign Hierarch."

The firepower of the Athena was beginning to take its toll on the enemy warships, its formation quickly crumbling against the combined firepower of the Athena and the two sister warships. Additionally, with the Destiny and the Impulse from the Athena working together, most of the Mobile Suit vanguard were quickly decimated. Within minutes, the enemy found itself...outnumbered.

The remaining enemy Mobile Suits were quickly destroyed or disabled as Tango 1 finally reached its critical point, but... Feeling unease tingle down her neck, Shiho scanned the area with the ZAKU's eyes through the large screen. This time, paying VERY close attention to any details.

"That was a mess. Gaius Squad, any casualties? ... Gaius-3?" Dearka tried to hail to her, which she had no time to respond as she felt her gut took a tumble for the worst.

"Mission Control to all units, Tango 1's backup systems are online. The warship is bugging out."

"V-Voltaire! It's Hierarch! Hierarch is clinging onto the Rousseau!" Shiho reported with a shaky voice. Even Yzak's response to Shiho's report was as horrified upon seeing the enemy machine,currently dull and not in its blinding lit form, making its stealthy appearance hooked onto the sister ship that was under Yzak's command.

"Damn him! Rousseau, power down your engines! I want squadrons to get that asshole unhooked fast!" Yzak's command came as soon as the others realised what was going on.

But it was already too late.

"This-bzz-Rousseau! Losing-bzz-all sectors-bzz! Bzz-assistance-bzz-mayday-bzz!"

"Gaius-1! We've lost radio contact with the Rousseau! No power signals from-!"

Everything went by in slow-motion as the scene unfolded before her. It was like the first time she came to see a blossoming firework, so beautiful yet so short-lived. But...there was nothing to feel joyous about here. The radio chatter in Shiho's helmet didn't seem to bother the young pilot too much as she watched, with squinted eyes, Hierarch kicking off from the warship with explosive speed while Shiho's second home-away-from-home, scuttled fatally from lethal explosions left and right. All the lives of the crew, the mechanics and even the caring and innocent medical staff...

...gone just like that.

A moment of silence went by as those under Yzak's command watched frightfully at the loss of their sister ship, from an integral part of their formation and family, turning into nothing more than space debris and floating chunks of horridly mangled corpses. All the while, Hierarch floated around gracefully amid the destroyed warship as if mocking the deaths of the hundreds on-board, and at the same time spitting in the face of his enemies who are still alive while its mother ship made its exit.

"All-...All units, be advised. The Rousseau is lost. Repeat..."

"This is Athena. Shinn? Lunamaria? Regroup your squads and proceed towards Hierarch's capture."

"Joule Team! Break off and assist the Destiny and Impulse. Gaius-2, Gaius-3. Form them up and haul the Hierarch in, destroyed or not."

As soon as the forceful command was passed down to her, Shiho fully pushed forward on the ZAKU's throttles, propelling her at maximum combat speed towards the Hierarch. With most of the ZAFT forces already converging on it and no cover in deep space for the Hierarch to get aid from due to its efforts covering the mothership's retreat, it was only a matter of time now before they tear the cockpit open and learn if the pilot was even human, or just an unmanned machine.

The annoying smell of smoke and searing hot metal was heavy in the air, with the bustling of a usual busy hangar filling her ears as she stood casually eyeing her standard green Blaze ZAKU. Shiho was amazed she got out alive after dealing with such a dangerous rabid animal, her Mobile Suit was only left with its abdomen and head by the time the Hierarch was disabled and captured. Not forgetting the even greater damage it dealt to the other machines involved, including the ever so famous Destiny and Impulse, allowing the enemy warship plenty of time to escape from the battle-space.

Even Dearka wasn't spared any mercy as his machine's systems got totally fried. Hearing a sigh at her side, Shiho turned to the said person Dearka, whose stomach was growling, "Figures we skipped dinner just to catch a monster. We should've just finish him off."

"I heard he's on the Voltaire. Why not the Athena?" Shiho asked with her usual masked voice, silently puzzled at the arrangement since Athena held a greater security presence than Voltaire could ever hope for. Dearka quickly explained as they made their way towards the mess hall of the ship, noting that as much as Athena wants to be as grand as the Minerva, it can't due to personnel constraints. Only the menacing albeit beautiful Mobile Suit was locked up in Athena, while its pilot, in the Voltaire. Before they could reach their destination though, the sound of a violent scuffle caused them to stop in the corridor on the way.

"Damn you! You don't deserve that white uniform! Terrorists like you should be killed painfully and slowly!" Yzak Joule came up to the supposed pilot of the Hierarch and crouched over him, giving dreadful punches. The said terrorist-slash-traitor didn't even make a sound when he was hit. He just gritted his teeth and clenched his fists as he endured the pain.

Without wasting any time, both Shiho and Dearka ran to the two, stopping Yzak by gripping him at the shoulders. Everyone knew the enemy deserved no mercy for what had been done. But this can't go on. There has to be order in the ship even under such circumstance. Or else the whole crew will be driven by nothing but rage and vengeance instead of its usual disciplined decorum. Shiho knelt down to the enemy prisoner, noticing the prisoner ID on his uniform reading "Reiatsuma Hayabusa". Shiho somehow felt the back of her neck stand on ends as she tried digesting the name.

"Are you...have we met before?" the female pilot asked curiously out of the blue as she stared into those silver eyes. She couldn't resist asking, but also felt a slight hint that said she'd rather not know the answer. Reiatsuma instead chose to remain quiet and avoid her burning gaze. Shiho frowned at this in annoyance and brought him to a sitting position roughly.

Such a nice match of jet black hair and silver eyes, Shiho thought to herself as the prisoner grunted.

"Damn it, Yzak! Stop-!" Shiho heard Dearka raise his voice as Yzak struggled to be free. The hotheaded Commander broke off, and quickly regained his composure as he breathed easy. With hateful eyes, Yzak stared down at Reiatsuma and gave a scoff before the said prisoner started shifting. Not bothering to clean the blood on his white uniform, the pilot of the Hierarch, bowed his head to hide his face away from an approaching person.

"R-Rei! What the hell!?" the voice of the Athena's Captain, Ryuzaki, broke the silence as he squeezed through the small gathering, looking at the cuffs clasped tightly around the traitor's wrists, "Why are you-! Wait... Don't tell me-!"

"Wait...Captain you know this guy?" Dearka butted in.

"He is, Captain. The pilot of the Hierarch. The stolen Mobile Suit Terminal marked as missing," Shiho calmly said as she delivered an elbow strike across Reiatsuma's temple sharp enough to knock him out totally. As much as she preferred to remain professional and orderly, that was one of the only ways which Shiho could satisfy her cringing lust for hatred towards the murderers of her comrade and at the same time prevent Yzak from further loss of control, which would ultimately lead to bloodshed...most likely.

Both Dearka and Ryuzaki winced as the female brunette dusted her uniform, signalling for the other soldiers to drag their unconscious prisoner away to the brig. Somehow or rather, even though it felt good, Shiho also felt for a split second that she did something really awful, but as usual let it slide. After the prisoner was dragged away and the crowd cleared, Shiho noticed that Yzak still had that frown on.

"Commander? Are you alright?" Shiho asked out of the blue as she stood by him, both of them alone in the corridor. As Yzak looked at Shiho, she gave that small smile...either from her trying to cheer Yzak up, or from the fact that justice was served to the murderers of the Rousseau, she wasn't sure. Seeing her smile was, even to Shiho herself, seemed like a plenty rare occurence.

"So many good people lost. There's no way I'll feel right about that," Yzak said quietly as he leaned down on the railing of the corridor, staring out into the deep space and into the globe of Earth, "Any Commander would feel the same."

"It's not your fault, Commander," Shiho responded with a soft voice, placing a warm hand onto his stiff shoulder, "You are just one man...you cannot take responsibility for all the deaths in our conflicts. Even the strongest, most wisest man wouldn't be able to bear such a burden. I'm here to protect everything I hold dear, and I know the risks involved. I'm sure the rest on the Rousseau...feel the same."

Yzak smiled lightly as he nodded at Shiho, who also returned the same amount of cheer with a silent tinge of embarrassment.

"But...'Hayabusa'...where did I hear that name before?..." Yzak said out loud as both him and Shiho continued staring into the dark blankets of space, as if swallowed by all of its mysteries and wonders that are left for the taking out there.

AN: As per the usual author note, constructive criticisms is appreciated. Thanks to honeyxx for Favoriting and Following the story :)