The Refrain flew without much issue through space. Mayu was rather surprised at just how well it handled compared to the GuAIZ R.
It feels so natural… like an extension of myself.
Mayu shook her head. She shouldn't feel this used to piloting a weapon of war. But part of her wondered if this was how her brother felt when piloting the Impulse. Tapping the dashboard, she checked the time. It was several hours before morning back in Orb, meaning that the crew of the Minerva were likely asleep. Pressing a few more buttons, she prepared for atmospheric re-entry.
Down on the planet, Kira Yamato looked out at the ocean. Everyone else was still asleep, giving him some time to himself to think. The sun had yet to rise, allowing the night sky to sparkle with the stars.
Blinking a few times, he looked up at the sky. He thought he saw something moving across the sea of stars, but it disappeared.
What was that?
Back on the PLANTs, Athrun wondered if Mayu had made it back safely or not. He remembered the Freedom was a fast machine, so the Refrain would likely be of a similar speed.
But still… giving someone so young a mobile suit like that… even younger than Kira when he first piloted the Strike. He narrowed his eyes. But how did they have the files to recreate the Freedom like that? I guess data really can't be that easily destroyed…
He was brought out of his thoughts with a knock on his door. Raising a brow, he walked over to open it, seeing two old friends. "Yzak?"
"Bastard!" Yzak ran in, grabbing Athrun by the collar. "What the hell is going on?!"
"W-Wait a minute!" Athrun shouted. "Hey!"
Dearka strolled in with an amused smile on his face at seeing his two friends argue.
Athrun pushed Yzak off him. "Can you explain to me what this is all about?"
"Why don't you tell me what this is all about, Athrun!" Yzak said. "We were pulled away from our extremely busy schedule to meet with the Council. And what the hell?! They tell us to be your personal guard!"
"Eh?" Athrun was confused.
"Why should I, of all people, be called back from the frontline for a lousy job like this?!" Yzak snapped.
"Personal guard?" Athrun raised a brow.
"You made a request to leave the premises, right?" Dearka reminded him, walking forward.
"Dearka." Athrun had just noticed him.
"Long time no see. Probably because of these circumstances." He said. "Guess we can't have you wandering around the PLANTs even though you're from a friendly nation."
"R-Right, I was told that someone would be accompanying me." Athrun nodded. "But I never imagined it'd be you two."
"You're damn right!" Yzak said, turning away.
Athrun chuckled as they left his room, entering the elevator.
"Well, looks like someone who knows a little something set this up." Dearka said as the elevator went down several floors.
Thinking back, Athrun guessed it was probably the Chairman.
"So, where do you wanna go?" Dearka asked as the doors opened.
"If you say "shopping" I'll never forgive you!" Yzak warned.
"Not even close. I want to visit the graves of Nicol and the others." Athrun said, surprising Yzak and Dearka. "I don't go out to the PLANTs too often, so I had my heart set on visiting them while I have the chance."
The three arrived at the graves of their old comrades, as Athrun placed flowers at Nicol's grave. Silently, they saluted their old friend. Looking over, Athrun saw several relatively new graves, presumably for the recently deceased pilots of the Minerva. Wondering who put them there briefly distracted Athrun as he just barely heard Yzak say what ZAFT's next move would be.
"To be deployed for self-defense purposes only?" Athrun asked. "So ZAFT is taking action?"
"Can't be helped, can it?" Yzak crossed his arms. "They fired nuclear missiles at us. We can't sit back and do nothing."
"We went on a counterattack mission when their first wave arrived." Dearka said. "I'm convinced that they had their minds set on eliminating the PLANTs that way."
Silence hung in the air, at how the PLANTs were so close to facing destruction.
"And? What about you?" Yzak asked. "What are you doing all the way out here?!"
"Uh…"
"What about Orb?" Yzak asked. "What will they do?!"
"I don't know yet." Athrun admitted.
The three looked back at Nicol's grave.
"Come back to us, Athrun." Yzak suddenly said, surprising him. "I'm sure there'll be obstacles, but I'll see to it that there isn't a problem. So you ought to return to the PLANTs."
He considered the offer, remembering how Mayu had accepted it quicker than he did. "Yeah, but…"
"Dearka and I, probably would have been dead long ago." Yzak said, remembering the actions they made in the previous war. "But here's what Chairman Durandal said…"
"If the adults who started the war send youngsters to fight the war and label those youngsters who make a mistake as criminals and kill them off, who will lead the PLANTs of tomorrow? It is the youth who have experienced this agony that we should look up to, and we should turn to them to build a peaceful tomorrow!"
Athrun could practically hear the man's voice. Is that why… Is that why he chose Mayu?
"That's why I still wear a military uniform." Yzak said. "It's the only thing I know. But I also think I can make a difference. For the PLANTs, and those friends who died."
"Yzak…" Athrun said softly.
"So you've gotta do something too!" Yzak said. "You have the ability. Why let it go to waste?"
Athrun looked back at the grave, remembering Mayu taking off in the Refrain.
"Yes. I'll be going back to the Minerva. I'm not completely sure about my place in this war… but I do know it should be at my brother's side. And with this… I think can make a difference."
"She's made a proper decision, I hope. What about you, Athrun?"
Mayu descended down towards the Earth, landing on an island by the ocean. Looking around, she didn't see anything familiar.
"Oh no… Did I land in the wrong place?" Mayu tapped the dashboard to pull up a navigator. "Which way to Orb…?"
She pulled up the communicator, but she was out of range. Thankfully, the navigator gave her the direction she needed.
"I'm already messing up…" She muttered.
On the Minerva, the bridge was getting an odd message on the communicator, laden with static. "Captain! Listen to this!"
"Minerva. Can you hear me? You must act immediately. ZAFT will be landing at Gibraltar and Carpentaria any time now."
"It's been coming in over a secret line for quite some time."
"When that happens, Orb will change its position. A chip surrounded by black chips will flip and become black itself. You must escape before that happens. Can you hear me, Minerva?"
Talia pressed the button, letting her speak to the mysterious voice. "This is Captain Talia Gladys of the Minerva. Who are you? And what is the purpose of this communication?"
"Oh? Well, hello. I'm so glad to hear a voice. How do you do? It's like I told you. If you don't get a move on, you'll be facing all kinds of trouble."
"You can't expect a soldier to listen to someone who won't give us his name." Talia said, while Arthur entered behind her. "So who are you, and why are you telling us this?"
"Hmm. Do you know about a guy by the name of Andrew Waltfeld? Well, this is a message from him."
Talia recognized the name. "The Desert Tiger."
"In any case, I've given you the warning." The man who identified himself said. "Once the drop begins, Orb will likely ram through an agreement to join the Atlantic Federation's alliance. Although Representative Athha is doing her best to stop it. If you want to stay, that is your choice. The decision is yours to make, Captain. I wish you the best of luck."
The line cut off, and Talia was left wondering if she should heed the warning or not.
Shinn was lying on his bed. He had woken up earlier and couldn't really fall back asleep. Something was eating away at him and he couldn't exactly tell why.
Well, he wasn't gonna hit the hay anytime soon. Standing up, he got dressed, careful not to wake Rey. He went into the breakroom to get a drink of water, and was surprised to see Lunamaria already there.
"Oh wow, you're up early." Luna said, surprised.
"Yeah." Shinn got a cup of water. "Couldn't go back to sleep."
"Worried about Mayu, huh?" Luna guessed.
Shinn's fingers slightly dug into the paper cup. "I think this is probably the first time we've been really separated ever since we first arrived at the PLANTs. I called her a while back, but I know she'd get annoyed if I called her again."
"Mayu's a strong girl." Luna reassured him. "The best thing you can do as her older sibling is give a bit of distance."
"Talking from experience?" Shinn asked.
"That, and Mayu and I talk." Luna said, sitting down.
"...about me?" Shinn raised a brow.
"That's a secret between girls." Luna chuckled as Shinn scowled.
"I can't get through." One of the bridge members said. "I don't know if it's because the Earth Forces are on higher alert or what, but I'm getting severe interference, and can't reach Carpentaria, even by laser."
Talia clasped her hands behind her back. "All right. We'll have to do it without orders. The Minerva will leave port tomorrow morning."
"Captain!" Arthur nodded.
"Notify all hands!" Talia ordered. "Once we leave, we can be certain that we'll go to battle before long! Be prepared!"
"Yes Ma'am!"
The Refrain had landed on another island. The sun was starting to rise, and Mayu wasn't anywhere near Orb.
"Why isn't the navigator working?" Mayu said. She kept tapping it, only to get static. "It can't be a defect of the machine… Is there interference somewhere?"
She put a hand under her chin, trying to think of her next move.
"Maybe if I fly skyward and get a better view." Mayu said. "Ugh, I should've just done that before landing back on Earth…"
She put a hand on the lever and pushed, turning on the thrusters.
"We'll be leaving at the appointed time. All units, hurry with your final checks." Meyrin announced, as Shinn, Luna and Rey walked down a hall. "Gunnery Crew B, proceed to weapons bank number three. Condition upgraded to Yellow. Pilots, meet in the briefing room."
"So when does this ZAFT drop take place?" Shinn asked.
"I don't know the details, either." Luna admitted. "All that's clear is that Orb is now an enemy. And I kinda liked this nation."
Shinn kept his eyes forward.
"Oh, sorry. This must be hard for you, Shinn." Luna apologized.
"Not so much for me." He said. "I'm more worried for Mayu… she wanted to come back here more than I did…"
He remembered that Mayu looked much happier when they had arrived here. She truly missed Orb; something he himself couldn't share the feeling with. His concern for his sister went away as he saw Cagalli walking down the hall. Seeing her, his anger returned.
"What are you doing here?!" He demanded.
Cagalli looked away, unable to really say anything.
"So now you're in an alliance with the Earth Forces, the same people who attacked Orb in the war?!" Shinn snapped. "How irresponsible and selfish can you people get?!"
"No, this is…" Cagalli started.
"If you decided to become our enemy, I'll destroy this damn country myself!" Shinn declared, pushing past her, making sure to bump into her shoulder.
"Shinn!" She called.
He briefly stopped walking, but didn't turn to look at her. "I see now that the home that Mayu and I grew up in was gone long ago."
Luna ran after him, only briefly glancing at Cagalli. Rey stopped to salute as an apology, before walking after his friends. Cagalli could only look down with guilt.
Standing on the dock, Cagalli watched as the Minerva pulled out of the port. She had talked with the captain about the situation, and apologized she couldn't do more to help.
"I'm truly sorry about all this."
"Never mind. We're disappointed, but it can't be helped. I will not forget your sincerity in personally coming to see us off."
While Rey was typing at a laptop, Luna watched Shinn in concern. He was staring out the window with a glare on his face.
Mayu… are you okay…?
A/N: A bit of a quicker chapter today that bridges the gap between this and the next one. There's gonna be a lot more meat in the next chapter, I can say that.
Feel free to leave a review. See you all next time.