Gundam Seed: The Federation ver 2

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 Saddle Patch

65. Phase 65: Chaotic Interruption

A/N

Okay, here is battle scene part one since there are three parts to this event, but I'll say no more so not to spoil things. I hope you enjoy this phase and those that follow for this event for my story.

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Phase 65: Chaotic Interruption

October 2nd, 73 C.E.

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Armory One, Lagrange 4

The Girty Lue had reached the point just behind Armory One's sensor range where it would deploy the mission shuttle from the moon-facing side of the area. The plan was for the shuttle to approach the colony from outside detection range so it would seem like it was coming from the PLANTs. The story was that the three "soldiers" brought the family to see where they worked. ZAFT had to believe those going to the colony were from the PLANTs, and not Alliance personnel. That was the way for the deception to be successful and the mission to steal the mobile suits have the best chance to workout. Captain Roanoke had made it clear that there was to be no dawdling during the mission. He insisted on that due to the Federation chasing them down after what had happened at their station. And the captain had assured there would be trouble if or likely when the Federation got to them. Neo had drilled in the point they needed to be as close to the moon and Arzachel as possible before the Federation potentially caught up with them. If they had allies to help them, the Federation would be forced to let them go and not make problems worse for them.

The shuttle carrying those who would participate in the theft at Armory One cleared the Girty Lue's hangar. Onboard were three Alliance soldiers wearing ZAFT uniforms who would act as such to get in and to the military section of the complex. The others on the shuttle beside the pilot were the trio of teens who would steal ZAFT's Gundams. The single female, whose name was Sella Loussier, was internally fretting at the moment. She was over five feet but under five and a half. She had golden blonde hair and violet-colored eyes with a beautiful face. Stella was somewhat nervous as this would be the first "field mission" her trio had been given. The first mission was judged heavily on whether a trio would be successful or not be worth keeping. It was even more important since the changes came and the fighting was done less in the open. She would give almost anything to talk to her sister Tanya. Tanya always seemed to know what to say and do to help Stella. She would even take Vali's advice and encouragement right now that she could do this mission. Instead, she was going through the exercises she had been taught to keep calm and in control.

The teen next to Stella was a pale blue-haired teen that was around sixteen like she was. He was reining in his excitement of finally about to see action. The teen's name was Auel Neider, and he was seen as the most unstable of the trio, which he, Stella, and the other teen were a part of. This would be his trio's first mission, which would stand as their capabilities to those that matter. If the trio did well, they would be given more privileges and get to do more fun things. Auel had become tired of the simulations the lab had put them through for "practice" to perform on missions. Finally, he would be able to show what he could do. There would be no one else other than his trio members around to cramp his style. And Auel was certainly glad the other "great" trio was not around, hovering over his shoulder.

The last of the Trio and its unofficial leader was named Sting Oakley. The reason that he was the leader, he had shown that he tended to be the calmest and most stable of the three. It was the normal quality that the project management chose the leader of an extended trio. Sting had a height was slightly over five and a half feet, and he possessed short green hair and light green eyes. And with his trio, Sting had his work cut out for him with Auel and Stella. Stella was okay, she had her quirks, which were manageable most of the time and wouldn't cause serious issues. However, Auel had an attitude that flared up often, making their trio less effective. Sting did what he could to keep Auel not to cause issues for him and Stella, but it wasn't easy at times.

Sting was going over what instructions were given to them about the theft of the ZAFT mobile suits. The mission, as given by Captain Roanoke, was feasible and doable if things went as expected. This would be what his trio would be judged by in the respect of potentially getting more missions after this. Getting missions for candidates was extremely important; if they didn't get those, they would likely be split up or disposed of. Tricking ZAFT soldiers was simple enough, and there had been "simulations" at the lab on the subject. Reprogramming the Gundams' operating systems would also be straightforward, and there were also simulations. Escaping the colony with the Gundams would be harder as ZAFT would be trying to stop them. However, should they attack the mobile suit hangars, they could cut down on the resistance from ZAFT. And once they left the colony, they would essentially be home free as the Girty Lue should've handled ZAFT defending forces by that point.

Sting glanced over at his other trio members and saw that Auel was clearly excited about the upcoming mission. On the other hand, Stella was clearly lost in thought and was worrying about something. That was a tad odd as they would do just fine on the mission, their scores were above average in the relevant simulations. There was nothing to be seriously concerned about with what was ahead. "Stella, are you okay," Sting asked? "Things are going to work out just fine with the mission. ZAFT isn't expecting us, so we can get the jump on them. This will be very much like the practice scenarios that we did back at the lab." Sting paused for a moment, "Or is something else on your mind?"

Stella came out of her worries about Tanya and looked at Sting. He had always been nicer than Auel had been to her. Auel hadn't fit in with the trio at first and had strained things during the beginning. Sting and Stella had been considering telling the doctors about that, which would have Auel most likely reassigned to another trio. However, Vali had stood up for Auel and told them to give him a chance and some time. Auel had improved since Vali's mediation, so the trio's performance had improved as a whole. Granted, Auel was still difficult to work with, but it didn't seem as impossible as it had been before. So, Stella hesitated, "It's not the mission ahead I'm worried about," she stated. "I'm concerned that I've heard nothing about Tanya before we came out here."

Sting knew Stella always seemed happier when she talked to her sister Tanya on a regular basis. He didn't mind the point as it helped Stella perform much better on simulations than when she didn't. From what Sting had heard, Tanya's trio had been sent out on a mission and were still on it. Sting wasn't concerned about them, they always seemed to get long missions from what he'd seen. Vali and Hallelujah had given good advice to them to improve their performance and stand out to those who mattered. So, Sting cared what did happen to them as they were sort of friends to a degree. And it had been Vali who had told Stella and him to give Auel a chance before they told the project heads he wasn't working well with their trio. Vali had honestly helped Auel even when he didn't admit the point and had to be reminded of it.

Auel had been listening somewhat to the conversation, though it bored him. He focused more on the mission ahead and the fun he would get to have. However, hearing Stella talk about that frustrating sister of hers irritated him. Auel had never liked Tanya, or really either of the other two in her trio. Tanya had always been critical of him and his performance and called out his mistakes. Auel did just fine at getting results, and it shouldn't matter how he got them as long as the project's heads got what they wanted. But much to his annoyance, Tanya had harped on him more than Stella and Sting. Allelujah wasn't much better than Tanya, he made dumb suggestions to Auel, which he didn't need. Vali used reason and logic to say why Auel needed to improve. Sure, he'd stood up for him a few times, even when he didn't need to, but Auel felt he was the best in his trio. Thus, Auel, hearing Stella complain her sister was still away on whatever she was irritated. "Oh my, that sister of yours still out doing things," Auel remarked mockingly. "Good riddance, I say, she was annoying along with the other two if you ask me."

Stella knew Auel didn't like Tanya, or even Allelujah or Vali, for that matter. She normally ignored his mocking tone with them and his insults as he did those often enough. Stella didn't like when Auel mocked Tanya or either of the other two. Vali had stood up for him when it would've been just as easy for him not to. So, Stella glared at Auel with close to murderous intent, "Don't talk about Tanya like that," she hissed. Stella knew if she went to Vali, he could punish Auel in a way that others couldn't. Vali had a knack for making another miserable when he put forth the effort, he just normally didn't. And Auel had been pushing his luck lately, so Stella felt it was time he be forced to think about the consequences. "Or else I'll tell Vali what you said," Stella snapped. "He may have stood up for you and told Sting and me to give you a chance, but you aren't using that opportunity well at all. So, Vali should make you think twice about being an idiot. Plus, I'll tell him you're the one that got him punished a few months ago."

Auel gritted his teeth at the threat Stella had just sent his way. He hated being reminded that Vali had told Sting and Stella to give Auel a chance and not report he was dragging the trio down. It was something that was held over his head off and on, which he detested. And for Stella to bring up a prank Auel had played, which had gotten Vali in trouble, angered Auel. The prank had been fun, which candidates rarely got around the labs, and Vali had taken the fall for it was just fine by Auel. However, Stella's threat wasn't without merit, and Auel knew that. Vali knew ways to make another miserable, and Auel was well aware of that point as he'd seen Vali in action. But Auel knew if he scared Stella enough, she would be far less likely to tell Vali anything. "You would threaten to do that, wouldn't you," Auel growled. Then he smiled, "But you won't do that since you might just-"

Sting had seen where the conversation had been going the moment Auel had mocked Tanya. Sting knew Auel didn't like Tanya, Allelujah, or Vali much, if at all. They tended to point out his mistakes more than they did for Sting or Stella. So, Stella and Auel clashed over the view of the other trio off and on. However, when Auel got mad, he had a tendency to use Stella's block word to make her suffer. Yet, with the mission coming, Stella had no time to recover from that. Thus, Sting had moved forward at Auel's reply and covered his mouth before Auel could make things worse. "That's enough from the both of you," Sting stated. "There isn't the time for arguments like this." Sting faced Stella and continued, "I don't doubt Tanya is just fine, Stella. She probably got a new assignment before she was able to return to Lodonia. She had to stop at Tartarus earlier in the year and got the assignment there." Sting looked back at Auel, gaining a stern expression, "And you, Auel, don't go using the 'word' that another has ingrained. You wouldn't like that done to you any more than another, so don't go throwing around another's block word."

The rest of the journey to Armory One in the shuttle was made in silence. Auel was not pleased with what Stella had said and was annoyed by Sting stepping in. He knew Sting was right there wasn't the time for arguments, not with the mission. And Auel wanted to do the mission more than he wanted to make Stella pay for prodding him. Stella was miffed at Auel for insulting Tanya and almost using her block word. Auel had done the idea before, and it always took a full day or more for Stella to recover from the results. Sting stepping in had settled the matter for the time being, but it would come back up later. Stella would be ready to counter Auel before he used her block word against her. Sting was tired of the two going at one another as they did. Auel and Stella didn't get along the best, they just tolerated one another. And it usually fell to him to break up arguments and fights before they got horrible. It was a hit-or-miss type of thing for Sting, and project staff would question him about the whole ordeal.

The shuttle came into contact with the ZAFT vessels on patrol. When questioned, the shuttle pilot gave the rehearsed story about coming from the PLANTs and transmitted proper codes for the point. The shuttle was permitted to pass and enter the colony's port and dock. Upon entering the colony, the two soldiers that were with the trio stuck around them for a bit to keep the story up. Yet, the group separated with the understanding they were to meet up later for the theft. Sting, Stella, and Auel were taking in the colony, studying the layout for when they stole the Gundams. The three quickly spotted the military area where the Gundams would be stored. But they couldn't go there without the soldiers and not draw unwanted attention to themselves. They were to avoid that for the moment until the mission began and they got far closer to their target.

At the same time, the Minerva crew was busy preparing for the ship to launch. It had been a few days since the Impulse's final test flight, which had been stated had gone well. However, orders from others had said the Minerva was to rush their preparations so they could ship out sooner. According to what higher-ups were saying, the Chairman was at the colony and wanted to watch the Minerva launch out. None of the Minerva's officers knew why the Supreme Council's Chairman would want to see the ship leave the colony. They didn't question the point, merely worked hard to rush the Minerva's preparations. There were still things to do for the Minerva to be ready to ship out for duty. The other Gundams ZAFT had constructed here needed to be transferred to the ship. The other four Gundam pilots were already en route to the colony and would arrive today. Supplies were in the process of being loaded onto the Minerva, and the mechanics were working to store them.

Captain Gladys had gone to talk to the Chairman about the change in the launch date. That left Arthur in charge of the Minerva's preparations and delegating tasks. Arthur had no problem with managing and delegating. He would rather do that than talk to Chairman Durandal and ask why he wanted the ship to head out sooner. Chief Aves was working on the supply loading and doing a good job, so Arthur was leaving that to him. The Gundams would be transferred later today with the pilots. Aila had gone to where the Gundams were to wait for the pilots and meet up with them since she had met them already. As far as Arthur was aware, things were on track for the Minerva to be ready within a day or two. Should nothing out of the ordinary occur, the Minerva should be on active duty ahead of the original schedule.

Shinn was staring into the hangar in the pilot lounge, lost in his thoughts. He, Lunamaria, and Rey were on the Minerva while Aila was away from the ship. It was part of ZAFT policy that a ship always had some pilots on it while in port. In case of an emergency, mobile suits could be sent out to handle the issue. The chances of something coming up were low inside the colony, but policy still stood. Shinn understood the policy and the reasons ZAFT had such a thing. He assumed the Federation had something similar as they were always prepared for what came their way. It just gave him and his colleagues little to nothing to do while Aila was away from the ship. She had gone off to meet up with the other Gundam pilots who would be assigned to the Minerva.

Shinn may be a backup for the Impulse Gundam, but that wasn't the same as being its assigned pilot. He was a substitute when the actual pilot wasn't available, so he wasn't really a Gundam pilot, even if he could be seen as a technical one on record when called upon. Shinn knew the stories told about Gundam pilots, most enlisted had heard at least a few of them. Shinn knew more than the stories; he'd seen some in action during the Alliance-PLANT War. During Orb's evacuation, Shinn had caught glimpses of the Gundams fighting one another. What he'd seen made the stories believable as they had done amazing and crazy things. So, it was reasonable to expect the Gundams ZAFT had produced to be of a similar caliber. Recalling the escape from Orb brought back the memories of the event to Shinn. The day had been a terrifying one for him and his family, but Shinn dismissed the memory to the back of his mind.

As Shinn was staring at the Core Splendor and the bays that stored its modules, Lunamaria looked at him. Lunamaria knew Shinn and Rey were the backup pilots for any of the Gundams should their pilots be unavailable. She wasn't considered for the position as her pilot test scores were lower than hers. Two other pilots like herself were just general pilots for the Minerva. Lunamaria didn't mind that she wasn't a backup Gundam pilot, she preferred not to be. There was so much expectation for Gundam pilots. They were expected to be amazing and a one-person army to a degree. Lunamaria was fine not having that expectation set on her shoulders.

The Impulse's test flight had been amazing to watch, and Lunamaria had enjoyed getting the chance to see it. Aila was really an amazing pilot, Lunamaria admired her so much for what she could do. Aila was the kind of pilot Lunamaria wanted to be while serving in ZAFT. From what Lunamaria had seen, there were more men than women in ZAFT. She hoped those like Aila and herself could show women could do just as much as men. But she also wondered what Shinn was thinking as he was just staring. She'd had a liking of Shinn shortly after meeting him and the ZAFT military academy. He was a good guy, and Lunamaria thought he was also kind of handsome. Being assigned to the same ship as Shinn gave her an opportunity to get to know Shinn better, and she wouldn't say no to that. "Thinking about the test flight of the Impulse," Lunamaria asked. "Aila certainly did make it look easy to do, that's for sure, she was amazing."

What Lunamaria said was true, Aila had made using the Impulse easy by what Shinn had seen. It had shown him he had a ways to go before he would likely be considered to pilot a Gundam. So, Shinn sighed wistfully, "Yeah, she was," he remarked. Shinn being assigned to a ZAKU wasn't bad, nor did he complain about the point. Most pilots started on mass-production machines and worked their way to something better. Shinn knew that was the normal way a pilot got to be assigned to a custom model machine. They used a regular model and showed they were talented and skilled before higher-ups chose them for a Gundam or custom model. "And I'm not saying piloting a ZAKU is bad or anything, but using a custom mobile suit is a dream of mine since I saw a CGUE for the first time. I know that if for some reason, Aila or one of the other Gundam pilots are unable to pilot, either Rey or I will take it out. But that doesn't feel the same as being "the pilot" assigned to a custom model. I'm just wondering if I'll ever get the chance to show that I can make a difference on a battlefield."

Rey smiled at Shinn, saying he wanted to be the pilot for a custom model or really a Gundam. Being a Gundam pilot was a badge of honor and a title to say one was skilled. Gundams gained notoriety during the war and wasn't argued by any of the three factions. Rey believed Shinn was of the caliber to be a Gundam pilot if given a chance. He'd seen Shinn's pilot test scores which had been quite notable. Rey had also observed Shinn fight in a mock battle and knew he was skilled. Thus, in Rey's eyes, it was a matter of time before enough saw Shinn's talent and would make a Gundam pilot. So, Rey put a hand on Shinn's shoulder, "Be patient, Shinn," he assured. "Your time will come, others will see your talent and will reward you for it. The opportunity will arrive, and if you keep practicing your piloting skills, you'll be ready for it." Lunamaria agreed with Rey that Shinn would get a chance to show his skills, and others would notice him. He would be in a Gundam someday and display he was the right choice for the machine. So, Lunamaria nodded strongly, "Rey is right, Shinn. You'll get a chance, and when you do, you will show everyone that you are a great choice to pilot a custom mobile suit, even a Gundam."

Meanwhile, Aila had driven one of the vehicles from the Minerva over to a hangar at the armory. At the hangar, she would meet up with the other pilots that were assigned to the Minerva. They would use the other Gundams the Minerva would carry. The four would pilot their Gundams to the Minerva, transporting them to the ship. Aila had met the four pilots, though she only knew one more personally. Upon arrival at the hangar, Aila showed her ID to the security guards before they let her in. Yet, as she was about to drive inside the hangar, she caught sight of something that was odd. Some teens with soldiers were walking around the military area, which shouldn't be happening. Policies stated civilians weren't to be around military areas without express permission. Granted, there had been standing peace for close to two years now, ever since the signing of the Treaty of Junius Seven. But that shouldn't mean that one should be lax, soldiers, being lax was when mistakes were made.

The Earth Alliance had been quiet lately yes, but that was the problem. The Alliance wasn't one to be quiet for long without there being more to it, at least that's how Aila saw it. There had been a number of events that were unexplained, but evidence, as circumstantial as it was, pointed towards the Alliance being responsible. The Alliance was expected to work outside the public eye, they had proved that in the Alliance-PLANT War. That meant that the Alliance wasn't doing nothing as some were claiming. They could attack ZAFT at any time, and Armory One wasn't an exception, even if it was out of the way. While ZAFT may be ready for an all-out assault from the Alliance, it wasn't ready for surprise attacks.

Aila put aside these thoughts and pulled into the hangar the Gundams were stored in. She parked the vehicle and exited it, looking around for her fellow pilots. When she saw no sign of them, she assumed they hadn't arrived at the hangar yet. They should've docked in the port around five minutes or so ago if they had been on time. So, Aila was early to meet them as it took longer than five minutes to travel from the port to the military area. She couldn't leave without greeting and telling them where the Minerva was located. To pass the time she would need to wait, Aila decided to glance over the other Gundams of the same series the Impulse was a part of.

Of the line, there were five so far, including the Impulse and all but her mobile suit could transform into another form by what Aila understood. The speculation between some including herself, was that scientist for ZAFT were trying to mimic and match the Federation's abilities. Specifically, ZAFT had wanted to copy their transformation capabilities since it was such an advantage for the Federation as proven in the war. Also, should the point ever come, ZAFT wanted to be able to match the Federation, which had the technological advantage thus far over ZAFT and the Alliance.

The few features all the Gundams in this series had in common were what she had expected. The first was all had a receiver for the Deuterion Beam that the Minerva had that could recharge a mobile suit. Second, they were all powered by a newer version of ultracompact energy battery. Due to the Treaty of Junius Seven's banning of nuclear technology, batteries were still the best way to power a mobile suit. Then third, was the phase shift armor system that they were equipped with. The idea of Phase Shift Armor, the five Alliance prototypes which had created the Gundam-type, had been improved to be more energy efficient and thus effective overall. The system could also be customized to a pilot's preference now, whereas before, they could not.

The first here and closest to the door was the X24S Chaos. It was gray at the moment, but that would change when its phase shift armor activated to be two shades of green. By what Ryan Peters, the pilot assigned to the Chaos had said, the machine could transform into a mobile armor with high speed and combat mobility. The conversation Aila had with Peters said the man had been studying the specs for the machine to familiarize himself with it. It had a fair arsenal to work with, a number of CIWS guns, beam sabers, a beam rifle, and a multi-phase beam cannon. The Chaos also had a remote operating control system that the technicians called the DRAGOON. The system developed in response to the Alliance's wired gunbarrels, which they had used to their advantage in the war. It had been tested during the Second Battle of Jachin Due and had been improved since then. The DRAGOON was used for the two weapon pods the suit had or that's what had been said.

Next to the Chaos was the X28S Osiris. It would become mostly gold and a dark blue for the torso when its phase shift came on. Aila knew about the Osiris the most as it would be the unit her boyfriend Matt Dems would pilot. Matt had brought up the Osiris during one of their calls and had given her a basic rundown about it. The Osiris was supposedly the suit of this series that was the closest to being a transforming mobile suit like the Federation's space forces had. It would change into a space fighter craft, by what Matt had said. What made the Osiris unique was that most of its weapons were not beams but rapid-firing guns. Yet, as the Alliance appeared to use laminated armor and not phase shift, that kind of weaponry would work fine. The Osiris also had a combined weapon system for its main offensive weapon, which had three weapons in one frame.

On the opposite side of the first two suits, farthest from the entryway, was the X31S Abyss. It would also become two shades of blue and white with its phase shift activated. The Abyss was specialized for underwater combat according to Mare Strode, who was the test pilot and would be the Abyss' pilot going forward. Aila didn't get along with the guy all that much, and he had an issue with her. During the meeting she'd had with him, he had said something along the lines of him being a better choice for the Impulse's assigned pilot instead of her. Matt had come to her defense which was sweet of him even if it was expected as her boyfriend. The underwater specialty had come about as the Federation was supposed to have something like that to use already. Glimpses had been recorded during the war of the Federation's aquatic machines, which Aila had seen once. Like the Chaos, the Abyss had an array of CIWS guns, but the suit had a mix of projectile cannons and beam weapons. It also had a lance with a beam that could project an edge for cutting, but it also had a physical blade for underwater use.

Last but not least was the X88S Gaia, which was next to the Abyss and closest to the door on that side of the hangar. It would become black overall with some red and yellow when its phase shift came on. The mobile suit's pilot was to be Lyla Nome, an old Aila classmate from their time in military training. Meeting Lyla again had made dealing with Mare's insults easier. Having Matt on the Minerva had made the tour great, and Lyla, who had also introduced them there, would make it better. The Gaia's designed for land based combat according to Lyla as it could transform into what looked like a BuCUE. During the battle around the Republic, the Federation had shown they had something like that. Aila assumed the Gaia was the attempt to copy that idea for ZAFT to use. The Gaia's arsenal was made up of CIWS guns and beam weaponry. Its weapons would allow the Gaia to be good with ranged or close-quarters combat and likely win.

The four Gundams here, along with the Impulse, would be the main fighting force of the Minerva. The ship had a few ZAKU Warriors for the other pilots onboard to support the Gundams should that be needed. With that compliment, Aila felt the Minerva would be as prepared as possible for whatever missions it may receive. There could be unexpected circumstances that the Minerva could face, but one couldn't prepare for every possibility. Aila just hoped the transport of the Gundams to the Minerva would be as simple as it was supposed to be. However, she couldn't shake the nagging feeling something was off and not in a good way.

Aila was brought out of her thoughts when her com-unit went off. She took it out and saw the call was coming from Ryan Peters. "Hey, Ryan," Aila greeted, "I assume you are at Armory's port or thereabouts?" Ryan answered in the affirmative and said he and the others would be around the hangar in about fifteen minutes. He said something about there being paperwork they had to do before heading in that direction. "Sounds good, I'm already here, and I'll wait for all of you to arrive and give you the current info I have for the Minerva." Aila put away the com-unit but couldn't help dwelling on the feeling of something being off. Yet, the sound of voices from outside the hangar drew her attention. She went to the door to check with the soldiers on duty and see what was going on.

The soldiers at the hangar's entrance were watching a small group a short distance away. Neither of them was pleased the group was there as it contained three teenaged civilians. Civilians weren't supposed to be around military areas, even if they were visiting family. The soldiers with them should be well aware of that and shouldn't be bringing teens around here. It was especially true with the hangar they were guarding contained the new Gundams ZAFT had developed. "What is going on," Aila asked. The two soldiers turned and saw the pilot who had come to the hangar a little while ago. Aila Lakeen was fine being here, she was here to meet those who would be taking the Gundams to the Minerva. The two soldiers frowned as they turned back to gaze at the group, "A foolish scene, ma'am," one said.

Aila looked at the group and found it was the three teens she'd spotted along her way here. It was even odder that they were here and not around the non-armory area. Civilians should've been stopped before reaching the military area of the colony. However, now the teens were accompanied by two soldiers who looked to be acting as escorts. If they should be family, that shouldn't make a difference and make the group okay to be where they were. "Is it common for civilians to be in this area," Aila questioned. "I'm sure policy says they shouldn't be, even if they were family. I had to show ID at the entrance to the Armory before I was let through." The other soldier shook his head, "No, there shouldn't be any around here. But by what I heard when they were approached near here, the kids are supposed to be the soldiers' family." The other scoffed, "There have been some who slip friends and relatives around, and that has been happening more often lately," he replied. "I tell you, people are getting more lax, and it will come back to bite us and cost a price."

Aila agreed with the opinions of the soldiers on duty. The laxness that was coming out was dangerous and would have a price to it when another took advantage of it. However, the nagging feeling in her mind had strengthened at seeing the group. Something about them being here didn't sit right with her. She couldn't put her finger on what was having her suspicious of the group. Instead, Aila turned back and entered the hangar where she would wait for the others to arrive. She was being paranoid, creating more problems than it solved, and she knew it. So, she would be alert but not let her paranoia lead her to look for shadows and issues where there weren't any.

At the same time, Sting, Stella, and Auel were walking around with their "soldier" escort. They were close to the hangar their prize was stored in. Only a few soldiers had stopped to question them along the way thus far. Their story had held up without any digging into too far to see the lie it was so far. Getting into the military area hadn't been that hard, but they had to keep up the deception for a little longer. There had been some that had given them suspicious looks as they'd passed them. So, some could be curious about them and may get in the way of the mission. But they were fine for the moment, which counted for them. As they turned a corner, the group moved into the shadows. No one had seen them disappear from the open, so they hadn't been followed yet. There was a door on the side of the hangar where the Gundams were. One of the Alliance soldiers had the needed keycard to get through the door into the hangar. They were in the position to start the operation and get the Gundams for themselves. The two soldiers asked the teens if they were ready for their part in the theft, and they said they were.

They moved to the side door of the hangar and used the keycard to enter. They came into an unused corridor with the other end leading into the hangar with the Gundams. The soldiers handed the teens weapons to work with. Sting and Auel took the guns they were given and checked them over before loading them. Stella was given a knife to work with, which was fine for her as she preferred fighting up close and personal. Tanya had taught her how to fight, which was the style she'd shown her. The two soldiers kept the rifles they had since they would be helping the teens deal with those in the hangar. The teens knew which machine was their target to take, so they would go directly for them. The two Alliance soldiers would help cause chaos for the teens to get to the machine before vanishing. The five rushed into the hangar and split up at the entrance. The teens quickly spotted their targets and began making their way toward them.

Aila had reentered the hangar and had been talking to some of the mechanics about the Gundams to pass the time. However, everything changed when the sound of gunfire rang out. Aila turned to one of the side corridors leading to offices and saw the teens and the two soldiers coming out with guns blazing. The teens had semi-automatic guns in hand; the boys had two guns each, while the girl had a gun and a knife. The five were mowing down those by the side corridor, and even the soldiers who tried to raise their guns fell. Aila drew her pistol before she ducked down behind equipment. She tried firing back, but after two shots, she suddenly felt a sharp sting around her left shoulder. She hid behind the metal equipment for cover and looked at her left shoulder. Aila saw a bullet had punched a hold in her shoulder, but it wasn't large, though it was bleeding. So, Aila ignored the pain, popped back up, and fired back at the invaders. Aila could hear she wasn't the only one fighting back against the group, but the teens and the two with them kept pushing forward and weren't stopped.

The teen trio killed any they got close to as they made their way toward their target machine. No one had been able to hit them with how quickly they could move. ZAFT soldiers had quickly hid behind things and were firing back, but that wasn't stopping the three teens. Aila managed to get her hands on an assault rifle and with it she took down one of the phony soldiers with a shot to his neck. Yet, as the attack kept going, Aila noticed the teens had disappeared from sight. She didn't have time to wonder where the three had gone as three out of the four Gundams activated and rose out of their docks, causing destruction as they moved. The three were the Chaos, Abyss, and Gaia, while the Osiris was left alone. Or at least Aila wasn't seeing anyone trying to get to the machine and into the cockpit. Aila got a lucky shot that killed the other phony soldier while the mobile suits moved toward the hangar's entrance. She then moved to the nearest console and hit the alarm button to give as much warning to every other soldier she could about the growing problem.

Once the three stolen mobile suits exited the hangar, Aila took a moment to scanned around. The scene was horrific, with all the blood and dead that littered the hangar. She then glanced down at her left shoulder and saw that the crimson spot had grown and stood against her ZAFT Red uniform. Aila searched around for something to bind up her shoulder and spotted a length of cloth. It was the cleanest thing to work with right now, so Aila grabbed the rag. She tied it around where the bullet had hit her and made it the best tourniquet she could, hoping to stop the bleeding or at least slow it down. Aila would have it looked at when she could. She got out her com-unit and sent a message to Ryan saying things had gone bad and the Gundams stolen. Aila then raced over and climbed the docking scaffolding before she lowered herself into the Osiris' cockpit. The setup was kind of different than what the Impulse had, which she expected. Matt had told her about some of the differences so Aila could work with them. It certainly wasn't the time to be picky with the Gundams being stolen by enemy forces.

Aila activated the mobile suit's onboard system, and the forward display came up with the same starting message as the Impulse did.

MOBILE SUIT NEO OPERATION SYSTEM
Generation
Unrestricted
Network
DriveAssault
Module

G.U.N.D.A.M
_Ver.2.5.3 Rev.07_
Z.A.F.T

When the system boot-up was finished, Aila wasted no more time. The thieves were already causing serious issues that needed to be stopped before many people got hurt. She got the Osiris to rise from its dock and turn towards the gaping hole that the other three made for their exit. Aila made sure to activate the phase shift, changing the Osiris over to being gold everywhere but the torso, which was dark blue. Then, once that was done, Aila piloted the Osiris out to see what could be done.

On the other side of the Armory, Peters had been driving the vehicle with the other three Gundam pilots toward the hangar the suits were in. Lakeen was waiting for them and would give them the needed info to get the Gundams to get to the Minerva. But then there were explosions ahead which got Ryan to stomp on the brakes bringing the vehicle to an abrupt stop. Matt Dems leaned forward, "What's going on, Peters," he asked. Ryan pointed ahead, "I believe things just got more complicated." The four stared as three objects shot out of the smoke and came down near where the explosions were. "Dems, get Lakeen back on the com-unit," Ryan ordered, "we need eyes on what's going on."

Aila was carefully moving the Osiris toward the exit when her com-unit began going off. She linked it to the suit's com-system and opened the incoming call. "Who is calling," Aila said flatly, "I'm not really able to talk about stuff right now."

"Aila," Ryan said, "What is going on?"

"Ryan," Aila returned, "Things have gone bad."

Ryan had already guessed things were going badly, there just weren't the details as to what was happening. And should they help get things under control, Ryan needed to know what was occurring. "Tell us something we don't already know, but we need more than that, Aila," Ryan replied. "If we are to help with damage control, we need to know what we're dealing with."

"An enemy group infiltrated the hangar and stole three of the Gundams," Aila iterated. "I'm betting they're with the Alliance, but I can't be sure. But they aren't amateurs, that I'm sure of. They killed the majority of those who were in the hangar at the time, so we couldn't mount much of a resistance. I've taken the Osiris and am going to pursue the stolen three and stop them the best I can."

For enemy forces to steal mobile suits was bad enough that they took Gundams was worse. They would likely use the Gundams to cause destruction and chaos to hamper any response against them. "Then get pursuing the Gundams," Ryan said. "We will do what we can to assist allies. Keep in touch on this channel, we need to coordinate if we are to curtail this incident." Ryan turned to the others, "Dems, Nome, go find mobile suits to work with that haven't been destroyed. Help with the evacuations of the citizens and other non-combatants before assisting Aila. Strode, you're with me to help organize a proper response to this theft."

Aila maneuvered the Osiris to the hangar's wrecked entrance. The scene she took in was horrifying. Debris and bodies littered the area in the wake of the Gundams' exit from the hangar. Mobile suit hangars in the surrounding area were on fire, damaged, or in ruins in most ways Aila looked. To see how much destruction the three stolen machines had brought was sickening as it was terrifying. The three teens who had taken the machines made the prototype mobile suits into war machines. This shouldn't have happened, for the thieves should know nothing about the mobile suits, yet somehow, they did. This situation was unprecedented, yet, this Alliance force had taken every one and Armory One by complete surprise, and now chaos was the result.

It didn't take long for Aila to spot all three of the stolen suits as they were going around the Armory, razing the area. They were destroying hangars, blasting any mobile suits that were trying to get up to stop them. And through all of this while killing people as they went, mostly soldiers. The sight angered Aila; all that was happening was a senseless killing, even more than the Alliance would normally pull. Even with the pain in her left shoulder, the feelings of fury helped Aila to dismiss and ignore the pain. Her resolve strengthened her goal of stopping the three stolen Gundam-type by whatever means necessary. Whether that meant destroying or just capturing them, Aila would see it through to the end. Hopefully, Ryan and the other three would be able to assist her in stopping the stolen Gundams. Aila knew she would be able to do little by herself about the Gundams.

Aila moved the Osiris away from the hangar, making her way covertly toward the Chaos since it was the closest to her. If she could take one of the three by surprise, she may have the chance to disable it so others could recapture it. Any advantage she could get for her allies could translate into the lives of the colony's citizens could be saved. And to her luck, none of the three stolen Gundams appeared to notice the Osiris moving out into the open. The scenes of the Abyss and the Gaia shooting the hangars and other mobile suits trying to approach to stop them. It was painful to witness for Aila, to see allies trying to stop those dangerous to the colony and yet dying in the attempt.

Meanwhile, the group around Chairman Durandal and Cagalli Athha was trying to figure out what was happening. They had been on their way to the dock the Minerva was in. Durandal had wanted to show Representative Athha the ship and explain to her the updating process ZAFT was going through. But then there was an explosion around the colony's armory section, which got the security detail to surround Cagalli and Gilbert. Soldiers quickly began rushing by, and others directed non-soldiers to leave the armory area and head for the shelters. Gilbert caught one soldier and asked them what was going on. He was told three of the Gundams had turned against them and were now attacking the armory. And if any other evidence was needed, the three Gundams were seen attacking hangars and mobile suits by Durandal's party.

Athrun recognized some of the defining features within seconds of the three mobile suits attacking the armory. All three machines were Gundam types, even if they were using varying equipment. He knew all three factions would build Gundams given time, it was a fact with how powerful they were. However, with how the Gundams before him were attacking the armory, Athrun believed ZAFT wasn't in control of them anymore. And for someone to attack with Cagalli was here at the colony seemed odd to be a coincidence. It should be even less likely for an attack with Chairman Durandal being at the colony unless planned. If the Alliance was doing this attack, they were getting bolder than any had suspected. Athrun's eyes widened at seeing the mobile suits, "Those are," he uttered. Nevertheless, Cagalli finished his thought, "Gundam-types?!"

Gilbert could see something had gone very wrong with some of the Gundams being used to attack the armory. That implied a group had stolen the Gundams from the hangar they had been stored in. The most likely culprit was the Alliance, and if it was them, all in the colony including himself, were in danger. Instead of staring or letting his security team drag him to safety, Gilbert took charge and handed out orders to those around him. The colony's citizens needed to be evacuated to the shelters used when the colony faced a crisis. The Gundams needed to be contained in the best possible. It would be great if they could be recaptured with the work that had gone into them. However, the chances of capturing the Gundams and taking them back from those who stole them were low.

Gilbert did assign some passing soldiers to get Cagalli and her bodyguards to the Minerva. That ship would be the safest place in this crisis until it was brought under control. The relationship between ZAFT and the Federation was good right now. That relationship needed to be maintained for what possible conflict the Alliance could bring to the human race. And having one of their representatives die while meeting with some of the PLANTs would not help the relationship. He would head for the Minerva when he had delegated orders to get things on the right track. With Alliance forces here, Gilbert couldn't see why more wouldn't be outside the colony. ZAFT patrol forces should be able to deal with those supporting the thieves. However, if they had taken them by surprise as they had those in the armory, that response would be less effective.

Back with the Gundams, Sting was working on shooting the hangars around where they were. The less mobile suits that could be used, the simpler the exit would be for him and the others. Sting had the Chaos in the air, firing off missiles at the enemies trying to do what they could to stop him. However, a beam zipped by him, getting Sting to turn so he could find the source. He found a gold Gundam closing the distance between it and him. It took a moment for Sting to realize the Gundam looked like the other machine in the hangar the Gundams they stole had been in. It had stuck out to Sting as the fourth hadn't been in the info Neo had given them for the mission. All he'd said was ZAFT would do anything they could to slow them down and stop their taking of the Gundams. And until Sting had seen the fourth, Neo's information had been right on the money. There hadn't been a fourth pilot to capture that machine, and the two soldiers with them had said they would handle it. Sting had focused back on his task of getting to the Chaos and boarding it at the time, he hadn't thought to look to see if the soldiers had done what they said. But with the gold Gundam fighting him, it was obvious the soldiers had failed to deal with the unknown. Dealing with it now fell to Sting, Auel, and Stella, which would complicate things for their escape.

Aila was using her beam rifle as she was pursuing the Chaos, adding the rifle system's machine guns. The Chaos avoided the beams but was peppered by the machine gun fire sporadically. Aila brought the Osiris's 98mm twin-barreled Vulcans over the suit's shoulders and had them add to the barrage she was giving. As she got into range for close-quarters combat, Aila put away the rifle system and drew out the beam saber stored in the Osiris's shield. Sting had been backing up the Chaos in response to the enemy weapon barrage. He was trying to find an opportunity to counter this golden mobile suit but could see none. Sting had to admit, whoever he was going against wasn't half bad at piloting a Gundam. They were giving no openings, they were pressing Sting back when others hadn't been able to.

Aila ignited her beam saber and crashed into the Chaos with as much force the Osiris's thrusters could give her. She brought the Chaos down to the ground, which was some progress to work with. The Chaos in the air would be more dangerous than it being on the ground by a small margin. Aila felt she could disable the stolen Gundams one by one if given enough time and her left shoulder didn't bleed badly. Facing the Gundams together wouldn't go well for Aila at all, she would lose that fight. If allies could help her, the process could be done more efficiently, and fewer lives would be lost.

At the same time, the soldiers escorting Cagalli, Athrun, and Quatre led them south from where they had been. According to what Athrun heard, the soldiers told them they were leading them to a ship docked in the armory. It was their orders from the chairman, they said. Cagalli had asked what would happen to Chairman Durandal, and the response had been he would join them when he was done giving out orders. Athrun had taken up position on Cagalli's right while Quatre was a short distance to her left. He was determined to get Cagalli to safety, regardless of what it took to do it. Athrun would get into a mobile suit without hesitation if it kept Cagalli safe.

Mobile suits were around the armory, some helping with the evacuations, others trying to keep the Gundams back from people running away. The ZAKUs did little to slow down the Gundams attacking the armory. The destruction of hangars and other buildings concerned Athrun as that could easily block the path to the ship the soldiers were taking them to. And as if his fears were a signal, the group turned a corner and came on the scene of the gold Gundam fighting the green one. The clash kicked up dirt and debris, which surged out from the fight. Athrun instinctually grabbed Cagalli and rushed into the shelter of a standing hangar close by. Quatre went a different way than them as the debris came flying at them. The two soldiers who had been escorting them were caught up in the flying debris and vanished in the destruction.

Auel had been working on destroying enemy hangars and mobile suits and enjoying every moment of it. This was much more fun than the simulations had ever been back at the lab. Yet, he caught a glimpse of Sting fighting someone. When Auel looked, a gold Gundams was going against the Chaos. It looked like the other Gundam, which hadn't been in the mission information from Neo. The soldiers with them were supposed to have dealt with it, but clearly, they hadn't. Auel wanted to keep going with destroying buildings, but he knew he would get into trouble if he didn't do something to help Sting. That was part of the rules trios had to follow, you helped the other two out when they were in a bind. So, Auel turned the Abyss to face the fight and used its beam cannons against the gold machine.

Aila had been about to pin down the Chaos and do what she could to cut down what weapons it had to work with, but she never got that far. An alarm had gone off warning of an incoming attack which had gotten Aila to have the Osiris leap back. Beams shot past where she had been, which got her to look to her left. The sight of the Abyss facing her made Aila's situation grimmer than it had been before. Going against two of the stolen machines at the same time made the odds of her getting out of this alive much lower. The Abyss brought its dual cannons to point at the Osiris, snapping Aila to attention. She raised her shield to defend herself from the coming attack before the Abyss fired. The impact from the projectiles forced the Osiris to slide back a few meters as the shield deflected the shells. Aila stored the beam saber and retrieved the rifle system, the smoke from the explosive shells covering her actions. Aila fired off a bolt from the beam rifle at the Abyss to get them to back off. She would've kept up the pressure on the Abyss if not for the Chaos rising and attacking the Osiris.

Aila had to leap back from the two mobile suits to get some space to work with to fight them at the same time. Getting surrounded was the last thing Aila wanted to happen, as the enemy could overwhelm her. Yet, she could see that's what the Chaos and Abyss were working on doing. So, she had the Osiris get into the air and transform into its fighter mode to get space from the two Gundams. The Chaos should be the only one who could follow her, which would cut down on the number of opponents she was facing. And she needed any advantage she could get in this battle with the odds stacked against her.

Sting saw the gold Gundams leaping into the air and changing into an aircraft. It was trying to make space to fight them more effectively. He wouldn't let the enemy Gundam get away so it could come back and slow them down. Thus, he had the Chaos get into the air, shift into its mobile armor mode, and pursue the gold machine. Sting started shooting at the Osiris when he got behind it. The enemy Gundam had to be taken down to ensure it wouldn't cause more trouble to them.

Alarms blaring told Aila the Chaos was chasing her as she'd suspected it would. Aila had the Osiris morph back to its suit mode and fired back at the Chaos. However, the Osiris shook hard as she was shooting back at the Chaos. Aila glanced down at the forward display and saw things would only be getting harder for her. One of the Osiris's flight stabilizers had taken a hit and had damaged it enough to be a problem. The two stabilizers enabled the Osiris to do an atmospheric flight and couldn't do so effectively without them. She couldn't help but wonder how the teens that had stolen the Gundams knew how to use them as well as they did. They should know nothing about them, yet they clearly knew how to pilot them. And Aila knew she needed help if she was to get out of the tough spot she was now in.

Back with Athrun and Cagalli, the dust began settling, with Cagalli coughing a bit. Athrun scanned the area and didn't like what he saw. There was wreckage all around them, along with the bodies of the dead. The building they had taken shelter in was now ruined, even if the spot Athrun had been lucky to choose still stood. He didn't see Quatre anywhere but had caught a glimpse of his fellow bodyguard rushing in a different direction to escape the debris. Athrun was confident Quatre would be fine and would meet up with them when he could. Their escorts were gone, most likely dead if Athrun were to guess, so they couldn't help Cagalli and Athrun. Cagalli's safety was now Athrun's sole responsibility; he would see to that with everything he had. They were both still in danger while the battle was still going on. So, Athrun needed to get Cagalli away from the battle or into something that would protect her better.

Athrun pulled Cagalli out of the structure they had sheltered in and pulled her along as he went in the opposite direction the fighting was in. As Athrun pulled her along, Cagalli was still trying to process what had just happened. Soldiers had been leading them to safety with a battle around the armory. But after that, things became blurry, and Cagalli was too confused to comprehend what was going on. Quatre seemed to be missing since the dust cloud had barreled passed them. Things were bad, and Cagalli knew it but had no idea what could be done to change anything. Athrun was looking for something to work with to protect Cagalli but was only seeing wrecked mobile suits. A mobile suit could help him protect Cagalli, and Athrun would take that right now. He may be a tad out of practice with piloting a mobile suit, but he could still do the job if required.

The next thing either he or Cagalli knew the situation changed violently again. They turned a corner, and in front of them was the black mobile suit, shooting down other mobile suits. One of the mobile suits that the black suit damaged fell and crashed into the hangar Athrun, and Cagalli was next to it. That caused an explosion which got Athrun to hug Cagalli to shield her from any potential debris. Athrun heard something crash through the nearby wall and hit the ground in front of them. Some pebbles did pepper Athrun with the rush of dust whirled around them, but nothing caused injury to Athrun.

After the air cleared of smoke and dust, Athrun glanced around to see how things stood. He was still hugging Cagalli to shield and protect her from any harm he could. Athrun wouldn't release her until he was sure she wouldn't be in immediate danger. He saw what had fallen was a mobile suit, and it appeared relatively undamaged. The mobile suit was the new mass-production model ZAFT was using within the last year by what Athrun understood. It was the ZGMF-1000 ZAKU Warrior, which had replaced the GINN mostly. It was light green except for the darker green torso and had a somewhat similar frame to a GINN. A shield mounted on the left shoulder was the same length as a bit more than half the machines and had three spikes coming out of the upper center of the shield's surface. The mobile suits had thrusters in the legs as well as in the back to give them mobility and power.

Athrun didn't see anything that would threaten Cagalli directly in the immediate area. So, he let her go and gazed at the mobile suit nearby. It was one he could work with and a good option to use to protect Cagalli. Cagalli glanced around after Athrun had released her from his embrace. She knew Athrun had been shielding her from harm and was grateful he would do that for her. Cagalli wished Athrun wasn't required to protect her as he was, but in this, that wasn't how things went. A battle was going on inside the colony, causing chaos all over. They had been separated from their escorts, who were dead now. Quatre was nowhere to be found and could just as easily be dead. Cagalli couldn't think of how the current situation could be much worse than it already was. Athrun looked down at Cagalli, "Are you alright," he asked. Cagalli gazed at Athrun with tears coming to her eyes, "Why," she started, but choked a bit, "why is this happening, Athrun?"

Although he wanted one, Athrun didn't have a proper answer to Cagalli's question. He suspected the Alliance had sent a group to steal ZAFT Gundams. The Alliance was the only group that made sense, which he was aware of. Athrun could see a few ways an undercover Alliance group could sneak into the colony. But how the group had gotten to the armory and into the hangar with the Gundams without being stopped, Athrun couldn't say. It no longer mattered how the thieves got to the Gundam. The thieves were using the Gundams to bring destruction and chaos to the colony, bringing about the current circumstances. "I don't know," Athrun said after a long moment, "but we'll be alright."

Athrun's optimism wasn't helping them with the situation they were in right now. They were on their own, with no support or allied help to rely on if needed. Cagalli and Athrun were in the middle of a battle zone. They didn't know where to go to reach safety when they needed that information. So, Cagalli couldn't see how things would be alright with what they were in. "It's just the two of us right now, Athrun," Cagalli insisted. "Quatre has vanished without a trace, and he may be dead. The soldiers escorting us to a ship were killed. We don't know where the ship they were guiding us to is. The current situation can't get much worse, Athrun, so what good is there for us?"

Athrun knew Cagalli was right with how she'd laid out their circumstances. Things were bad, Athrun wouldn't deny it if questioned. But he was taking what good he could little that there was for the moment. Just looking at the bad made things harder than they already were, and Athrun wouldn't do that. Thus, Athrun shook his head, "Quatre isn't dead, Cagalli. I'm confident that he is alive and will join back up with us when he can. But until he can, we are on our own and need to defend ourselves." Athrun looked back at the mobile suit they were close to. It was the best option Athrun could work with to protect Cagalli from the fighting. "We can't stay here, we need to go now," he stated, grabbing Cagalli and rushing for the mobile suit next to them.

Athrun pulled Cagalli up to the cockpit entrance and prodded her to get in. Cagalli hesitated for a moment as she hadn't been in a mobile suit since the war had ended. She didn't like the fighting, even when she understood there were times it was necessary. Cagalli didn't want Athrun to have to pilot to protect her. He hadn't piloted since the war's end that she knew of, and he hadn't mentioned anything that would suggest it. Yet, she didn't have time to question or argue with Athrun as he picked her up and dropped into the suit's cockpit. Athrun directed her to move to the side of the pilot's chair, which he took himself.

Athrun scanned the cockpit quickly and found it was similar to a GINN's cockpit layout. So, he knew the general layout of the controls, and he'd trained on a GINN before being assigned to Creuset's team. Athrun activated the operating system, which appeared much like a GINN's. That implied the machine would respond much as a GINN would, and Athrun could work with that without much trouble. This mobile suit wasn't a Gundam and would be at a disadvantage going against one. Athrun's skills would have to make up the difference for the suit's capabilities. He had the motivation to do what it took to protect Cagalli and make sure she came out of this alive.

As Athrun was bringing the suit's operating system up, Cagalli couldn't help but worry about this. Athrun had been a good pilot, but he'd be out of practice by this point unless he'd been working on this and not telling her. And in this mobile suit, he was potentially about to fight Gundams, which were more dangerous than mass-production mobile suits. Cagalli didn't want to see Athrun die, that was the last thing she wanted to happen. She may not admit it publicly yet, but she was more than fond of Athrun now. She hoped their relationship could go beyond just friendship sometime in the future. Cagalli hadn't told him her true feelings, always putting them off for whatever reason she would come up with. But now she was facing him putting his life on the line to protect her, and she couldn't come up with any excuse. "Athrun, wait, are you sure about this," Cagalli asked. "It's been a while since you piloted, hasn't it?"

Athrun wouldn't let Cagalli die here if there was anything he could do to prevent it. He would use every skill and ability he had at his disposal, rusty or sharp. Athrun would fight Gundams with a mass-production mobile suit and use every dirty trick he knew to win. That was how important Cagalli's safety and life were to him. "I'm not about to let you die in a place like this," Athrun stated firmly. "I don't care what I have to do to keep you alive, but I'll do it without hesitation." Athrun's declaration made Cagalli's heart skip a beat before speeding up a margin. A part of her liked Athrun, saying he was willing to fight to protect her life. It was almost like a knight from old fairy tales protecting their princesses. Cagalli hadn't thought of those kinds of stories since she'd been a little girl until Athrun had come into her life. Then they came to her mind off and on, with Athrun being the knight and her the princess.

The ZAKU's main optical camera flashed on, and the rest of the mobile suit began to respond to Athrun's input. The visual displays came up showing feeds from the outside. Nothing of the ruins and destruction had changed since they had entered the suit. Athrun found the suit's systems were good, and nothing about the machine was broken or out of place. Thus, he had a working mobile suit without damage to work against. Athrun needed any advantage or the least issue working against him as he would be going against Gundams. He moved the controls to have the suit rise, the torso vents letting out steam as the machine came to life and stood to its full height.

Stella inside the Gaia had been doing what she should after taking the Gundam from the hangar. She had been destroying buildings and enemies who tried to stop her or the others. Neo had told her to do that after getting to the mobile suit. Stella wanted to make Neo proud of her performance. He had been so nice to her, much more than others she'd been around that she could recall. And the task he'd given wasn't turning out to be all that difficult so far. ZAFT's attempts to stop her had failed with her efforts. Sting had told her to go in the direction she had been. Stella assumed Sting was keeping Auel and her apart, so they didn't argue or interfere with one another. She had kept mobile suits from getting up mostly and destroyed those that managed to stand thus far. Stella saw that as a good sign of her performance, and she would hold to that.

Nonetheless, after she had destroyed another suit, she noticed movement behind her. Stella turned and spotted a ZAKU standing a short distance away from her. It looked like the same model Stella had taken down before with those who had been trying to stop her. One more of the ZAFT suits wouldn't have any more success than the others she'd dispatched already. It was close to the time for her and the others to leave the colony. So, this would have to be quick before she started looking for a way out of the colony. The port wouldn't do as Neo had said he would have some who would plug it up somehow. "Hmm, looks like I missed one, guess I should fix that," Stella muttered to herself. "I'll make this quick and move on to finding an exit." She brought up the Gaia's beam rifle, pointed it at the ZAKU, and pulled the trigger.

Athrun saw the rifle being raised, so he was ready when it fired. He used the ZAKU's rear thruster and evaded the attack. Stella blinked as none of the previous opponents had been so quick to react to her actions. Sure, they had dodged attacks, but she shot or cut off a piece in exchange. That could mean this one differed from the others, which would have to be treated as such. However, before Stella could react, her opponent rushed forward and rammed the Gaia with its shield. The surprise attack annoyed her as none had touched her before this. The enemy pilot may have caught her off-guard, but Stella wouldn't let them get the better of her. She would take them down, prove none here were better, and prove to Neo that she could do anything he asked of her.

While fighting continued, the Minerva was still in its dock. Arthur was in charge as the captain had gone to escort the Chairman to the Minerva with the chaos happening. Captain Gladys had determined the Minerva was the safest place currently for the Chairman to be with the potential danger present. He had reached out to the port control, hoping they would know what was happening. But there had been no response from them other than static, which was a bad sign. It could mean the port had been damaged and, with it, the colony's comm exchange. If the exchange was down, those inside the colony were on their own and would get no help from the outside. Arthur looked out the forward viewport and stared at the smoke coming up from the armory. Things looked bad like an attack was going on, but nothing could be done to confirm or discount that. The best course of action would be to send out a mobile suit to look things over, Arthur knew that.

However, with the majority of the ship's pilots out and the Minerva only having the Impulse on it, options were limited. Rey and Lunamaria had gone out to get the mobile suits they would use from the hangar they were stored at. Aila had gone to meet up with the other pilots assigned to the Minerva and get the Gundams to the ship. Shinn Asuka and two other pilots were there, but only Shinn could pilot the Impulse. The other two were just trained on mass-production models, so a Gundam was out of their current capabilities. The issue was Asuka had only done simulations for the Impulse, he'd never piloted the machine itself. He had been scheduled to have a test flight in a week or two under Aila's supervision. However, more information on the current situation was needed, and a mobile suit was the best way to get it. Arthur turned to Meyrin, "Miss Hawke," he began, "Get Mr. Asuka on the line for me." Meyrin nodded and called Shinn's com-unit so she could get him connected to the deputy captain. She had nothing against Shinn. He seemed like a nice and thoughtful guy from what she'd seen. Meyrin also knew her sister Lunamaria had a bit of a crush on Shinn, though she didn't say anything about that.

Shinn had been a tad restless as the "lead" pilot on the Minerva. With Rey and Luna off to get their ZAKUs, that left him and two others as on-duty pilots for the Minerva. Aila had gone off to meet up with the other Gundam pilots, so she wasn't around. That left Shinn in charge of field operations, and he wasn't sure he liked that position. He was brought out of his thoughts when his com-unit started going off. Shinn took the unit out and saw it was Meyrin calling from the bridge. "What's going on, Meyrin," Shinn asked. "Shinn, the deputy captain wants a word with you." Shinn blinked as he couldn't think of anything the deputy captain would need to talk to him about. He'd done nothing wrong that he knew of, and Shinn was pretty good at knowing when he did something he shouldn't have. "Okay, put him on whenever you're ready, Meyrin," Shinn replied. Meyrin connected the channel with Shinn to Arthur's headset, "Shinn is on sir," she stated.

"Mr. Asuka," Arthur started, "I need you to suit up and take the Impulse out." Shinn was almost floored at being told to take the Impulse out. The Impulse was Aila's Gundam, and Shinn was just one of its backup pilots. Condition Red hadn't been called yet that Shinn knew of, so it didn't make sense why the deputy captain was telling him to suit up. "May I ask what for, sir," Shinn inquired evenly. "Something is going on around the armory," Arthur continued, "I think there is an attack, that's what it is looking like from here. But we need conformation, which is why you will be taking the Impulse out." Shinn didn't have further questions at the moment, so he gave his affirmative and shut off his com-unit. Arthur declared Condition Red after the call with Asuka was done, so the Minerva was ready for potential combat.

Shinn had been halfway to the pilot locker room when Condition Red was declared. He couldn't help but wonder what was going around the armory that had the deputy worried. Shinn had a growing bad feeling that something had gone terribly wrong but couldn't figure out what it could be. Armory One was in the Lagrange 4 colony cluster, under the Federation's control. The Alliance would be seriously foolish to consider attacking the colony, as the other factions would have reason to turn on them. Shinn put on his pilot suit before he rushed down to the hangar to board the Core Splendor. Upon entering the hangar, Shinn headed to the lift that would get him to the Splendor's location. However, when he got there, Shinn couldn't help but pause and stare at the machine.

Yes, Rey had said that Shinn would get a chance to prove he could make a difference. Shinn had believed his friend and had looked forward to when that time came. Yet, Shinn hadn't imagined in his wildest dreams the opportunity would come up so soon. However, Shinn wouldn't waste this chance he was unexpectedly given. He took a deep breath, then moved forward and got into the cockpit. It wasn't the first time he'd been in the Core Splendor. The simulations he and Rey had done for being backup pilots had taken place in it. But this time would be different for Shinn. It wouldn't be a simulation, it would be the real thing. Aila wouldn't be there to correct him before he made a major mistake. Shinn would have to do the assembly process himself without any help. But he focused as the cockpit closed and sealed as it was far too late to back out of this now.

Meyrin connected a channel with the Core Splendor, as the deputy hadn't said anything about the silhouette flyer choice. With that being the case, it would be up to Shinn to select the equipment he'd use. "Shinn, can you hear me," she asked.

"Yeah, you're coming in loud and clear," Shinn replied.

"The deputy captain didn't make any recommendations on silhouette selection," Meyrin stated. "That means it will be up to the pilot to choose the equipment they want to use for the deployment. So, which silhouette do you want to be loaded for use?"

Shinn took a moment to consider the options he had to go with for this outing. The Force Silhouette was the most rounded equipment set; he'd liked that one. However, as he was in the colony interior, beams wouldn't be the best to use. It was just as likely he could damage the colony as anything else. So, Shinn settled on the sword set, "Load the Sword Silhouette," he returned. "That should be best if there are any combat situations in the colony."

Meyrin nodded, "Understood, I'll load the Sword Silhouette." She switched over to the channel she used as mobile suit controller. "All personnel, standby for launching of the Impulse," Meyrin announced. "The Sword module has been selected, opening silhouette hangar 2, preparing to load silhouette flyer, standby."

At the bottom of the central elevator system under the three platforms, which had already been moved into the lift shaft, a fourth platform tracks slid into place for the fourth platform. The storage hangar with the number "2" on the front split horizontally open, and the fourth platform moved to the central elevator. The platform had what was called the "Sword module" silhouette flyer, a different set of equipment than had been used in the last test flight. The set was intended for close-quarters fighting and had two anti-ship swords and two beam boomerangs on the pack. Once the fourth platform was added, the airtight shutters began rising, "Platform setup complete, central catapult online, opening airtight shutters," Meyrin stated over the speaker system. The airtight shutters quickly reached the top of the shaft and locked into place, enclosing the lift system. "Emergency crews, standby at launching positions. Raising central catapult to launch position."

Shinn had been activating the Splendor's operating system when he felt the jerk of the platform moving upward. He toggled the last switches to have the OS fully up. Shinn was also breathing calmly to settle his nerves as he moved upward. "Core Splendor, all systems online, the hatch is opening, the linear launch is ready, catapult power levels normal." The Core Splendor came up, and its platform locked into the catapult. "You will be clear to initiate launch sequence momentarily," Meyrin continued. The sight of light became visible to Shinn as the catapult opened to the outside. Thruster vents rose up behind the craft, and the catapult lit up as it activated for launch. "Course cleared, Core Splendor, go ahead and launch."

"Shinn Asuka, Core Splendor, taking off," Shinn stated before he shoved the throttle forward. He zoomed out of the Minerva and climbed upward after clearing the catapult. Memories of the things that Aila drilled into Rey and him came to mind for Shinn. In particular, how he needed to treat the other three fliers as one machine and not separate things. He would need to be the lead for the Impulse modules, or the docking sequence would be much more difficult. While Shinn hadn't done the process physically, with the number of times that Shinn had done this exercise, much of it was committed to muscle memory. Shinn had the three other fliers take their places up behind the Core Splendor and lock in their flight path to follow his automatically. Once that was in place, Shinn flew forward toward the Armory area of the colony, where smoke was still coming up from.

Meanwhile, back in the armory section of the colony, Quatre had gotten his bearings back after evading the flying debris that had come his way. When the dust and smoke settled, Quatre looked around, and the scene was not a good one. Four mobile suits appeared to be fighting one another, three against one. And all four looked to be Gundams which only made their fight worse for those around them. Quatre heeded his instincts and moved to the nearest structure for cover. However, doing that had then, as a result, separated him from Athrun and Representative Athha. As a bodyguard, he would need to find the Representative as soon as he could and defend her. But that may take some time and effort to get to, with debris and ruins now separating him from Miss Athha.

Quatre took in his immediate surroundings, and he found debris and panic everywhere, though he was still in the Armory area. With things going the way they were, he knew that he needed to find something to work with, preferably a mobile suit, and soon. Thus, he moved to the nearest least damaged hangar to see if there was a mobile suit he could pilot. The structure was abandoned, and there were dead bodies littering the floor. Many mobile suits in the hangar were destroyed or unusable, which wasn't helpful. Yet, something caught his eye and got Quatre to move further inside the building to get a closer look. The mobile suit Quatre caught sight of from the entrance was clearly based on their GUAIZ machine that had been developed close to the end of the Alliance-PLANT War. It was dark grey overall, with tan for the lighter armored areas such as the joints. The suit had decently powerful-looking thrusters on the backpack. There were two railguns, one on either side of the hips, along with a shield on the left forearm.

It wasn't what Quatre was used to working with as a Federation's Mobile Suit Core member. However, it would do for what Quatre needed for the moment, which was what counted. As a Federation Military's Mobile Suit Core member, Quatre was no stranger to mobile suits. The training regiment had pilots able to use essentially any mobile weapon that had been produced, including ZAFT mobile suits. And he needed to get back to Representative Athha and ensure she was safe. It was his duty, and he wouldn't fail the woman he had told that he would protect her. So, he wasted no more time and got into the suit's cockpit and had it seal. Quatre took out his omni-tool and had its data hacking plug pop out before he slotted the tool into an input port for the GuAIZ. His tool got through the locking program on the suit allowing the operating system to boot up.

Quatre brought up information on what this suit had for defenses and offensive options. He'd seen this was a variation of the GuAIZ model ZAFT had created toward the end of the Alliance-PLANT War. The original model didn't have the railguns this one did. Besides the two railguns, this mobile suit had a pair of 76mm CIWS guns mounted in the head. There was a decent beam rifle for handheld armaments, not high-energy beam output, but enough. The main defensive article was a composite shield coated with an anti-beam coating and had a beam saber instead of the claws the previous model had to use. The options would give him a chance to fight the Gundams on almost level ground. Gundams would still win if the pilots were equally skilled, but Quatre wasn't an average pilot, nor was he equal to Alliance or ZAFT pilots. The main cameras sent their feeds to the surrounding screens, giving the view of the outside. Quatre made the GuAIZ R rise from where it had fallen to the ground. Once standing, Quatre glanced around and spotted an exit he could use to get out of the ruined building. Quatre moved the GuAIZ R outside and scanned around for the three Gundams who had been attacking.

Auel had gone back to shooting the ZAFT machine after "helping" Sting with the gold Gundam. Helping one of the other two was a mix of annoying and interesting. It was annoying since it took him away from having fun. However, it was interesting as he could prove he was better than them for a moment. The first mission of his trio had been proving less boring than he thought it would be. He'd been able to attack and kill without "too many" bounds set to stop him. Yet, his attention shifted when he spotted a mobile suit coming out of some of the ruins. Auel moved the Abyss forward, pulling back his lance to swing it at the unlucky ZAFT fool. However, the enemy machine countered his swing, which Auel hadn't expected since none had been able to do that before.

After Quatre blocked the lance with his shield, he let it slide to parry the weapon and create a potential opening. The opening appeared as the Abyss continued moving forward, with the lance missing its mark. Quatre used the opportunity and punched the Abyss in the torso hard with his suit's right hand. The blow forced the Abyss back from Quatre, creating some breathing room for him to work with. Quatre raised his beam rifle and fired some bolts off to keep the Abyss off kilter. The more the Gundam could be kept on the defensive, the better chances Quatre had in coming out of the fight alive and well.

Rey and Lunamaria had been forced to take cover in a different part of the armory as the attack had started. They had been coming to retrieve the ZAKUs they would be using while assigned to the Minerva. It was supposed to be routine, but the attack changed everything. The two had avoided the partial collapse of the hangar they had been around. Rey had pulled Luna away before debris could strike near her. Luna hadn't appreciated being pulled without warning. However, she said nothing after seeing chunks of debris where she had been standing. Rey had saved her life by tugging her out of the way, so she wouldn't say anything about his sudden pull. Luna coughed as the dust was settling, "What is going on," she asked. Rey spotted what looked like a Gundam a ways away from where they were. A moment of observation showed Rey that the Gundam he was seeing wasn't an ally anymore, with it destroying the area surrounding it. "We're under attack, Lunamaria," Rey replied. "It seems someone had stolen a Gundam or multiple ones and is going against us."

Gundams attacking the armory made no sense to Lunamaria. The only Gundams that should be inside the colony were those which were assigned to the Minerva. Aila was supposed to meet the other Gundam pilots at the hangar they were in. So, if Rey was right, something had gone wrong, and Aila could've gotten caught up in that. Then for ZAFT's own Gundams to be used to attack the armory was beyond embarrassing for them. "Then what do we do now," Luna posed. "We're separated from the Minerva and don't have their support." Rey would've answered but never got a chance to because a car had driven up to the hangar, and a guy in a ZAFT red uniform jumped out of it.

Ryan had arrived at a hangar that looked somewhat intact and seemed to have working mobile suits. He expected that Dems and Nome had either found mobile suits to work with and were working to help with things or were in the process of doing so. Strode was doing much as Ryan was trying to organize groups into mounting a response. This hangar was the second he had come by where there was a group around it. The last hadn't had any working mobile suits, but Ryan had gotten the group there working on what they could. Perhaps here, Ryan could have some get into mobile suits and help get the situation under control. So, Ryan went up to the officers around the hangar and began giving out instructions to them. When Ryan had asked if there were any working machines, he was told there were the two custom ZAKUs there. Ryan was also informed that the pilots assigned to them were at the hangar, and they were pointed out to him.

Luna and Rey watched as the guy in the red uniform approached them after talking with the officers at the hangar. Rey saluted as Ryan came to a stop in front of him, and Luna did much the same after she saw Rey doing so. "I'm told the two ZAKUs are assigned to you," Ryan stated, "Is that correct?"

"Yes, it is, sir," Rey answered.

Ryan faced Rey, "And what vessel are you two assigned to," he asked. "With things as they are right now, there is little time to argue over authority."

Luna didn't much like this guy asking what ship she and Rey were assigned to. The question felt like it was being asked almost as an insult. Captain Gladys was a good captain, young as she was for the position. Luna had heard how the captain had taken the flak for her youth and the ship she had been put on. So, Lunamaria glared back at the guy, "We are assigned to the Minerva, you got a problem with that," she challenged. Rey resisted the urge to smack his forehead at Lunamaria's response. The one in front of them was their superior and so should be respected by them.

Ryan blinked momentarily as the two, by the girl's statement, were assigned to the same ship as himself. That meant these two would've been under Aila since she had been in the active team lead position. Ryan would've taken the position if things had gone as planned. "Then you have been under Lakeen," Ryan remarked. "Then I have orders for you since Aila would've been under me as of today. I'm Ryan Peters, the Minerva's mobile suit team lead." Lunamaria gawked at the guy who was claiming to be assigned to the Minerva. She couldn't think of words to counter the guy as she didn't know any of the other Gundam pilots the Minerva was to have. Rey saluted again as he'd heard the name, Ryan Peters. Aila had mentioned to him by name being one of those who would be a Gundam pilot she would be bringing back. "I apologize for my colleague's behavior, sir," Rey replied. "What can we do?"

Aila had mentioned something about one of the Minerva's pilots being strict and formal. Ryan could only figure the one she'd been referring to was the young man in front of him. He pointed at the ZAKUs, "Board your machines," Ryan iterated, then gestured at Rey. "You will go to where the fighting is and do what you can to help. I already have two who are heading in that direction who you will assist in getting things under control." Ryan then pointed at Luna, "You are to help the evacuations that are going on before you head back to the Minerva. Are your orders clear to both of you?" Rey and Luna saluted, "Yes, sir," they returned before they turned and made their way to their ZAKUs.

As that was going on, Athrun had become locked in combat with the Gaia. Athrun had gained some working room after ramming the Gaia, but that was all. He knew facing a Gundam wasn't to be taken lightly, especially when using a non-Gundam to fight one. Athrun hadn't been on the receiving end of the idea, but knowing the Gundam's advantage over others gave Athrun a basis to work from. However, the difference for him was he was protecting Cagalli from harm. That was motivation enough to fight harder and longer than Athrun would've considered normally. And while he was only going against one Gundam, Athrun felt he had a chance to protect Cagalli successfully. He observed the Gaia store its beam rifle on its rear hip skirt and draw a beam saber. In response, Athrun had the ZAKU bring out its beam tomahawk and readied himself for close-quarters combat. The Gaia charged, but Athrun used his shield to block the enemy to make an opening to strike. After catching the saber on his shield, Athrun saw what seemed like a good opening, so he swung his tomahawk at the Gaia.

Stella was working on pushing this enemy back, but they had blocked her first strike. And while holding her at bay, they swung their tomahawk at her, which forced her to leap back to evade. Stella wouldn't let that be the end of her work to kill her opponent, she would just try harder until she succeeded. So, she surged forward and slammed her shield against her opponent, using the tactic they had done to her. Athrun attempted to hold his ground, but he quickly found that the Gaia had more pushing power than the ZAKU. An alarm alerted Athrun he had another problem to face, to which he had the ZAKU move to its right. The Chaos came down with a beam saber, slashing where the ZAKU would have been if Athrun hadn't moved.

Aila saw the Chaos attacking the ZAKU that was dancing with the Gaia. She couldn't let an ally fall since she needed all the help she could get to contain the three Gundams. Any pilot willing to get into a mobile suit and take on a Gundam had the guts to do what many would say was beyond dangerous. And with the situation as it was, Aila felt she and those in the colony needed any willing to face that danger. So, she dove down, beam saber in hand, and sliced at the Chaos to get it off the ZAKU. Though she missed with the slash, Aila did hit the Chaos as she rammed her shield into it. Sting had been trying to help Stella against the ZAFT suit she had been fighting. They and Auel were running low on time. The three of them needed to leave as soon as possible, so ZAFT forces didn't get the chance to mount a response. Thus, the longer they took to leave the colony interior, the worse the chances they would be able to leave would become. However, Sting had been attacked by the gold Gundam which had interrupted his attempts. The Osiris hadn't let up after its initial attack but had pushed forward, demanding his full attention.

Athrun didn't know who it was that had helped him from having to face two Gundams at the same time. He'd not been looking forward to taking on multiple Gundams as he had been facing. Yet, Athrun was starting to get the distinct impression that those who had stolen the Gundams were on some sort of schedule. The way they were fighting said they were trying to hurry and do other things than just destroying things. It made Athrun wonder who had planned this and how they had gotten as far as they had with this. However, Athrun was forced to focus back on the Gaia, resumed his defensive stance, and waited for the Gaia's next move.

Meanwhile, Matt Dems and Lyla Nome had found mobile suits to work with. Matt had found a ZAKU Blaze to work with, while Lyla had acquired a regular ZAKU to use. Lyla and Matt had been making their way toward the fighting. As the Gundams were fighting, Lyla had spotted the Abyss and had been making her way toward it. Matt had been looking for the Osiris while Lyla had gone off after the Abyss. He wanted to make sure Aila was going to be okay. They had been seeing one another since the end of the Alliance-PLANT War. Matt liked Aila and didn't want to lose her because of this surprise attack. Thus, Matt had seen the Chaos and had been moving toward it. That machine was the one Aila had said she would pursue when talking to Ryan. So, if Aila was anywhere, she would be around the Chaos, and Matt would go and help her the best he could.

By the time Matt reached the general area the Gundams were fighting around, he had seen the Osiris take a hit. It was still flying in the air, but the suit was clearly having trouble maintaining its flight. Matt also saw the Gaia dancing with a ZAKU, which was doing decently against the Gundam. He surged over toward the Chaos, raising his beam assault rifle and aiming at the Chaos. He fired semi-auto upon the Chaos forcing the Gundam to jump back to evade the bolts. Matt came to a stop near the Osiris, giving it the cover he could. "Aila, are you okay," he asked over the com-channel to the Gundam. Aila was glad Matt had shown up when he had. The Chaos had been getting aggressive and pushing her back before he'd come. Plus, she now had some help which hopefully would help this situation get under control. "I've been better, Matt," Aila replied, "But I'm grateful for you being here. Should I ask how things are going with the response that Ryan, you, and the others are attempting to mount?"

Matt gazed at the Chaos, which was facing them both now. "Lyla went after the Abyss," Matt returned, "Don't doubt she will do fine with that. Ryan and Strode are working on organizing those they are coming across to help with the evacuations." Matt focused forward, "But let's work on getting the Chaos and the others under control and move on from there."

At the same time, Shinn had entered the armory district and saw multiple plumes of smoke coming up. From what Shinn could see, the smoke was coming up from destroyed hangars and other ruined structures. And after a moment of scanning the area, he spotted the four Gundams fighting. Three were going against others, while one was working with ZAFT mobile suits battling the other three. It was clear that the armory had been attacked, and the three Gundams were the obvious culprits. It confirmed what the deputy captain had suspected of an attack on the armory. Shinn also concluded that the three Gundams were likely in enemy hands, now being used to cause chaos and destruction.

Shinn had seen the Gundams, which were on the ground, but only the specs of them and not in-person. The Gaia, which was black, fought a ZAKU at the moment, and the mass-production model was doing decently against the Gundam. Shinn caught a glance of the Abyss fighting against a GuAIZ R and a ZAKU and being pressed by the two for the moment. However, Shinn couldn't see much more than that with the Abyss, as it was separate from the other Gundams. And then, finally, the Chaos was fighting against the Osiris and a ZAKU Blaze. The fighting disregarded the damage it was doing to the armory, or the three Gundams in enemy hands were ignoring what the fighting was doing. Shinn decided to work on dealing with the Gaia first before he moved to the Chaos and then the Abyss. Thus, he locked in the Gaia for an attack run with the Splendor's AGM33 "Ladybird" guided missiles. The missiles wouldn't damage the Gundam with its phase shift, but they would serve as a distraction to take attention off his allies. Today would be the day that Shinn showed he could make a difference in the same way Federation pilots had done for him back around Orb.

Aila and Matt had forced the Chaos back a bit, with Matt using his beam assault rifle in its semi-auto mode and Aila employing the Osiris's rifle system. Aila glanced at where the Gaia had been fighting the ZAKU and saw the two were still going at each other. However, the Gaia was slowly pushing back the ZAKU as good as her ally was fighting the Gundam. Aila was trying to think of a way to help the ZAKU while not leaving Matt alone to dance with the Chaos when things changed. Missiles struck the Gaia, knocking it off balance and shoving its attention off the ZAKU battling it.

Aila didn't need to look down at the sensor display as the "aircraft" flew over the Gaia. She knew the craft well, for it was the one she was assigned to pilot. The Core Splendor zoomed past the mobile suits on the ground before moving upward. The fliers came behind it in proper order, Aila noted, and the right distances they should before assembly. Aila viewed the leg flier me into position to start the docking process, and she couldn't help but wonder who it was in the cockpit. It would either be Rey or Shinn, they were the backup pilots in an emergency, and this certainly qualified as one. The Core Splendor detached its missile launchers and shifted to its docking mode as the leg flier lined up and activated its laser docking system. Aila hoped and prayed whoever it was in the cockpit of the Impulse right now had been paying attention when she had been explaining the finer points of assembling the mobile suit. There would unlikely be the opportunity for a second attempt with the stolen machines around and paying attention to it now.

Shinn maneuvered the Core Splendor in line with the leg flier, remembering what Aila had said about precision and patience being needed for this, the docking process wasn't one to rush and/or screw up. He decelerated as the legs came closer, docked with them, and noted that the Impulse's legs connected as they were supposed to and were now responding as expected. Looking ahead, Shinn saw the chest flier already lined up and coming towards him, and laser dock aligning started. Shinn then docked the chest flier to complete the Impulse, then readied himself for attaching the Silhouette flier. It came up from behind and connected, flipping the beam boomerangs around, and Shinn activated the Impulse's phase shift armor as he descended to the ground. He grabbed both "Excalibur" Anti-Ship laser swords before landing close to the ZAKU facing the Gaia. Shinn then combined the hilts of the swords to have a dual blade, spun the weapon around, and readied himself to fight. Shinn glanced from the Gaia and the Chaos, "Whoever you are, this fight stops here, there will not be another war," Shinn stated, "I won't let that happen!"

Aila held in the sigh that wanted to escape her at Shinn, stating what he was. There wasn't the time for theatrics with the stolen Gundams causing trouble. If Shinn were here with the Impulse, he would assist allies rather than talk to the enemy. Aila's pain wasn't helping her mood, which irritated her. Having Matt here helped her a little but also put his life in danger fighting the Gundams. The situation was serious, so Shinn needed to focus on the fight at hand and not be distracted by other things. Aila opened a channel to the Impulse with its com-code, "Shinn," she snapped. "Now isn't the time for you to make statements like that to the enemy! Focus on disabling or taking down the Gaia, Chaos, and Abyss as enemies control them."

Shinn was surprised to hear Aila's voice as his displays said the communication was coming from the Osiris. The last he heard, Aila had been around the hangar where the Gundams were supposed to be stored. However, instead of arguing, he did as Aila ordered, moving forward toward the Gaia and helping the ZAKU. And so, the battle between the mobile suits resumed before the Impulse arrived.

A/n

And I'll leave off there for this Phase and continue in the next one with the event. Now I know the battle scene in Armory One and outside of it is a long one. In canon, it takes two episodes as I recall, but my point is this will be a multi-part thing as I said in the beginning. Yet, as you readers might have figured out, I take time and describe things in detail. I've found that a good story has a good flow and leads readers along smoothly and well. Now to the highlights of this phase since there are a few.

For those that haven't read the original, unlike in canon, Stella has an older sister, whose name is Tanya. Yes, this is the same Tanya that debuted in Phase 61 if you hadn't guessed. As is implied in the Phase, Stella loves her older sister while Auel doesn't. Sting appreciates those in the older trio as Stella does but not to the same extent. Auel hates all three to varying degrees mostly since they would call him out in one way or another. There is more of a back story which is hinted at in this Phase. I'll likely go into more detail at a later point, but I don't promise that. There are interactions between the young trio and the trio Tanya is in that haven't been said.

Moving on to the next scene, there is two main points I wanted to highlight. The first is the conversation between Shinn, Rey and Lunamaria. I remind you readers that in my story unlike canon, Shinn is not the primary pilot assigned to the Impulse. He doesn't start out as a Gundam pilot, he is pushed into being one which does make a difference even if it wouldn't seem so. Shinn is amazed by Gundams if that wasn't made clear by this point. That is so because he had watched the Freedom and Justice fight against the Alliance back during the war as he and his family were evacuating. Also remember, Shinn lived in Federation member nations his whole life as far as we know. Thus, he knows some things about how the Federation's policies and principles work. I want to establish that background for him as it makes a huge difference and plays into his character for the kid in my story. I would also say that the Minerva is supposed to carry all the second-stage series Gundams as in canon. The reason I bring that up is Rey and Shinn are backup pilots for any of them should their assigned pilots be for some reason unable to use them. I wanted to establish there are two "groups" if you will of pilots on the Minerva. Those that can and do use Gundams, and those who don't and are "regular" pilots.

There is another thing I would point out that comes from Shinn's "reminiscing." The reputation of "Gundams" and their "pilots" has been established during the Alliance-PLANT War and has authored stories that have exaggerated things as you might expect. As with pretty much any Gundam from the universe, they are incredible fighting machines that seem to be almost undefeatable. Their pilots are of heroic stature that can go against any odds no matter how stacked against them they might be. The most notable pilots fight for what's right no matter what hardship they would face for it. In essence, Gundam pilots are the picture of the fairytale hero which are fiction. I make this clear as the misconception does get referred to several times after this and I would rather not go into detail each and every time it comes up.

Moving onto the part with Aila going to the hangar with the Gundams. So, unlike canon, I added an extra Gundam to ZAFT's new Gundam series, which it the Osiris. The specs for that machine are at the end of these notes for those that want to look them over. Aila is at the hangar as stated waiting for the other Gundam pilots assigned to the Minerva. For those who have a good memory, one of those pilots should be familiar as it's a character from earlier Phases. The other thing to note is Aila is among those that aren't so dense to think with the war over, the Alliance is little to nothing to worry about. With the peace that has been going for close to two years, there is a false sense of security for the general public.

Now the attack starts with the trio getting the Gundams as they did in canon. However, I would point out something that isn't mentioned in canon that I do more detail with. So, I've gone into some of the deeper points into the "Enhanced Human Project" which creates the Boosted Men and Extendeds. I've more talked about the Boosted Men than Extendeds before now, but I want to point out the dynamic within the trios formed with the project. There are a couple of reasons why the candidates are assigned trios by the project heads. The Alliance may keep the trios, but they don't really know why they are set that way. The first and most important reason is the success rate they have working as a trio. Candidates are drilled that their trio only succeeds when they work together. It is much as the phases goes, "either all succeed together, or all fail with the mistake of one." That mentality is engrained close to as much as the fear of punishment. Thus, why Auel is willing to help Stella and Sting even when it should be clear he doesn't like them much.

Nevertheless, one has to give it to Aila for her taking on the three with a Gundam she hadn't piloted before. I wanted to show that he character is complex yet, that of a dedicated soldier. She can be a leader when needed, which is shown as this story goes on, but her dedication is nothing to scoff at. While I may have taken her from the Gundam Build part of the Gundam Universe, I would like to think I've made her more my own character. I'm aware for some that have read the original version of this story, she's got some fans, and I hope you still like her in this version.

Let's move onto Cagalli and Athrun's group who got caught up in this attack. They were being escorted to the Minerva via Durandal's orders, which I believe canon would agree with. However, unlike canon, we have a "second" bodyguard for Cagalli which will make a difference. I've had comments and some ask about Quatre, which I don't have issues with. For those that have watched Gundam Wing, my Quatre is very similar in personality. Yet, don't mistake that as him being a carbon copy. My Quatre can do things Wing's can't, difference in Century to be honest. But I'll get back to Quatre in a bit, so let's get back to Cagalli and Athrun.

Now, if it ain't obvious by this point, the two have feelings for each other, yet haven't said anything to one another. Thus, Athrun is willing to go above and beyond to protect Cagalli from danger the best he can. I mean, it can be seen as crazy for Athrun to get into a mass-production ZAKU to faceoff against a Gundam. For most pilots, that is akin to doing a near suicide mission and most wouldn't argue that point. Not that I'm saying Athrun is an average pilot, he used two Gundams after all and employed them well, so he's skilled. And Athrun does and will prove he can handle himself and stacked odds in this and the next Phase. But understand, his motivation to protect Cagalli gives him great focus to work with.

Cagalli on the other hand, isn't as focused and sure about the situation she finds Athrun and her in. With how she feels about Athrun, she doesn't want him to be killed under any circumstance, let alone die while protecting her. And Quatre being separated from them worries Cagalli even more as that is one less person that could help them. She is a pessimist in this situation, I'll admit, which is different for her as she tends to be more an optimist. I attribute this to stress she is under both with the situation they face and her being expected to represent the Federation with Durandal. So, I would ask you to give the girl a break for the moment, she will get better after this, I assure you.

Next scene I would like to talk about is the one with the Minerva while the attack is going on. Captain Gladys is out heading for Durandal to retrieve him and get him to the ship for safety. So, Arthur is in charge, and I want it seen he does have some character which I think canon misses out on. I'll do this over time, but this is the first show of Arthur's character and individualism. Now, Arthur knows something is going on, but not what exactly as they do in canon. The reason for that would be because the colony's comm-exchange was damaged during the attack from the outside. Remember in canon two Daggers attack the port, which I mention later, and that attack does damage the comm-exchange, which is necessary for communication from external to internal, but also does a lot of the communication for military personnel since it automatically encrypts channels. With that in mind, Arthur needs to get more information to figure out what is the best course of action for the Minerva. Thankfully, for him, the policy of keeping some pilots on a ship at all times gives him the option to send out the Impulse with Shinn in the cockpit.

Now, I remind you readers, Shinn's character and personality is not the same as canon. He isn't the anger and rage driven guy that canon portrays him as. In my story, he is much more considerate and thinks before he acts more often than not. That isn't to say Shinn can't be impulsive or emotional, he still is a teenager after all. I present exhibit A with Shinn questioning why he is being told to take the Impulse out by Arthur. He doesn't immediately say yes and go, he wants more information to get a better picture. He also takes the time to consider what equipment to use with the Impulse so he doesn't damage the colony too badly. And again, I say that Shinn is the backup pilot for the Impulse, not the assigned pilot as he is in canon. So, he has only done simulations of flying the Impulse before this, and that was with Aila supervising him. With that in mind, I ask you to give my Shinn a chance and see if you like him better than the one canon gave us.

I would now like to move to Quatre's scene since this is more about what I said I would talk about earlier. Quatre isn't one to panic, I hope that came through in this Phase and that wouldn't be easy under the circumstances he was working with. But understand, he is a soldier in the Federation's military, so as I've implied, they get amazing training for what they do. Part of that training is crisis response which I would say the attack comes under. Thus, Quatre looks for options to work with rather than worry about what he can't do. And as mentioned, he can essentially pilot any mobile suit with his training in the Federation's Mobile Suit Core. The point I do introduce in this Phase is the Federation's "Omni-tool" which Quatre uses. This is a standard tool Federation soldiers have to use for situations they may come up against. Tyler has a different version that SOLAS uses, but Quatre's tool can still do a great deal. These tools are built into the Federation's ID sticks which I've mentioned before now.

Moving on to Quatre getting into a mobile suit since I had questions about this in my original version. I chose the GuAIZ R for a reason, which I will discuss, but I want to state that for the record. My first reason for choosing the ZAFT model I did for Quatre is putting him in a custom model or a Gundam wouldn't have made sense in the long run. He is a Federation pilot, having him use a ZAFT custom model would then have potential consequences that would have Quatre stay with ZAFT for a time and I don't plan for that to happen. Second, as a Federation pilot, Quatre's skillset serves him well enough to not need a custom model at this time. And third, it will give the Minerva a GuAIZ R to work with which I want. It is much the same reasons I had Athrun stay with a ZAKU and not given him something else.

Let's proceed to Ray and Lunamaria's scene brief as it is since there are a few things I want to talk about. First, Rey and Lunamaria are at a hangar far enough away at the time they are there their ZAKUs are not pinned down. They are in working order when they board them and I say that for a reason, which I'll address later. The other thing I wanted to discuss is the interaction they have with Ryan Peters. Neither of them have met the other four assigned Gundam pilots, I make that clear. Aila mentioned some in passing which Shinn and Rey picked up on as I'll infer later, while Luna didn't. And as Ryan says, he was going to be the lead pilot for the Minerva's mobile suits, Aila was just the acting lead till now. I know that Luna's response does imply she has "issues" with those who she doesn't know pulling rank or authority over her. I think she can have that problem sometimes, but that isn't a glaring point of her personality, it is due to stress. Ryan was told about them by Aila but not given names specifically so he doesn't know them by name or their faces. But rest assured, Ryan knows how to be in charge and give out orders. As I mentioned before, he is a character I created earlier. And for those that haven't guessed it by now, he was one of the four directly under Sakura during ZAFT's battle with OMNI's Eighth Orbital Fleet.

Now, let me get to some new character intros as they came up in this Phase. For those that want stuff on Mare Strode, you can go to the Gundam Wikia to look up such on him. He is a stand in and fits the point from what I found during my research. Matthew Dems, Aila's "boyfriend" as she puts it, is an original character I came up with. I mentioned him in my original and never went into detail, but that will change. His appearance is based on Matt Healy, which is a character from the Universal Century, but that is all I used. I will get more into the backstory he and Aila have over time, so I won't spoil it right now. But he will be with the Minerva unlike how he was killed in the original. Lyla Nomes is the other original character I've created in this, which I will use. I haven't come up with an appearance for her that I like yet, so that will come later. She is Aila friend from the ZAFT military academy, so they got to know each other, but haven't worked around one another since then. I would say they are more like pen pal friends before this point than close friends.

So, Matt being the "loyal" boyfriend that he is, finds a mobile suit and doesn't hesitate to head for the fighting to help Aila. He is fully willing to risk his life to help and save Aila's. Yes, female readers, he's the devoted time that will go above and beyond for his girl. I will be getting into more of his character as the story progresses, but I want to put out that quality right now for him. And as a pilot, Matt isn't average, or he wouldn't have been selected to be assigned to a Gundam. So, as you readers may expect, he works well with Aila and that will be a consistent thing going forward. Please forgive me for going into potentially needless detail about my original character, but they are like real people to me, so I like to portray them as such.

One last thing I want to put out for you readers to think about, which happens to concern Shinn. He doesn't have a hero-complex, but he aspires to be a hero like those he admired from the Alliance-PLANT War. Yes, Shinn respects and somewhat idolizes Athrun, Tyler, and Kira even if he doesn't know Tyler or Kira by name. He loved the stories about Athrun's actions in the latter part of the war which circulated around ZAFT's Military Academy while he was there. Shinn respects those that hold to their beliefs and do what is right even when it is hard. He wants to be like that even if he doesn't say that out loud. It is partly the reason he wants to be a Gundam pilot, to make a difference like those around Orb did for him. So, do forgive his "opener" he gives when arriving at the fight, it's not the best, I know. Aila's reaction is shared by me and I wouldn't doubt others too.

In conclusion to these end of Phase notes, I hope you like the Destiny part so far. Sorry for the ending notes being long again, there is just so much to go over, so like I've said, likely going to be a norm. Again I warn you readers, this isn't canon even if it uses some of the same events. If that's what you want, sorry that's not what I write for this story. Below are the specs for the Osiris for you readers to look over should you desire. As always, please some of you take the time to write a review for the Phase. Use it to say what you think of it, the story thus far, give me constructive criticism, or ask me questions. I take all of those and read them, they motivate me to keep writing this story. And the questions I get are amazing, since they get me thinking. No promises I answer them fully, for I try not to spoil future parts of the story, but I do my best. The next Phase should be ready in two weeks with it being on track right now. It is titled: "Catch and Counter," and will be the second part of this battle. At this time, I feel this battle will be a three parter, but don't hold me to that yet. Peace out until the next Phase, stay safe all!

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

Classification: Prototype Transformable Assault Aerial mobile suit

Model number: ZGMF-X28S

Official name: Osiris Gundam (based on the MSN-001 Delta Gundam)

Overall Height: head height 18.5 meters (Mobile suit mode)

Base Weight: 60.6 metric tons

Powerplant: Ultracompact Energy battery

Armor Material: Variable Phase Shift Armor

Crew: Pilot only, in standard cockpit in torso

GENERAL DATA

Manufacturer: Integrated Design Bureau

First deployment: October 2nd 73 C.E.

Operator: ZAFT

Known Pilots: Aila Lakeen, Matthew Dems

Equipment and design features:

Deuterion Beam Energy Transfer System

Like the other Second Stage Series suits, the Osiris has the ability to be remotely recharged using a Deuterion Beam fired from a properly equipped battleship.

Variable Phase Shift Armor

The Osiris is equipped with ZAFT's improved version of Phase Shift armor, it is more energy efficient and its strength, as well as color can be changed in the field, although this must be programmed beforehand.

Fixed armaments:

MA-CAR69XE Rifle System

The rifle looks similar to the Gaia's beam rifle, but a little fatter vertically and has multiple weapons in one structure.

- MA-BAR70XC High-energy Beam Rifle

The rifle barrel is in the center of the structure is used, and can shoot down other mobile suits.

- Beam Machine Gun

Using the hidden barrels above and below the central rifle barrel, combined, the two barrels are used as a rapid fire machine gun

MMI-GAU25A 30mm CWIS

The Osiris had the pair set in both sides of the head unit to shoot down incoming missiles or enemy units at close range. They are usable only in mobile suit mode and are not even visible in its fighter mode.

MMI- GAD30B 98mm Twin Barrel Vulcan guns

The pair of guns are mounted on the backpack section on the inside of the wings and can loaded with a variety of different types of ammunition. They can be used in both mobile suit mode or flight mode.

MMI-MH95 Mk5 High-speed Homing Missiles

These micro missiles serve as one of the main weapon of the suit's flight mode and are fired from the four launchers that are mounted in sections around the upper legs. Can be used in MS mode as well.

Shield

The Osiris's defensive armament, able to defend against both beam and physical attacks with it coated with Anti-beam coating. It doubles as the unit's forward section in flight mode and stores close quarters weapons.

- MA-M941 "Vajra" Beam saber

One of Osiris's close combat beam weaponry, the beam saber is stored on the underside of the shield and they are usable only in MS mode. The same model of beam saber is used by all beam saber equipped Second Stage Series MS.

- MA-M80 "Defiant" Beam Javelin

Although designed for ranged combat, and like the beam saber is stored in the underside of the shield. This beam javelin is the other primarily use close combat, but can also be thrown, like a traditional javelin could.