Trials And Lies
Chapter 3
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
"You can join us if you want, Lieutenant," Ryuzaki, the Captain of the Athena, looked at Shiho with a slight smile as he entered.
Shiho just gave a small nod, but still remained outside. She hated the brig of the Voltaire. It was dark, cold and empty with no windows or openings. Nothing to grab on to if you felt as if the darkness was about to swallow you whole. That deafening silence too. Not to mention the extreme cold with no blankets or heater. Their latest prisoner, Reiatsuma, remained stationary at the corner of the room, sitting quietly as his eyes glimmered against the incoming light of the open doorway.
"Rei...how've you been," Ryuzaki asked as he stood in the middle of the doorway, letting himself adjust to the lighting of the cell while Shiho stood by his side. This was definitely a move to butter Reiatsuma up for information. Shiho shrugged and kept on listening, even if she was not the slightest bit interested in hearing the suspect make a defense.
Reiatsuma blinked for a second, before averting his gaze away from the two, "I know what you're after, Ryu. Just be out with it. You've always wanted to impress the higher-ups with your usual self-righteousne-!"
"That's not the issue here, Rei!" the Captain burst out by accident, causing even Shiho to jump slightly in surprise.
"You said you're Hayabusa, correct?" Shiho butted in after a few seconds of silence. Reiatsuma just returned her look with a tired face, "You led the initial assault in Operation Spitbreak, in Alaska. None of your men survived that assault on JOSH-A during the First Valentine, did they?"
"What do you want..."
"I didn't know killing fellow soldiers is how you honor their deat-!"
"I don't have to hear that from a glory hound."
"Wha-!" Shiho was prepared to go in there and give him a piece of her mind, a whole huge chunk of it in fact, but was stopped almost immediately by Ryuzaki, "Let me through, Captain. I won't stand by as he mocks our dead com-!"
"Lieutenant, stop! That's an order! Rei...what the hell is wrong with you?"
Despite all the questions posed by Ryuzaki, the prisoner kept going in circles and answered their questions with his own. Even so, he did leave around nuggets of information slip out and what Shiho had come to gather was that Reiatsuma did it all out of revenge and hatred. That's how she felt about him now, a weak-minded fool driven by basal emotions. Barbaric. She frowned slightly as Ryuzaki came out to lock the door, wondering why she had decided to put up with this in the first place.
She just couldn't accept how the people she came to know died horrific deaths over such a lame and unforgivable excuse. Was it just that? For just that reason alone, or was there something much, much deeper?
"This is the truth of the war, if you haven't seen it yet. Operation Spitbreak did kill all of his men. And it was in vain too. ZAFT knew...the base was rigged to blow. And still they sent countless loyal soldiers...his brothers and sisters...to die for reasons you would find unworthy," Ryuzaki said with a morbid voice, his face gloomy.
"...What's...the reason?"
"Who knows. To get support from ZAFT sympathizers, even neutral nations if possible?... A reason to justify continuing the war, maybe? You decide."
Shiho felt a sharp feeling growing deep inside her. But...she never heard of the incident Ryuzaki described, for what was written in reports was that the ZAFT officers had no idea it was about to self-destruct. After much digging from Ryuzaki, Shiho learnt that a deceased Commander, Rau Le Creuset, already knew it days, maybe even weeks, before the operation commenced.
"But Commander Creuset was a rogue ZAFT-!"
"Yes, he was...but...there's no way he could have pulled what he did alone. Someone's up there, a whole lot of them. And the worst part about it is...we all know it."
She felt a sinking feeling. That same feeling when the Rousseau was blown up. That same feeling when the PLANTs suffered countless deaths because of a nuclear war. The same sick feeling...when she knew something was not as it seems, but much more sinister than what was implied. She quickly left the Captain and returned to her office.
"...I don't have to hear that from a glory hound..."
Shiho felt her guts take a tumble as she tried to get Reiatsuma's voice out of her head, rummaging through the ZAFT network incognito for any reports on what Ryuzaki had just told her. It couldn't be true...could it? Then the destruction of the Rousseau, was it also as ZAFT had orchestrated just to justify continued hostilities? She thought to herself as she clenched her fist.
As soon as the Voltaire arrived at the docks of the ZAFT Headquarters, Yzak Joule released a sigh of relief. After a week of recon and combat, it was time for his unit to take a much deserved break. But of course, considering the death of hundreds aboard the Rousseau, it would be mostly filled up with days of posthumous ceremony to honor their sacrifice.
Cold air blew through Yzak's hair as he left the decontamination chamber of the headquarters. Despite high demands for soldiers and warships all over the Earth for war relief and peacekeeping, Yzak somehow was able to compromise with the top brass to let his crew stall for a short vacation. He gripped tightly onto the rails of the corridor, moving towards the hangar.
His men were weary, and so was he. Yzak took a turn in the corridor and went through a blast door, revealing his remaining ship, the Voltaire which was currently covered in soot and grime of the latest battles. He almost smiled at the sight and started making his way into the ship, making himself feel at home.
"Commander!" Yzak turned around immediately as Shiho floated up to him. She carried a slight tension on her face as if something was wrong. Yzak immediately knew that something was up and he had to know what it was. Any and all spheres of a team members' well being is ultimately under the Commander's responsibility after all.
"Anything wrong, Shiho?" He asked calmly as he gestured to her to enter the Voltaire.
"Is it true we're getting sent to Carpentaria base on Earth after the shore leave?" Shiho asked with a soft voice. Yzak nodded as they continued floating through the corridors.
"Joule Team is getting transferred to the Athena. Concerns?"
"Hey, Yzak! I heard we are-!" Dearka came from nowhere, causing Yzak to jump in slight surprise at the raised voice.
"Stop shouting in my ear will you!" the raised reply came as Dearka grinned, "No, you're not going to Carpentaria. Isn't that sad?!"
"What!? Why?!" Dearka gave a perplexed face, though Yzak was just being sarcastic.
"Shut up. Anyway, Carpentaria has been requesting aid since the bulk of its forces are over in Central Asia for a war relief mission. They're afraid they might get attacked, now that the town closest to them are being occupied by the Radicals," Yzak explained as they turned another corner. 'Radicals'...that's what ZAFT finally chooses to call them.
The three of them continued discussing the matter through the ship corridor until they were stopped by the presence of Kira and Lacus. It was a rather surprising visit, considering Lacus' busy schedule as a Supreme Council Chairwoman.
"Lacus? What are you doing here?" Yzak blurt out his surprise, obviously trying to ignore Kira's presence. He was still pissed at the fact that Kira was wearing the white Commander uniform of ZAFT. He respected the guy, but 'like' would just be going too far.
"Good morning, Yzak. I'm sorry about what happened to the Rousseau, they didn't deserve such a fate," Lacus started off as Yzak nodded both Shiho and Dearka off while motioning for the former songstress to move to Yzak's office. Considering her sudden visit, it must be important and confidential. After taking their respective seats in the Commander's office, Lacus continued on, "Its regarding the prisoner you captured, Yzak."
"What about him? He killed off a whole ship. MY whole ship...not to mention other hidden atrocit-!"
"He's innocent. We're not putting him through court-martial. Necessary public media interventions are already in place."
It took a few seconds for him to process the words that left Lacus' lips, but as soon as it hit, Yzak's face turned to the angriest frown he had ever mustered, his hand clenched as he stood up to begin a process of protest.
The prison was dark. And cold too, as if the very lifelessness of the sector's walls were sipping out with a gripping chill that it shot straight into Kira's bones. Silence was the only music that played throughout the cells. Well, of course it was silent. Not many prisoners live to see the next week if they get sent here. This sector was made specifically for death row offenders.
"This way, Commander Yamato, Chairwoman Clyne," the prison guard opened a door which held the former Commander, all ragged and beaten up, like he went through what a child would in a home of drunks and druggies. Lacus seemed undisturbed by both the deathly aura of the prison, as well as Reiatsuma's appearance. Kira knew she had more than enough to worry about.
"Commander Hayabusa," Lacus got the ball rolling as Kira told the guard to standby somewhere out of earshot, "I apologize for the rough treatment they gave you, but we cannot afford you to be exposed to any Radicals' spy networks. How are you?"
"Nothing I haven't faced before, Ma'am," Reiatsuma replied as he stood up slowly, respecting both Kira and Lacus' presence, "But...I'd rather be out there."
"Of course, Commander. We're sorry to put you through this trouble, but...here you go," Kira said as he passed on a file to Hayabusa, who quietly reads it with full attention. Kira watched as Lacus quietly smiled and taking a seat on the bed nearby, noticing her slight flinch at the cold surface of its metallic frame touching the skin of her slender legs.
"Wait...war relief?" Reiatsuma looked up at Lacus, whose smile was gone and held a more grim look.
"Its just on paper, Commander. A cover for your real mission if you want to put it that way," Kira responded as he looked at those silver eyes.
"I'm sorry to push you back into this, Rei...but we really need you," the Chairwoman begged rather than ordered as she, too, looked at Reiatsuma with a slightly desperate but mostly exhausted look.
"...Understood. When do I leave for Earth?..."
After clearing his tray of food and exiting the Cafeteria that was full of noise from the crew members, Yzak thought about the arrival of the Hierarch pilot any moment soon. Its been a few weeks, and no announcements were made regarding him.
As he entered his office, Yzak was surprised to see Shiho and Dearka silently waiting inside with someone, noticing Shiho's hand dangerously close to her firearm around her waist. Strangely enough, there stood the turncoat. Seeing he was now in Green-Coat, Yzak smirked to himself as they saluted him. Even so, he wasn't in the mood to entertain this crap.
"So they downright shamed you to a Green-Coat even after a week of retraining at the academy. Quite interesting," Yzak said dryly as he saluted back and crossed the room to sit in his chair. He took his seat and faced Reiatsuma who was holding onto something in his gloved hands.
"Chairwoman Clyne ordered me to give you this before I left," Reiatsuma walked to the desk and gave Yzak a mini-disk and the box. Yzak and Shiho, even Dearka were surprised by the 'gift', "Since you are part of Terminal, as well as the Supreme Council, she decided why not."
"So... She made me a member of FAITH...out of pure whim...again. And what's this disk about?" Yzak took the badge and looked straight into Reiatsuma's silver eyes, with said item in his hand.
"Its my file, even the parts ZAFT censors wouldn't want you to see," the green-coat said after a few moments of silence.
"Didn't we see enough already?" Dearka questioned, as he tried to snatch the disk away from Yzak, who held himself back from bursting out.
"Pompous ass."
Reiatsuma then faced the short-tempered Commander, "Commander Joule, under direct orders of Chairwoman Lacus Clyne, I am assigned to the Athenaunder the Joule Squadron to...replace one of the pilots that was lost in combat a few weeks ago."
Yzak, even Shiho and Dearka, looked at Reiatsuma coldly. He knew this was going to happen. But the young Commander abstained his anger release and replied calmly, "Alright. Your ZAKU is docked in the main hangar. This does not mean the Voltaire's crew have forgotten or forgiven you for what you did, Lieutenant. You should watch your back out there. Shiho? I'm designating him your wingman for the time being."
"C-Commander?"
"You know more than anyone how I work the team, I'm entrusting him to you," Yzak explained as he clasped his hands together in front of his lips. Shiho almost broke out of her usual mask of stoicism to protest, but held it in before any of it seeped out.
"Understood, Commander. I will do as you ask," Shiho replied as she gave a neutral look, but Yzak knew deep down, Shiho hated the man to the core. He observed her for a few seconds to make sure she was alright, then proceeded to dismiss the new soldier. The three of them waited for their newest comrade to leave the room before they started their conversation.
"Well, at least you have a new punching bag now, Yzak. He looks calm and collected even if you screamed at the top of your lungs in front of him," Shiho sighed heavily as Dearka said that, "I am gonna miss being your-!"
"One more word, and I'll space you..."
"Kira? Kira!" Lacus cried out to him as she tried to control the crowd of lovable children around her. Despite her busy schedule, Lacus always made it a point to visit the orphanage, and if possible, alleviate the suffering that the orphans go through because of the war through her power as the Council Chairperson.
"L-Lacus...this isn't what I expected," Kira came out in a mascot costume of a bear. He tried walking straight but the kids were clinging onto him like a dog biting on a bone.
"Wahhh~ such a cute costume! You really fit in that, Kira. Come, children, go give the bear a hug," Lacus said to the children with her soothing voice as the children hooray-ed brightly while running themselves into Kira, causing the Ultimate Coordinator to fall on his back. Lacus giggled as she watched Kira's predicament.
After Kira got the kids to calm down, Lacus brought in the whole classroom milk and cookies, resulting in a real messy feast which ended with the kids slowly feeling sleepy and without much time passing by, slumbering through the afternoon. The cloudy day in the colony they were in brought with it cool soothing wind which made even her sleepy, blowing into the classroom as the curtains danced gracefully against it.
"Lacus...are you alright?"
"Not so loud, Kira. You might wake them," she smiled at Kira as she watched him cleaning up the place. Kira knew Lacus was tired from all the Council work that she had to go through, even though she tried her best to hide it. He smiled back, but still pursued the matter.
"How about you take a break this week? Let me do the rest," he offered as he sat beside his and gives a peck to her cheek, causing the girl to smile widely.
"You know I can't do that. I'm the Chairwoman of the PLANTs. I can't rest, knowing the enemy is always working to destroy all this," Lacus diverted her gaze from Kira towards the children, stroking the head of one of the child gently.
"Chairwo-! S-sorry. Chairwoman. We have an emergency," a guard suddenly entered the room, but quickly stifled a yell as he watched carefully not to step on the sleeping children within that small room. Lacus' face turned grim as she stood up, leaving the children as they slept quietly.
"What's the matter?" Lacus asked as they left the orphanage in an armored car, the soldier passing a datapad to Lacus as the car traveled down the highway.
"The Radicals apparently have set up a forward operating base outside of Carpentaria, Ma'am. They're attacking the harbor as we speak. ZAFT Command is adamant that we send assistance," the soldier's voice sounded a bit too tense. Carpentaria is a well staffed base, with the latest equipment and weapons. But wait...
"Wait...Most of Carpentaria's forces are away in Central Asia because of the war relief. Lacus, we need to send the Athena down quickly," Kira said as he took out his mobile computer. Lacus' face relaxed slightly as she watched Kira at work. Truly, she'd never know how she'd survive the past month against the burden of politics if she were alone.
"...Kira..."
"This is the Captain speaking, welcome to Athena Airlines. Please fasten your seat-belts if you have yet to do so. Weather looks good, atmosphere looks clean. In case of an emergency, life vests and parachutes are available at the nearest convenience store-!"
"Get it over with, damn it!"
"Bitey as ever, Commander Joule. Alright, all crew be advised, entering atmospheric entry Phase 3. Mobile Suit squadron, drop-ships, prepare for launch as soon as we hit aerodynamic controls. The battlefield is gonna be hot so you're dropping right in the middle of hell."
"Joule Team, welcome to Australia. Once you're on the ground, you're on your own with no radio contact. Squad objective remains, locate and tag enemy key installations using the laser targeting system provided. Our artillery will do the rest. After your waypoint is complete, pop green flares for extraction. Good luck, Commander."
"You heard the man. Once we're dropped off, maintain radio silence. That means no electronics, got that!?" Yzak shouted through his helmet as the transport they were on took off, the rear bay doors opening up revealing a beach-head that played host to a messy battlefield. The Athena wasn't the only one there. A small fleet and marine regiments of ZAFT as well as EAF were taking part against the Radicals.
"Wow! Look at them go!" a young voice exclaimed in an attempt to overcome the engines of the drop ship.
"Unlucky, aren't we, Sara? Getting straight into enemy territory the moment we enter atmosphere. Crazy helljumpers," Dearka said as he looked at the newly transferred rookie, Sara, his rifle slung casually around his shoulder.
"Shut up back there!" Yzak shouted to the rookie and Dearka as the drop-ship jolted and shook from nearby explosions, "We're entering mission launch location in three. Refit max ammo and equipment. I'm not dying because of a screw up down there!"
"A Blue and Pure World not exactly your kind of place, Yzak?"
"Laugh it off, ass."
"Joule Squadron, be advised. We are 10 seconds out."
As soon as the drop-ship touched down, Shiho took the lead exiting the transport, moving behind the nearest wall she could find to shelter herself from enemy eyes. Followed by Dearka and the rest, Reiatsuma was the rear guard. Everything was pure desolation as far as the eyes could see. Yzak waved off the transport as the team took cover, squinting against the sunlight before looking around. With the departure of the drop-ship, the area went silent. Only the sound of the tantalizing breeze filled their ears while the scorching heat of the hot sun gnawed at their skin.
"Any idea why no radio, Commander?" Sara questioned with their visors retracted.
"The enemy has signal tracking. We turn on radio, we'll be a honeycomb in no time. Alright, here's the town," Yzak said as he pointed to the said settlement bearing a sign.
"Welcome to Ghost Town is more like it. We're on an island rig-!"
"Cut the crap, Dearka," Yzak said as he knelt down beside Shiho, "Shiho, you alright with that thing?" Yzak asked as he pointed to the laser device on her back, though Yzak didn't notice that he was leaning extremely close to her as he tried scouting the area in front of him through his binoculars.
"N-nothing a Coordinator like me couldn't handle, Commander," Shiho replied as she nodded to Yzak, her face flushed. Yzak just raised a brow as he watched her for a second, before she quickly averted from his gaze.
"Hayabusa...Hayabusa?... HEY!" Yzak got pissed for not getting an answer, and quickly threw a rock at Reiatsuma's green helmet, who just responded with his usual neutral face as he turned.
"What..."
"You're on point, so lead the way. And no friendly fire this time."
"Yzak...you hear that?" Dearka voiced out as they heard a sort of grumbling sound gradually getting louder, "What the hell is that?"
"Oh wait that must be me," the rookie, Sara, said as she stifled a grin with her face flushing, "Not my fault I hadn't eaten since breakfast."
"..."
Dearka, Yzak and Shiho quietly gave a cold glare to the rookie as she held back a chuckle. After much delay, Yzak quickly commenced a fast march deeper into enemy territory to locate any strategic enemy locations. Without much of a map due to the drasrically deformed landscape, they were going in blind, until they reached a shabby building.
"Reports suggest that this town was abandoned by civilians a week before Radicals rolled in, recon noted heavy armament movements. Be ready."
The group started moving in a low crouch as they entered the courtyard of the building. The playground was long defective and swings were rusty all over. Yzak frowned as he concluded that it was an elementary school or some sort. After a few steps, Yzak showed a hand signal as they leaned themselves against the walls of the front door.
"Hey rookie, Dearka, stack up."
"Why isn't Hayabusa called a 'rookie'? He's a green-coat to-!"
"Now, Sara."
"Okay..."
Before entering the main doors, Dearka opened the door halfway and rolled forward a tear gas canister into the large room. After a few seconds of hissing from the canister, Shiho and Reiatsuma went in with their rifles pointed on both corners of the room. The place was too dark to see anything due to the bright light outside. The others stayed back as they kept an eye on the interiors.
Shiho was the first one to let her guard down as she lowered her rifle, which proved to be a grave mistake. Before Shiho even grasped the situation around her, a group of gas-masked soldiers cocked their automatic rifles and aimed down at them, from behind the pillars and the balcony within, unleashing a heavy barrage of bullets.
Guns blazing, one of the rounds ripped through Shiho's upper arm as she screamed out in pain, a second shot narrowly missing her chest but hitting her rifle instead causing sparks to fly and thick red blood spilling across the floor before she hit the ground. Yzak looked in shock as he ran up to her, with the other three covering them trying to get the attention of the enemy.
"Commander, get her back!" Reiatsuma shouted to Yzak as a few bullets snapped the walls near them. Yzak's heart skipped a beat as he watched Shiho's pained face.
"Ah! Commander the lase system is damaged!" Sara cried out, not bothered by the flying bullets as she tried to reach for it.
"What, are you stupid!? Fall back!" Dearka managed to shout as he punched the back of Sara's helmet before pulling her along roughly.
"Alright! Fall back, get to cover!" Yzak commanded as the squad slowly stepped back and away from the firefight, still taking shelter as stray bullets flew past them. Yzak pulled Shiho up to his shoulders as Dearka and Sara exited the courtyard way ahead of them to clear the path, leaving the other three inside.
"Yzak! C'mon c'mon!"
"Ugh! Commander, I-...don't worry about me!" Shiho managed to hiss out as she tried jogging on her own, but before she could take off herself, the both of them fell as a hot stinging bullet ripped through the back of Yzak's thigh. Instinctively letting out a pained cry, Yzak watched horridly as the wound began leaking out arterial red blood, spraying out like a mad geyser.
"Yzak!"
"Commander!" Shiho shouted out loud as she watched her Commander in pain, "C-Come on, we have to move!" she demanded as she ditched her rifle, pulling on Yzak with her only uninjured arm.
Reiatsuma quickly sprinted, vaulting over a worn out metal bench and at the same time flipping it to cover Yzak from enemy sight. With his hands slightly shaking from adrenaline, Reiatsuma quickly takes out a generous amount of bandages and calmly applies it to Yzak's wound, unfortunately unable to slow down the bleeding much amid the stray bullets and disorienting dust from the firefight.
Yzak swore between the extreme pain of the wound and the anarchy of the minor firefight, he was slowly losing his mind. The rush of adrenaline wasn't helping him any as arterial blood continued spurting out despite the bandages, signalling a very major damage to his femoral artery.
"Get back, get back!" Reiatsuma waved away Dearka and Sara as the three of them got stuck quite a ways away from the gate, "Abandon the mission, we're combat ineffective, Major! Get yourselves out!"
"What about you guys-!" before Dearka could get a response, the side of the school exploded as a tank rolled through, rocking the ground and causing Yzak's ears to ring. Fortunately for them, the cannon wasn't facing their direction as the dust from the explosion clouded the driver's view port. Without wasting anytime, Reiatsuma pulled a pin off from a smoke grenade and rolled it at his feet.
"G-goddamned civilians!" Yzak was by now moaning and grunting in pain as he held onto his leg, his breathing getting shallower as time goes by. He was starting to lose a lot of blood. Reiatsuma quickly removed Yzak's helmet, before lifting him onto his shoulders in a fireman's carry, his silver hair following the motion as blood tainted its pure hue.
Yzak's vision started blurring as he felt extremely weak, the effects of major hypovolemic shock quickly setting in as he came in and out of consciousness.
"Co-come on! Commander! Stay with me, Yzak!" Shiho cried out Yzak's name for the first time as she gripped her Commander's arm, apparently not knowing what to do. They were pilots first and foremost. Not footsloggers. Of course this would frighten her, since its been years she last saw blood up close. The smoke quickly filled Reiatsuma's vision as he gripped Shiho's arm like a vice, noticing the visor of her helmet fogging up.
"Leave the Commander to me! You guys get out of here! Shiho, stay on my six," Reiatsuma ordered as he pulled the injured girl roughly by her good arm and carried the gravely injured Commander through the smokescreen. After hearing a curse from Dearka, Reiatsuma quickly looked around, chancing upon a sewer entrance. Not having much choice he quickly pulled at the impossibly heavy grates with all he had, his leg and arm muscles tightening to extremes as it finally squealed due to its rustiness, clanking hard against the gravel as he succeeded.
"Wha-! There's no way-!" Shiho wanted to protest as she looked into the sewer amid the smoke and dust, revealing an extremely old drain that had muck and scum, not to mention the nauseating smell of algae and decay.
Without much hesitation, Reiatsuma quickly pushed Shiho down, causing her to scream in shock. Slowly making his way down with Yzak on his shoulders, the green-coat quietly pulled the grates so the enemy wouldn't suspect they went downside...not before lobbing up a grenade towards the school just to return the favor.
After Reiatsuma caught his breath as he moved deeper into the sewer, he looked around for Shiho while removing his helmet. Radio was a no-go anyways so its just a hindrance. He quietly laid Yzak down against the wall as he slipped the medical haversack off of his back, turning on his torchlight.
"Lieutenant? Shiho?"
"G-goddamnit...I can't feel my legs," Yzak barely whispered. It was bad, his face was turning blue and his eyes getting glassy. There was no way he could stall the medical treatment any further, Yzak was at the tip of the blade. He quickly reached into his first aid pack, his head turning here and there trying to find the missing Shiho within the darkness. The bullet is deep inside Yzak's leg and he needed an extra hand to stop the bleeding before Yzak is totally lost.
"Goddamnit...Hang on, Yzak-... Shiho?"
AN: As per the usual Author Note, constructive criticism (preferably on PM) will be greatly appreciated! Once again, a million thanks to Voltage Axe for reviewing and even following the story since its previous attempt! Motivation level rises by 5!