Phase-15: The Gatekeeper of Gulnahan

The Minerva arrived at the ZAFT-controlled Mahamul base. Located at the northern point of the Persian Gulf, it had been built to defend against the Earth Alliance base of Suez. The pilots and mechanics were working together on the mobile suits. Aves had made the modifications requested by Rey and was asking him to check it out. Athrun entered and was instantly approached by Lunamaria. Vino and Yolan were gossiping while working on the Savior. They were jealous of those in the homeland as it had been ages since the last live concert of Lacus Clyne. But she had really changed her singing style. Yolan had often thought about how nice it would have been if she sang with her current style, it made her seem younger, or like she had gotten cuter. The two especially loved her new (outrageous) outfit and how tightly it fitted her unexpectedly big chest. Yolan was really intent on getting a poster of her in this outfit. They were so engrossed in their impure discussion that they didn't notice Athrun coming over until he was right between them asking for the Savior's maintenance log. They panicked a bit, before Vino showed him what he wanted. Zala typed on his terminal, thanked them, and walked away. They sighed, relieved. Of course a man would be angry if he heard guys talking that way about his fiancée. But they were apparently safe. Guess he hadn't heard.

"He's her fiancé. He's so lucky." Vino spoke again. His friend suggested pulling out two or three of the Savior's cables.

"I can hear you two! Everything you said earlier too." The Savior's pilot warned them from afar, startling them and looking back at them. They flailed about, bowed and apologized. Athrun noticed Shinn looking at him. Shinn averted his eyes and walked away, causing Athrun to smile faintly. Luna silently watched the exchange.

"Idiots, you should be more discreet when doing that sort of planning." A voice scolded the two young and mischievous mechanics. It was Seren who wrapped her arms around their shoulders, or rather, their necks, from behind, making them hunch their backs a little. Was their lack of discretion really the problem here? Shouldn't she be stopping them? No no no, more importantly... they just couldn't look her in the eyes! Their attention was so taken by what the right and left side of their respective faces was touching to follow the conversation. "I won't allow anything remotely life-endangering, but if you still want to pull something on him, I'll cover for you." She winked at them. "When someone always looks so cool and professional you sometimes wonder what kind of mug he'd show having the carpet pulled from under him, right?" The girl laughed light-heartedly. But more than being flustered by her mischief bordering on meanness, from their flushed cheeks and ears, the two were more stirred by her feminine charms. They mostly saw her strict sides, and she was usually just as cool and professional as Athrun... but she could quite friendly and alluring after all. That gap made her even more attractive, and she was holding them so close to her surprisingly well-endowed body too... what would she look like in similarly tight-fitting clothes, or even a swimsuit?

"Seren, come here! Vino, Yolan, you have work, don't you!" Athrun called out to them quite sharply. The frightened boys quickly broke free. He had rebuked and scared them even more than previously when they had talked about Lacus. No, he had snapped because they kept messing around... right? Still, Lacus' fiancé and Seren's childhood friend... maybe they should do something to the Savior after all... When Seren joined Athrun, he closed the distance and pretended to compare their data but was actually interrogating her in a low (and irritated) voice only she could hear. "What are you doing?!"

"Getting along with my comrades, is that wrong?" She asked innocently. She was more of a prankster and jokester than people thought, than she appeared to be. He knew that. But that wasn't a simple prank here was it? Was she angry with him? But he had to say something in those circumstances, and they had both agreed to pretend that he was still Lacus' fiancé. Or was it a warning? Seeing her hold other men so close was really no fun at all for him, not to mention those two's expressions. He also knew that beneath their playfulness, the Ledfords were actually quite vindictive...

The LHM-BB01 Minerva docked at a pier of the Mahamul base.

"Docking complete. All hands, commence inspection and checking procedures. When you've finished, remain onboard and wait for further orders. Commander Zala and Deputy Commander Canaver, please report to the bridge." Meyrin transmitted the orders.

Captain Gladys, Deputy Captain Trine, Commander Zala and Deputy Commander Canaver left the ship accompanied by a few soldiers to greet the base commander. Everyone saluted, and the Minerva's officers introduced themselves. The Mahamul soldiers were shocked when they heard Athrun's name. Athrun Zala from the Le Creuset Team? They'd heard that he had disappeared after the war. And Seren Canaver... wasn't it Seren Ledford, ambassadress of the Orb Union? They had seen her face on TV. What was she doing here? What were THEY doing here? And as FAITH members? But Seren was surprised too, as she had recognized someone among those who had come to greet them.

"Oh, excuse-me. I'm Joachim Ruddle, commander of the Mahamul base. Welcome, after your long journey." He shook hands with Talia. "You must be tired but the Chairman wanted the four FAITH members to assemble as fast as possible as they could significantly contribute to our operation."

"Commander Ruddle, participating in this operation was my own will, not an order. All the Chairman told me was to join up with the three FAITH members aboard the Minerva and work with them for a better world." A young man with amber blonde air and green eyes spoke and stepped forth. "I am Heine Westenfluss, of the FAITH Special Forces." He saluted again with a smile.

"I apologize for rushing you, but let's head to the headquarters. Can I offer you coffee? There's not much here as you can see, but we do get some damn good coffee beans." Ruddle suggested. The Minerva captain thanked him and they headed to the buildings.

"I never imagined I'd see you here." Seren commented.

"That's my line." Heine replied. "And as fellow FAITH members no less... well, I am happy that I got to see you and work with you again. I'm joining you so we'll be able to talk at length, and since we're now equals, there's no need for formality. No, our friendship demands familiarity, right?" He petted her head. "By the way, what about Chacha?"

"Here." She took him out of her pocket. "And does that familiarity involve treating me like a child? I pet the heads of the children at the orphanage the same way you know?" She raised an eyebrow, not that she looked or sounded really angry. She was not Shinn after all.

"Is that so?" The new recruit stared at his hand. The small robot jumped on that hand, ran around his body and settled on his shoulder for a time.

"Well, whatever. I am technically younger than you." The girl sighed. So friendly he could be called overly familiar, so considerate he could be called meddlesome... the type of guy liked by everyone, that it was just impossible to hate. That was the Heine she knew.

"So you know each other?" Athrun inquired.

"When I'd go to the PLANTs, he was usually the one to escort me when Yzak couldn't make it." Seren replied. "But you're not asking me why I'm here like this?"

"You're not the type who can sit still. You had to do something about this war even if it meant leaving your beloved Orb, right?" Heine smiled. As her escort, he had seen her working herself to the bone for the sake of peace from up close, and seeing her think so much of others, he had started to feel that he wanted to support her more, from closer. The former diplomat didn't reply, not knowing how she should feel about it. It was good that he was so observant, but given her current situation, she couldn't deny the possibility of him noticing things he shouldn't about her and Athrun... which would be bad... And watching them, Athrun frowned slightly. "By the way, I was quite surprised by Seren, though I guess I shouldn't have been, but you too, Athrun Zala. So you really came back to ZAFT?"

"Yes, hum..." Zala fixed his expression.

"Just call me Heine."

In the corridors of the ship, Shinn and Luna were argueing, or rather, Luna was one-sidedly nagging, and Rey was quietly listening. Hawke understood Shinn's feelings... those two's sudden return as FAITH members and being their superiors... of course he'd have trouble accepting it... and he had been hit twice too... but it didn't change the fact that they were now FAITH members, and they had the ability too, so it couldn't be helped. They had to accept it.

"I know it. Shut up already, Luna." Asuka replied sulkily.

"What do you know, with that attitude?!"

"Whatever, just be quiet. It has nothing to do with you, Luna." The petulant boy marched quicker, getting ahead. The red ZAKU's pilot made an annoyed noise. Shinn was really too childish! Rey merely smiled as he watched them.

"Things appear quite severe here too." Gladys-kanchou noted. She, Arthur, Athrun, Seren, Heine, and the base commander were sitting at a table with a cup of coffee. Chacha was once more nestled in Canaver's pocket. However, it wasn't just a coffee table, but a map of a large area covering southern Europe, the northen half of Africa, and the Arabian Peninsula, as well as a bit of the middle east. The ZAFT bases of Mahamul and Gibraltar, as well as the EA base of Suez were dotted. And there was another dot, Gulnahan, south west of the Caspian Sea.

"Yes, with their battle power at Suez, we can't afford to go in carelessly. If we want to conquer the area, our best chance would be to descend from orbit like we did in the last war. But for some reason, the council won't approve the plan." Ruddle responded.

"I guess it can't be done since it's been made public that we have no territorial ambition." The captain gave her opinion.

"I do support the Supreme Council and the Chairman's position of trying to avoid needless escalation of the war... but it will be trouble to let them do as please because we can't be aggressive."

"What do you mean? Are you saying there's something other than Suez?"

"One would assume that the Earth Forces would use Suez as a base to launch attacks to crush us here at Mahamul, then continue on past the Meditteranean Sea to destroy our Gibraltar base. But right now, they can't do that. The reason is right there." Joachim circled with his pointer the region between Suez, Mahamul, and Gulnahan. Western Eurasia... "Now that the Indian Ocean and Gilbraltar are both controlled by us, keeping the area from here to Suez stable would be imperative for the Earth Forces. Otherwise, Suez would be isolated." The base commander explained. The map changed to a 3D topography of a ravine, with a village at its exit. "Therefore, they have taken the thermal power plant in this Gulnahan Ravine and they quite forcibly established a base there as their bridgehead. From there, they're also exerting pressure on the Eurasian resistance movement. But since they've also faced attacks from the resistance, they are just barely able to secure the line to Suez."

"However, from another perspective, if we could capture even just that point, we could sever the line to Suez, support the resistance forces, and deal a blow, even indirectly, to the Earth Forces. Isn't that so?" Athrun added.

"The Atlantic Federation must be controlling the local population with an iron fist. They know that if they don't instantly and completely snuff out the slightest spark, they'd be engulfed in the blaze. But resentment must fester within the citizens, and their only choice to be free from their oppressors would be to ask ZAFT for help. However, even with the locals' help, you couldn't destroy this base. That means there must some sort of tricky gatekeeper blocking your path, right?" Seren devised.

"Well, that's how it is." Ruddle concluded. "They know the only way to approach from here is via that ravine, so they've set up a positron cannon there, and there are even those monstrous mobile armors equipped with positron reflectors stationed in the area. We've indeed tried to break through the defenses before, but we were utterly defeated." He told them. Trine recalled that type of mobile armor that the Minerva had faced right outside Orb's territorial waters, when the Earth Alliance had ambushed them. "However, if the Minerva's power and Heine's squad are added to ours, there's a possibility..."

"I see. Unless we break through that defense, we can't continue on to Gibraltar." Talia summarized. "A strategy that forces us to do something like opening a path... I wonder which tanuki came up with that idea." She wondered ironically as she actually had a pretty good idea of that Tanuki's identity, same for Athrun and Seren. "Nevermind. If that's our job, then that's what we'll do."

"Thank you very much. According to our local collaborators, there's a secret underground passage that leads to right below the Lohengrin cannon and would be perfect for a surprise attack, however, it's too narrow for mobile suits..."

"...But... if it's the Impulse..." Canaver trailed off pensively, poring over the map that now showed the emplacement of the underground route that connected two rock formations. "...What do you think, Athrun?"

"We'd need more precise data and to refine the strategy... but you're right, we should be able to use that tunnel to our advantage..." Zala too was deep in thought as he stared at the passage. But while those two were studying the map and obviously doing simulations in their heads, it was them that everyone else was watching with a smile.

"I see... in that case we'll leave the battle plan to you." Ruddle decided with a smile. Heine was smiling too, apparently satisfied with something.

While the top brass was having this war meeting, the Hawke sisters were preparing to take a shower. The older one had already entered the cubicle when the younger one was just undressing. They were complaining about Shinn being such a child. Though they believed things would eventually solve themselves... with Shinn's loss. Meyrin also decided to try on her sister's skirt when Luna wasn't paying attention... and was annoyed and disappointed to find out that she couldn't button up the skirt... her older sister was more slender than her! She said Commander Zala was much more mature and cool, and threw the pink skirt back in the box in frustration. Seren-san had some childish sides but most of the time, she had this adult, womanly... charm? Cleverness? Finesse? She was usually the one to break the fights between Shinn and Commander Zala and calmly explain things. Guess that was a former mediator for you. But then Lunamaria remembered something... weren't those two only one year older than her?

The officers left the headquarters and as the Minerva crew members were returning to their ship, they spotted a number of kids being all friendly with the soldiers and infered they were the children of the refugees living in the nearby camp. Gladys and Trine continued on their way but Athrun, as he (a bit sulkily) looked away from Heine and Seren who were hitting it off, stopped when he saw Shinn teaching the children how to shoot a gun. Athrun angrily marched towards him and told him off for giving weapons to children. Seeing that, Seren stopped too and walked a bit towards them but stopped again at a distance to observe them. Heine stayed and looked on. Shinn retorted he hadn't given them any weapons, only advice when he had seen them practicing. The pilot of the Impulse told the kids to go back and they obediently complied while thanking him for his help.

"You must have heard about them. Their land had been invaded and they were driven out of their homes by the Earth Forces. This boy's parents were killed. That's why he'll have to fight, to free his village and expel the invaders."

"Shinn, do you really think you did the right thing?"

"Isn't it necessary if he wants to go to the battlefield?" Asuka really seemed clueless as to why Athrun was asking him such a question. "He'll get killed if he's not strong enough! Or do you think it's normal?!"

"It should be normal for children to want to go to the battlefield?! Don't you think the real problem is for children to have reasons to go to battle?" The Savior's operator argued. Well, he was voicing the girl's feelings exactly too. Shinn glared at him, then at Seren behind him.

"You've been brainwashed by Orb, haven't you? Just why did you come back to ZAFT? I don't care if you're FAITH or whatever, but what you do is the very opposite of what you say! It's the same for Orb! What's the point of ideals on the battlefield?! The only reality here is kill or be killed!" The boy sounded disappointed at first before growing in anger and shouting. "That goes for you too! If you're still alive now, it's because that's what you did!"

"That's right..." Athrun snapped, roughly grabbing Shinn's collar. Seren called him but he ignored her. "And that's exactly why I know the true horror of it, of being trapped by that kill or be killed mindset! I know it much better than you!" Because of that mindset, comrades were killed, and friends were made to fight each other to the death. The pain of losing a loved one, certainly, Shinn knew... But the pain of being ordered to kill a loved one, the pain of coming to hate a precious person so much you wanted to kill them... Shinn didn't know of that yet; and still he was shooting his mouth off. Athrun violently shoved him back. "Don't think problems can be solved just by taking up arms, because it really doesn't solve anything at all! The one who must fight should at least remember that!" He angrily left. Shinn watched him, a bit dazed. It seemed as if something had struck a chord deep inside him, too deep actually, and he had no awareness of it.

"Are you alright? I'm sorry about that. He didn't have to grab you like this." Ledford apologised.

"Humph, you're pretending to be worried but you think no less, right? As hyprocritical as always."

"Athrun went too far, I AM sorry about that, but he wasn't wrong. Shinn, do you fight to kill, or to protect?"

"Aren't they the same?"

"They're not. You've got to decide if it's enough for you to protect those important to you and you can restrain yourself if the other side does too... or if you simply want to completely annihilate the other side until there's not a single one of them left. And then, what would you do if someone you want to protect ends up taking a different route that leads you two to fight? Will you kill them? Will you try to protect them? You know I was in the Earth Forces in the last war, yeah?"

"...Yes."

"At that time, my friends and I had been taken into custody. To protect them and ourselves, because there was no other choice, my brother and I fought our childhood friend, Athrun. We didn't want him to hate us and that guy too wanted to protect us despite his orders, and so we kept fighting while maintaining a delicate balance... but it just had to crumble. To save himself, my brother killed Athrun's friend. From then, Athrun had wanted to kill my brother. To save himself, Athrun killed a friend of ours. And my brother and Athrun fought to the death. Athrun killed my brother... or so we thought... That's why he was so angry and snapped at you like that. You talked despite not knowing his feelings... If you were ordered to kill Rey or Luna, would you do it?" Seren questioned him gently with eyes filled with sadness. "If for instance, Rey killed Luna in a kill or be killed situation, what would you feel? What will you do? Will weapons solve anything then? Will they make the pain disappear?"

"Hum... I..." The boy stepped back as he felt cornered, and not just by her questions and what they implied. It was like the sadness that emanated from her had doused all his anger, and he just didn't have the heart to yell or snap at her.

"And I too... when I learned Athrun had killed my friend and brother, I wanted to kill him... I wanted to kill him so badly... but, after all... I just couldn't. I didn't want to lose more people than I already did. Shinn, the more people yearn for battle, the more they lose. They lose their new comrades, hope, pieces of themselves... With bloodstained hands, hurting and being hurt until they lose even their lives. That's why I abanbonned my military uniform and became an ambassadress, to be in a position to prevent battles from taking place, and Athrun has been helping me."

"Then why did you return to the military?"

"I couldn't stop the war, so I'm trying to end it as soon as possible... preferably before kids like those from earlier become soldiers or terrorists." And before the flames reach Orb. "Athrun and I are fighting because we don't want them to go through what we did. The sooner the war ends, the less children will lose their friends and lives. That's why, by teaching them to shoot, you trampled on our very reason to fight. So, please, don't do that again? Don't hasten those kids into a future only filled with more pain, blood and death?" A very faint smile was curving her lips but her hazel eyes were serious. She was begging him. He could tell that.

"...I'm sorry..." Shinn muttered quietly but sincerely, regretfully, his head downcast. Her smile brightened a bit at how cute he was and she took his hands in hers.

"Then, will you help us protect them, those kids, and their futures?" She looked at him with upturned eyes. He nodded. "Yup, you're a good kid after all." She smiled sweetly and petted his hair.

"I'm not a kid though..." Asuka sulkily contradicted her... although he didn't swat her arm away, nor did he look or sound as irritated as he tried to seem. A slight blush was tinting his cheeks.

"Oh my, is that so? By the way, Athrun will probably come to apologise later, so please forgive him? He's more awkward than he appears."

"Okay."

"And if you understand, then you should apologize too."

"...Okay." He replied after a pause, obviously more reluctant.

"That wasn't very smart of you." Heine told Athrun, surprising him. "Won't that attitude only make him act more defiantly? What he said... it's not like you never felt the same, right?" He said with a hint of reproof. Athrun confirmed. "That's why you spoke so harshly. I get where you're coming from but it's no good to rush things. It's never easy for people who didn't experience the same things we did to understand. 'Don't think problems can be solved just by taking up arms, because it really doesn't solve anything at all!' And yet, you still took up arms again. That's because there were things you wanted to accomplish right? Just tell him that, and everything go back to normal... with no quarrels." He grinned.

"Yes... you're right."

"Though, from the look of things, Seren went for a follow-up. Really, what a thoughtful friend you have..." Heine stared warmly at the girl with reddish chestnut brown hair. She was smiling and petting the head of the clearly embarrassed but not unhappy younger pilot.

"...Yeah." Zala fondly gazed at her too, though he did find her too close to Shinn. Then, Heine was called by his squad members and left with them. And Athrun called Seren. They had to discuss the strategy for the upcoming operation. Chacha, who had been flying around, returned to them.

During the discussion, they did not mention the dispute with Shinn at all. As expected, things proceeded quickly. Now, they just needed the locals' data for the finer details. They had already contacted them and received confirmation that they would send a representative with said data who will also take part in the briefing. The pair submitted their plan to Captain Gladys who praised them and entrusted them with the organisation of the briefing as well. It was really reassuring for her to have such excellent officers on board.

After that, Athrun left to look for Shinn. He went to the hangar but didn't see him so he asked Lunamaria. She hadn't seen him either, and wondered if Shinn had thrown another tantrum.

"No, this time it was me." Commander Zala admitted as he resumed his search. Seren suggested going to the deck. After all, that was the best place for rumination. And indeed, the boy was there. "So you were there. Did you come to think, or maybe to cool your head?"

"Athrun-san... weren't you the one who needed to cool your head?" Shinn stuck his nose in the air, closing his eyes.

"Right... I acknowledge I went too far, and too fast. But Shinn, even if they have every reason to go, the battlefield is still no place for children. At the end of revenge, there's only loss. And as more people join the battle, the scale of the war grows bigger and more and more difficult to stop. As it drags on, more people will die, and more children will crave for revenge and go to the battlefield. Surely, you can understand something like that."

"... Yes." Asuka recalled Seren's words and met Athrun's gaze, standing up to it. But his reddish brown eyes this time were void of anger and only reflected his earnestness.

"That why we can't let them go. Whatever you say, I have my reasons for having returned to the army. And that is one of them."

"...Hum... Seren-san told me a bit about you and what happened in the last war... and... hum... I... I'm sorry..." The boy stammered awkwardly, his eyes darting about. The commander looked surprised for a time then smiled.

"We have to fight for them too. If our attack on Gulnahan succeeds, the local civilians will be free. It MUST succeed. So let's start by winning this. Shinn, the key to our success will be your Impulse. You'll have all the information you need tomorrow during the briefing. ZAFT's trump card is you." And Athrun left on those encouraging words. He returned inside the ship and scratched the back of his head, making an embarrassed and uneasy expression.

"Good job, Commander Zala." Seren praised him with a grin.

"Don't make fun of me."

"I'm not. You're the serious type, and you always become a bit clumsy with your relations whenever you're not on mission, but you always do your best. That's why I'm saying you did well. You're struggling to be a good mentor figure for Shinn. I'm sure thanks to your efforts, he'll come to eventually." She smiled reassuringly, causing Athrun to smile too and hug her, taking her by surprise. "W-wa-wait, Athrun... is-isn't that bad...?" She stammered, her whole body stiff as she worriedly looked around. But luckily, it was empty. No one had seen them. Chacha left the top of her head to circle around them.

"Sorry, my body moved on its own." He didn't lie. Really, her continuous support always saved him. Things would likely be rougher without her here to smooth things out with everyone. Having been reminded of how much he loved her, and before he could notice what he was doing or remember that they shouldn't be acting so intimately he was already holding her tightly. Yet, even now that he was aware, he still showed no sign of letting her go.

"You...!" Still, they couldn't tell when someone was suddenly going to come in and surprise them in a no-good situation. No, she was happy that Athrun would hug her like this after all this time, and would have liked to stay like this too, very much so... but still!

"I get it..." The young man sighed and reluctantly released her, but then he saw her flushed expression, how she would look away, embarrassed, with a hint of guilt and yet, a pinch of disappointment that he had actually listened and let go (yes, despite being the one who had chided him). Even though they had been dating for two years, Seren looked just like a maiden confused by her budding first love. It reminded him of that time in the last war when they had been stranded on that island, and they had acknowledged their feelings for each other for the first time before trying to put a lid on them. There was the same sense of secrecy and interdiction, even though now they were on the same side, both ZAFT soldiers. And her expression was so fresh and lovely, so cute and endearing, that again, before he could stop himself, his lips softly pressed against hers.

"A-A-A-A-A-Athrun...!" Seren stuttered again, her face and ears the same crimson color as her uniform.

"I just can't help what I feel, can I?" He smiled... although even she could not tell whether it was a sheepish or unabashed smile. He understood what she wanted to say, but after all, it really couldn't be helped, right? That was a critical hit. Indeed, as the girl felt the same, she could only open and close her mouth like a fish, at a loss for words, before hushing obediently.

A friendly face. A reunion. And a new route that was laid out for us. Will they bring more joy or more pain? But we're already full with 'now'. Repelling, connecting... We're doing what we can. We're not alone. Because even if we clash, we still believe. So surely, it must be alright for us to continue as we are?

Author's note: Yep, Heine! Were you surprised? Did you have an inkling? Decided to make him appear earlier since he deserves it! Well, the author of the manga 'The Edge' must have believed the same since this chapter is mostly based on it... Will he be medicine or poison for Athrun and Seren? Or maybe both?

Next chapter will be 'Phase-16: Attack the Lohengrin'.