A/n

Here is Phase 45, it is a tad shorter than the last few but it is setting up for the next phase. Enjoy the Phase!

Phase 45: Preparations

July 5th, 71 CE

Mendel Colony, L4 Colony Cluster

Things settled down a little as time moved forward for those at the L4 colony cluster over the week that passed. A routine had been loosely established in that time, which was being followed to be prepared for what could come next. There was still a lot to do to be ready for combat which was likely to come soon enough. None of those in charge/command questioned or disagreed that battle was on the horizon for them. The real question was which side would attack them first, the Alliance or ZAFT. There was little difference in what they would face from either side, and it would be ships and mobile suits for both.

Everyone was pitching in on the work because no one knew when this quieter period would end. With that in mind, the preparations were geared toward getting the suit pilots experience in the environment of space. Those from Orb, Mu, and Krystal, knew how to fight on Earth with their assigned units, but not in space. Orb's Astrays also needed to be adjusted for their best performance in space combat. Mrs. Simmons and the Kusanagi's mechanics worked long shifts to do said adjustments. There were supplies to sort and distribute between the ships and store properly while there was the time. The other task that those with skills like Mrs. Simmons were called to was the adjustments and preparation of the machine brought by the Eternal. The ZGMF-X11A Regenerate, while physically finished, still had much work needing to be done to be ready for combat. The onboard systems needed to be programmed to work together smoothly through the OS since ZAFT hadn't gotten to that before the Regenerate was snuck onto the Eternal.

The supply sorting was mostly done by the Astrays, the Shadow, and the Strike. Mu and Krystal said they needed the practice of using mobile suits in space just as much as the Orb pilots did. While Mu and Krystal had plenty of battlefield experience with mobile armors in space, piloting a mobile suit was entirely different. Mu was quickly grasping the suit controls as the OS designed by Kira was much better than what had originally come with the machine. And even if Krystal wasn't piloting the Shadow at the same level as Tyler had shown, she was doing respectively. The Astray pilots at first said the two didn't need to help with the "grunt" work, but Mu and Krystal said they needed the practice. So they were working right beside the Orb pilots with the needed tasks for the three vessels.

The Justice and Freedom were transferred over to the Eternal to join the Aurora in its hangar. It helped balance out the workload of the mechanics of the ships, so one team didn't have too much work to do. The Archangel was carrying the Strike, the Shadow, and the Buster, along with Mu's zero armor, which had been modified at Morgenroete. The Kusanagi had seven M-1 Astrays, and the Asuka had been loaded on the ship too. Cagalli had noticed the Asuka coming onto the Kusanagi and was aware that it currently didn't have a pilot assigned to it. It was a possible avenue for her to fight herself and protect what she held dear and believed in. But she kept quiet about that thought as she didn't think she would be granted the idea right now. And then the Eternal carried the Freedom, the Justice, the Aurora, and the Regenerate.

Nevertheless, during the downtime between shifts, the activities varied from person to person. But it quickly became clear that everyone had seen Ellen Blass's speech, whether live or a recording of it. For it was the topic of discussion among most, her speech was discussed and thought about at length. With those that came from Orb, they fully agreed with what Minister Blass had stated. Those on the Kusanagi had seen the ruin the Alliance had brought to Orb and so understood Ellen's references. The speech had hit Cagalli directly in the heart for more than one reason, more so as she had watched it live and saw the emotion Ellen had given it. Not only was Ellen a woman Cagalli respected greatly for her efforts for the Republic. Cagalli saw Ellen as a mother figure and the only one she had in her life. And seeing her show emotion as she had during the speech was something Cagalli hadn't seen before. Cagalli understood that what had happened to Ellen's husband and that she had even had a daughter would be very harder. Ellen's speech as a whole caused Cagalli to consider things that she had thought couldn't change seriously.

Kira had been thinking about what Tyler's mother had said and had even discussed it with some. Hearing about the messages sent to the Federation from the Alliance, he didn't want to believe they had done it. If it weren't for Tyler saying the Alliance would attack the member nations, then Kira would wonder about the evidence provided. It explained why Tyler had been so insistent on returning to the Republic to defend it. But for OMNI to attack the Federation didn't make sense to him, not after interacting with the Archangel's crew and Admiral Halberton. It didn't make sense as OMNI was fighting ZAFT, so why pick fights with another organization? The Alliance was making the war worse and expanding it, all for hatred of Coordinators and those who protected them. The feelings of righteous anger were a strange emotion for Kira as it had not happened to him much. None of the Federation had done anything to deserve their homes to be violated and wrecked. And yet, that's what the Alliance did and justified it by claiming that the Federation was not official.

However, while most, like those from Orb, had been talking avidly about the speech, they weren't the only ones. The officers and crew of the Archangel had been talking about it, and not all the discussions had been pleasant. Mu and Krystal had seen signs that OMNI was changing and worsening. The attack on Orb had proven OMNI no longer cared about wise tactics or protecting their assets. If OMNI's predictions about going against the Federation held true, then OMNI would be in serious trouble soon. And being told the Federation was already targeting OMNI's Orbital Fleets only gave credence to the point. While both had accepted and come to terms with fighting the Alliance, that didn't mean they liked the idea.

Murrue was grateful that Mu and Krystal were doing what they could to help deal with the doubts and worries from the speech. She had her own issues that came with the speech, which were uncomfortable. While Murrue now believed that OMNI was going down the wrong path, she didn't accept that the Alliance was doing what had been and was being implied. The description of the war was harsh but accurate as the war had been ongoing and only worsened. The promises which had been made by Alliance leadership and top brass had been foregone if not warped into entirely different things. And then, the accusations made by the Minister were more than hard to swallow. For the Alliance to claim the Human Federation not to be an official faction was more than bold, it was dangerous. It was beyond prodding and insanity as far as Murrue was concerned. And yet, it would be the cause of good men and women to lose their lives in this cursed war.

On the other hand, after listening to the speech, Lacus wished that as many human beings hear the message that Minister Blass had as possible. It had been so simple and yet rang true in the heart! Peace could come if people worked together and stood united against this conflict. And with her experience with fighting off and on with traveling onboard the Archangel, she wanted the conflict to end all the more. The bloodshed was destroying lives and homes and dragging down people, which shouldn't have happened. For the brightest future humanity could have, this war had to come to an end. It was the only way that Lacus could see people potentially living happily and not have to fear being killed from fighting. Siegel agreed with this youngest daughter, even if he knew that more work would be done for peace to come about. But the first step toward peace was standing up against those who promoted the war and caused it. The issue was that the radicals pushing the hardest for the war were either those in power or had connections to those who were. While they were in those positions, they were dangerous and would be hard to unseat.

Unfortunately, Athrun had taken the speech of Ellen Blass hard, even if he didn't show any evidence of what he felt. And it wasn't that he didn't understand it or denied what was said was true, for he did agree with what had been said by the woman. No, it was the last part where Ellen had been describing humankind's enemy, which Athrun had been hurting as he'd listened. Tyler's mother had been thorough and pointed with laying out her label for those that wanted to use this war for their interests. The five points Ellen had stated were akin to a checklist for identifying them. The problem, as Athrun saw it, was Chairman Zala could be a fit for all five points which had been laid out. Patrick Zala used his hatred toward Naturals to justify the attacks on the Alliance. Chairman Zala said this war was the only solution, and there was nothing else that could. The man had even used cries of retribution to rally others to his cause, Athrun himself included. He used people knowingly, though mostly unknowingly, and then 'tossed' them out when their usefulness ended. Athrun now had personal experience in how that worked though he hadn't wanted it. Then, Athrun could now see the 'vendetta' driving Patrick Zala onward and promoting the war to keep it going. It was as the "final nail in the coffin" as the adage had been. Chairman Zala wasn't the father Athrun had known, and he was a stranger that wore his face and used his voice.

The work kept moving forward as the days passed by with little change, but each day that nothing changed increased the feel of the need to hurry. Most of the ships' leaders expected an attack would come their way soon enough. The real question was, would it be done by OMNI or ZAFT first. Both had their reasons to attack the Archangel, and the other two ships would be caught up in the fighting. However, there was only circumstantial evidence of forces being sent from either side thus far. Nevertheless, things came to a head when a meeting was scheduled for the leaders and "needed" personnel. The meeting took place on the bridge of the Archangel as it was the best setup for a sizable meeting. All three commanding the vessels were there, along with the pilots. Kisaka started the discussion, "With recent events, the Alliance is the more immediate concern of the two other factions right now. Their retaking of the Victoria base got them use of a mass driver as they had been trying to obtain to replace Panama. They are using the Habilis mass driver by reestablishing their supply line, among other things."

There were many things that Mu could and wanted to say about the Alliance's recent decisions. The foolishness was on another level, the consequences were still being incurred, and none of the higher-ups appeared to care. What was worse, the leadership on Earth wasn't even doing the courtesy or showing concern that the lack of communicating what they did had shifted things. The attack on the Federation was now bringing the extermination of OMNI's Orbital Fleets. The Federation's Military was doing the job far more efficiently than ZAFT had ever done during the war. Granted, Victoria's mass driver got the lunar supply line back in working order, but the price was not worth it if Mu stated his opinion. Thus, Mu cursed quietly, "While having a mass driver to use gets the lunar supply line flowing again, that's not all. It also means it won't be long before this conflict gets worse up here in space for all sides. OMNI won't hesitate to strike the PLANTs, and that gets us nowhere."

While Cagalli knew the Alliance was set on defeating ZAFT, that shouldn't translate into attacking the PLANTs. The colonies at L5 were filled with innocent civilians, not military bases manned by soldiers. Slaughtering civilians wasn't war; it was massacre and genocide, which was evil. "But what good does attacking the PLANTs even achieve," Cagalli asked, "The colonies aren't military bases." No one answered the question for a time, trying to think of a way to explain what the war had done to "logical" views.

Tyler was left to wonder what the girl had been told about the war as it had become. Just because a place "housed" civilians didn't make it any less a target by the opposing faction in this war. If anything, the current year emphasized that OMNI and ZAFT had stopped being nice and avoiding non-military targets. Also, the Alliance had wanted to destroy the PLANTs for a long time now, and it had just been kept quiet before where it wasn't now. As Tyler saw it, the real issue was when nuclear weapons would be thrown around without regard. So, Tyler sighed and spoke up, "Because Cagalli, those in control of the Alliance believe only when all of Earth and space are purged of every single Coordinator will this war end in victory for them. Enough of the Alliance's leaders and military had been convinced peace couldn't exist while Coordinators live and are seen as human beings. They shout when every Coordinator is dead or enslaved, will this war stop. With that in mind, the PLANTs are where the largest unmixed population of Coordinators are. Plus, the colonies stand for Coordinator independents from Natural type human control and dominance, or that's how it's portrayed. You do the math and figure out how much of a target it makes the PLANTs."

Andrew had heard the general reasoning that McGregor was using for the Alliance's justification for fighting this war. There were too many like Blue Cosmos in positions of influence and power in the Alliance for anti-Coordinator sentiments not to poison it. And yet, Coordinator extermination would include the Federation, and Andrew couldn't see that ending well for any. Thus, the Alliance's justification was hollow and meaningless in the end. "I personally can't see how getting rid of Coordinators would lead to a pure world, and I know I'm not the only one who thinks that. I don't even know what is meant by 'pure world' in the first place by those who use it as a war cry. But from the PLANTs' perspective, there's nothing worse than being shot and killed for the sole reason of being Coordinators to be attacked." While the Alliance attacking the PLANTs was expected in this war, and the reasoning was unjust, ZAFT wasn't much better anymore. ZAFT was becoming much the same, only using Naturals being exterminated as justification. So, Waltfeld continued where Tyler had left off with ZAFT side as it had devolved into. "On the other hand, most of the leaders of the PLANTs look upon the Naturals as pests and beneath them recently. Both sides claim self-defense and self-preservation as their reasons to fight this war." Andrew paused, thinking about the war, "One is left to wonder how long this cycle will continue and if it will ever end."

Tyler could see the point Waltfeld had brought up and had thought about such himself several times. He also noted that Athrun had vanished from the bridge, not that Tyler blamed his friend for doing so. Chairman Zala was the driver of ZAFT mostly these days, and he was the one pushing for the war. Athrun was still having issues with one wearing his father's face and was doing the same as the Alliance. Tyler exhaled, drawing attention back to him, "You're pretty much stating the whole problematic cycle that this war is maintained by." Tyler shrugged his shoulders, "It's the hypocritical and yet horrible irony of the point. Spilling blood stains and taints all around it, and that's what this war is doing daily. It makes it impossible to have a "pure world" since bathing it in blood will only set the stains deeper. Thus claiming that killing a group will solve things is nothing more than a flimsy justification that is used for a vendetta of the few. It has to stop soon, or all will die for this war, and then it will be too late for anything to change." Another moment of silence in which Cagalli slipped away to search for Athrun.

Lacus admitted Mr. Waltfeld and Tyler had stated truths about the war and those who wanted it. It was saddening that the human race had descended to where it was right now from the war. However, that made what Minister Blass said about change all the more important. People needed to stand up and refuse those that screamed for blood and death. "There is still the opportunity for change to occur Minister Blass said in her broadcast. The human race isn't at the point where things can't change. The influence of the quiet and innocent can make a difference," Lacus insisted firmly, "I believe that with all my heart."

Siegel couldn't help the slight smile that came to him at hearing his youngest insist there was still hope. His wife Tasara had been much like Lacus, passionate about her beliefs. Tasara's loss had sent waves through the PLANT's citizens as she had been beloved by many. She had been a light of hope in dark times, and he wished she could be here now. Yet, Lacus was so much like her mother at a time when such was needed most. "Indeed, it is the greatest power that human beings have, the ability to choose a different path and change," Siegel remarked. "It is so often taken for granted, but a reminder is needed of its value."

While the meeting continued, Cagalli searched for Athrun since he had disappeared from the meeting. He hadn't been looking like he was doing well since he had returned from going to the PLANTs. Even in the meeting, he had a slightly hurt expression that many seemed to be ignoring. With what he'd said about his interaction with his father, Cagalli was worried about him. Then, there was the "feeling" that came to her when she was around Athrun. Cagalli had dismissed it before, but a warm fuzzy feeling had come to her when she was around Athrun. Her heart also would ache when he was down about something, and she couldn't explain why she felt that way. It was kind of similar to what Cagalli felt when around Kira, but it wasn't the same. Sure, Athrun was good-looking if she had to say something about his appearance. His smile made her heart flutter in a way she'd never experienced before.

Cagalli shook her head to clear it of such thoughts about Athrun, and there were more important things to do than sort out strange feelings. She returned her attention to finding Athrun and ensuring he was okay. And it was when she came into the observation lounge that she found Athrun, who was staring out over the docking area. "I finally found you," Cagalli announced.

Athrun turned and saw Cagalli floating toward him, and he felt surprised at seeing her. He had come to the port's observation lounge to get time to clear his head about recent facts. He hadn't been doing well in that respect as he still didn't want to believe his father was lost fully. What had happened around the PLANTs was plaguing him, what his father had done kept going through his mind. The broadcast had contributed to the storm in his mind, for he respected and agreed with Tyler's mother far more than his father now. He knew Tyler was right as he normally was. Chairman Zala wasn't the man Athrun knew as his father. But he still wanted to believe there was something of the man he remembered before the Bloody Valentine. Yet, Athrun did turn his head and looked at Cagalli, who had come into the room and was approaching him. Cagalli stopped right in front of Athrun, "I would assume your head is like a hamster running around its wheel with all that's happened," she said, tones of worry audible. "Your mind going around in circles, getting nowhere with any of the questions you have, right?"

Athrun said nothing in reply as she was right. The questions that were bouncing around his brain were still unanswered. Perhaps he was being so obvious with how he was trying to pretend he was alright when he was far from that. He had tried to think of how and why things had ended out the way they did since it didn't make logical sense to him. How he might have missed signs which could have helped him change the path events were on, yet Athrun couldn't think of anything. Cagalli had waited for Athrun to say something to either confirm or deny what she had said, but he said nothing. So, Cagalli kept going, "That's why you need to talk about what's on your mind to others, it does harm if you just keep it inside." She paused for a moment before continuing, "All of us here can help you, Athrun, and we want to. There are friends here that are worried about you, myself included. Your opinion and knowledge are valuable, so you should be there when we gather for meetings too."

Athrun knew those here were worried about him, especially after returning from the PLANTs. But his thoughts were such a mess right now that even he couldn't effectively sort them out. So how would others do much better when he was having such problems doing the task? "Sorry, I," he hesitated, "just don't know what to say right now. I'm having difficulty sorting out my thoughts."

Cagalli stared at Athrun, seeing he was clearly in pain, both physical and non-physical, with him "sorting out" his thoughts. With what he had told her, Cagalli could only imagine what he was thinking about with his father shooting him. And as her gaze fell on Athrun's right shoulder, which still had bandages wrapping, she couldn't stop herself from asking the question on her mind. "Does it hurt," Cagalli asked, "Your shoulder, I mean?"

While his shoulder was sore from the bullet passing through it, the injury didn't hurt half as much as his heart ache. Both his parents were lost now, his mother via the Bloody Valentine and his father from the venomous hatred of Naturals. Tyler had implied that Chairman Zala was to the point he was lost, and little if anything would be able to change that. The shot to his shoulder was both the consequence of not listening to Tyler's wisdom and his reaction to the realization to the truth. Something in him had snapped at the time, and Athrun couldn't help lashing out at Chairman Zala. "More annoyingly sore," Athrun returned, "I will manage through the recovery."

Cagalli wouldn't doubt his shoulder was sore, the way he moved suggested that point. But she was asking more about what it came with and not the physical pain that he was in. His father had shot him, for goodness sake, Athrun couldn't be okay with that. "You're lying, of course, it hurts," Cagalli reasoned. "Your own father shot you, how could that not hurt?"

Athrun knew he was not admitting the truth and was still having issues with it after all. Cagalli had stated his problem, and his father had shown he wasn't himself anymore. Athrun's attempt to reason with Chairman Zala had utterly failed. All it had done was show Athrun just how far gone the man was. Chairman Zala's answers had made it clear that he was the same as those in the Alliance's leadership. As he said, the war would continue until their enemies were dead or ZAFT was defeated. And with nuclear weapons coming, death for all was the most likely outcome of this war's ending. Thus, Athrun's head fell in response to Cagalli's open question, and tears came to his eyes. His heart surged with pain filling it, "I," his voice caught, "I couldn't stop him." Athrun stopped wishing the truth was wrong, but he kept going, "I realized in that encounter that I had been blinding myself to the truth that was right in front of me."

"Athrun," Cagalli questioned, not quite understanding what Athrun was getting at. It was clear that something with the meeting with his father had hurt him aside from the gunshot. Yet, she couldn't figure out what it was that hurt Athrun so much. However, before she could ask, Athrun continued, "Things between us had changed so much that he was like a stranger to me." Athrun paused for a moment, "I mean, I know that with a position on the council and on the committee, he was to be treated formally. But he corrected me even outside those environments to call him sir or something like that. I just thought it was due to stress before, but he made it clear that I was a soldier first and not his son," Athrun got out, his voice breaking a bit as he spoke. "It was chasing the Freedom that I really understood that my father," Athrun said 'father' in a disparaging tone, "fully expected me to kill any my given orders would require me to do, even my best friends." Athrun had to stop and control his breath with the rage he felt at the prospect of being expected to kill Tyler and Kira. "I couldn't take the Justice back the PLANTs after knowing what my "mission" would have me do. ZAFT would abuse it and the Federation ID it has now to attack the Federation and slaughter civilians without hesitation."

Cagalli's mouth had opened in horror at what Athrun was talking about. For ZAFT to expect one of their soldiers to kill friends and not have an issue with it was terrifying. And that Athrun saying the Justice would be used to attack the Federation just added to the concern with ZAFT. Athrun clearly had issues with it, and rightly so, and Cagalli didn't blame him. It was sad his father was treating him as a soldier rather than a son. She didn't know what to say to Athrun, but he kept saying, "I had no idea how blind I had become over the months since Heliopolis. I knew something was going badly, but I ignored the feeling justifying it was just part of the war. I didn't see the path my father had been going down until it was far too late. Tyler tried to soften the blow, warning and telling me about the change he saw, but I wasn't willing to see it. I tried to convince him," Athrun frowned as tears still flowed from his eyes. "I tried so hard. But I couldn't get him to see the truth of what he was doing."

Cagalli didn't like Athrun blaming himself for what others were doing in this war. Athrun had done much in this war to protect the innocent, which the Alliance and ZAFT couldn't say so much. So, Cagalli grabbed Athrun's left hand and made him meet her eyes, "Everyone feels powerless in the same basic way at some point in their lives. Those who think they understand things as they are who don't experience it themselves are only fooling themselves," Cagalli stated firmly. " And you are no fool, Athrun."

"Cagalli," Athrun uttered in surprise. He had never expected such from the girl, even with her passionate attitude. Tyler had been blunt about his foolish mistake of going to the PLANTs to confront his father. It had been a stupid idea in hindsight, and it really gave credence to the phrase of hindsight being 20x20. The attitude of Chairman Zala before Athrun had headed to Earth had been a "red flag." How Siegel and Lacus were being treated as an example of what happened to those who didn't blindly follow the man who led ZAFT now. Thus, what happened with Athrun's attempt to reason with the man was expected logically.

Cagalli wasn't going to let Athrun blame himself for what had occurred around the PLANTs. And it sounded like he was giving up on helping his father see reason, and he shouldn't do that. So, she shook her head, "It's too soon to give up on convincing your father his methods aren't the best way to go forward," she exclaimed. "You can still have a chance to talk to him properly and reason with him to help him see the truth. He's your father, after all, you only ever get one of those, so isn't it worth trying?" Athrun got over his surprise at how much sense Cagalli was making and that she was attempting to tell him not to give up on a lost cause. She had a heck of an optimistic view of the world, Athrun would admit that freely with the evidence he'd seen. It wasn't like Kira's naiveté, but it ran along the same type of path Kira's did. The difference was Cagalli knew the world wasn't the simple place that Kira saw, but she still had incredible hope for the best. Athrun couldn't help the smile that found itself on his face as Cagalli was still going. "So, stop standing around alone looking so hesitant, and-"

Athrun hadn't the slightest idea what he could've done to deserve the attention of a girl like Cagalli. She could do far better than someone like him with the baggage he was and would be carrying. Heck, Athrun was still trying to figure out how Tyler forgave him for the wrongs he did to him, grateful though he was. Instead, he moved forward and embraced Cagalli with his left arm going around her back. She may not have meant to cheer him up when she set out to find him, but she certainly had done just that. Cagalli was like no girl Athrun had ever met; not a Natural, Coordinator, or any other type of human being he'd encountered. "Thanks for caring, Cagalli, it means a great deal," Athrun said softly.

Cagalli had felt herself stiffen in reaction to the moment Athrun had embraced her. And it wasn't that she hadn't been hugged by a guy before, Kira had done so before now. But Athrun hugging her felt different than any other who had embraced her before now. Thus, her heart rate shot up when Athrun had hugged her, and she felt her cheeks heat up in response. Cagalli began stuttering up a storm since Athrun hugging her was the last thing she had expected to come. Yes, she thought Athrun was a nice guy, well-mannered and calm in most situations, yet possessing a kind disposition. He was also a good-looking guy, Cagalli would admit, but she wasn't interested in having that kind of relationship. She had meant to find him and try to cheer him up, that was her intention. However, Cagalli couldn't figure out how that had become this.

Her response to Athrun's hug brought back to Cagalli's mind a conversation she had with Ellen months ago. She hadn't thought much about it at the time since it had been Ellen talking about Cagalli preparing herself for the time when "a boy came along." Cagalli had listened to what Ellen had said but hadn't really paid much attention to the subject. As Ellen had said, spending time with boys wasn't a priority, so she hadn't foreseen a "boy" coming along. It had been much like her father's "birds and the bees" conversation, though not as bad since it had been Ellen talking to her. But now, parts of the conversation repeated themselves in her head as Athrun continued embracing her. Cagalli's heart speeding up and cheeks heating up was something particular that had come up in the talk. Ellen had said that even if Cagalli hadn't believed her, she would meet a boy that would make her heart flutter and her voice wouldn't work properly. And here now was exactly that happening for her, her heart was pounding, and she couldn't form words right. She couldn't explain why her voice wasn't working right, so she couldn't get out more than one to two words. She had talked to Athrun before now without issue, but now she couldn't get a full sentence out. It made no sense to her why a boy would have such an effect on her, even though Ellen had said that a boy could have this kind of effect.

All she could do was float there and let this happen, and her body wouldn't listen to her orders. Part of her enjoyed the current experience, and the embrace gave her a warm feeling in her chest that she'd never felt before. And the warmth felt more than nice, and there was a wanting coming to her to have this warmth more often. Yet, another part said this was far too soon for something like this to happen with a boy, even if Athrun was nice. Cagalli had only turned sixteen months ago, so she wasn't old enough to think about a romantic relationship. Maybe in two years or more she would be ready to try such a relationship with another, perhaps even Athrun. But she wasn't ready to face these new feelings right now.

Days went by after the leaders' meeting around the Mendel colony, and preparations continued. And Tyler had quickly felt restlessness creep up on him, which had him looking for things to do. It wasn't that Tyler thought the preparations for the coming battle weren't moving along as smoothly as possible, he knew it was. But waiting was something Tyler rarely had if ever liked dealing with when he didn't have to. It was why he had the habit of finding things to do during "downtime" when it came. Thus, he went about doing things to help with the preparations doing odd jobs where he could find them. One of Tyler's tasks was moving the Aurora to the Archangel so it could get maintenance and resupply done. Those on the Eternal were still busy finishing work on the ship and adjustments on the Regenerate. Tyler hadn't wanted to push more work onto those that had come with Lacus, and they had enough to do.

Murdoch hadn't expected another mobile suit to come to the Archangel's hangar. The Freedom and the Justice had been moved to the Eternal as the ship was supposed to be specialized for the two. It was less work for Murdoch's boys, so he wasn't against that change and had moved on from that. However, then had come a machine he'd never seen coming into the hangar, which was directed to a dock. When McGregor popped out of the suit's cockpit, things didn't get much clearer. Yet, it did give a possible reason why the machine had appeared on the Archangel. McGregor did things his way, and you either accepted it or cursed it under your breath and went about one's day. However, McGregor didn't do a thing for the heck of it, and he had a reason for what he did, even if he was the only one to know it. So, Murdoch approached McGregor as he floated down to the deck, "McGregor," he started, "You care to tell me why you brought me and my boys another mobile suit to work on?"

Tyler glanced at Murdoch, knowing he had brought the Archangel's mechanics more work to do. They already had three mobile suits to look after, and Tyler had brought another, which he didn't feel the greatest about. And if the Eternal's people could have handled the maintenance and resupply and not overwork themselves, Tyler would've done that. But the Eternal's mechanics were working harder than should be expected, and Tyler saluted them for that. Tyler hoped Murdoch could squeeze work on the Aurora in should he ask him. Tyler took off his helmet, "Well, Murdoch," he began, "I was hoping to ask you for a favor and have you do some maintenance and resupply on my machine. Those on the Eternal are super busy, and I don't want to throw more onto their back and cause them to drop from exhaustion. Sorry if this seems like me piling work onto you and your boys, I try to avoid that when possible."

It wasn't that Murdoch and his boys couldn't manage the job as they had pretty much finished the three machines onboard. This was the first time that Murdoch thought that Tyler had given what was implied unsupervised access to a machine he was using. And this unit would have Federation tech in it, Murdoch was sure of that. Tyler had been quite strict about those on the Archangel having any real view of the Shadow, so this was a change. "We could work it in, but what's with the sudden change on letting us do more than the general work on a unit you are using, McGregor," Murdoch asked.

At the same time, Mu and Krystal entered the hangar, but a second later, Mu noticed a fourth mobile suit in a dock. Krystal also noticed the fourth machine that hadn't been in the hangar the last time they had been down here. Krystal recognized the machine first as the red one that had come with the Eternal. Mu's attention was drawn to Tyler talking to Murdoch a short distance from the new mobile suit. With Tyler here, it was logical that the mobile suit had come with him, implying he was using it. The two approached the pair, curious as to what they were talking about. "That would be amazing, Murdoch," Tyler said, "If there is any task you need to be done that I can do as a thanks, just say the word."

Tyler turned to head to the quarters that were his on the Archangel if nothing had changed, and he didn't foresee anything having changed. But as he faced the hangar entrance, he was met with the sight of Mu and Krystal approaching him and Murdoch. What the two were doing down in the hangar, Tyler couldn't say, nor was it his business. However, Tyler couldn't help but wonder what the two were doing down here. "Hey, you two," Tyler greeted, "What are you doing down in the hangar, if I could ask?"

Mu inclined his head, "One could ask you the same thing, Tyler," he replied. As far as Mu understood, Tyler and the unit he was using were going to be on the Eternal until they stated otherwise. The Archangel already had three machines that it was equipped to handle specifically. There was no reason that he could think of for a mobile suit to be transferred to the Archangel at this time. And while Tyler was known for doing things his way, it was still odd for him to come over to the Archangel at this time. "I was under the impression that you and your mobile suit would be on the Eternal. Has that changed, and if so, why?" Krystal agreed with Mu's question but said nothing herself waiting for the answer that Tyler could give.

Tyler shrugged, "Those on the Eternal are working almost all out from what I saw," he returned. "And I don't want to pile on more and break their backs if there is an alternative, I would like to be expected to be at least that considerate by others." Tyler paused for a moment and gestured at Murdoch, "Thus, I came here to ask the Chief if he could work my unit's resupply and general maintenance so I can potentially go patrolling."

Krystal was curious what Tyler meant by "patrolling," as there were already a few on the lookout at all times. She and Mu had taken some of the lookout shifts since getting to the colony cluster. The lookouts were to be an early warning system for when potential enemies approached them so they could head out and meet them. However, Krystal felt that Tyler's idea of patrol wasn't what the lookouts were doing. "And what does your patrolling entail, Tyler," she questioned. "There are already lookouts to warn us when enemies are approaching the colony."

While Tyler knew about the lookouts that were posted outside the colony, he felt there was more that could be done. The lookouts were the last warning those here would possibly get for a pending attack. A patrol could spot an enemy before the lookouts could see them and so give advance warning. Plus, it gave him something reasonable to do and took his mind off the frustration of waiting. "True, there are lookouts, but they are limited to just glancing around and hopefully spotting foolish enemies approaching without trying to be stealthy. I doubt that OMNI nor ZAFT will be so dumb as to come here guns blazing as they close in. They will likely attempt to take us by surprise, which the lookouts may miss. And that's why I figure a patrol couldn't hurt to do since I can cover a larger area than the lookouts." Tyler pointed back at the Aurora, "To effectively do that, I need the Aurora fully supplied and good to do said patrol."

Tyler's reasoning was sound, but it still left a question to Mu and Krystal. Before now, Tyler had been very strict in not letting Murdoch or his mechanics do much but the general stuff the mobile suit he used. They figured it was due to the Shadow having Federation tech in it, and the Federation didn't let others see such things. Krystal hadn't been able to figure out what equipment the Shadow had, which could be Federation tech, but that didn't change the point. So to bring what was more than likely a Federation mobile suit for Murdoch to work on was a change from Tyler's normal attitude. "While I can understand that, Tyler," Mu started, "It isn't like you to let Murdoch or his mechanics to have an unsupervised look at the machine you use. Heck, you only ever allowed resupply and general repair on the Shadow when it was needed before now."

Tyler could see what Mu was getting at, and it was true before now that he'd not let inspections happen with the Shadow. There had been a good reason for Tyler's stubbornness, and the Shadow had Federation equipment in it. OMNI would be more than willing and love to reverse engineer the echo trace transmitter and employ it against ZAFT. It was the very reason that the Federation didn't share technology that could be militarized. However, those on the Archangel currently had proven they could be trusted not to abuse things they were around. So, Tyler had lost the concern that Murdoch or his mechanics would pass on things they inspect to OMNI. Thus, Tyler waved a hand in dismissal, "Yeah, but that has changed since those here have proven trustworthy. They can look over the Aurora as they like as long as they get the work done as far as I'm concerned." Tyler shrugged his shoulders, "Heck, you two can glance at it should you wish, just don't change anything in the systems, please."

Tyler floated by and exited the hangar leaving Murdoch and the two pilots back there, processing what the teen had said. Murdoch got back to work which had Mu and Krystal glancing at one another, wondering if Tyler had meant what he told them. Mu ended out sighing, "Well, if Tyler says we can take a look, then I suppose it wouldn't hurt to get a view of Federation systems," he remarked. Mu floated to the Aurora, scanning for where the cockpit entrance would be, Krystal not far behind him. He didn't see any opening or hatch in the torso like the Strike or Shadow, so he went up, figuring the cockpit could be like the Freedom's. When he came to the upper torso level, Mu spotted a seat in the same position the Freedom's pilot chair was when not in use sometimes. Mu floated over and sat down in the seat and glanced around for the control that would have it enter the cockpit.

Krystal had watched Kira as he worked on the Freedom and had seen the switch he'd used to enter the machine's cockpit. So, she pointed to the switch that appeared to be in the same place on the right armrest. Mu toggled the switch Krystal had pointed out and had to clutch the seat as it went down into the cockpit. The unit's cockpit wasn't all that different from what the Strike and the Shadow had, but it was closer to the Freedom's. It had the com-screens above the forward display. The panoramic screen was more seamless than any of the G-Project prototypes, as it all looked to be one screen. The general controls were similar, if not much the same, as what the Strike and the Shadow had to work with. Krystal was poking in her upper body through the entryway, looking around herself. Mu hummed to himself, "Not sure what I was expecting to see with a Federation cockpit," he commented. "It doesn't look that different from what the Strike has to work with."

Krystal sighed, "With how the Federation doesn't talk about what they use or even confirm guesses of others, it isn't that surprising. We're probably the first OMNI pilots to see inside a Federation machine before now, even if former." Krystal gestured at the forward display for the suit, "But let's just have a look at what the OS looks like, I'm quite curious myself."

Mu tapped a few buttons to activate the OS so he and Krystal could see what there was. The forward display lit up and showed its startup message:

MOBILE SUIT NEX OPERATION SYSTEM
Generation
Unsubdued
Nuclear
Drive
Assault
Module

G.U.N.D.A.M. Intrigue
_Series GN125-O6 NR 02-13756_
Federation Military

Krystal blinked at seeing the "Gundam" message, which was similar to what the Shadow and the Strike had at startup. It was somewhat surprising that the Federation kept the Gundam message even if it was altered slightly. Each word differed from the original startup message, and the N drew her attention. With the Freedom and the Justice having nuclear reactors, it wasn't a real surprise that the Federation may have its own version of the idea. It also likely meant that the unit had a "neutron-jammer canceller" of its own. That did suggest this suit's operational time was longer than the Strike and the Shadow and could have more powerful weapons to work with.

Mu tapped out a command which took a minute and got the forward screen to display the onboard systems. The list came up, and Mu glanced it over and blinked at what he saw this mobile suit had to work with. He took a moment to read the system names and shook his head slightly. "Must say, I don't know where to start on this list to see what each does," he remarked, "Where would you like to start?" Krystal pushed herself fully into the cockpit and moved behind the pilot seat so she could read the display, not upside down. She looked over the list of systems and saw some things that she expected, like the canceller and even a phase shift armor system. But she stopped on the armor system as it had more to the name than just phase shift, with "type-Sigma" added onto the end. Krystal pointed at the phase shift system, "Why not start with seeing what difference there could be with the phase shift," she said.

Mu typed in a command and brought up details on the phase shift. The info that came up had both former armor pilots could only stare. From what Mu was reading, this phase shift system easily outdid the original idea. It did energy distribution far more efficiently than the G-Project version of phase shift. Due to that, the armor system would last longer and protect the machine better than what the Strike had. Mu whistled, "If the system can do what it says, I'd be impressed."

Krystal chuckled in response, "If the Federation's R&D designs it, I would assume it can do what it states. I'm more impressed with how they improved the idea phase shift happened with the Federation getting their hands on it." Krystal reached forward and moved on to the next system from the list. It was named the High-Mobility Aerial Maneuver system or HiMAMs for short, and the description caused her pause. The system stated it would increase the suit's mobility through its wings and propulsion system. It would certainly give a serious advantage in an aerial dogfight, Krystal wouldn't doubt. It reminded her of Kira's description of the Freedom's HiMAT system, which employed its wings.

Mu was impressed, but since Tyler was using the mobile suit's mobility system, he didn't doubt it would make this machine a much harder opponent to deal with. He moved on to the next system on the list, the Rapid Target Acquisition system. From what Mu read, it automatically acquired targets while the pilot fired at another. That capability could make a difference in a fight against multiple enemies. "The targeting system this has would give a serious advantage to this machine, I'll say that," Mu remarked. "Just the first three systems we've looked over make this mobile suit a mean opponent to OMNI or ZAFT." Mu continued on, and the next system was one he'd want to at least glance at since it was the stealth system. It appeared to work similarly to the mirage colloid in the point it projected what was behind it. However, the Federation's stealth system did the job more efficiently than the mirage colloid did. Yet, that wasn't all as it had a second part to it that hist the unit from sensors too which made the system even more valuable. Mu hummed, "No wonder the Federation have had the advantage with stealth, their systems are ahead of what the G-Project had invented."

Krystal shook her head, "I'm almost worried to see what arsenal this has to work with," she commented. "Just onboard systems outdo what OMNI has been trying to use." Krystal paused, "Now the reasons why Tyler didn't allow any to really inspect the Shadow makes more sense. OMNI would be more than willing to abuse the systems this unit has to work with and attack ZAFT with gusto." Mu switched from the systems list to the weapons list, which was longer than the systems list. A glance over the Aurora's options worried Mu about the "slim" chances the Alliance had against the Federation's military. There was beam rifle and sabers, which the G-Project had helped invent, and the Federation improved. It had CIWS guns like the Strike, which the Shadow did to work with. However, there were "plasma" cannons for which he feared the Strike's Agni cannon would be the basis. There was a shield, but its short description implied it was not simple like the Strike had. Krystal pointed at the CIWS, "Let's start at the top and see what they can do."

Mu brought up the CIWS system and found that like the Strike's guns were mounted in the head. The second sentence in the description caught his attention, which stated it had special ammo to work with. Krystal also read the description and paused at the same sentence, "Anti-phase shift rounds," she questioned. Krystal exhaled, "Well, it seems that the Federation not only improved the fruits of the G-Project but has also been making counters to them. I suppose we should expect it from the Federation as they have shown they have been prepared for OMNI's attacks." Mu nodded as he moved on to the next option on this list, "And here we have two beam sabers which can be combined together as the Justice can do," he stated.

As the next option came up, Krystal spoke, "And a beam rifle which looks to be a high-energy one and had two functions to it." She sighed, "Then, as we know from observation, Tyler is an amazing marksman with the weapons he uses. So a beam rifle will make him much more dangerous to those foolish to fight against him." Mu shook his head, "And Tyler was a heck of a pilot with the Shadow, I fear to see how much better he will be with this unit." Mu paused before bringing up the next option, "Let's see what is next." Information on the Aurora's Plasma cannons came to the display, and a description accompanied it. Both pilots paused at reading the description as the cannon wasn't a nice weapon. From what Mu saw, the cannons were comparable not to the Strike's Agni as he had thought but to the Archangel's Lohengrins. "The Federation has made something like the positron blaster cannons into a weapon that a mobile suit can use." Mu paused and shook his head, "I don't know what is scarier, what the Federation has done with the G-Project data or their preparation for what came out of it."

Krystal exhaled heavily, "I think the Alliance has continually underestimated the Federation and the lengths they go to protect their people." Her head lowered, "We even did so until recently, and I think Tyler really opened our eyes to the point. The Federation doesn't fool around when it comes to their citizens, and we know that now." Krystal gestured at the forward display, "And now we see their military has developed ways to protect the Federation's interests more effectively." She sighed, "I figured OMNI's chances against the Federation would be slim to none. But I didn't think it would be bleaker than that. The Federation's military is doing more against OMNI in the last month than ZAFT has managed during the whole war."

Meanwhile, Tyler caught a nap while he was waiting for the Aurora to be resupplied and made ready for use. The nap wasn't a deep one but Tyler took the sleep where he could get it as he didn't feel there would be a lot of opportunity later. When he woke up he did at least say hello to his friends who weren't on duty at the time. Seeing his friends just motivated Tyler to do his utmost to protect those here at Mendel. Tyler swore to himself that he wouldn't have to attend a friend's funeral, even if that required him to do things that he didn't like. Should Tyler have to taken on someone like Natarle as an enemy, then Tyler would do so. He hoped such wouldn't happen, but he had a feeling things wouldn't be "nice" going forward for a while.

After hours went by since Tyler let the Aurora in the care of Murdoch, he was heading back to the Archangel's hangar. Tyler had looked over the map of the colony cluster to determine potential route to patrol while he had been waiting. The path he'd decided to go with was one that covered both the immediate area and what faced the moon and L5. Whether an OMNI's force or one from ZAFT they would both come from the direction of the Moon/L5, Tyler knew that. With that in mind, Tyler stopped by the pilot locker room and suited up so he could go out in the Aurora. In his mind, Tyler was still not sure which side would get her first to attack his group. Both had reasons to strike the Archangel and the ships with it even if the likely justification differed slightly.

OMNI wanted nuclear tech to use and Tyler figured that some of them would have come to the logical conclusion the Freedom and the Justice had such. While Tyler assumed many in OMNI and the Alliance weren't the smartest with the decisions they made, he knew not all were blinded by their twisted views. The issue as it had always been was the intelligence was used for the war and similarly horrible things by those who possessed it. And where Tyler knew it was only a matter of time before the Alliance would get nuclear technology, the longer that took the better in Tyler's opinion. The Alliance could use nuclear tech to solve their power shortage on Earth and that would make logical sense. However, Tyler knew there were enough who would demand the production of nuclear weapons to be used on the PLANTs. Blue Cosmos had been screeching for the idea for years now, and there were too many of those types in Alliance leadership.

Unfortunately, ZAFT wasn't a great deal better or that much different than OMNI in their reasons for coming to attack in the end. They were coming probably to hunt the Eternal were Tyler to guess. Yet, Tyler wouldn't put it past ZAFT to eliminate all here and try to capture the Justice and the Freedom. Plus, as far as Tyler knew, the Archangel was still a target to destroy on site for ZAFT. Lately, ZAFT was attempting to quash resistance to them and win the race to employ "new" weapons to end the war. Tyler took the reference of "new weapon" to mean some sort of nuclear type weapon. Any use of nuclear weapon on Earth would decimate populations there without regard of genetic type. And what Tyler felt was worse, those leading ZAFT like Chairman Zala made it rather clear they didn't care about those consequences. Thus, there was a threat to those here from both sides that needed to be taken seriously.

So when Tyler entered the hangar, he floated toward the Aurora glancing around as he went. The mechanics were still doing tasks from what he saw, but few were around Tyler's unit. He hoped that meant the needed work had been done and the Aurora was ready to go out. But he did spot Murdoch, working like Tyler normally saw him doing and approached the man. "Murdoch," Tyler greeted, "Sorry if it sounds mean or rudely insistent, but is my machine ready to go?" Murdoch turned at hearing Tyler and saw the teen suited up coming toward him.

Murdoch had figured Tyler would be popping back up at some point as the teen had implied he wanted to take his machine out as soon as he could. The "Aurora" as Tyler had called it was an impressive unit, Murdoch would be the first to admit it. He'd heard the thoughts about the Federation's proclivity to build things they used. Most of the things he'd heard weren't nice and meant to be an insult to the Federation. However, after he'd gotten a real look at the quality of their machines, Murdoch would say the things OMNI said were wrong. The Federation were good at designing and building their mobile weapons. They took the point seriously when they produced what they used to fight and protect their people. It had been clear that the Aurora had pieces of he G-Project build into it, like the phase shift armor. In the end, the inspection of the Aurora had been extremely educational for Murdoch and his boys.

The resupply and general maintenance had been finished an hour ago before Murdoch had set his boys to other things. So the unit was as ready as he and his boys could make it with what they had. There were certain things they couldn't do much for with the Aurora, like its shield and beam rifle. The shield had been a mystery to the Archangel's mechanics and the description the system had didn't help much. Its reflection ability as stated had been a head-scratcher even if it sounded interesting. But none of the inspections had helped give a reasonable explanation for the shield's functionality. The beam rifle had been a little easy to understand even if it had "dual functionality" which had been different. The X102 Duel's beam rifle had two capabilities which its grenade launcher, but it wasn't the same. Murdoch merely nodded, "Yes, your machine is ready as we can make it."

Tyler inclined his head, "The work of you and your mechanics is very much appreciated, Murdoch. Sorry to have sprung it on you," he remarked, "Now, if you could move the Aurora to one of the catapults, it would be great." Tyler resumed his path to the Aurora's pilot seat as Murdoch barked orders to get the Aurora ready to move to the right catapult. Tyler grabbed his seat and shifted himself into it and had it lower into the cockpit. He activated the OS just before he felt a jerk of the docking cage moving. The Aurora's docking cage was shifted into the Archangel's right linear catapult while Murdoch moved to a console. He communicated with the bridge that a mobile suit was going to the catapult. Murdoch twisted around and caught sight of the Aurora being dropped into the catapult ram system and locked in. He hollered for the mechanics to get back as the airtight shutters began closing, silently wishing Tyler luck on whatever he was going out to do. As the panoramic view came up around Tyler, he noted the Aurora's main systems had come up. He made sure the stealth system was ready to activate quickly after heading out as Tyler planned to use it. Tyler had felt his machine lock into the catapult and he focused forward for the launch.

On the Archangel's bridge, Miriallia who was on duty at the mobile weapon control station had received the message from Chief Murdoch. And her console did show a mobile suit had been moved to the catapult, waiting in the pause and hold phase of launch. The odd thing was she didn't recognize the mobile suit in the catapult. It wasn't any of the three in the hangar that she knew of and she hadn't heard of another coming on. True, Tyler had popped onto the Archangel in the last few hours, so it could be whatever he was using. And as if to answer her question, a voice came over his headset, "Controller, this is the Aurora," Tyler announced, "Ready to launch if you would be so kind to open the catapult and let me head out." Miriallia sighed since it would've been nice for Tyler to say something about bringing a mobile suit with him. She tapped out the commands to have the right catapult open and electron rails move into position for use. Once the catapult was ready, Miriallia turned on her headset mic, "You're go for launch Aurora," she replied, "Ready on your signal."

Tyler tapped a button on his suit's arm control to activate his helmet's visor display. The info that came up for Tyler to see stated his vitals were good and his restraints were solidly lock to the seat. He gripped his controls and focused on the view of the colony dock and stars beyond the catapult. "Tyler McGregor, Aurora," he announced, "heading out!" Tyler leaned the Aurora forward slightly before the rams shot forward accelerating the Aurora. The power cable ejected from the machine and Tyler shot away from the ship. He activated the Aurora's phase shift armor and then had its stealth field deploy.

All those on the Archangel's bridge saw was the Aurora shooting out of the catapult and then vanishing from sight. Tolle swore that the red machine that Tyler was piloting seemed to become "waver" as it faded from sight. But he hoped that Tyler would be okay and find little to nothing while he was out. And Tolle doubted he was the only one that was praying the lookouts and now Tyler would have everything quiet while they kept watch.

A/n

Okay, I'll leave off there and continue in the next Phase. Now onto the highlighting and explaining that I do at the end of each Phase. The first thing I want to point out is the reactions to Ellen's speech. Of course, those from Orb agree with it, but I want to focus on those from the Archangel. They didn't see it as good of a thing as others, more a reminder of what they have realized about the Alliance. The other scene I wanted to discuss is one I added which is Tyler coming over to Archangel with the Aurora. It should be clear at this point Tyler is antsy and doesn't want to sit around and wait. The Eternal was busy with adjusting the Regenerate so couldn't do the supplying for the Aurora in the time Tyler wanted. Thus, he went to the Archangel to see if Murdoch could do the job so Tyler could do patrol. In the scene, Mu and Krystal were able to get a real look at Federation technology. I wanted to show how OMNI personnel may view the difference in tech the Federation had compared to the Alliance.

I assure you, this Phase is setting up for the next one and it will be a good one. We will be entering the fighting phase for the next few phases. And the battles will change to extent but I will not spoil the surprises. Anyway, some of you please write a review and tell me what you think of the story thus far. I appreciate those who write them and I do read them. The next phase is titled: Battle of belief, until then peace out!