Introduction
I've been in hiatus writing fanfics ever since the pandemic began. I decided to run on a different account connected to my new Twitter account. After a two-years of soul-searching and been busy with on my YouTube account doing video game playthroughs, re-watching Gundam SEED, Kamen Rider Decade, Kamen Rider Drive, Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's... Made me wonder about writing a Gundam SEED fanfic, that involves time travel. And given the premise of time travel, what if someone from a distant future prevents the death of a significant character, in this case, Flay Allster.
As a Gundam SEED fan myself, and having watched the series, Flay is one of the most polarizing character throughout the show. Given the circumstances of war, she overreacts as a result of the trauma of being exposed to the war between the Alliance and ZAFT. And the fact she manipulates Kira into killing his fellow Coordinators, and even tried to shoot Dearka while his hands tied. This changed when she is taken custody by Le Creuset, and realizes how far she went after hearing Azrael's tirades that Coordinators needed to be wiped out. Given some of those who watched Gundam SEED as a child as the hate towards Flay hits different when watching it again as an adult, it portrays how a person at a young age can barely grasp the picture of how war affects an individual. Meaning, Flay's bad behavior is pretty much understandable and just shows how flawed of an individual she is, making her a stark contrast to Lacus, who is infamously "perfect", even by Gundam character standards.
Okay, without further ado, this is the first chapter and prologue of Mobile Suit Gundam SEED Paradox.
PHASE-01: Divergence
As the PLANT-Alliance War reaching its climax, the story begins with the Freedom and Providence, where the latter, piloted by Rau Le Creuset gains the upper hand against Kira thanks to the power of the Providence's DRAGOON's. In the middle of their fierce battle, a wormhole emerges nearby as a mysterious mobile suit with a very high-end futuristic design emerges from it. Before Kira could ask if the mysterious mobile suit and its pilot are a friend or foe, Rau attempts to aim the escape shuttle launched from the Dominion that contained Flay Allster.
However, the camera pans to the mystery pilot as time suddenly stops even within the vaccum of space. While time is momentarily frozen, the unidentified mobile suit simultaneously takes the escape shuttle out of the crossfire before singlehandedly destroying the Providence by impaling Rau with its Beam Rapier, killing him as time returns back to normal.
Meanwhile, Athrun and Cagalli managed to escape after self-destructing the Justice's reactor within the GENESIS. In the aftermath of the Providence's destruction, a confused Kira can only stare in awe as the mysterious Gundam that killed Rau disappeared without a trace. Unbeknownst to everyone, this was the start of a divergence that changed the Cosmic Era forever. Luckily, Kira managed to find Athrun and Cagalli in the Strike Rouge as they managed to reunited with their lives barely intact.
Kira, Athrun, and Cagalli arrived at the Archangel, and to Kira's relief, the escape shuttle with remnants of the Dominion onboard, including Flay are taken refuge into the Archangel. Both Kira and Flay make a tearful, yet brief reunion.
In the aftermath of the war, Kira and Lacus decided to retire peacefully in Orb to help Reverend Malchio's orphans. Flay also ended up with them, she makes amends with both Kira and Lacus, as the horrors of the war had changed her significantly for the better and wanting to atone for her sins. Lacus since then accepted her apology. On the other hand, Flay decided to break up with Kira in good terms, deciding to live in a life of solitude.
As Flay left the orphanage, she finds a red-haired woman in a pilot suit washed up unconscious on the beach.
Author's Note:
- The woman Flay found at the beach is this story's protagonist. She resembles Aki Izayoi from Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's. In fact, this character's name will use Aki's English dub name, Akiza Izinski.
- Also, because the mysterious Gundam was the one who killed Le Creuset, this causes a butterfly effect aside from erasing Flay's death from the timeline. Kira has not awakened "Newtype" sensing ability. Because in the source material, he does awakened this newfound power after Flay died. However, Kira will still awaken this power in other ways later on.