Gundam Seed: The Federation

by Blackshadow999

Different telling of Gundam Seed. With the conflict between Naturals and Coordinators getting worse as time passes, some nations have banded together and formed the organization known as the Human Federation. Will the Federation be able to help bring peace or will the hatred between Naturals and Coordinators destroy everything and bring extinction of humanity? Cover by SaddlePatch

47. Phase 47: Path Towards the Future

A/n

Here it is! The Phase so many have been waiting for much like the last one. My standard disclaimer still applies, I only own my musings and characters. Hope you all enjoy the Phase and the continuation of this story.

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Phase 47: Path Towards the Future

June 21, 74 C.E.

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-Neutral pov-

Around Daedalus

The battle was still going even after the Minerva crashed into the moon's surface, but the focus shifted and Aila could see that clearly. The fight against the magenta gundam-type had been one of the hardest battles Aila had ever done in her life. The pilot was good no, they were better than that, they had been in an entirely different league than anyone Aila had fought ever, let alone on a normal basis. Heck, whoever they were could've given Athrun a serious run for his money she would bet. Then the coordinated teamwork of that gundam-type and the other one had deftly ensured that the Minerva went down. Thus, the Archangel came out victorious in the fight with the Minerva again as it had in all but one encounter before this.

Once those that had been fighting against the Minerva had moved on towards Messiah, Aila had headed towards the Minerva. A shuttle did leave the Minerva as Aila approached the ship, who it was she couldn't say or why they were leaving at this time. Instead, Aila refocused on getting to the Minerva and found that a Federation suit also getting closer to the Minerva. Aila had the Osiris point its rifle system at the Federation machine as she wouldn't let the Minerva be destroyed, "That's far enough," she stated over an open channel.

The Federation suit came to a halt and faced the Osiris yet, didn't point any of its weapons at Aila. "I am not here to destroy the Minerva Aila Lakeen," said a male voice.

The shock that Aila felt at hearing the voice was heavy as it was one that she knew, it was Heero Collins voice. Collins had been transferred from the Minerva back at Carpentaria and that had been the last time she had seen him. Never would she have thought that she would encounter Heero on this battlefield, let alone in a Federation mobile suit. Aila shook her head and focused back at the point at hand, "Then what are you here for Heero," posed Aila.

"For the same reason I would assume you are Aila," Heero replied, "to help the crew of the Minerva."

Quite honestly, Aila couldn't argue with what Heero said for he was right in Aila going to the Minerva to help the crew. And Heero had been truthful in what he had said as far as Aila could tell before now, so there was no reason for her to doubt what he was saying. That in mind, Aila lowered the Osiris's rifle and accepted Heero's help since the Minerva as damaged as it was, time was of the essence. The crash the Minerva did into the Moon's surface couldn't have done anything good for the ship and so the longer it took to get the crew off, the harder it would be.

When the two mobile suits got in close proximity of the Minerva the array of the damage sunk in better than viewing from a distance. The right linear mobile suit catapult was still attached overall, but was blocked, unusable and from the look of it the forward third had gotten close to separating from the ship. The left looked okay, but there was no guarantee as to if it could get Aila and Heero inside the Minerva, but it was the best option at the moment. Aila went into the left catapult first followed by Heero, Aila using the Osiris's shortwave radio to contact Chief Aves. She told him to either shut the outer bulkhead to the catapult or evacuate the hanger so that she could come in.

Aves knew that the outer bulkhead on both linear catapults were not responding to remote commands anymore. It had taken a great deal to get the shuttle that Captain Gladys insisted she take to the outside via the left catapult. The right linear catapult had taken heavy damage from plowing into the lunar surface, it miraculously was still in one piece somehow right now, but couldn't be used for anything. So really, there was only one option to have the Osiris get into the Minerva's hanger, evacuate it first and then depressurize it. That in mind, Aves ordered everyone out of the hanger immediately, Aves himself being the last one out of the hanger. Aves started the depressurizing process once he was out of the hanger and the door to the hanger sealed shut to protect from the developing vacuum.

Once the signal appeared to say the hanger was depressurized, Aila opened the airtight shutters and came into the hanger of the Minerva. Heero followed in his ZEL Defender, but there was also one of the other mass production models the Federation used that came in after him. Along with the other Federation suit, there was a transport shuttle that came in, none of which Aila expected. Yet right now, she knew that with the situation that the Minerva was in, none on the ship were in the position to refuse the help.

Heero opened the hatch in his ZEL Defender and sailed out from his mobile suit moments before Aila exited the Osiris. The pilot of the other Federation mobile suit also came out of their cockpit, all three heading for the console that controlled the environment of the hanger. Heero reached the console first, closed the airtight shutters and had the hanger start pressurizing and restored oxygen to it. It took a few minutes for the hanger to become habitable again, once it did Aila removed her helmet. Heero and the other Federation pilot did the same as Aila and seeing Heero again was nice if unexpected for Aila. The other Federation pilot was someone Aila had never seen before, he was close to six feet tall by what Aila could tell. His hair was black and was in spikes that went in all directions which seemed to compliment his grey eyes. Aila had to admit to herself that the guy was handsome even if she wasn't looking into dating again after losing her boyfriend due to this war.

It was Heero's voice that brought Aila back on task, "With the crash that the Minerva has done, the systems of the ship will not be doing well, so the sooner that the ship is evacuated the better."

"Sounds like we all know what needs to be done, let's get too this then mates," said the other pilot in a drawl that those who lived around the Oceania Union possessed as far as Aila knew.

"And who might you be," Aila asked.

The other Federation pilot smiled and inclined his head, "The name is Luke Lascy lass, it's a pleasure to make the acquaintance of a pretty lady like yourself," he said leaving the introduction for Aila to provide her name.

"Aila Lakeen," she said.

"The two of you can chat later," Heero stated as he sailed towards the exit to the hanger.

Aila and Luke followed Heero as he was right, the safety of the Minerva's crew was in the balance. After opening the door, the three found themselves in a small crowd that was made up of the mechanics of the Minerva. There was shock with seeing Heero again since his transfer and in a Federation pilot suit as well. There were questions asked but Aila made her voice heard and with Chief Aves's help, the crowd was quieted down. Heero got the message of needing to get everyone on the Minerva to the shuttle in the hanger to leave the ship across. Aves then organized his mechanics to help with directing people to the shuttle, while the three pilots decided which part of the ship they would go through.

Heero said he would take the left side of the Minerva and Luke volunteered to do the same for the right side. That left the central area of the Minerva for Aila to go through and direct the crew towards the hanger. The three separated and headed to the parts of the ship they were to evacuate, which Aila headed for the bridge. When she reached the front of the ship, the door to the bridge when not in combat was sealed shut meaning that the bridge had been lowered and hadn't raised back up. So, Aila headed to the door that was used when the bridge was in its lowered position, but that door didn't open either. The lights flickering around her suggested that power in this area might be fluctuating enough that the door couldn't open on its own.

Aila took up banging on the door to see if she got any response, "Captain Gladys, Arthur, can you hear me," she shouted.

A moment later there did come a voice, "Aila," questioned Arthur. "If you're on the outside, please, use the manual release for the door. The power has been fluctuating too much for the door to open and the release on this side has failed."

Aila grabbed a pipe that had fallen from the damage the Minerva had taken and then used it to pry the cover that was over the manual release off. Once the panel was out of the way, Aila grabbed the two handles and used her strength to slowly twist them to their open position. And after she got both handles to be vertically aligned with each other, there was a hiss as air was released from the hydraulic system that was used for the doors in the Minerva. The silence of the air finishing its release came, Aila to move and put effort into opening the door. The door slowly slid back into the space and once Aila got the edge of the door revealed she curled her fingers around the edge and pulled harder.

Other hands grabbed the edge of the door from the other side helping Aila to get the door to be open so that the bridge crew could leave the bridge. Once the door was opened, Aila found herself looking at Arthur, "Is everyone okay in there," she asked.

Arthur nodded, "I believe so, I'm just glad you came by Aila. I was starting to wonder how we were going to get out from the bridge with the release failing on our side," he returned.

Aila inclined her head, "Don't mention it, where's the Captain?"

Arthur frowned, "The Captain left the ship I would imagine by now, where I can't say," he replied.

Aila wanted to inquire further, but she knew that there was not the time for that right now with the Minerva as she was. "Arthur, we need to get everyone to the hanger as soon as possible, the ship isn't going to be able to support her crew much longer. There is a Federation shuttle there now and that is our way out," Aila stated.

Arthur nodded and only said for the bridge crew to follow him as Aila and he began making their way towards the hanger. They checked rooms along their way to make sure that if there were crew members that they join their group. When they came into the corridor where the entrance to the hanger was, people were being directed into the hanger. As their group approach, from the door that led to the right side of the Minerva came an individual in a Federation pilot suit. They closed and seal the door behind himself and headed for the hanger interior after the crew members that come from that side of the ship.

Just as Aila, Arthur and those with them were getting to where Chief Aves was, Heero came out of the corridor to the right side of the Minerva. Arthur was shocked at seeing Heero again, but as time was short, there was no questions asked about him being here. Once in the hanger, the sight of members of the Minerva's crew entering the Federation shuttle drew immediate attention. Arthur and Aves took a few more minutes to get the rest of the crew into the shuttle and close the shuttle's door. Aila and Luke made their way back to their mobile suits while Heero went back to the console for the environmental controls and depressurize the hanger once the shuttle was locked and sealed. Heero headed back to his ZEL Defender which some of the younger mechanics had found interesting seeing much closer than they ever had before.

Luke with his Excel Fighter went to the catapult first, followed by the Osiris helping guide the shuttle to the catapult. Aila flew the Osiris out of the catapult and the shuttle coming after her with Heero's ZEL Defender bringing up the rear. The Minerva was left on the moon's surface, but a number of the crew members looked back at the ship, silently bidding farewell.

-Line Break-

-Tyler's pov-

Space Fortress Messiah

The second the lift I was in finally reached the level I wanted to get off at, I leapt out of the lift and was moving down the corridor as fast as I could. This fortress was coming apart around me and who knows how long it will loosely stay together, it was motivation to not stick around to find out how bad things were! As I went, I shoved my helmet on and made sure it was connected to my suit for the air tight seal to be good and working. I was making my way to the hanger and back to the Exalt hoping that Athrun and Kira had gotten to their mobile suits by this point. We were already cutting this jaunt close and too much so for comfort to really be felt, not need to make it worse! If we take too long, then this fortress will end out being our tome and I have plans that I need to be alive for!

It took me a little over a minute to reach the hanger, there was no one that I came across that stopped me, they were dead honestly. When I saw the doorway that led into the hanger, I spotted both Athrun and Kira looking to be waiting for me. I waved at them to go, "It's not the time to wait around you two, we don't have the luxury to do that! This place is coming down around us and I don't recommend we stick around to watch it happened," I chided.

At me saying that, Athrun and Kira spun around and headed for their mobile suits while I made my way to the Exalt quickly. Debris was falling around us accompanied by explosions, a sign of things were getting worse very quickly and it would be in our best interest to leave this place pronto. The second my butt made contact with the Exalt's pilot seat, I had the seat drop into the cockpit and the hatch seal behind me. I activated the Exalt's system and so when the panoramic display of the outside came up I saw that the debris was coming down harder and more frequently. An additional problem became instantly clear as well, the way out from the hanger was blocked badly and so it would unlikely be an option to work with for getting out.

I looked around for any and all options to work with, we needed a way out of this collapsing fortress and fast, no question about it! Time was not on our side anymore and it was stacking the odds higher and heavier against us the longer we were around the interior of this structure. It was when I caught sight of what looked like a rough tunnel that led further into the fortress that an idea came to me. When I had destroyed GENESIS, chunks of the fortress's structure had come off, but I would assume that the firing chamber would have become something akin to a tunnel. If that is so, then that may provide a way out from the interior of this place and that's what we needed.

The moment that I spotted the pathway, I connected a channel to both the Freedom and the Justice, "Kira, Athrun, the way we came in is no longer a viable means to leave this place, so another way out is required. And as it happens, I've been struck by miraculous inspiration, or insane machinations depending on how you want to look at it," I stated.

Athrun was the first to reply to me, "Tye, at this point I don't think any of us are in a position to be picky about what kind of inspiration any of us have."

"I would agree, the situation we're in will be our last if nothing changes," said Kira. "So, whatever it is you've cooked up, let's get to it."

It is rare for Kira to be onboard with my crazy ideas without a single bit of coaxing from me or Athrun. Even Athrun would usually take a bit of explanation to be fully in with what I come up with. And I'll admit, what I have in mind is more nuts than my average plans I cook up even by my standards. However, as Kira had so eloquently put it, our current situation is one that will be our last and lead to our death if something doesn't change. "Right then, follow my lead and we may get out of this place alive yet," I stated.

I moved the Exalt out into the open and then shifted it into its flight mode pointing it at the rough tunnel I had spotted before. Moving forward into the wreckage wasn't easy by any means, it was tight and required keeping an eye on the space between our suits and debris. Kira wasn't too far behind me and Athrun was pretty much on his tail as we made our way forward. The other issue in this long-shot of a chance to get out was that the interior structure of this place wasn't sound and so changed often. And yet, after a couple of long minutes which felt much longer than they actually were, I spotted what looked like some of what I saw with the original GENESIS. I suspected that was the area I was looking for and the 'tunnel' that would allow the three of us to leave this collapsing fortress. I had to orient the Exalt vertically to get into the former weapon of mass destruction's firing chamber or shaft. I found that the shaft had taken damage from my efforts but was essentially a tunnel now all be it filled with shrapnel and debris.

Upon looking towards the end of the tunnel where the weapon's dish had been, I was not happy to see that it was blocked by all sorts of crap and junk. It was still the best way out of this place that my best friends and I had to work with, suppose we'll just have to clear the way then. I brought the Exalt's particle cannons to bear on the debris that would make a better door than a window. "It looks like we just need to clear the path and we should be home free," I remarked.

I fired my particle cannons Kira shortly added his multi-phased cannons and Athrun contributed his four particle cannons to the job as well. Our weapon-fire slammed into the wreckage melting some of it and forcing other pieces out of the way. The sight of stars was encouraging as debris moved aside, so the three of us kept at our efforts. By the time we had an opening big enough to work with, the frequency of the explosions around us were picking up sharply. I figured that if that wasn't the signal to leave, then I can't think what would do better. We flew in a single-file line forward toward the hole that we opened as the shaft was coming down around us. Explosions kept getting closer as we zoomed through the shaft at where the dish had been before and was our ticket out of this place.

The flames and flying debris encroached upon the three of us as we raced through the shaft, but we ended out reaching the opening just as the explosions did and a little ahead of the shrapnel. Still, we rode out the shockwave that was created from the explosions and the structure of the fortress collapsing, shooting out of the hole at the end of the shaft. The space fortress fell and crashed down on the surface of the moon defacing a section of the lunar landscape not too long after Kira, Athrun and I exited the place. The escape had been close, far too close for comfort to be felt by any of us I would bet, at least I hadn't felt any. However, the three of us were alive and kicking and that is what counted in the end in my view!

When I looked around the battlefield, the fighting was coming to a close all over it. I kind of expected that when Durandal was confronted and dealt with, the destruction of the fortress was an added motivation for the battle to end. Athrun, Kira and I were cruising toward the closest vessels in the allied fleet when the announcement came. "To all remaining ZAFT forces, the battle is over, enough lives have been lost," stated the voice of Admiral Treize. "My brothers and sisters, there has been enough of this conflict. Now is the time to show the courage and lay down your weapons and commit to end this war."

The sight of signal flares beginning to paint the backdrop of space was perhaps one of the more beautiful things I'd seen in a long while. They came from ZAFT vessels, Alliance ships and Federation vessels as well all signaling a cease fire. "Now, there's a very welcome sight to see," I remarked, a smile growing on my face.

"You're right Tye, it looks like the fighting can finally come to an end," Athrun agreed.

"The fighting and the war can be over, thank goodness," Kira said.

I couldn't help the smile that came to my face at Kira's comment for it spoke the real point of the matter. The thought of the war coming to an end was a very nice one, that was accompanied by the realization that I seriously needed a vacation. I hadn't had a real vacation since just after the close of the previous war and the conflict had been taking its toll on me. Then, I'm fairly sure that there will need to be a clarifying of what will be going on between Sakura and I going forward. Along with that, I'll have to break that news to those in my inner circle and I'm not looking all that forward to doing that to anyone else. Some people I know, I could picture their reactions of Sakura and I 'dating', but others it was harder to imagine or completely unknown to me.

As we made our way closer to where the location of the fleet, we broke up and went to different ships. Kira went to the Eternal, I would have expected no less with him, that's likely where Lacus is and he probably see her, lucky boy isn't he. Athrun headed for the Archangel, he would be thinking of seeing Cagalli again since those two make such a cute couple. As for me, I made my way toward the Normandy, glad to see she had made it through the battle in fair condition. Sure, she would need some repairs and a paint job to make her look like new again, but I'll take that rather than her being destroyed. I've grown rather fond of the Normandy over the time I've served as her captain.

I contacted and informed the Normandy that I was coming in as I flew into line up with the Normandy's linear catapult. The rails of the catapult lowered down when I shifted the Exalt out of its flight mode and I aimed the feet for the magnetic platform that would take me inside the ship. The deceleration process was routine, much better than how cables do the job of stopping you as the Normandy's catapult does with magnetic repulsion instead. Seconds after contacting the magnetic platform, I released the controls as the rest of the process of the Exalt being brought into the hanger was out of my hands.

The Exalt cycled through the airlock and came into the Normandy's hanger and then moved to its dock. It felt good to not just get back to the Normandy, but to be back on board my ship, better than I thought it would be. Granted, it would behoove me to visit Dr. Noll and have her look at my shoulder having had a bullet punched a hole through it, and I'll get to that. Once in the dock, I opened the cockpit and my seat rose upward out of the cockpit into the hanger. Two mechanics were close by the cockpit and they saluted when I removed my helmet. I nodded in acknowledged the salutes to me and had my pilot suit release from the Exalt's seat.

Floating away from the Exalt slowly, I let the stress fade from me slowly as I began making my way toward the entrance to the hanger area. I did glance around the hanger along my way and took notice that the mobile suits here weren't the one that started onboard. There was the Phoenix meaning Sakura was somewhere around the Normandy which I expected. There was also the Rapture however, the Kyrios and the Virtue were missing, instead the ZAFT suit from the assault on Asgard was in a dock. Now, I haven't the faintest clue why this suit would find its way back onto the Normandy, but I wouldn't doubt there was a story to it.

I shook my head, putting the question of who the machine's pilot was and why they had come onto the Normandy to the back of my mind, it could be answered later. I was about to resume sailing towards the door that would get me to the rest of the ship, when the sound of Chief Volyon shouting something about another mobile suit coming in. I twisted around to view what was going on since there should be either the Virtue or the Kyrios coming on and they would have been mentioned by name. So, for there to be a mobile suit being taken in that was not one of them, it makes me wonder what is going on. Lisa was on the bridge, she would have to give permission for a suit not assigned to the Normandy and I trust her judgement completely.

Nevertheless, when the airlock opened and the machine inside began coming out I could only stare. Why might you ask, because the blue, red and white ZAFT suit was now coming into the Normandy's hanger. I wasn't the only one staring at the mobile suit as it was moved to the last free dock in the hanger, many were. For me, knowing that the kid Shinn Asuka was inside was kind of a mixed bag. In this battle, he had been an opponent, then an ally, so there needs to be more information on what has gone down before making a judgement call. Once the ZAFT suit was moved into a dock, a hatch in the lower torso opened and out came not one but two individuals in ZAFT pilot suits. I assumed that one of them was the kid Shinn, yet who the other one was I couldn't say at the moment.

"Good to see you're still alive Shinn and not among the casualties," I greeted drawing the attention of the two ZAFT pilots to me. "Although, I didn't expect to see you on the Normandy again so soon, if at all really."

"Likewise sir," Shinn replied, his companion and himself floating in my direction.

Hearing Shinn address me in the formal manner that he did, I gave him a deadpanned expression in response. "I do believe that I have said that formalities aren't my thing and not to bother using them with me," I stated flatly. Then my expression morphed into a neutral look, "So then, what brings you and your companion onto the Normandy?"

Shinn saluted, "Well, I couldn't find where the Minerva ended out and the Normandy is the only other ship I've been on. So, the Normandy seemed the best choice to go with, and Vice-captain Malto gave permission to come onboard sir," he said.

Okay, I have to hand it to the kid, he is something else, different than most I've been around. Shinn Asuka was a little like Kira without the naiveté as unusual as the comparison is that's the best I can come up with. I didn't like that the kid insisted to be formal by calling me sir when I told him not to, but to each their own I guess. Shinn removed his helmet as did his companion who I found was a girl around his own age. And the longer I look at the girl, the more I was reminded of the girl that had been with Athrun at Serenity City. She had a tad darker shade of red with the hair, but there was enough to suggest a family relation of some sort, but I can't say for sure.

I waved a hand in dismissal, "It's fine Shinn, the fight is over so no need to gripe I say, others may disagree with me."

I may have gone on, but the girl gained an expression of recognition, "You're that crazy driver guy," she said in an aggressive tone while she pointed at me.

Crazy driver guy? I studied the girl for a bit and then memories began flooding back that involved this girl with Shinn. This girl had been with Athrun when he had come to crash at my place at the Republic, looked to have been rather drunk at the time. Then I had encountered her after meeting with Athrun and Kira a distance away from Diocuia. I had given her a ride back into town in fact as the vehicle she had been using had broken down. Instead of taking insult to the tone like a number would I took a bow, "Well fancy that, and you would be the girl that was brought drunk to my place by a friend of mine. Then you're also the girl I picked up after meeting with friends in a remote location that you really shouldn't have been," I replied getting the girl to look away from me at that comment. Shinn was also staring at his companion at the last line that I had said. But I just smirked, "Still, I do hope you enjoy my driving style, I do work hard to keep my skills in tip top shape though I'm told it isn't everyone's cup of tea."

The girl whose name I didn't know the name of didn't like my reply and she glared hard at me with frustration. But that was one of the reactions that had gotten me to smirk even more and I find humorous which spurred me on to do what I do. I could have kept riling the girl up but thought better of it right now as there was still work to be done, so resumed my journey towards the entrance to the hanger.

-Line Break-

-Neutral pov-

Tyler stopped by the Normandy's infirmary and got his shoulder patched up properly, and while that was being done, he was being brought up to date on what had been going on. The Burst Freedom had made it back to the Eternal and Tyler kept his mouth shut though thoughts of Kira and Lacus 'celebrating' one another coming back from the battle did run through his mind. The Archangel had taken on the Minerva's crew along with two mobile suits other than the Justice and other machines that it had carried. So, Tyler did tell Lisa to see if the Normandy could assist the Archangel in some way such as take some of the stress off. When Lisa acknowledged Tyler's idea to help take a bit of the load off the Archangel, he then headed for the airlock along the bottom of the Normandy.

Meanwhile, Shinn and Luna had also left the Normandy's hanger, Shinn leading the way as he knew the layout of the ship. Luna was grumbling as memories of the terrifying car ride she experienced around Shira coming to mind. However, she came out of her thoughts when she and Shinn came into the common area and was somewhat stunned at what she was seeing. The common area of the Normandy was made up of a mess hall type area, a lounge and a bit of an open area. "This isn't what I would have imagined the inside of a Federation vessel would look like," Luna commented slowly.

"Yeah, I know, it took me by surprise when I first saw it," Shinn replied.

Luna was left to just staring around and wondering many things about the Federation and its military. So, little was known about the Federation's military outside of itself for sure and there were rumors ranging from believable to downright ludicrous. Luna hadn't believed most of the rumors she'd heard, but with no information about the interior of Federation vessel not even pictures, it was surprising to see it looked so normal. Perhaps it was because the Federation said and confirmed so little about themselves that gave them the mysterious reputation they had. From the events this war had brought about along with the last one, the fact that the Federation's personnel were still people and human just like everyone else slipped one's mind.

At the same time, Tyler had gotten to the room with the airlock still in his pilot suit as he hadn't had the time to change yet. It didn't take long for the airlock to signal the tunnel had a good seal with the Archangel and Tyler opened the airlock at the Normandy's end. He launched himself into the tunnel and sailed toward the Archangel and came to a stop at the ship's outer hull. Tyler had no need for contacting the Archangel to open the airlock to get inside, the codes hadn't change and Tyler still knew them. So, Tyler entered the Archangel and came to the internal lock and began the process of opening the hatch.

While that was happening, inside the Archangel's hanger Athrun was talking to members of the Minerva's crew. The Osiris and a Federation Excel Fighter had brought in the shuttle that had contained the Minerva's crew. Arthur had explained their plight to Murrue and she had gave shelter to the Minerva's crew onboard the Archangel. The Federation pilot Athrun saw was one of those that had been around Tyler off and on throughout both the current and previous war. And now that the battle was over, Athrun's thoughts turned to those who were either missing or were unaccounted for.

It was good to know that the crew of the Minerva were alive for Athrun knew they were good people so didn't deserve to die. There were a few that were not with the crew, namely the three mobile suit pilots other than Aila herself. Rey was likely gone with the fall of Messiah along with Captain Gladys and Gilbert Durandal, but that left Shinn and Lunamaria still among the missing. Athrun had seen Shinn or rather the Destiny before he had entered Messiah, so as far as he knew Shinn should still be alive and it was the same story with Lunamaria as well. Heck, Aila even came up to Athrun and inquired if had any info on the two missing teens whether good or bad, "Athrun, any word on what happened to Shinn or Lunamaria? The last time I saw the Destiny it was heading off and you weren't far behind it and I believe Luna would've followed him."

Athrun frowned, "Unfortunately no, the last I saw of Shinn was around the fight in the area of the Messiah fortress and it is the same for Lunamaria.

The conversation might have kept going, but it was interrupted by a muffled hiss and then clunk, "Whoa, it's still incredibly clean and organized in this hanger compared to others I've seen." All attention shifted over to the hatch in the hanger floor that had opened only to see Tyler poking his upper body out. "Seriously, what a difference a clean and ordered hanger can make, do keep up the great job Murdoch," Tyler said in greeting.

Chief Murdoch was caught off guard a bit at the unexpected compliment, "Oh yeah, sure," he replied.

Athrun was trying to come up with a reason why Tyler would come to the Archangel for the how wasn't questionable. After all, Tyler was the captain of the Normandy and that ship could like pretty much most if not all Federation vessels connect a way to board another ship. So, the why was the crux of the matter as Tyler didn't do things without a reason that made sense to him. "Tye, what are you doing here," Athrun asked.

Tyler faced Athrun, "Me? Well, I came to lighten the load the Archangel is carrying now. I'm surprised you need ask, or maybe it's just the news hasn't reached down here yet." Tyler had a hand come to his chin, then he shrugged, "Whatever the case, I have my reasons and by the way, the kid and a friend of his I assume did end out on the Normandy in case you're wondering," Tyler remarked.

"Wait, who are you referring to when you say kid," questioned Aila.

"He means Shinn," Athrun replied filling in for the unsaid answer.

Tyler nodded, "Yep Shinn came onto the Normandy, said something along the lines of not being able to find his ship and so landed on my ship," he iterated.

For Aila, it was nice to know that Shinn and very likely Lunamaria were okay, but for them to end out on a Federation vessel was unexpected. And this man that had given the information sounded like he knew Shinn more than just an acquaintance. True, he looked like the same individual that owned the residence which Athrun had taken herself and the other three Minerva pilots to while in the Republic, but that didn't explain how he knew what he did. Then in the reply he had given, he had talked about the Federation frigate Normandy as if he was its commander and captain. It was possible, but unlikely with his age, which Aila guessed to be around the same as her own.

However, before she could question anything Tyler had said, Athrun moved forward, "How's your shoulder, I hope you've had someone look at it by this point," he said.

Tyler let out a laugh, "Yeah, I've gotten it patched and stitched up, thankfully, the bullet went clean through and didn't hit anything vital," he replied. "Anyways, time is a wasting, so those from the Minerva that are coming to the Normandy, let's get moving."

The next fifteen minutes was spent transferring a number of the Minerva's crew to the Normandy from the Archangel. The job was done to equal out the crew capacity between the two ships as to not strain either vessel. Arthur stayed with those that were on the Archangel while Aila went with those that went to the Normandy. Athrun also headed over to the Normandy as he thought he could do more there than on the Archangel as things stood.

-Line Break-

-Tyler's pov-

I sailed back through the tunnel connecting the Normandy to the Archangel with a bit brighter mood. Why you might ask, my ship is getting extra personnel and they should be able to help around the ship and give some relief to the crew. Like when Shinn had gotten a ride on the Normandy, I intend to have those traveling on the ship pull their own weight. You can call the idea what you like, but I see such as fair and reasonable expectation.

The transferring of people began and moved along at a fair pace between the two ships. My thoughts shifted from that to what would come next now that the battle was coming to its end. And where the battle may be coming to an end, there is was still clean up to do from the results and it wouldn't be a nice job. I can't say if the Normandy will be one of the ships that stays for that or if we will be going elsewhere from here. I'm kind of hoping that the Normandy doesn't get assigned into the cleanup personally since such jobs are never nice. However honestly, that choice isn't mine to make, it's above my pay grade and I don't envy those whose decision it is.

I did head to the pilot locker room and changed out of my pilot suit and back into my normal uniform. It was as I made my way towards the bridge to get updated on what was going on that I came across the new arrivals for the Normandy. I did see a few familiar faces among the crowd, such as Athrun and then there was also Luke to name a few. Admittedly, having more people like this felt nice, I'll be having them work still, but it is nice in a way. I weaved through the crowds of people without being noticed really, comes from the undercover assignments I've done. I was also doing my best to avoid a certain pink-haired woman as my shoulder is still sore and I doubt she would register that with me. Sakura was never one to listen to me telling her she was hurting me, so avoidance is the best way to deal with the idea.

When I did reach the Normandy's bridge, everyone was where they were supposed to be as was now an expectation for me. I floated to my chair and sat down in it and Lisa looked up at me, "Good to see that you made it back though I hear that you took a bullet in the process," she greeted.

I smiled a bit, "Something like that I guess, never will know how some stray bullets find me but they do on occasion," I replied.

"Captain," spoke up Millais Alloy our comm-officer, "We just received orders sir."

Lisa and I faced forward at hearing that, "Is that so, well then Miss Alloy, let's hear what those orders are," I said.

These orders would be what would tell us whether we would be helping with the clean up from this battle or did something else. "The Normandy is to head to Earth and descend to the surface. We will be helping in the efforts to set up a peace conference, location is still being determined," Miss Alloy stated.

So then, the Normandy got out of cleanup duty, but will likely be doing escort and security detail, I guess it could be worse. "Thank you Miss Alloy for the information," I said before turning my attention to the ship's pilot, "Paris, as much as I would like to tell you to put your foot down, I can't do that officially. So unofficially, once we get out of detection range of those here at Daedalus, I say screw the speed recommendation and get us to Earth at a decent pace."

"I hear ya Cap, will do," replied Paris without missing a beat.

I looked to Lisa, "Hey Lisa, since we got a temporary pool of personnel to work with than we would usually have, could trouble you in making shift rosters accordingly," I asked. "Believe that you and I, along with Athrun and Sakura can manage the running of this ship between the four of us. I wouldn't doubt that those two would be willing to help the two of us out and get some down time."

Lisa nodded, "Yeah I could, you would need to take over hear for a time, but other than that it should be fine," she returned.

And with that, Lisa got up and left the bridge of the Normandy leaving me in charge and honestly, it was a nice change to giving orders rather than fighting with a mobile suit. Don't get me wrong, whipping rear in a mobile suit is neat and awesome most of the time, but doing all the time can get tedious. And I do want some time around 'my' crew on the Normandy, I take my mother's example on being a good leader, get to know those around you. So, it's nice to get a change every once and a while from what tends to be the norm, I'll admit it. I know that I would unlikely take a captain's chair before I was made to, but now that I have done the job, it's not as bad as I thought it would be when I was told I was getting it.

It was a quiet hour that went by before Lisa popped back onto the bridge and one look from her told me that she had made the arrangements that I had asked her to. In fact, it was a short period later that Sakura came onto the bridge and I thought it best that Lisa and she work as a team while Athrun and I do the same. I will neither confirm or deny that I decided the pairings so that I get time away from Sakura being the reason. So, I slipped off the bridge successfully without my potential girlfriend managing to stop me.

I did find and told Athrun of the intended arrangement of he and I doing a shift of being in-charge for the ship. My friend didn't have an issue with the idea, he was a tad surprise when I told him about it that I would think of him for the job. As for the rest of those from the Minerva that were now on the Normandy, they were assigned to stations on the ship. Chief Volyon took the mechanics and put them straight to work like he does the mechanics under his charge. I let the man do as he saw fit, he's shown his judgement is sound so I let him do things his way. The others helped out around other areas of the ships giving some relief to the members of my crew.

When the time for Lisa's and Sakura's shift to end, Athrun and I came onto the bridge and took the seats they vacated. In fact, it wasn't just Athrun and I that were coming on duty, most of the bridge crew was switching out. As before, Shinn did time on the bridge giving Feldt a break, but he wasn't the only one from the Minerva's crew that substituted for members of the normal bridge crew. Shinn's companion whose name I learned was Lunamaria Hawke also took a station, the communications console to be precise. There were others that came on and around half of the bridge crew was personnel from the Minerva while the rest were those who normally substituted for bridge crew. Heck, Paris even got to switch out with the other Minerva mobile suit pilot so that he could get some down time. I did tell Paris that what he did while not on shift was up to him, but he was to be sober and alert when he started his next shift. We'll be doing reentry, so I want Paris completely on task to not complicate things with the descent.

Athrun actually in my opinion makes a good ship officer, vice-captain included in that, he could see what needed to be done and is confident in giving out orders as required. Then there was a bonus as he knew and had the trust of those from the Minerva from what I could tell. It made things go somewhat smoother at least and I'll take that as I can get it, less complaints from the higher ups. And the higher up I wanted to avoid ticking off would be my boss, and that's for my survival and any future generation I could possibly have I do that for! I would rather Admiral Raine not break my ball or make it so they don't function properly, I try to avoid giving her potential reasons to do so.

Back to the present, the Normandy was cruising towards Earth with a few other vessels including the Archangel and the Dominion. Apparently, those two would be descending down to Earth with the Normandy to wherever the conference would be taking place. I was kind of curious as to whom would get to host this peace conference as it could either the best event in history or one of the biggest crapshoots possible, only time would tell which. Any time the leaders from the three factions get together it is a tossup between a good event or a horrible experience by its conclusion.

Around half a day went by before Lisa and Sakura switched Athrun and I for the in-charge position. Athrun and I headed for the common are the Normandy had to get a meal and found a number from the crew of the Minerva around there. The conversations that I overheard weren't of much interest to me, pretty normal gossip subject matter and I'm not one to heed or listen to gossip often. However, there was one conversation that did catch my attention which was between the kid Shinn and others he clearly knew. Shinn was sitting at one of the tables and the point of note was Stella was sitting next to him and was sticking rather close to the boy. The friend that had come out of the mobile suit with Shinn didn't appear too happy about that, while others around Shinn's age seemed to be questioning him.

"Man Shinn how do you get so lucky," questioned a different boy. The boy had brown spiky hair with an orange section in the center, he was also wearing a mechanic's outfit as well. The way he was talking to Shinn the two were probably friends were I to guess.

"I don't know what you're talking about Vino," Shinn replied.

The kid does remind me of Kira an amount, it's a tad amusing I'll say that much. I also did notice Tanya Loussier a distance away looking at Stella, watching the situation as it unfolded. And now that I look at the two and compare, there is a clear resemblance between the two girls, so much so that they were very likely sisters. Their different eye colors and the clear age gap was the real noticeable difference that I could see. Athrun was watching the interactions as I was, likely wondering what would happen in this next as I was.

"Oh come on Shinn," said the boy Vino. "You got a good-looking girl with you, tell me your secret man! You got ladies vying for your attention, you got to tell me how you do it."

This kid that is talking or rather begging Shinn to tell him how he attracts girls doesn't know what he is asking for. Being popular with females isn't as nice as many would think it is by what 'they see' and that is the key point. Those like this Vino see those of us that have ladies around them from the outside and as an observer, not from the center stage position, and let me tell you it ain't as neat as they see it! Case and point, even if it is an extreme example Sakura and me, Sakura stalked me, but others rarely ever saw the activity so don't believe it happens. Heck, my two best friends had doubted my descriptions of Sakura's antics until they saw them first hand. Being popular isn't anywhere near as glamorous as most would think it is, not as a mobile suit pilot, a war hero or just a guy. I let out a loud sight to draw the attention of the teenagers, "You know, popularity isn't as great as most think it is, I can attest to that fact personally," I commented.

The teens looked over to me, the one that had been pestering Shinn gave me a weak glare, "What would you know," he challenged.

What would I know about the subject of being popular, more than I ever wanted to and I never had the choice to begin with. The years Sakura's been stalking me had done things to me that I doubt will ever be fixed or undone. The issue is that when I give the story and any real details as to what Sakura does to me, no one really believes me and thinks I'm lying. I folded my arms, "More than I ever wanted to kid, enough to tell you that you don't understand how non-fun popularity can be. Having girls chasing you as you imply is what you want isn't nice or fun to deal with."

The reply I got to my wisdom I was attempting to convey was the kid repeating that I didn't understand. Kid is probably dealing with raging hormones, he is at the age that does tend to happen, and it can be problematic in various ways. I put a hand to my forehead, "Goodness me, the things I missed out on growing up between military service and being stalked," I said out loud.

The teens stared at me, while Athrun gained a sad expression, "You certainly have had it rough because of Sakura," he remarked.

I let out a moan, "The truth of that cannot be fully said with recognizable words my friend." Then I gained a look of acceptance as I had not forgotten what I had said to Sakura before this battle, "But I guess that I've come to accept the inevitable. It's not like she's going to leave me alone any time soon, so I decided to give her a chance with conditions attached."

Athrun's eyes went wide at my last sentence, "Wait, you did what," he questioned.

I would have answered, but Shinn spoke up before I could, "What are you two talking about," he asked, then focused on me, "You have a stalker?"

There's a question that is a difficult one for me to answer in a way that can convey to others what I go through and experience. All I could do was sigh an speak my thoughts, "Oh where to begin with this subject for it is vast. Then, what can I say that you would believe as most I've told this to don't think what I iterate is possible." All the teens paid attention to me as I spoke, so I continued, "To answer your second question Shinn, yes I have a stalker and have had one since I was around your age. I'm not exactly sure how it all started, and I've racked my brains to attempt to figure it out and I've come up with nothing. I could tell you who said stalker is, but that's where pretty much all start to think that I'm lying to the point that my pants are blazing with flames even though I'm not. The woman's name is Sakura, but you I wouldn't doubt have heard her nickname which is the Black Zephyr."

The moment I said Sakura's name as a Champion of ZAFT I got a variety of reactions from disbelief to scoffing. Lunamaria was the one to make her view vocal, "Yeah right, if you're going to give a story try harder to make it believable."

I exhaled heavily, "Like I said, most if any actually believe me," jabbed a finger at Athrun, "The reason Athrun here does is he's seen first-hand what I have to deal with, before he did he thought I was exaggerating about Sakura, which with her reputation I can understand."

Athrun nodded slowly, "Yes, indeed I did think you were and I'm sorry that I doubted you. Commander Clyne has been giving you hell in a way that I would have never thought I would see with her," he admitted. "But, what did you mean that you are giving her a chance with conditions Tyler?"

I hesitated a margin at what Athrun asked for it was part of the clarification I knew would come. "Well, I said something along the lines of that she and I can try courting as long as she stops her stalking habits. Whether she does that or not, I can't say, but I did mention that should we both survive that we could give the idea a shot," I said.

"I can't believe you told her something like that," Athrun replied.

I gave Athrun a knowing look, "Right… says the one who has a girl back on Earth, literally waiting for you to ask her to go farther with you," I shot back.

All the teens were paying complete attention at this point, I even hear the girl Lunamaria whispering something about not knowing that Athrun had a girlfriend after finding out the engagement to 'Lacus Clyne' was fake. Athrun seemed to be a bit at a loss for words, I simply smiled, "Like I said before man, you need only ask the big question my friend. I'm more than ninety-five percent confident that she would say yes were you to do so, bet she's been silently hinting for you to get to the task even if you are both young. You have her father's approval, that I do guarantee," I remarked.

Athrun started blushing but said nothing to me while the teens observing began asking questions as to whom we were referring to. I didn't tell them that I was talking about Cagalli, Athrun will be the one that says anything about that if anything is said at all. I may tease the two about their relationship, but I'm also cheering them on for it to work out honestly.

It took a bit more than a day for those heading toward Earth to arrive at high orbit around the planet. The Normandy was in the lead of the group by a margin, due in part to the pilot Lars Paris pushing the Normandy a bit. Athrun and I were on the Normandy's bridge as the ship came into the position to commence a descent down to Earth's surface. The changing of shift was close to done for the bridge crew, so a good portion of the bridge crew was the normal set. Really, there was just Shinn at the search and detection station along with Aila in the copilot chair left out of the normal bridge crew.

Since we were at the point to start the descent down to Earth, I saw no reason to delay the task,

"Well, now that we're here, let's get this going shall we," I posed.

"All hands prepare for descent," Athrun announced over the ship-wide intercom.

"Beginning stage one of entry interface," said one of the bridge crew.

The Normandy oriented itself to lock into its planned descent vector as was the task of the first phase of Earth's entry interface. Only the Normandy, Archangel and Dominion would go down to Earth, being the only transatmospheric ships in the group that had traveled to the Earth Sphere. After the entry vector was lock in, the Normandy began slowly descending into Earth's stratosphere. The Normandy quickly began shaking as if came into the atmosphere of Earth, while back on the bridge of the Normandy, the crew was keeping a close eye on the readouts their displays were showing. "Cap, we have a tad less than two minutes before starting phase three of reentry," called Paris.

"Preparing to release ablative gel now," said crewman at one of the support systems stations.

Up at the helm, both Lars and Aila were tightly gripping their controls as the Normandy shook descending downward. "Got to say girl, you're not half bad at driving a ship," Paris remarked to Aila.

Aila gritted her teeth, "The comment is nice, but I am used to piloting a mobile suit, and being at the helm of a ship doing reentry is not a trivial," Aila returned.

A short period of time passed, and the Normandy came lower into the atmosphere coming into the third phase of reentry. "Deploying gel in preparation for entering the thermosphere," announced the same crewman that the announced preparing the ablative gel.

Ablative gel was spread over the underside of the Normandy just as it entered the thermosphere, the wings shifted to be parallel with the ships structure. The shaking that the Normandy was experiencing became heavy as serious atmospheric friction came into play. Most if not all visual pictures from displays of the outside became distorted from the atmospheric heat. The Normandy fell downward towards Earth's surface, the Archangel and the Dominion beginning the process soon after the Normandy did.

It took the Normandy around ten to fifteen minutes to finish the reentry process, retracting the ablative gel back to its storage tanks. The ship did slow down somewhat before coming down to the water of the Pacific Ocean. The Archangel and the Dominion landed around the same area as the Normandy did and the three received orders to head for Shira in the Republic. There were no other details given as to why the destination was what it was, so there were guesses and that led to rumors. Some of those being that this peace conference could be held at Shira among other things. It wouldn't be a surprise if Shira was being considered as a place to host this upcoming conference. There were other places that would work just as well, there was no official site chosen for the event yet.

It was mid-afternoon when the three ships came into sight of Shira, and the ships were directed to dry docks. The crews disembarked once the ships were in the docks including myself with the Normandy's crew. And I have to admit, it was really nice to be around the place I call home aside from the Normandy and somewhat the Archangel. What did catch me by surprise was that my mother was at the docks to meet those of us that had come. I wouldn't doubt that my mom is busy with leading the Republic, more so these days than before now. So, for her to make the time to come out to the docks to greet us is notable for a few reasons.

Most of the crew of the Archangel recognized my mother, though the majority of the rest here didn't know who she was. Natarle and Murrue moved forward as did I, we are the captains of the three ships that had docked here after all. And now that I think about it, I believe Natarle is still in the dark that my mom is the Republic's leader. I know for a fact that the woman had tried to figure out who my parents are after some of the times we clashed. I get the feeling that she might just learn that fact today and I doubt she would believe the idea without my mother confirming it.

My mom bowed slightly, "To you, your crews and ships services, the citizens of the Republic along with myself are grateful for your efforts in helping the fighting come to an end, thank you," she said.

Murrue returned the greeting, "Honestly Prime Minister, we were all just doing our best to stop the fighting from getting more people killed," she replied.

Natarle mimicked the gesture, "Likewise Minister Blass, it is an honor that you came out to greet us personally," Natarle said.

I on the other hand, waved off the praise from my mother, "It's nothing, just fulfilling the job description of whipping rear and saving lives at the same time while making it look amazing while doing so," I stated.

Natarle glared at me while Murrue was quiet probably trying not to laugh, "Tyler! For once exercise some manners," she growled at me.

I snickered, "Oh Natarle, see your as strict as you always seem to be, brings back memories of earlier times, good times no? I don't know if I've suggested the idea before to you, but maybe you should consider increasing the size in which you buy clothes, seems to me that yours may be too tight with the attitude you have," I replied.

Oh, the reaction I got from Natarle Badgiruel made the line worth saying for it was hilarious! It was obvious Natarle wanted to shut me up, manhandle me if you will, and with what I said I would say well-deserved that is by me. Natarle and I still clash just as we did in the days during the Alliance-PLANT War and I had almost forgotten how much fun could be to prod this woman. If she didn't reaction like she did, then I would have stopped a while back, but her responses are predictable and entertaining for me and had made sure that I kept prodding. Natarle spun around and faced my mom, "I am terribly sorry for his conduct ma'am," Natarle glared at me, "He should know better and be showing manners!"

I don't know whether to fall to the ground laughing or keep a straight and innocent face to make this more interesting. Yet, a long sigh drew our attention, "I see that your interest in prodding some is still as prevalent as ever Tyler," my mother said in a tired voice.

Natarle's gaze went back to my mom, "You know this young man Madam Prime Minister," she questioned.

I couldn't hold in the snickers, "I can't say if this is more ironic or just downright funny," I mused. That drew Natarle's glare to me once again, to which I smiled, "After all the time you spent trying to find out more about me when I frustrated you so and yet you have and answer right in front of you."

Natarle gained a look of bafflement, but Murrue then went and spoiled the fun, "Tyler is referring to the point that the Minister Blass here is in actuality his mother," she stated.

There was a moment of silence, "Murrue, that's just crazy," Natarle said in a tone of reason. "There is no way that Tyler here is related to one of the Federation's political leaders."

And Natarle gives me opportunity once again to get a good reaction from her, so instead of saying anything to that line, I simply walked forward and got in front of my mother. "Hey mom, I'm home. I did the best I could to get back here alive and kicking," I greeted completely relaxed.

My mother smiled a bit, "So you have, and you gave quite a speech on the battlefield that went out for the world to hear," she replied.

That caused me to have a double take, "Wait, that rant against Durandal was being broadcasted," I exclaimed.

The woman that brought me into the world just nodded, "Indeed it was, many things you said I think brought attention to points that weren't being looked at. And I would agree with you in existence not being good enough to pass off as life. I clearly pictured Lance beaming with pride and Lana cheering you on." Mom then twisted to look at Natarle, "And hard as it may be to believe at times with what he does and how he acts, Tyler is indeed my son Captain Badgiruel."

Natarle's mouth dropped and I laughed, "See, even if I told you who my parents were, you would've never believed me," I said falling into laughing again.

-Line Break-

-Neutral pov-

Close to a month went by after the Battle of Messiah and the planned peace conference was scheduled. The place chosen for the event was in the Republic, but outside of Shira itself a short distance. It was a 'Summer home' for the Republic's leadership, not that Minister Blass used the place for that idea often. However, it was decided that the site would do as security could be strictly be regulated and less potential triggers to set someone off. The situation was volatile enough as was with the feelings between the factions with how the war had been going, so actions were taken to try and prevent adding to the volatility.

Leaders from the factions would attend the conference, both political and military to have a say in the agreement that was going to be drafted. It was clear that there needed to be some different action taken than was done by the Treaty of Junius Seven. The Faction War as the most recent conflict was being referred to as had proven that enforcement of the agreement had to be done and in such a way that made the least number of loopholes as possible. Some taking advantage of loophole was one of the reasons the conflict came around, so humans must learn from that error to be doomed to repeat the horrors and sorrows that came before.

Security around the residence was tighter than tight, IDs and documents were being double, normally triple checked and screened. There were personnel patrolling and closely observing the whole perimeter of the place all hours of the day and night starting a full week before the conference. Anything suspicious was immediately reported and dealt with giving no opportunity to terrorist of any kind to subvert this conference.

On the day that the conference was scheduled the world and colony leaders gathered at the chosen place. The feeling was somber as over the last month the efforts to stop the fighting and also return the dead to their families had been ongoing. All the Federation political leaders were present, as was haft the Federation's military admiralty, one representative from each branch. For the Earth Alliance, both Joseph Copeland and Sally Po were in attendance along with two OMNI Enforcer top brass. As for those that were representing the PLANTs and ZAFT, the acting chairwoman of the PLANT Supreme Council was there as was the head of the National Defense Committee. A few members of the Supreme Council's Diplomatic Committee were also with the acting chairwoman.

When all had taken seats around a large table facing each other so began the drafting of the treaty to end the Faction War. Hours went by as points were brought up for discussion to include in the treaty. The first part of the agreement of course, was to have a ceasefire and end the war itself, there was no argument there. The other two major points of argument were on nuclear technology, its development and applications, and also what was to be done about groups like Blue Cosmos and Logos. There were other subjects discussed, but those two were points that there was an array of different view on how to deal with them.

The discussion of nuclear technology came down to what standards would be put in place and how would they be enforced. That was seen as the issue with the Treaty of Junius Seven, there were some standards but no enforcement of them at all for any of the factions. The first standard agreed upon was that nuclear technology was not to be in anyway used in military application or development. Not in engineering new mobile suits or powering them, nor in any other area of military use. Then when it came to enforcement of this, there would be a required break down of nuclear programs and facilities that had military ties. There was also the need of a group independent of the factions that would oversee the enforcement of the nuclear standards.

The other subject of disagreement on how it should be handled was the groups that acted on an extreme bias such as Blue Cosmos and Logos. It was obvious that something more than just punishing the members of such groups was needed to correct issues that led to the war and could do so again. The idea of disbanding Blue Cosmos was thrown out to the table, but the task of making sure that would happen was easier said than done. And yet, leave those kinds of groups and organizations alone and to their own devices, then conflict would be brought about by them again, there was no question in that. As for Logos, the leaders that were still alive would be tried and punished for what the organization had done in this last war and the previous one.

The forced disbanding of groups that incited the hatred and conflict was a necessity to prevent further fighting that turned into war. That wouldn't stop the hatred some bore towards particular types of humanity, none were kidding themselves. But there were things that could be done to prevent tragedy from occurring to an extent. Plus, there were members of organization like Blue Cosmos that would be watched closely going forward. The other half of the issue was that it wasn't just one group that as making problems there were a number. Identifying those that were riling up others to create conflict was harder than stopping them.

The other notable actions and points that the treaty was to cover was more stabilizing world and colony affairs. The first action like the Treaty of Junius Seven, territory would be returned to the control of those it was before the events that spurred the Faction war. For areas not under the control of one of the three factions, they would be required to elect leaders for themselves. Territorial lines in space were reestablished and agreed upon by the military leaders to prevent further potential fuel that could fan flames of another war. Along with these actions a standard of communication was drawn up between all the factions to make sure that there would be the least chance of miscommunications between one another.

The document that was to be the agreements discussed was titled the "Treaty of LaPlaca". And when it was presented to the world, the moon and the colonies, it was introduced as the way to end and close the Faction War. The points of the treaty were iterated, and parts of what would result from the treaty were already in motion. The group that would oversee the disarmament and break down of nuclear development was being assembled. The only nuclear devices after the break down would be those that gave power to the areas on earth that depended on the energy.

As for dealing with groups like Blue Cosmos and Logos, there were a number volunteering to be a part of the efforts that were to disband and bring to task the troublemakers from all three factions. Between the military leaders, they were cooperating in order to get as many of the trouble makers as possible. After all, no one wanted to go through another war anytime in the near future if such happened at all. The truth of Lord Djibirl being alive and awaiting trial was reveal to the world and the colonies and it received mixed reactions. There were a number that weren't happy that Durandal had lied about Djibril being dead and questioned further what else ZAFT and the PLANTs had or hadn't said. Yet, there were also people that actually preferred that the man that had been the foremost leader of Logos stand trial for his crimes. The Treaty of LaPlaca was accepted and marked the end of the Faction War officially though cleanup efforts continued.

-Line Break-

Unknown Location

Lord Djibril had left to do some serious thinking for the last couple of weeks, there was little else for him to do stuck in a prison cell. He had not been allowed any outside contact since he had been brought to the cell and there had been guards around pretty much all the time. The only other time that there were individuals that weren't guards was when food was brought to him. The guards didn't say anything to him and didn't really respond to any insults he threw in their direction. So, he was left with just himself for company and his thoughts, none of which were helping his situation right now.

To think that weeks ago he had come so close to starting off the eradication of the abominable Coordinators. He had been literally tasting victory, but things had then taken a turn for the worse and everything had started going wrong. Requiem should have done the job of destroying Apirlius One the first shot true, the annoying interference of ZAFT and the Federation had complicated things. But a second volley from Requiem shouldn't have only been possible but also brought a close to the subject, of course it didn't. Gilbert Durandal's pet ship the Minerva had shown up and ruined all that planning just as they had played a part of that at Heaven's Base and around Orb.

Being captured by the Federation hadn't made things better, he had struggled against them at first but found that it was fruitless to keep doing so after too long. He had been 'escorted' to this cell and for the last few weeks had been left to 'await his trial' whatever that was referring to. The rumors and points that supposedly Muruta Azrael had been put through at the hands of the Federation were coming back to Djibril's mind. The most prevailing story was that Azrael had been put before some group, judged and then sent somewhere to serve some sort of life sentence. Whether that was what awaited Djibril himself, he wasn't sure, but he doubted that with those of the Federation that he'd been around.

The imprisonment and waiting weren't what irked Djibril as much as the snippets of news he would get from those that were around the cell he was in. Apparently, Requiem had been destroyed though frankly, Djibril had expected that once ZAFT got a hold of it. But before it had been destroyed, Durandal had used it which showed him for the abomination that he was. The fight that had been between ZAFT versing the Federation and its allies had been intense according to what had been said. Then there was supposed to be a peace conference going on to end the conflict that was being called the "Faction War".

That conference if successful would undo a great deal of work and effort that had been put into pushing for Coordinators to be put in their proper place. Never mind the truth that Coordinator couldn't be trusted, or that they were the reason that the world was as chaotic as it was currently. Business had been booming and yet now, all of that had crashed down into ruin and all the efforts came to nothing. To say that Djibril was at his lowest point wouldn't be inaccurate, he was miserable and could do nothing about that.

Then the time came where Federation soldiers came and retrieved him from the cell, he had been placed in. They forced him to walk and they escorted him to a large room, Djibril could only grimace in fury as he went. Djibril's hands and forearms were in restraints behind his back so he could do nothing to free himself or fight back. He knew he would be gunned down before he made it far and that would be the end for him. The room that Djibril was brought into was set up as a large courtroom, one of the rooms that the Ecumenical Humanity Court of Law took place and was as the historic court rooms from the past were setup. Djibril knew that he would face a tribunal group who would cast judgement upon him when had no right, but his view didn't count in this situation. Djibril was brought to a desk that was in the center of the room and sat down in the chair before the soldiers backed away fading into the shadows at the edges of the room. Djibril after taking in his immediate surroundings, looked up to see and face those who would "judge him", glaring with hatred and rage.

There were nine individuals most of which he didn't know, but there were three that he did and one he had an educated guess for. One was the head of the Federation's Euros Coalition, Dianna Soriel herself. Another was the high and might Republic's Ellen Blass and the woman was infuriating to Djibril. There was also Joseph Copeland the Atlantic Federation's president and a traitor to natural human beings. And lastly, there was an individual that Djibril had an educated guess who they were but didn't know for sure as he'd never seen the man in person. That was the man in the middle, likely Lanus Treize, ZAFT's former unofficial leader and tactician that led ZAFT to so many victories in the Alliance-PLANT War, at least the man fit the descriptions that Djibril had heard.

There were others that made up the tribunal, their clothing told of where they were from. The man that was in a white dress shirt, maroon suit jacket and same color dress pants was from the Orb Union, it was the same outfit that country's representative council wore. The other two men were dress to say that one was from the Equatorial Union, while the other was representing the Kingdom of Scandinavia. There was also an individual dressed in the uniform that those in the PLANT Supreme Council wore. The remaining two other than Treize himself were in the Federation's military's uniform, so likely they were part of that group.

"As all involved in this are now here, we can begin," said Treize in a serious tone.

The efforts that had been going into cleaning up the Battle of Messiah and the other later battles of the Faction War had been harsh. And now that one of the main authors that came up with what led to the battles was on trial, he would be made accountable. Lord Djibril was classified and seen as a war criminal for good reason as he had enacted points of the definition. Many lives had been lost because of Djibril and many people cried for him to face justice for his actions.

Treize focused on Djibril and rested his head on his interlaced fingers, "Lord Djibril, leader of the anti-Coordinator organization Blue Cosmos which is now disbanded, as well as former member of the board of the organization Logos. You have been brought here to this Ecumenical Humanity Court of Law to stand and be judged for the crimes that you are accused of."

Kaises Buyer who was to Treize's right picked up where he had left off in the opening statements. "And that list of the crimes and wrongs that you are held responsible for and/or were involved in is not short Djibril."

Buyer rifled through the collection of papers he had with him that was evidence that stated just what Djibril had done. It was a compilation of what the Federation's Intelligence Agency branch, along with what ZAFT and the Earth Forces had contributed. The reading of the list wasn't nice for Djibril, and to have what he had done in secret and had covered up was infuriating. To be reminded of what he had done also brought back to mind the instances that had failed as well, like the attack on the Euros Coalition for example. However, Djibril managed to keep his temper in line and stay in control, which was somewhat unusual for him as of late. Djibril merely said nothing as the "list of 'his' crimes" was read, not like he was given an opportunity to do so anyways.

He regretted none of his actions that were being said and implied were "crimes" or "deplorable business". In Djibril's view, he was doing the world and the human race a great service ridding them of the scourge that Coordinators were. He wasn't blinded by the lies and the illusion that Coordinators put up to fool everyone around them. Djibril had been doing what he saw as necessary and right, plain, simple and what an opportunist like himself would clearly do. He had been cleansing the world of what didn't belong and what could be wrong with that? So, this "accounting" as it was being titled was a waste of time to him though it was amusing to an extent what excuse these people were coming up with.

In all honesty, Djibril was leaning towards just have these fools give their verdict and their decision on what punishment he would be forced to face and get this over with. It would be simpler and save time for all, then he wouldn't have to listen to the foolishness being spouted. However, that is not how this event was going at all, instead Djibril was being treated to hearing drivel of the abomination loving idiots. And he couldn't leave them to that and go elsewhere while they talked, even his cell was preferable over this.

The hearing went on for over an hour laying out the efforts that Djibril had made to end as many Coordinator as he possibly could. It had been going for longer than most had guessed, much like Muruta Azrael had done his crimes for a long period of time. Nonetheless, none on the judge bar saw or noted any reaction or form of regret from Lord Djibril as his accomplishments were repeated and moderate detail supplied. In fact, as some events were mentioned Djibril would smirk ever so slightly as he remembered the event. So, it was more procedure that upon the wrapping up the reading of the crimes that Djibril was given the chance to give his side of this. "Now that your actions have been revealed and iterated for all here to know, is there anything you wish to add, whether in your defense or any other reason," posed Treize.

Djibril rose from the chair slowly and with dignity at the question and every other sound in the room faded as he did. All attention focused on the man that was here to face the consequences of his actions. "I do not deny any of what you have said or have recounted, nor excuse myself in what resulted from them," stated Azrael evenly and with little to no emotion. He then took a breath and continued, "You claim what I have done is wrong, but I would ask what is the definition of right then? The members of the human race wish for order and things to be ascetically pleasing, and I just happen to be one of the providers that supply that demand. People love fighting and proving who is the best out of them all, do they not? Yet, you wouldn't accuse those that supply the tools used in such contests would you? Tools are what one makes of them and uses them, what sense is there with blaming the tool supplier for what a customer does with them. Surely all of you can understand such logic right," posed Djibril.

Djibril kept his cool attitude and kept going, "I will not deny that some products just happen to sell better when conflict comes up, but business is a flexible art. It doesn't require a particular set of circumstance for it to thrive, that's merely what some see and claim."

"Do you have a point in what you are saying Djibril," questioned Treize, "If not, then just say you have nothing to say so that we all can move on."

"But of course sir, my apologies for going off on a tangent," Djibril said keeping calm and collected. "My point is this, business as an entity has no bias towards anyone, it supplies goods and services as requested to whoever wishes for them. What is done with those goods and services after they are supplied is of no consequence of business. Each transaction is separate from the previous, repeat customer is a sign that they were satisfied with the previous transaction and wish for more."

In the end, the spiel that Djibril gave didn't convince any, and it was one of the better ones he had given in his opinion. It had been worth trying, but he hadn't thought it would do much in helping change his standing. Coming into this room Djibril knew that he would not go out of it a free man, that had been plain and obvious. Djibril had sat down in the chair again after his sales pitch and waited as the nice talked with each other. After around ten minutes, the members of the tribunal looked at Djibril again, "If that sales pitch is your defense," stated Treize. "However, by the definition that is in the United Nations Charter which is still completely valid, you have committed two counts of war crimes. The consequences of performing such actions are clearly stated to be decided by a council, which we are representative of."

There was a moment of silence before Treize spoke again, "Lord Djibril, your sentence has been decided by unanimous vote and happens to coincide with the last war criminal that was tried by a council such as this one, Muruta Azrael." Djibril's eyes widen at hearing that point, "You will be taken to the Federation Tartarus Containment Facility located on Mars and there you will remain for the rest of your days."

Djibril lost much of his control over his fury and hatred that was coursing through him at the moment. Granted, he didn't entertain any hope that he would have any real freedom going forward, but to never return to Earth again was out totally unexpected! Then, for there to be colonies on mars proved that the rumors of such were correct. Still, a life sentence was what Djibril had suspected he would receive from the Federation and those that sided with them. Nevertheless, it didn't mean that he liked the outcome though and as the soldiers came forward and laid hold on him, he resisted them. Yet, Djibril was dragged out of the room to be prepared for transport to his destination.

-Line Break-

-Tyler's pov-

Weeks after the peace conference, things started to quiet down somewhat, and I was finally given a well-deserved vacation! No duty to perform, no missions to be done, just time to relax and not have to worry about someone I know getting hurt or killed. It had been a while since I had the time to not worry about bad things happening outside of the normal stuff most others do. My vacation started the day that Blue Cosmos was forcefully disbanded, so it was a bonus to my vacation beginning.

Of course, my friends had gone different ways than I did once released from duties for a time. Kira and Lacus went off together, no real surprises there with those two, just hope I don't become a surrogate uncle in the near future or something like that. I doubt it, Kira doesn't have the balls yet, metaphorically speaking that is, he's not ready to that far with Lacus. It's one of the few things that his naiveté is actually doing something helpful for a change with him. Athrun as those who know him would guess went to Orb, again not surprising. Cagalli will have been waiting for him to get back, those two just crack me up as much as they make a great couple.

Now, what about me some might ask when it comes to having a female partner to keep me company? Well, Sakura has been handling that detail, she followed me like she always does though not exactly in the way she would normally stalk me before this. It wasn't so bad… well, after I kind of informed some about where Sakura and I stood and where it would probably go. As I had thought, some took the news about me and Sakura maybe starting to court fine, others not so much. Lacus was ecstatic at her sister and I giving dating a chance and literally hugged us both. My two best friends had wished me good luck and had whispered if I needed help to just say so. It was nice of them to be willing to help me out of a jam with Sakura, it's a risky thing to do as Sakura can still effective threaten someone else and scare the crap out of most.

My mother and Siegel were pleased, my mother that I was looking into settling down and for Siegel his cold eldest daughter found a guy that could put up with her and actually get past her exterior. Those were the individuals that I predicted right overall, others that I knew reacted differently than those five. Most of the rest took the thing with Sakura and I in different ways, it really depended on who you asked.

For example, Tolle congratulated me, saying something along the lines of me finally getting a girl of my own and not letting my two best friends show me up. However, that's Tolle for you always looks at the "bright side" of things, ever the optimist Tolle is. Or there was Miriallia, who was happy for me, but was also asking Lacus questions about her older sister, which I didn't hear and I think it was better that I didn't. Then there was the examples of the other end of the spectrum, like Andrew Waltfeld or Natarle Badgiruel. Waltfeld had said that I had to be crazy to a degree to have a reason to date Sakura, not that I didn't understand what he meant and from personal experience. Then Natarle, that was interesting to say the least, mostly because she had seen Sakura before during the Alliance-PLANT War, but hadn't known who she was. Now that she knew who Sakura was, I don't think she liked the idea of the two of us getting together, or at least that's the impression I got from what she said.

So yeah, such are the votes of confidence in me with the chance I'm taking giving Sakura the opportunity to date me. Thus far, she's gotten better and isn't stalking me like she used to, or at least not chasing and tracking me down and making me feel horrible. The actions she did weren't entirely different, but they felt unlike they did before, felt kind of nice I'll admit. Does that mean that I'm giving in to let Sakura tell me what to do? Hell freaking NO I say! I will not be dominate, control or bossed around by anyone, the higher ups in the Federation military had to learn with me. Sakura would learn that about me and she wouldn't break me of that mentality no matter what she tries!

Granted, the more time she and I spend together, the more accustom I seem to become of having her around me. So, while I took a much-needed vacation, Sakura followed me and didn't let me have some time to relax with myself as my only company. My vacation time was a month span to do as I wished. The Normandy was docked at Shira and the crew was getting well-deserve shore-leave that was for the same amount of time as I was getting for vacation.

I had planned to go a couple of places during the time I had free of duty and military service. One place I had decided to go visit was the grave site where Lana's and my dad's markers are, but also, I wanted to visit Cagalli and Athrun in Orb. Then Kira and Lacus had mentioned that they were going to visit the PLANTs as was Siegel for a time, so I saw the need to see them off. However, my first stop was to see my mother as I don't get a great amount of time with her due to the job I do and she's usually busy.

So, the first day of my vacation, I went to the minister's residence to see my mother and found she already had a visitor. The visitor was a woman in what I would estimate to be in her thirties and somewhat shorter than me. She had a regal-looking face with blue eyes and long blond hair that was styled in two braids and the back straight. I cleared my throat to have attention to me as it appeared that I had interrupted something perhaps, "Beg your pardon if I interrupted anything," I said.

My mother glanced at me, "Knocking is a customary gesture you need to learn to practice Tyler. I know that when you lived here you saw no need to do that, but you have grown, and I would hope gained and employ proper manners when you should," she said.

The other woman looked at me, "And whom might you be young man," she asked.

I bowed slightly, "My name is Tyler McGregor ma'am," I stated.

The woman gained a bit of an excited expression, "As in the expert mobile suit and war hero, that Tyler McGregor," she questioned.

I had something between a half smile and small nervous smile, "Uh yeah, ace mobile suit pilot and war hero I guess would be one description for me. I just do what I can to save lives," I answered.

The woman giggled a bit which was a reaction that I would have expected, "He's quite modest as well Ellen," she remarked.

My mother looked at the woman, "Indeed he is Dianna, one the qualities that I am grateful he learned from his father among the points he gained from him. He also thinks of other before himself, which worries me quite often," my mother replied.

Dianna turned to face me again, "My name is Dianna Soriel, and on the behalf of the citizens of the Euros Coalition, for the efforts you made to stop the giant monstrosity that rampaged across the land, my deepest gratitude. The lives you saved will make the world a better place, I believe that fully," she stated.

I stiffened at hearing the woman's name for she was not just a political leader but the overall leader of the largest member nations of the Federation. I know enough about politics that interrupting a meeting between two major ones isn't a smart idea. I grew up around a major world leader after all, so of course I learned such lessons before now. A hand went to the back my head and was rubbing it, "Well, again I'm sorry for interrupting anything. It is the first day of the vacation time I get, I thought it would be nice of me to swing by and saying hi as it's so rare for us to get time to be around one another," I trailed off.

Well, I didn't stick around for that long as my mother was clearly busy and I knew better than to complicate things more. So, I exited and went back to my place to gather my things to head out to Orb which was be the next stop on my list. I was also hoping that I could maybe leave without Sakura knowing it and get some time with myself. After grabbing my things, I got to my car and had seen no signs of Sakura and I was a tad suspicious. Nonetheless, if I would get time to myself, I certainly won't say no to that as it is rare especially with Sakura.

I drove to the airport where I would catch a flight to Orb starting to hope that I might have slipped away from Sakura for a bit. I'm still not against dating her, but she's been getting overbearing to an extent and I would like a break from that. So, I was feeling fairly good when I presented my ticket for my flight and boarded the transport craft. However, my mood took a hit when I entered the first-class section of the craft, I was shown that my assumption was wrong. Sakura was in the seat next to mine looking to have been waiting for me, proving that she had been a step ahead of me. I could only let out a sigh, "Is it really too much for me to want and expect to have personal space that doesn't get invaded on a daily basis?"

Sakura merely smiled, "You say that as if me staying close is a bad thing sweetie. That's part of courting and dating, spending as much time together as possible, so for you to be going on a vacation, of course I was going to go with you," she replied as if it should've been obvious.

I was still getting used to Sakura sounding like she was the same as an average person for there is a difference. I exhaled heavily, accepting the point that I would not be getting time away from Sakura, but then she had been sticking closer to me not too long after the Battle of Messiah had ended. I stored my things and sat down in the seat assigned to me, Sakura hugging my arm after I had giggling a bit. Not saying that the gesture didn't… feel unpleasant, just was different with Sakura, like with a lot of things about her. Sakura cuddled with me as she was for pretty much the duration of the flight to Orb, I didn't stop or fight her, it would be fruitless anyways. Although, I'll start to admit seeing Sakura as clearly happy as she was did give me a sort of warm feeling with knowing that I played a part in the idea.

When the transport landed at Orb, Sakura and I made our way to the Athha residence where Athrun was staying. It had been at the insistence Cagalli, by what I was told by Athrun she had flat out not taken no for an answer from him. It sounded like Cagalli was being rather protective of my blue-haired friend since he returned back from the battle against Messiah. Athrun was taking the idea in stride the best he could along with keeping Cagalli as happy as possible. I still haven't heard if Athrun "popped the question" to Cagalli yet, though Athrun is still eighteen almost nineteen. So, I can understand the cautious approach and waiting to go further, but something tells me that Cagalli may not give him a great deal of more time before she will demand more from Athrun.

Upon arriving at the mansion that the Authha's living in, the staff greeted us and guided the two of us inside. From the small talk, I got the impression that Uzumi was being kept busy with running the country so wasn't at home as much. Cagalli was also kept busy with work as she was still substituting for one of the members on the Representative Council. However, after being led into a sitting room, it was a few minutes before Athrun entered the room. My friend was looking well with the time that had passed since the 'end of the war', "Athrun, nice to see you're doing well. How is the house life treating you," I asked.

"It's taken some getting used to, that's for sure," Athrun replied as he said down across from Sakura and I. "Kira and Lacus are also to be coming by anytime, they didn't say exactly when they would be around though."

I smiled, "Are they now, they were spending time around the PLANTs lately as far as I last heard. They never did say anything more than there were things they wanted to help with there now that I think about it," I said.

The sound of voices coming closer silenced the three of us as we listened to perhaps identify whom was approaching. There were a couple of different voices, one was Cagalli's and if was hearing right the other two were Lacus's and Kira's. The door to the sitting room opened and the owners' voice turned out to be correct for Kira, Lacus and Cagalli coming in. Cagalli came to a halt when she saw Sakura and me, I smiled and waved, "Hey Cagalli, I was wondering when you would be dropping in," I greeted. My gaze shifted to Kira Lacus, "Hi you two, you're looking well, long time no see."

I rose from the sofa and was going to move to shake Kira's hand, but a blur shot past me which turned out to be Sakura. The woman glopped Lacus who hugged Sakura back while I rolled my eyes but was also smiling a bit too. I'd learned that Sakura didn't just act 'weird' around me but also around her family and somewhat around Kira, yet few others. While the two sisters were having their reunion, Kira came over to where Athrun and I were, "Hey there you two, it's been a little while since the three of us were in the same room," Kira greeted.

"It has," remarked Athrun, "It feels different than I thought it would to switch over to the quieter life."

I snickered, "Truer words than any of us can say my friend," I said. "At least, I have to admit that the vacation time is very nice, haven't had any for a while."

Kira, Athrun and I sat back down in the furniture while the girls were doing their thing, we could catch up while the girls were busy. Athrun started by telling us what he had been doing now that he lived in Orb with Cagalli for he hadn't been sitting around doing nothing. Athrun had been doing what he could to help the rebuild efforts, showing his talent with management and delegation. As I said before, he makes a great commanding ship officer, that can translate over to other jobs too. Athrun's view of doing something so that he wasn't freeloading off the efforts of others was as healthy as ever. I can't blame him, I feel much the same, I don't sit around when I'm not forced to do so and even then, I'm not idle.

Of course, Athrun did get around the peace conference as Cagalli had gone to it with her father Uzumi. Yet, like me, he had not been directly involved in the conference and so joined in with the security detail with those like me. Kira had been absent as far as I knew though Lacus had been at the conference from the glimpse I had gotten of her. Once those from Orb had returned to their homeland, Athrun had gone back to helping with the rebuild and repair efforts and had been doing so since.

Kira took up telling about what had been going on with him since the Battle of Messiah which surprisingly was quite a bit. He had been with Lacus a good amount, that I had never even questioned as I knew they would be, the two had been getting more clingy lately. It was the reason that I hope the two don't take too many more steps in their relationship just yet, they were still teens after all. I will say that it's nice that they are more open about their relationship in public since they used to be much more hush hush about it. And yes, I get plenty of information about what those two do, Lacus tells Sakura most of it and she mentions it to me most of the time. Whether that was to hint on where she wanted to go, I'm not exactly sure with her, I reserve judgement upon Sakura.

Anyways, Kira and Lacus had gone back to the PLANTs along with Siegel for a time. There had been a number that had asked and literally begged Siegel for help with the Supreme Council. He had agreed to do so temporarily and wouldn't budge on that though many tried to talk him into changing his answer to no avail. Lacus had volunteered to help her father in temporarily managing the council and helping in their reorganization. Kira went with the two, going under the story that he was Lacus's bodyguard if any asked what he was doing with Siegel and Lacus.

Siegel had been kept pretty busy and Lacus was busy too, just not as much as Siegel, so Kira did get to keep her company sometimes. I also got the impression that Kira was getting some time away from lots of people, after effects of the war. Kira deals with what came from the war than many do, including Athrun and myself. I don't blame him or think any less of my friend for how he deals with the crap war brings around. Being able to handle and deal with the messy junk that comes from war is not something that everyone can do. And with the kind heart that Kira has, it's a miracle that he still had the personality he does.

As for me, I had been helping in the overall cleanup from the Faction War and that had been a tiresome task. There wasn't just rebuilding to do, there was also the troublemakers that had to be hunted down before they had the chance to wreak havoc again. and it was that which made the disbanding of Blue Cosmos and other groups like them all the sweeter. Sakura had been helping in that and I'll admit that with those in ZAFT that dislike Natural-types, she scared them into cooperation. The vacation that we were on was good as the work had been getting tedious and I was in favor of a break from it. The first stop after seeing my mother was Orb to swing by to see how Athrun was doing and check up on him. Seeing Kira was a bonus, he had been around the PLANTs for the last few months while Athrun and I had been on Earth.

I didn't envy those that were working on the nuclear disarmament which the Treaty of LaPlaca required. All the factions, even the Federation have nuclear development and systems that utilize the energy type. The Federation is farther along getting away from dependency on nuclear energy or development towards it. the reason that is the case, would be the development of the particle reactors that the new series of mobile suits used. The technology wasn't being shared with the Alliance or ZAFT as of yet, it was seen as too dangerous at this time as there was more the chance it would be abused.

Back to my current circumstances, the Normandy was getting her needed overhaul to get back into tip top shape. While that was being done, her crew and I get much needed vacation/shore leave for the next month. That leads to me to coming to see Athrun and catch up a bit as we have been busy with things. Plus, I wouldn't say no to teasing Cagalli a bit, she needs to relax sometimes and the girl won't do that unless she's forced or encouraged to do so at the very least. And, with Lacus here there is a way to distract Sakura and those are very hard to come by I've found.

So, to sum up the state of things, the world and colonies were going in a decent direction compared to what it had been before. I'm not saying that things are all peachy and great with no hint of fighting or the hatred that caused it. There were still those that disliked and loathed a type of the human race for whatever reason they had. However, overall the future was looking brighter for the human race and I know there will be those of us, like Athrun, Kira and I who will doing our utmost to keep humanity on that path. Only the future will be able to tell how things go though, so we'll see how things play out.

Phase End

A/n

Alrighty then, that is where I'll leave things in this story off, I may pick it up later, I can't say for sure at this point. Now then, to the points of note and clarification as there are a couple for this Phase like the previous ones. Point number one, the pairings that ended out, like Kira and Lacus, Athrun and Cagalli, along with Tyler and Sakura. I think we all by this point knew that Kira and Lacus would end out together and show more affection than in canon, so their relationship is I would think self-explanatory. With Athrun and Cagalli, well what can I say other than they are a cute couple and so are still in this story, just perhaps with a little more depth as to what they feel about each other.

As for Tyler and Sakura, their relationship is still complicated though somethings about it have become clearer than before. It was at the end of Phase 24 that I believe I hinted that the two could and did eventually end out together. I personally found the interactions between the two hilarious as I know some of you readers did and enjoyed writing them. Honestly, the are both rough around the edges and do well together. It is more Tyler dislikes being told what to do and controlled and he sees Sakura's stalking as a form of attempted control. And if it isn't obvious by this Phase, Sakura has been interested in him as he reacted so differently to her than almost all others among some other things.

Point number two, the change from canon with the names of the wars and what resulted from them. The Alliance-PLANT War (First Alliance-PLANT War) is as the story has iterated along with the few changes with the Treaty of Junius Seven. The treaty that ended the Faction War (Second Alliance-PLANT War), "Treaty of LaPlaca" is kind of what in my view the Treaty of Junius Seven should have been more like.

Point three, the trail of Djibril which is kind of significant for a few reasons. First I know that the trial is quite similar to Azrael's, but there were some differences. Another thing I would point out is how the two defended themselves as it was different for the defense. Azrael justified himself by 'natural selection' and cleansing the human race of unnatural things. However, with Djibril he went with 'business isn't liable for what their products are used for' angle. Then the reaction of Azrael and Djibril to their sentence, which was the same, was close to the opposite. Azrael took his sentence with some dignity, Djibril did not at all.

Final few things I wanted to highlight, I had always intended at some point that Natarle would discover who Tyler's mother was, but I wanted to have the right scene to make it funny. Then in the ending section I say that Lacus and Siegel have been around the PLANTs helping the Supreme Council, that doesn't mean that either of them are acting or take the chair position. It doesn't mean that one of them couldn't do that, but neither of them are like how it is shown at the end of canon with Lacus being the Chairwoman.

To sum up this story at this time, I would like to thank you readers that have taken the time to go through it and enjoy this musing of mine. To those who wrote reviews for me along the way, I thank you as it helped me develop this story and improve my writing skills. I may continue this story at some point in the future, but at this time, I can't say if or when that could happen. For any of you that wish to give your opinion about this story overall, this Phase or anything else about this story, feel free to do so, I'll respond to them the best I can. Thank you all for letting me take you on this journey with this story and I hope that you have enjoyed it as much as I have writing it, peace out everyone.

REVANOFSITORD

At least five of the Champions I believe, four definitely that have been mentioned.

KakeruPB

I'm glad you've been enjoying the story, and I found the way I organize the ending notes works rather well. As for Sakura, her character and personality to everyone except her father, Lacus and Tyler is meant to scare the pants off others. It had become her earned reputation and well-earned it is with her military service. It is just that kind of like social media in today's world, you tell your friends about something and then seeming many know about what you said.