Hello, everyone. Now, we are the point at which our heroes would start their journey to ORB. But before they could do so, they have to help a certain rebel faction kick out ZAFT from North Africa. This would be a tall order at first, but I am sure with the Strike and Wing Zero around along with the new Skygraspers to help them, they could do just fine.
So read and enjoy this chapter that I lovingly entitled...
Chapter 5 – Shifting Sands
Tolle Koenig, substitute pilot of Wing Gundum Zero, was ordered by his commanding officer, Murrue Ramius to remain in his mobile suit until further notice.
The brown haired captain of the Archangel then left her executive officer - Natarle Badguiruel command of the ship while leaving her post.
She was then joined by some of the ship's security forces and Mu La Flaga, with most of them being armed with M-4 assault rifles and the officers themselves were armed with Berrettas.
The blonde Air Boss had just deplaned from his currently recharged Skygrasper and was eager to see the locals as he had called it before talking things over.
"From what I can see in the screens, these gorillas look mighty shady." Mu was saying while the group was nearing the hatch leading outside. "You might have to forgive me for not having enough experience to get out of sticky situations like this."
Whatever heated retort Murrue would have said was forgotten as the hatch leading outside had opened.
Only she and the ace pilot had exited the ship as the other crewmembers waited on both sides of the hatch.
The group of irregulars, twenty men strong, was led by a burly and grizzled man. The said man was flanked by both a blonde girl who Murrue had remembered from somewhere and a tall muscular man with blue hair.
All of the irregulars were standing in the space between their vehicles, the warship, and the lone mobile suit.
It was the grizzled veteran that had spoken first after the two officers had stopped just five feet away from them.
"It has been a long time since we had visitors literally dropping in on our land."
Both Mu and Murrue were puzzled with the spoken statement. After exchanging looks, it was Murrue who had spoken for the both of them.
"We apologize for whatever problems we have caused you," She said with a meek bow. After a nudge, Mu had followed the captain's example.
Mu then added. "We would also like to thank you for helping us defeat those Bu-Cues."
"We did not fight those Bu-Cues to save your skin," the bearded man said in reply. "They have been a constant thorn at our sides as well."
"Forgive me for saying this but, are you fighting the Desert Tiger too?" The blond Air Boss was saying while trying to hide his smirk.
"Yes, we are the resistance group - Desert Dawn." The man said with a bit of pride evident in his gruff voice. "From the looks of yer ship and mobile suit, I'd say that you guys must be part of the Eight Fleet that ZAFT's got a really big chip on their shoulders with."
Before the two officers could even respond, he then added. "Somethin' odd must've happened out there which is why you guys had escaped their clutches."
Seeing the color drain for their faces, the bearded man had realized that these people may not have only known the odd incident but may be even involved in it as well.
The man had filed this away for further thought as he had said instead with a theatrical slap on the head. "Where are my manners? I am Sahib Ashman, leader of the Desert Dawn."
"Lieutenant Commander Murrue Ramius, Captain of the Archangel." Murrue said while shaking Sahib's gloved hand.
"Lieutenant Commnder Mu La Flaga, Air Boss of the Archangel." Mu said while doing the same.
"Well, well. It is certainly a pleasure to see the famous Hawk of Endimiyon face to face," the Desert Dawn leader said with a look of respect and admiration etched across his rough face.
"Likewise," Mu said with a sigh of relief. 'Thank God, I'm still famous even in these parts.'
"Miss Murrue, I'm sure that you would like to continue this discussion further but I would like for your men to disarm first." The Desert Dawn head honcho said as he too had signaled his men to stand down as well. "Neither me nor my men are appropriately armed, y'see."
"Very well," The warship's captain said. "Stand down, everyone."
The order was immediately complied by the security force seeing that the irregulars had also laid down their arms. As per safety precaution, the assault guns safety switches were also armed.
Natarle had also relayed the order just in case while telling everyone else in the ship to calm down.
"Done," Murrue said upon the confirmation that everyone had disarmed. "Now can we talk?"
"Him too," Sahib replied while jerking a thumb over his broad shoulders in the direction of the idling winged gundum.
Wing Zero already had its fearsome weapon pointed at the ground in an obtuse angle. Its shadow was enough to engulf the whole meeting area as it had blocked the rising sun.
To this Murrue had shouted at the said gundum. "Crewman Koenig, please get down from Wing Zero."
There was a slight movement at the chest of the mobile suit before a curved hatch had opened from its lower half. Its power plant's hum was also silenced to save needed power.
From the opened hatch, Tolle had used a borrowed grappling hook and zip line to lower himself to the warming sands below.
After the hook was placed in the correct position, the brunet pilot then put his right foot in a triangular shaped foot hold and held on for dear life in the super-strong nylon line.
Zero had activated the pulley in the hatch where Tolle had attached the grappling hook to and monitored on how his understudy pilot was doing on his first ride down using a zip line.
After Tolle had landed on the ground safely, he was met by the blonde that he had talked to earlier though the voice transmitter.
The said transmitter was already pulled out of its attachment in the torso area and was currently being held in the gundum's left hand while being studied at by the mobile suit's AI.
The blonde was still in awe at seeing the mobile suit that had gone head to head with three Bu-Cues and their helicopter escorts and lived to tell about it…with their help of course.
Behind the blonde is a tall dark skinned man that was armed with an AK-74 and a young boy who looked like he had just started puberty.
The blonde had introduced her companions as Ahmed El-Fasi (the young lad) and Leodonir Kisaka (the taller man and the girl's bodyguard).
"My name's Tolle Koenig and I'm temporarily piloting this suit for a friend of mine," the brunet said with his right hand behind his head. He had already released the zip line that was automatically pulled up to the hatch.
"Really?" the blonde said with her eyebrows raised in suspicion. "So is he sick or something? Oh yeah, call me Cagalli Yula."
"Pleased to meet you, Miss Cagalli." Tolle said as he had offered his gloved hand in friendship. "Um, thanks for taking care of those pesky Bu-Cues. They're really hard to hit and pretty tough too. As for Zero's pilot, he's still recuperating from re-entry."
"You're welcome, Mr. Koenig." Cagalli said in reply as she and Tolle had shook hands. "You should see it from our end."
-oOo-
After chatting with Tolle about his ride, Cagalli then asked Murrue if the gundam was one of the G-Weapons rumored to exist.
In reality, she had seen two of the said suits still in their transports with Kira before she was pushed to an elevator leading to the escape pods.
This had happened even before the attack in the factory in Heliopolis. Murrue did recall two teens in the factory prior to the hijacking of the Aegis but it was only now that she had finally figured out who the second figure with Kira was.
The brunette captain simply replied by saying the Wing Zero is not part of the GAT Series but a whole new class of mobile suit.
"You're kidding, right?" Cagalli said in disbelief even though she herself could not imagine the ORB would have the technology to make the weapons and accessories that Zero has just used in battle.
"She's right, Cagalli." Sahib had interjected as information about the G-Weapons is still a closely guarded secret outside of a few select people on Earth and beyond it. "That suit and its real pilot is what ZAFT had called 'The Intruders'. Pretty nifty of them to call 'em that if I do say so myself. "
"You sure, Uncle?" Cagalli said with her left eyebrow rising.
Leodonir had ignored the rather gruff way Sahib had saved face since he had noticed something about the mobile suit standing guard over them.
The said suit had retained its color long after its pilot had deplaned. It is probable that the pilot had forgotten to turn off the Phase Armor or it does not have Phase Armor at all.
The first is impossible since the mobile suit's batteries should have run out soon after the battle. It is also not nuclear powered since it may not have even fought at all due to the plentiful Neutron Jammers buried deep beneath the earth.
Also, there was no hum of machinery coming from Wing Zero, meaning that it was not even powered at all after its pilot had left it.
If Wing Zero did not use Phase Armor, then it should have not even withstood the rain of beam and projectile ammunition earlier, beam shield and plasma field defenses notwithstanding.
In addition, laminated armor is just much too heavy for a suit of Zero's size to be moving about as it did earlier.
The wizened desert warrior would have to ask the chief engineer of the "Legged ship" when he had gotten a chance to do so.
Coming out of his thoughts, Leodinir had caught the tail end of the agreement between Sahib and Murrue.
The blonde's bodyguard only nodded his assent when the older man had looked at him as if asking for his opinion.
-oOo-
A half hour later, the Archangel was hovering behind the Ereka jeeps filled with Desert Dawn resistance members with both the Strike and Wing Zero flanking it.
The G-Weapon was on the warship's right side with the winged gundam on its left.
Both Kira and William had recovered enough to pilot their own machines with Tolle taking a nap in his bunk.
An hour had passed when the unlikely convoy had arrived at a set of low hills which actually served as Desert Dawn's base of operations, in a matter of speaking.
The warship had twisted its way through the narrow valleys but it had to stop when an outcropping of rock was seen at a given point in the valley.
The said outcropping could not be evaded and thus had the whole bridge stymied on what to do with it while keeping their outer armor intact.
It was Kuzzy who had stumbled into an idea as he had remembered something about the gundam's shield and thus had said in the airwaves.
"Hey, William." He said on the radio. "Doesn't Zero's beam shield have a pile driving nose?"
"Yup," William said in reply. "Alrighty, let's see if I can crack this rock in one shot."
After the winged gundam had gotten close enough to strike the outcropping with his shield's activated pile driver, its pilot had added. "Get everybody out of harm's way."
Seeing that nobody is directly beneath the outcropping, Wing Zero had pulled back its arm before lashing out at the rock structure with its activated pile driver in front of it.
The blow was enough to pierce the rock and split it into various pieces that had followed the rule of gravity on its way down.
Wing Zero had done the same to some more outcroppings along the way as the Archangel had continued its way through the desert valleys.
-oOo-
It had taken them two hours but the convoy finally arrived at its destination, a box canyon. The canyon wall's three sides were dotted with holes that served as embrasures for the rebel base in case of a surprise attack.
There was also a slightly large crack in one of the canyon's corners. It had led to another canyon where the rebel's living quarters were found.
On the canyon floor, a flurry of activity could be seen by the Archangel's crew as well as its mobile suit pilots.
Vehicles of all types and horse or donkey driven carts were slowly moved away as people had run about doing their business among other things.
Children as young as six were picked up by their anxious parents or guardians while their older siblings were also ushered to safety.
After the some of the crew had disembarked from the ship, Sahib was flanked by both Murrue and Mu with Natarle and George not too far behind. They were also covered by Sahib's armored guards, just in case.
All of the visitors were also studying the rebel's architecture and later interior decorating.
During the walk towards a larger cave just in front of the Archangel, the Desert Dawn leader had been telling his visitors about the group's origins and aims, and how would those aims would coincide with those of the set of officers and former world leader.
-oOo-
Outside, the two mobile suits were ferrying the extra supplies that they had gathered from their ship's maiden flight in exchange for fresh food and some weaponries and ammunition as well.
The Archangel was already secured from desert storms and enemy detection by means of tarpaulins and radio scramblers hidden nearby. Yet, it is mostly the terrain itself that provided the most protection.
In the ramp towards the ship's hold, Kojiro was supervising the whole operation. This is due to his rank as Chief Petty Officer whose job is to ensure that the Archangel, its complimentary fighters, and its crew would be in fighting shape.
He was helped by Flay, Sai, and Miriallia along with Kira and Tolle in the two mobile suits. Tolle had asked the Filipino if he could once again be in Wing Zero's cockpit as part of his hands-on training with the mobile suit.
William had agreed but still supervised the work being done to see if Tolle was doing a good job. Flay, on the other hand, was directing the Strike as the G-weapon was carrying some crates to and fro the warship.
Actually, she would have done it even without a request or an order since she secretly liked to boss Kira around anyway.
The red head was standing on a rock ledge that was fenced in three sides on three sides by steel bars.
The rock ledge was conveniently placed near the patch of land where the mobile suits were picking up the wooden crates that were to be carried to the ship and dropping the metal boxes that were coming from the ship.
In addition, Flay was wearing a headset that she had used to communicate with Kira and the others. The same could be said for the others who were also directing the mobile suits' movements.
Kira and Tolle were having problems seeing the spot due to their mobile suits' cameras' placement. This is why Flay and Miriallia had acted as the pilots' eyes in the said location.
Sai and William were checking if the crates were properly held by the suits and thus were situated beside the path of the Strike and Wing Zero.
In addition, it was up to the latter two to check if the boxes were properly placed and in the correct order as well. The boxes were placed two by two in two piles composed of four sets of rows to be easily covered in a beige tarp.
As for the wooden crates, they were placed alongside the spot where the metal boxes were to be placed for easy pick up.
-oOo-
Inside the winged gundam's cockpit, Tolle was sweating bullets as he had slowly moved the control levers in order for the gundum to carefully lift or lower the crates in or both hands (if the contents were too fragile).
This is also what is happening in the Strike's cockpit with the exception of a robotic voice echoing in the cockpit itself.
"Jeez, this is unbelievably tiring." Kira had told his best friend on the shortwave radio. "At least, you have Zero to guide you in there. I have only myself in here the whole time."
"Aw, c'mon Kira." Tolle shot back. "I thought you can do this with one of your hands behind your back. And it's not because you're a Coordinator but rather you had a lot more experience with the Strike than I have with Wing Zero."
"Yeah, I guess you're right." The brunet Coordinator said with a sigh. "Maybe I can program an AI in this one too."
This time, Zero had come in the conversation. "I think the Strike having an artificial intelligence would be a worthwhile idea. But there may be times when the AI itself could distract rather than help you during crucial moments in either maneuvering or battle. It would certainly be wise to remember that very fact."
"Good point, Zero."
"Hey, you two." A feminine voice said upon breaking in the on-line conversation. "How about gettin' your rears in gear? Don't make me get up there to remind you again."
"Yeowch," Tolle said in return. "Kira, remind me next time not to break in her and Flay's bunk even if it is an emergency."
"Don't worry 'bout it," Kira added with an audible gulp. "I only hope it was her time of the month."
"Hey!" Miriallia's voice was once again heard in the airwaves. "That's private information, Mister. I'm warning you two; don't make me get up there."
Both mobile suits had straightened up before even picking up their last batch of crates. Their heads then turned on each other, before two screams were heard in the airwaves.
The ground had also shook as the mobile suits had broken into a run towards the ship's interior.
Everyone had to hold on to something so as not to fall on their faces even through those who were caught in open space still managed to tumble.
A few swears or cries of pain had gotten mixed in the echoes of laughter upon seeing two mobile suits running like hell.
"Mir, they were taking a break for Haumea's sake." Sai had told the fuming teen as he had straightened up from his near fall. He had also briefly taken off his headset so he could wiggle his little pinky in his ear after the twin shout in the short wave frequency.
After putting his headset back on, Sai had added. "I actually tried the simulations myself and I had to pant like a dog after jostling the levers and foot pedals for a good ten minutes. Just let them take a few breaks every once in a while, ok?"
The caramel haired teen could see William dusting his white uniform from where he had taken a spill before chasing the two machines along with Murdoch.
"Ok, ok. I hear you," Miriallia said from her own perch in yet another ledge that was nearer to Tolle's own pile
Upon seeing the returning mobile suits carrying the last batches of steel boxes, Miriallia could see that both suits were carrying their load much more carefully than before.
They were also moving much slower, indicating that their pilots had known that the contents of the boxes were really fragile and thus need even more careful handling.
Thus, the brown haired controller said. "Then again, maybe a little fear wouldn't hurt anyone."
"Oy vey," Sai had answered while shaking his head. He could have sworn he had heard more than one female giggling in the airwaves.
This was followed by William's rant of "This is one of those days I should've stayed in bed" as the gundam pilot had sat down on the slightly hot ramp after chasing the suits with Murdoch and even giving both teenage pilots a through verbal scathing for making a ruckus.
-oOo-
In the spacious room were a conference was being made, Sahib had shaken hands with the officers although he had to pause before shaking the former politician's hand in friendship.
George had taken no offense at the pause as he knew that a few people outside of the Atlantic Federation would welcome him with open arms.
The officers did balk at the hidden insult but the former politician had beaten them to it by saying. "Murrue, Natarle, and Mu, I don't mind that Sahib here did not simply shake my hands due to my former position."
Turning to the surprised Desert Dawn leader, he then added. "I know that my image here and in Eurasia is something not to be proud of and I cannot ask for an apology for my previous actions…but that is all water under the bridge."
After a pause, George then continued. "Right now, I am more interested in what can be done in the present. I do hope you forgive my presence here, Mr. Ashman."
"Ah, Mr. Allster, it's not that I myself had thought that you represent the dogs of war in the Atlantic Federation." The rugged heavily built leader of the resistance group said in reply. "But it's your face that most people remember when your soldiers had tried to annex our land and enslave our people."
"That is true even though I am simply a pawn that bastards like Murata Azrael had used for their greed and hunger for power."
Once again, George had held his hand out in friendship, which Sahib had grabbed and gripped tightly.
"Since the official talks are now over, how about a few bottles of whisky between friends?" The former Alliance politician said with a grin.
"Ah, now that's one request that I can accommodate easily." The gruff leader said as he had out an arm around his new friend and led him to the bar.
Turning to the officers, Sahib asked "Would you like to join us? It'll only be for an hour or two since we still have to discuss your best route towards Alaska."
Only Mu was about to say his assent when a sudden pain in his backside had made him change his mind. The tall blond then look back and then down at the frowning brunette captain of the Archangel.
Thus he said while pointing to his uniform. "Uh, I cannot since I'm not off duty yet, maybe some other time. But could ya at least let me know who the young beauty over there is?"
This time, it was Natarle who had glared at the ace pilot for his unprofessional behavior.
Sahib had kept quiet for a few seconds before saying that the girl was their Goddess of Victory. Mu had gone even further by asking the said goddess' name.
"Her name is Cagalli Yula," Sahib said as he had led the former politician whose eyes had widened in recognition as the latter man was led to the bar.
-oOo-
Outside, Kira and his friends were walking around the canyon cliffs talking about the present and their future.
William was sitting on an outcropping of rock nearby, thinking about his family and how could he return home.
The gundam pilot had later diverted his thoughts on how would fight in these new conditions, considering that he had only fought once in similar conditions only months ago.
Back to the wandering group, Kuzzy was saying that if he had known about their desert stopover, he would have joined the refugees in their shuttle instead.
"Oh yeah, what if they have landed in either the United States of South Africa where they could not move much either since they were caught in a war zone. What could you have done there?" Miriallia's snappish answer had caught the others by surprise.
"No one is actually safe since a battle could occur anywhere," the orange haired crewman had added in her disgust.
"Guys, that's enough," Sai said as he had put himself in between his quarrelling friends. "We agreed to fight with the Archangel's crew for our parents, for our schoolmates, and mostly for ourselves. Wherever we may be, we still fight for what we believe in. Am I right, guys?"
"Well said," a new voice had spoken from the cliff below with some clapping of hands. The teens had looked down at the direction of the voice just in time to see the blonde girl that Tolle had met earlier in the day.
"Don't worry I'm not going to shoot you or anything," Cagalli said as she had raised her hands in mock surrender.
"I just wanted to know who's the real pilot of the Wing Zero mobile suit," The blonde said with a mixture of anxiousness and eagerness that had made the group wonder what the newcomer's intention really was.
A familiar voice from the cliff side to their left had surprised the group in its suddenness had said. "That would be me, Miss…"
"Name's Cagalli Yula," The blonde said with a calculating glance at the approaching Filipino.
Flay then gasped as she had heard of the given name from somewhere, but could not remember exactly where.
This had made everyone look at the startled red head. Seeing that the attention was on her, Flay had brushed it off with a lazy wave of her left hand.
"I'm Flay Alster, Miss Yula."
This time, it was Cagalli's turn to gasp as she had also heard of the given name but simply shook it off for later reference.
The other teens had followed Flay's example with both William and Kira being the last ones to give their names.
Speaking of the brunet Coordinator, he had been wondering why Cagalli had been looking at him strangely. Kira was forced to stop his thoughts as a gloved fist was already on its way to his face.
The incoming punch was stopped cold a few inches from its intended target but Cagalli's shaking of Kira's hand off her own did produce a similar amount of damage.
Flay had stopped gasping to pull out a pink handkerchief from her purse that she has always carried with her. She then borrowed Kuzzy's black canteen and used its contents to wet her hanky.
After getting her complaining crush to sit on a nearby rock, Flay then dabbed her wet hanky on his cheeks.
Some snickers could be heard before Miriallia's "Can it" had silenced them.
"What the heck was that for?!" Kira said before uttering a cry of ouch as Flay's hanky had touched a sore spot.
Everyone else had kept their peace as they did not want to intrude on something that they did not know about.
"Sorry 'bout that," Cagalli said as she had watched the scene between the lovebirds. "I'm simply surprised that I find you here piloting a rumored GAT mobile suit that only Coordinators were known to even handle."
After a pause, the blonde added. "The last time we saw each other was in Heliopolis in that mobile suit factory, now here we are in the middle of the desert."
Kira had released his breath that he did not even realize he was holding. He then said while placing a hand on Flay's right shoulder.
"The fact is I'm also a Coordinator and secondly, I have friends like Tolle and William who could both pilot Wing Zero. It wasn't for them, we wouldn't even be here talking to you right now."
This time, William had intervened by saying. "We're not that good, Kira. I jus' like to think of myself as your wing man and friend outside of battle."
"Me too," Tolle had added with a large smile. "I mean, the Commander, William, you, and I are just giving our best to survive each battle in the hopes that we can see this war to the end."
"Wow, talk about cornball." Kuzzy was saying before Sai had gotten him in a headlock. "C'mon Sai, that was cheesy enough for a Kraft commercial."
This had made everyone laugh at the joke Kuzzy had said which in turn had lightened up the atmosphere a whole lot.
"Speaking of Wing Zero, Miss Murrue said that it is not part of the GAT series." Cagalli said bluntly. "Why is that?"
She did not have to worry about the secrecy of the mobile suit series since it was already well known presently.
"Yes, it is not a GAT series of mobile suit but it's something that we'd rather keep as a secret." Surprisingly, it was Flay who had said this not Kira or William. "Its technologies are top secret as shown in its fighting record against anything ZAFT threw at it…including but not limited to the stolen prototypes."
"Wow, so this suit is even more powerful than the GAT series eh." Cagalli could not help but show a feral smile at the fact that a single mobile suit could fight against Nazca class destroyers and Laurasia class frigates evenly.
She had thanked the stars that the equipment from ORB were able to intercept over the horizon microwave communications between the Desert Tiger base and Gibraltar base and not be detected as well.
Her bodyguard had once said that this was like ULTRA of the Second World War only in a smaller scale.
"I wonder; how could you be that much into machines?" Miriallia had to ask since her friend was falling in the same category.
"Well, let's just say that mobile suits are cool and leave it at that." Cagalli said with an impish smile.
"Now that's one line I'm not gonna touch with a ten foot pole," Tolle said before his girlfriend had smacked him at the back of his head to everyone else's amusement.
Even then, three of the young men had to wonder why did Flay gasp as she did earlier when she learned Cagalli's name. They had thought to ask her about it when the opportunity comes.
None of them had even known that Leodonir was hiding behind some other rock outcroppings and also listening to their conversation.
-oOo-
In the large room that served as the Desert Dawn's operations room, William had joined the officers as they had talked about their route to Alaska.
The gundam pilot was interested in maps since he was toddler thus he had joined the other officers in the stated room to satisfy his curiosity.
Sahib said that ZAFT had also taken the Victoria base in the southern part of Africa.
In short, even though said continent is still large, ZAFT's patrols could still cover as much land as they could given that they had enough aerial and agile ground mobile suits to do the job.
Sahib had used the map of Africa to trace the route to escape Africa itself. He then asked the officers if the Archangel had flight abilities.
"The ship could reach a maximum height of twenty meters in flight mode," Murrue answered as she was the most familiar to the ship's capabilities. "It's not much but it is enough for the Archangel to reach its top flight speed quickly."
Then again, the other three officers had looked at her for the answers.
Partially satisfied with the answer, Sahib then turned his attention back to the map placed on the long wooden table. He then said to the perplexed set of officers. "I see."
"Is there a problem, Mr. Sahib?" Natarle had asked upon seeing the prominent frown on the older man's face.
"No, there isn't." the Desert Dawn leader said quietly. "Yet, it would narrow down your escape route significantly as you can't fly over mountains."
"That does make a lot of sense," Mu had added while scratching his chin with his thumb and forefinger. "We could barely pass over a hill with our ship's flight abilities."
"Are you trying to imply something, Commander?" Natarle was seething at the crack at the Archangel's inability to soar high.
"Miss Natarle, Mister Mu is only agreeing with my opinion." Sahib said in an effort to calm the young woman down, noting that the youngest officer is still poring over the map while moving his finger on where the mountain ranges would be found.
"Thank you," the grizzly warrior said upon seeing the CIC chief calming down and actually leaning beside the still pre-occupied gundum pilot. "As I was saying, the only paths that you could use are the various valleys leading either to the Mediterranean or the Red Sea. Both of which have their pros and cons."
"Uh, Sir." William finally spoke after straightening up. "What would those pros and cons be?"
"Using the Mediterranean route would surely lead to a run in with the Gibraltar base or its forces," the rebel head honcho replied.
Seeing the surprised looks from all the senior officers, Sahib then continued. "The Red Sea route would be safer by comparison but much longer as you still have to cross both the Indian and Pacific oceans to get to your destination."
"I'll go with option two," Mu said for everyone else. "Even with the Intruders on our side, we won't stand a chance against a major ZAFT base here on earth."
"In that case, could you get through that one in one piece?" Sahib once asked with his arms crossed and his eyes waiting for the answer.
The three superior officers then talked about how to undertake the route without stopping for supplies.
The fact that that the Oceania was still under ZAFT control would lead them into trouble but they could re-supply in the Equatorial Union instead. Even Eurasia would not be an option seeing as they were present in the country's only space fortress' destruction.
"Don't get so overconfident that you could actually get in the Red Sea," The Desert Dawn leader had told them in a matter of fact way.
"Ok, may we ask why?" William said as he had once again looked up from the map.
"The Desert Tiger's flagship is stationed in Banadiya so you may have to either fight it off or escape in order to even reach the Red Sea in the first place."
"Oh yeah, I guess we'll have to add that into our plans." Mu said in an effort to lighten the situation while saving face.
They then discussed whatever plans could be made to handle the Lesseps class land battleship.
-oOo-
At around one hundred hours or one in the morning, the Archangel was placed under level two battle stations as the nearby southern city of Tassil was under attack by the Bu-Cues of the Desert Tiger while plans were still being made between the Dersert Dawn and the Archangel brass.
Mu was ordered to launch in the Skygrasper to see if the story had checked out.
A few minutes later, his smooth but worried voice was heard in the airwaves. Mu said that the town was burning but its residents have been evacuated hours earlier.
In Wing Zero's cockpit, William had commented that the Desert Tiger is not the bloodthirsty ZAFT commander that one would think would be deployed in this area.
Even then, this fact did not amuse the Desert Dawn.
In contrast, it had actually enraged the freedom fighters so much as a little more than half of their numbers had ridden their jeeps and mobile missile launchers to go towards the burning town.
On the plus side, Cagalli was forcefully pulled out of the attack by Leodonir as he too realized that it may have been a trap for them.
Still, the blonde freedom fighter was not to be denied as she had gone to the Archangel's hanger and took off in the second Skygrasper to everyone's surprise including Sahib and Leodonir.
A cursing Murdoch, who was kicked in the belly for trying to prevent Cagalli from even boarding the aircraft, had even addressed his grievances to Murrue in the hopes that it would reach Sahib.
-oOo-
At the following sunrise, Wing Zero had stood guard over the various Ereka jeeps that were parked at the decimated town's square.
A large crowd composed of the said town's displaced residents had surrounded the vehicles and lone mobile suit.
At the mobile suit's car sized feet, awed children had touched the said mobile suit's warming gundanium skin while a few daredevils had climbed the said appendage and were either sliding or jumping down from it.
The children's mothers and grandmothers had watched the little ones have fun at their newest playground while issuing warnings of being careful.
It was this group along with the injured that were being tended to by Natarle and some of the officers and medical crew that had gone in this mission.
Arnold was already opening box after box of food and other necessities that he had given to the refugees.
The Archangel's navigator had asked William if he could help in the giving but Natarle had overridden the request and told the Filipino to remain in the cockpit until further notice.
The gundam pilot had simply stayed put and scanned the hemispheric radar screen to both check the movements of the Desert Tiger's forces and to see if another force was about to attack the Desert Dawn base.
Some of the Desert Dawn members had mounted in their jeeps as they had formed a posse to get their revenge on the marauding mobile suits.
Cagalli had joined them in Skygrasper 2 after giving Mu a scathing remark about agreeing with the Tiger's methods prior to her own launching.
Both Skygraspers had landed VTOL style in the town just before the initial group of rebels did.
Back in the Archangel, Kira was also tasked with keeping the freedom fighters safe from harm and thus took off as soon as he was able.
Mu had also departed from the scene mostly to keep Cagalli from killing herself with the Skygrasper rather than persuading the enraged rebels not to attack.
-oOo-
Two hours had passed with little to no change in the threat board for William and his machine.
The Filipino was already bored of watching blips disappear from the hemispheric screen with no identification whatsoever.
Since the Skygraspers and the Strike were the only ones with Interrogate Friend or Foe transponders, he was not sure if the disappearing blips were the Bu-Cues or the jeeps.
William then looked at the main screen where the twenty something lieutenant was having seen having trouble handling the displaced children. Her ever present cap was now on an injured child's head.
Thankfully, William had kept a few bars of chocolate in the cockpit for emergency rations even with Zero's complaints about the mess he made whenever he eats one.
The gundam pilot was about to ask Natarle if he could give the young ones a few bars when Mu's voice was heard through the radio speakers.
"How are things going down there?" he said with a troubled tone.
"Pretty good, the old men had wowed the crowd completely even though I'm worried about Mr. Allster's safety out here." William replied with an anxious tone.
"That's nice to hear."
"What's wrong, Commander?" William's voice showed his concern at Mu's rather dispirited voice.
"We got a few casualties here and there including a boy named Ahmed it would seem," Mu replied sadly. "On the other hand, Cagalli had showed everyone here why she was the goddess of victory. She kicked butt that's for sure, with me and Kira being her back up."
"Hey, I kicked butt too y'know." A second voice had cut through the conversation. "I even had to go Berserker for a minute there although I couldn't understand how Cagalli did it."
"Will you quit talking about me behind my back?!" The tactical network had turned into a four way line with yet another voice joining in the conversation. "Ahmed and the others are dead and I remember a brown seed bursting in my mind's eye. That's all I remember."
"Miss Yula, we're really sorry fer your loss." William said with what he had hoped to be a sincere tone. "If there's any consolation, their families are doin' ok down here."
After a pause, he then added. "Guess I'll be the bearer of bad news then, Wing Zero out."
"Thank you," was all Cagalli had to say before she too had turned off her radio and guided the plane back to town.
William had slowly descended in the same way that Tolle did and even gave some of the slightly melted chocolate bars to the children before telling their mothers the bad news.
It was understandable that the women had wailed while their little ones had looked at them in shock and confusion.
They did ask the various officers why their mothers cried when the gundum pilot had told them that their fathers, uncles, and other male relatives were still pursuing the bad guys to the deepest pit in hell.
The kids had smiled at the fact that their loved ones had kept their given promise, which William had correctly guessed at.
Natarle was surprised at how the newcomer pilot had expertly handled the situation not unlike a certain ace pilot that had gotten pawned by a gutsy teenager, only hours before.
She did keep her facial expression (and admiration) well by harshly ordering the newcomer to come pick up the leftover boxes still filled with food, water, and medical supplies and bringing them to the idling jeeps.
It was by then that the remaining jeeps, Skygraspers and mobile suit had arrived from their sortie and helped out in the humanitarian mission.
-oOo-
After the crowd had been sufficiently patched up, fed, and now being carried to the Desert Dawn headquarters, all of the mecha were recalled back to the Archangel.
Along the way, Mu asked what had really happened with Cagalli when she had suddenly piloted her Skygrasper very well.
"I'm not really sure," The blonde said as they were now approaching the warship. "All I know is some brown seed shattering in mind's eye before I got into some kind of trance. Next thing I knew, the Bu-Cues are either running away or lying on the sand in pieces."
"I think I can explain that although even I had to admit that it was pretty kooky," Kira said as the Strike had landed in the Archangel right after Cagalli's machine landed in the left launch pad.
'How would you know it?" Cagalli said in the radio as the Strike and the gundum came in for a landing.
"I went through it too," was the reply as the mobile suits had docked themselves in their respective bays.
Both Mu and William landed in the left pad with Kira and Cagalli on the right.
As soon as they all deplaned, Kira had guided Cagalli to the situation room where the other senior officers were present along with Kira's friends who asked to be included.
Even Sahib, Leodonir, and George Allstar were present in the meeting.
In the situation room, Cagalli's questions were sufficiently answered although all of them were puzzled as to how a pure Natural could posses the Berserker ability that a Coordinator was known to have.
"Wait, we're not even sure if this is an 'exclusive' ability for Coordinators since only Kira has it and nobody else." The blonde pointed out. "Kira must be actually different from other Coordinators as well. Am I right or am I right?"
"Hmm, that does bring in a valid point since Athrun and his teammates did not show the same ability." Natarle said as she had rubbed her chin in thought. "It's not that we think that Kira is even a freak; my apologies, Ensign."
"No offense was even taken, Lieutenant." Kira said as he too had tried to figure out that he and Cagalli would share the same ability. "Although, pardon my language, it is pretty freaky for both of us. I mean, it's like we were upgraded or something."
"Actually, it's more like you guys turned Super Saiyans or something." Tolle said before elbowed in the gut by his girlfriend. "Ow."
"Crewman Koenig does have a valid point even though the reference he used is a little baffling," George said with nary an expression on his face. "If you would allow us Sahib, may I request that we escort Miss Yula back to ORB?"
"Well, it's not just my decision anymore." Sahib said as he had turned to Leonardo. "How 'bout you, Leo? What do you think?"
The dark skinned desert warrior was hesitant as the girl in question was glaring at him for not even taking her own opinion.
"Why should I?!" Cagalli said as she had enough since she had wanted to complete her personal mission in this part of the world. "I'd rather stay here and kick butt."
"That is enough, Cagalli." Sahib roared as he had slammed his hands on the table. "Since the situation had worsened beyond my own expectations, it is best that you get back home."
"What?!" The blonde's scream could be heard beyond the alloyed door of the said room. "I refuse!"
"As your uncle, I insist since your safety is now on the line here." Sahib said with a harder tone.
"Sahib, please. If our 'prideful princess' would like to stay then it would be hard to force her to leave, am I right?" George said as he had tried to pacify the feuding family members while standing up with both hands raised.
"So you know who I really am, huh?" Cagalli said with a snort.
"Cagalli, please treat my father with respect." Flay said as she had stood up as well. "I don't know what problems you have with Chief Representative Uzumi Nara Attha but you have to let him know about your new abilities."
"Wait a second? Could anyone fill me in since this conversation is getting too confusing?" Sai said in behalf of the others who were still baffled by the exchange of barbs.
"Alright, Four Eyes." The blonde said as she had looked at the caramel haired teen straight in the eyes. "My full name is Cagalli Yula Attha, any other stupid questions?"
Sai was clenching his fists but Kira's hand on his shoulder was enough to keep him from doing something regretful.
Mu, who was following the whole conversation along with the others, had finally spoken up. "I guess the Goddess of Victory is a real spitfire."
"Don't you compare me to an ancient propeller driven plane, you jerk."
"Enough of this nonsense," Sahib as he had taken hold of the situation, slamming his hands once again on the table as he did so. "Madam Ramius, I place my niece's life in your hands since I do not want the Lion of Orb to get angry at me for putting his little cub in harm's way."
"Alright, but I wish that she would hold her tongue a little more." Murrue said in agreement which had made Natarle and Mu sigh in defeat.
"Then it is decided," George had to wipe some sweat of his forehead as he continued. "Miss Attha and her bodyguard, Mr. Kisaka would be joining us in this ship as guests."
It was by then that meeting was adjourned and Cagalli's things were moved from her living quarters in the camp to a spare room in the Archangel.
The red head had later apologized to the blonde for her rash actions at the meeting when they had met in the cafeteria.
Then again, upon seeing a certain gundam pilot enter the eating area with a metallic bird sleeping peacefully on its head, whatever tension between the teens had evaporated as they had shared a laugh at the funny sight.
William had ignored the tittering as well as the weight on his head as he had taken his order from the counter.
"I guess I can enjoy staying here after all," Cagalli said with a smile as she had noticed that the Filipino had ignored the sleeping bird on top of his head as he had sat down and had eaten his lunch with gusto.
Well, I guess Kira isn't the only one that could go berserker. Now with Cagalli joining the team, the odds of them getting out of North Africa alive just increased since the number of skilled pilots had similarly increased.
Of course, this sets up the showdown between the Archangel and the Desert Tiger and his forces. Let's see who end up victorious in the next chapter. For now, Ash and company would taking a detour on thier road to the Pokemon League.