Gundam Seed Pilot (Patreon)

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Year 70 of the Cosmic Era. Tensions were mounting between Earth and the ZAFT organization. Due to the Bloody Valentine tragedy, these tensions escalated into a full-scale war. It seemed a foregone conclusion that the Earth Forces, with its superior numbers, would be victorious, but these initial assessments proved to be false. Almost eleven months have passed since the conflict began – with no end in sight.

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Kira Yamato tapped away at his laptop, working on all of the extra work that his professor had given him yesterday. Off to the side on the screen, a separate news feed was explaining that Kaohsiung was currently under attack by ZAFT. It was uncomfortably close to Orb, but Kira had faith that the war would never reach the homeland’s shores. He smiled as a little, green, mechanical bird landed on top of the screen. “Hey Birdie.” He said, as the gift from his oldest, best friend tilted its head and then hopped onto Kira’s shoulder.

“Kira!” Miriallia Haw called out to him. She was one of his good friends, with light brown hair and ocean-blue eyes. Her boyfriend and his other good friend Tolle Koenig was right beside her, grinning cheerfully.

“There you are.” Tolle said, stepping forward, “Don’t you know old Kato was looking for you?”

“What, again?” Kira yelped, sitting up straight and putting his laptop on the table, “Please tell me it’s not more work! I haven’t even had the chance to go through everything he dumped on me yesterday!” He ran his fingers through his brown hair in irritation.

“Well, that’s what you get for being so reliable.” Miri giggled as they sat with him. “What are you watching?” Kira said nothing, and turned the laptop slightly. “Oh no!” Miri held her hand up to her lips, “Kaohsiung? Isn’t that super close to Orb? And this footage is a week old!”

“Yeah, Taiwan’s not far at all. They might have already taken it over entirely…” Tolle’s face went grim, “You don’t think…?”

“Orb is neutral.” Kira said softly, “We should be safe…”

“Yeah, you’re right.” Tolle sighed, “Can’t see Orb turning into a warzone.”

“I can’t help but worry though.” Miri looked down as Kira tapped the top of the screen as it descended, retracting into the chassis of his laptop, “Who’s to say the EA or ZAFT won’t decide that they don’t care…”

“Orb will not attack anyone, but will also not let anyone attack us.” Kira frowned, “If either side does it… that’s war. We’d just join the other side. That… scares me, honestly.” His mind wandered, remembering the last time he saw his best friend.

“The PLANTs and Earth will see eye to eye… there will be no war.” The blue haired, green-eyed Athrun Zala said as he gave Kira his gift: the mechanical bird he had just finished building, “The evacuation doesn’t mean a thing. You’ll join me later at the PLANTs, won’t you Kira?”

‘If only that had been true…’ Kira lamented, remembering the tragedy that had happened not long after.

And then Tolle got in his face, “Kira?”

“Wah!” Kira yelped and backed away, “What?!”

“Don’t you what me! What’s with you dude?” Tolle asked him.

“Sorry, just… been distracted.” Kira said softly as he put away his things, “We need to get going, right?”

“Yeah, let’s go.” Tolle put an arm around Miri as he started walking away, with Kira slinging his bag over his shoulder so he could follow.

-]|[-

Outside, a ship was taxiing backwards into the interior of Heliopolis. With the blue skies and warm weather within, one would have been forgiven for thinking they were down on Earth. Only the trusses holding the colony together inside the interior told the truth of the matter. The ship came to a stop inside the Heliopolis docking bay, and the Captain of the ship took his OMNI hat off his head, “There you have it! Looks like this old girl’s completed her final mission. All thanks to you, Lieutenant La Flaga.”

“Sir.” Mu replied with a small smile, “I’m just glad we were able to get here safely. ZAFTs been skulking about.”

“Aye, two ships were detected. Now that we’re here though, they can’t do anything.”

“Because they’re neutral?” Mu snorted, “What a joke.” As they spoke, the men on the bridge all locked their consoles and saluted the Captain before leaving. “Think they’ll be fine on the ground?”

“They’re young.” The Captain said softly, “But all tremendously skilled. They’ll all be fine. They were chosen to be pilots for the G Program, after all.”

Somehow, Mu couldn’t feel that same sense of confidence. He’d seen the simulations they all had run. They hadn’t been great.

…

Actually, that may have been giving them too much credit. He couldn’t help but wonder if the OS for the machines really was just that bad.

-]|[-

Outside of the colony, the two ZAFT vessels Gamow and Vesalius sat behind an asteroid that had been caught by Heliopolis’s meager gravity. It was just enough to put it in a loose orbit. And unlike what the Captain of the Earth Alliance’s ship had thought, they were indeed doing something. Small, stealthy vessels were bringing a couple dozen soldiers towards Heliopolis. On the Vesalius, Commander Rau Le Creuset (wearing his snazzy white-and-black uniform along with a mysterious mask that covered the top parts of his face) floated by the ship’s Captain, Ades. “Don’t look so frustrated, Ades.” He had a calm, soothing voice that really made people want to trust him.

Ades turned his chair to look at the man, “I’m still not sure that this is the right action to take, Commander. Shouldn’t we at least wait to hear from the Council?”

“They’ll be far too late to do anything meaningful.” Le Creuset said, before allowing a photo of a metallic head to float by the Captain, “I have a sixth sense for these sorts of things. If we don’t take care of things now, we’ll pay for it with our lives later. The Earth Force’s new Mobile Weapons… we need to secure them before they’re moved.” As he spoke, his team was landing on the rock and disembarking from the stealth rafts.

-]|[-

Back inside Heliopolis, Kira, Tolle, and Miri were walking when they ran into a few of their underclassmen. As always when he saw her, Kira had to control his blush. Flay Allster was such a beauty. Her hair was so red Kira couldn’t help but wonder if she was a Coordinator, as it was certainly not a natural color. She looked too cute in that pink sundress too. Next to her were two giggly girls who looked to be ready to do nothing but gossip. “Come on, fess up, Flay!”

Flay protested, “It’s really nothing girls. Can you just drop it?”

“I bet you know, huh Miriallia?” Her friend giggled, “I heard she got a letter from Sai Argyle, but she insists there’s nothing going on.” Kira reacted to that, twitching hard at the knowledge that one of his friends was trying to woo the girl he had a major crush on.

“Would you guys give it a rest?!” Flay advanced on her two friends, who shrieked with laughter. Honestly, this was exactly what she was trying to avoid. Yeah, her father and Sai’s family had made an agreement… but nothing was official yet, and while she truly loved Sai like a friend, that was all she saw him as. She side-eyed Kira, whom she had met before, and whom she had thought was pretty cute. ‘Does he think I’m cute too? He looked pretty shocked by that.’ It was certainly something to keep an eye on. She then blinked, looking beyond him, “Uhh, guys?”

A woman with short, black hair coughed into her fist, “May we pass, please?”

Kira glanced behind him, “Uhh, sorry about that.” He stepped aside.

Flay turned to her friends, “Let’s go. We still have things to do before we can go shopping.” She started walking away. “Later Miri!” She waved behind her shoulder.

“Oh, come on, Flay! We’re just-”

“LALALALA I can’t hear you!” Flay called out as she hopped in the autonomous convertible that pulled up, “Looks like I’ll have to go shopping on my own.”

“Ahhh, no wait! I’m sorry Flay-sama!” The two girls hopped in behind her and the car drove off.

Tolle grinned, “How ‘bout that Sai? He wrote to her! Flay Allster, no less!” His grin widened as he clapped his hands on Kira’s shoulders, “Looks like you’ve got some competition, my man. Good luck!” He walked away, with Miri giggling as she followed him.

“Hey, wait! What do you mean?!” Kira ran after them.

…

The ZAFT pilots and ground forces had disembarked from their stealth rafts, and a heavy metal gate had opened up for them. There were five in ZAFT red Elite pilot suits, with the remaining dozens dressed in the light green. Each of them carried guns, ammo, grenades, and some of them even carried satchels filled with demolition explosives. Beyond the doors, lasers were shining brightly, designed to detect anything passing through and alert the interior.

Of course, that didn’t help at all when fellow Coordinators lived inside, with sympathetic loyalty to their people. One of the Reds looked at a digital watch on his wrist, and the countdown hit zero. The lasers all winked out of existence, and the soldiers hurried in before the lasers could come back up.

…

Kira was driving with Tolle and Miri sitting in the back, and he was starting to get irritated with his friend, “What’s the big deal? You just have to ask.” The brunette said.

“I said drop it.” Kira replied, sliding his security card through the machine.

“Are you still denying that you like her? Kira, you’ve had a crush on her since she arrived last year.” Tolle rolled his eyes, “It’s just a question. Isn’t it better to know if they’re involved or not?”

“Tolle, you’re being a pest.” Kira sighed.

“Well fine then. If you won’t ask, I will.” Tolle crossed his arms as if that settled the matter, and Kira rolled his eyes as he drove them into Morgenröte. A few minutes later, they were walking into the robotics lab. “Hey guys.” Tolle called out, greeting Sai and Kuzzey Buskirk.

Sai stuck his head out with a smile, “Kira! Finally made it, huh?”

“What’s up, Sai?” He looked off to the side, seeing a blonde standing against the wall with their arms crossed. He couldn’t quite tell if they were male or female, though the longer hair made the latter more likely. “What does he want now? I still haven’t been able to finish all the extra work he piled on me from yesterday.”

And Tolle chimed in, “And who is that?”

“Professor had a guest.” Kuzzey explained, “And I’m not sure where he is.”

Sai snorted, “That’s just like him, huh? Great professor but he can just be so scatterbrained.” He looked at Kira, “He gave me this to give to you.” He held up a disk drive for Kira to take.

“Great.” Kira sounded just so enthused, “Honestly, I feel like he should be paying me for this. I’ve had to rewrite how many of his programs by now?” The group started to giggle.

…

The soldiers were sneaking through the halls as silently as possible. They didn’t even use words, with the lead Red using hand signals. They passed over a set of grates, where they saw what looked like a brand-new warship down below. The leader gave a few more commands, before they split at the intersection.

Several of the Greens floated silently through the zero-G environment, placing explosives at vital locations all over. Each of the devices had over ten minutes on them and dozens were being placed in total secrecy.

…

“More importantly…” Tolle put Kira in a headlock from behind, “Ask him about the letter!”

“Ack!” Kira choked, “Damn it Tolle, let go of me!” He said as he forced his friend’s arm away from his throat easily.

“What letter?” Sai asked in confusion.

“Nothing!” Kira said, “Tolle if you don’t let go I’m going to show off my black belt.” Kira warned the other brunette.

“Not until you ask!”

“Will you just ask me, Tolle?” Sai asked, furrowing his brows. The only letter he could think of was the one he had sent Flay, but that couldn’t be the one, right?

The unknown guest couldn’t even bring herself to be amused at the shenanigans she was witnessing. Not when her reason for being there was so serious. She walked over to Professor Kato’s door and tried to open it, but it was locked. She frowned heavily.

“I warned you, Tolle!” Kira yelled, before ending Tolle’s headlock with the greatest of ease and flipping him.

“WAH!” Tolle yelped as Kira held him upside down. “W-wait, Kira! We can talk about this!”

Kira had a grin on his face as he walked over to the mechanical suit they had in the lab. “Oh, we can, can we?” He put Tolle inside the suit so that his legs were sticking out and waving in the air. Everyone in the room burst out laughing as Tolle’s muffled cries emanated from the machine. Even the formerly unamused guest couldn’t help but allow her stoicism to shatter as she started to laugh behind her fist.

“Come on Kira, get him out.” Miri chided him, though she was also laughing.

“Fine, fine.” Kira fished Tolle out, “Have you repented?”

“YES, DAMN IT! JUST PUT ME DOWN!” Kira dropped him and caught him again, “I MEANT GENTLY, DAMN IT!” A new round of laughter echoed in the room.

…

Le Creuset looked at his watch, “It’s about that time.” He said softly, “Vesalius, LAUNCH!”

Outside, the thrusters of the Nazca class ignited, and they hurried out from behind the asteroid on approach towards Heliopolis.

Inside the colony, the alarms started to blare as they detected movement, “What are these guys doing?! Someone shut off those alarms!” The lead operator called out, “ZAFT vessels, please respond! Your actions are in direct violation of your treaty with our nation! ZAFT vessels, please respond!”

“Sir, N-Jammer levels rising! There’s interference coming from the ZAFT ships!” Another operator called out, and the lead operator lowered his headset in dawning horror.

Aboard the Vesalius, Rau Le Creuset pointed his hand towards the colony, and his GINNs activated in the Mobile Suit bay. The magnetic launcher started to activate with the arms extending outwards from the heart of the ship. One of the GINNs floated in the tube, before being launched forward with insane velocity. Aboard the Gamow, a similar scene was occurring. GINN after GINN started flying towards Heliopolis.

Inside the colony, Mu was clenching his fist, ‘I knew it was too easy.’ He called out to the Captain, “Enemies?”

“Nazca and Laurasia class. They started launching GINNs.” The older man said grimly.

“Looks like our secret is out.” Mu matched his tone, “Have Luke and Gail board their Moebius units, but don’t deploy them yet!”

Near the new state-of-the-art vessel that had been created to house the G-Weapons, the Captain was keeping calm, “Don’t overreact or we’ll play right into their hands. Let the Heliopolis defense forces handle this.” He took a quick call, before turning to Ensign Badgiruel and Chief Petty Officer Neumann, “Get me Lieutenant Ramius. Tell her to start loading the G-Weapons. We’ll launch if we have to.”

“Sir!” Natarle saluted, before the two left the control room.

…

All across Heliopolis, the innocent and sheltered civilians had no idea that their idyllic lives were about to end. As Flay and her friends shopped for cute clothes, Kira and his friends operated the powered armor Kira had stuffed Tolle into, and the civilian population of the neutral nation enjoyed the colony parks and amenities; Lieutenant Murrue Ramius, dressed in simple orange overalls yelled out, “To the Archangel, on the double!”

And then the timers on all of those demolition charges hit zero.

BOOM BOOM BOOM

All around, people were thrown to the ground or simply fell over holding their ears as the explosions rocked the colony. Even far away from the actual explosions, people screamed, wondering if earthquakes were happening… before remembering that was impossible on a colony. In the hangar where the Archangel sat, the explosions all jostled the ship and annihilated workers and personnel alike. The Captain of the vessel screamed in horror along with the pilots and other members of the Earth Alliance as the explosions ruptured their viewing port and burnt them all to crisps.

Natarle Badgiruel and Arnold Neumann had already left that viewing port, and still, the smoke and debris crashed into them and swept them away. Murrue Ramius faraway in Morgenröte nearly fell over, gasping as she instantly realized just how much danger they were now in. At the actual technical college, the students all started to scream as the building shook. “Is it a meteoroid?!” Tolle yelled, unable to even exit the falling suit he was in without some help.

Kira had to dash forward and groaned in strain as he managed to keep it upright. “Damn, there’s no way that was a meteoroid!” He yelled once the shaking stopped, “I felt multiple. There’s no way a meteoroid could have gotten so close without Heliopolis issuing a warning, much less a bunch of them.”

The unknown blonde grit her teeth, “Th-that was an explosion.” She hissed.

“No way!” Miri yelled, “Here?!”

“Get out of there, Tolle!” Kira yelled as he lifted the safety harness and helped his friend out of there, “We need to leave!”

Sai knocked on Professor Kato’s door, but got no response. “Looks like the prof isn’t even inside. Let’s go!” As they were rushing out, they had no way of knowing that battle was happening outside the colony, nor that multiple GINNs had already invaded.

…

The ZAFT Reds along with several fellow greens stood watch above Morgenröte, just waiting for their targets to show themselves. They were quickly rewarded, and got to work.

ZAFT’s support GINNs quickly started shooting up the factory in a flyby, and Murrue quickly yelled at her staff to get the G-Weapons prepped for combat. They needed to get them out of the factory district before it was too late. She cursed the fact that the pilots hadn’t come straight there, and cursed again as she was told the Archangel was completely radio silent. ‘Those bastards… they must have snuck in and prepared demolition charges!’ She prayed the Archangel was as tough as her designs claimed, otherwise they were in even deeper shit than she thought.

…

Back at the college, several people screamed as the lights went dim. Kira swallowed heavily, ‘It… it can’t be! That’s gunfire! Explosions keep happening! We’re being attacked!’

Sai was able to get an emergency exit door opened, and called out to his friends, “Through here! We need to get out and get to shelter!”

“Right!” Tolle grabbed his girlfriend and started dragging her forward.

Sai looked at the procession going up the stairs already, “What’s going on?”

“I don’t know!”

Someone apparently did, “We’re under attack! I saw Mobile Suits before I ran!”

“Mobile Suits?!” Miri yelped, “Then this is ZAFT?! But we have a treaty!”

The blonde ground her teeth, ‘Then it’s true…’ She growled in her head, ‘I… I need to see this. With my own eyes!’ She turned and started running down the corridor, away from safety!

Kira gasped as he saw it from the corner of his eye, “Hey, you!” He yelled, and ran after her. “Are you crazy?!”

…

Outside, the fighting on the ground was intensifying. The ZAFT soldiers that were on foot were quite simply outgunning the Earth Alliance forces. Their shots were more precise and supremely fast! The Reds in particular were taking out multiple people with each magazine, and were advancing towards their targets. Murrue was fighting hard, as were her men, but they were being outmatched. As she blew a Green’s brains out, one of the Reds threw a grenade that killed a trio of soldiers by itself.

…

In the labs, Kira had caught up to the blonde and grabbed her arm. “Are you crazy?! Why are you going TOWARDS the explosions?!”

“Why don’t you mind your own goddamn business!” She jerked her arm out of his grip, “Get out of here and meet back up with the others!”

“You don’t even know where you’re going!” Kira protested. “That’s a dead end!” Another explosion rang out, and the hallway turned into a wind tunnel, nearly flinging them off their feet. Both of them were able to set themselves, but the blast blew her hat away.

He blinked as they settled, “Damn…” He eyed her, now knowing for sure she was a girl.

“Just go back.” She said, looking away, “I have to check on something. On my own.” She stressed the final three words.

“Easy for you to say. How will I retrace my steps?” He said, and she growled lowly, “Is this really important enough to die for?” He asked, and she flinched.

“You wouldn’t get it.” She was going to say more, but another blast engulfed them.

“We need to get out of here.” Kira said once the wind stopped again, “The explosions came from that way. Let’s go this way.” He grabbed her hand and started dragging her with him.

“Damn it, let go, jerk!”

“I’m trying to save you and I’m the jerk?” Kira asked rhetorically, looking back, and seeing the tears in her eyes.

“Damn it. I just never thought we’d get… involved.” She got out, wiping her eyes.

“There will be escape shelters in the factory district. We’ll be able to escape.” Kira told her.

She gasped, “You know the way there?” Her expression hardened as she picked up the pace, “Lead the way!”

…

In another part of the building, Kira’s friends were able to escape Morgenröte and gasped as they saw the GINN blowing parts of the factory up with its cannon. Down below, the actual fighting had reached a fever pitch, with the Earth Forces attempting to move the prototypes while driving back the ZAFT forces, who were quickly and efficiently encroaching on them. Murrue had racked up half a dozen kills on her own, though none of the Reds yet.

…

As they ran towards the light they were hoping would get them to a shelter, the blonde said softly, “I… don’t think this will lead to safety.” Kira grimaced, also hearing the increasingly loud volume of gunfire. They burst onto a walkway, and both of them were stunned when they saw the machines that were laying inside their transports. She felt her knees go weak, and she slumped to the floor, “I knew it…” Her despairing voice caught Kira’s attention, “The Earth Forces’ prototype Mobile Weapons.”

‘What?! Then we’re getting attacked because of these?!’ Kira thought to himself.

“FATHER, YOU’VE BETRAYED US ALL!” Her anguished scream drew not only his attention, but Murrue’s down below. She whirled around, aiming in a split second and firing a shot, before gasping in horror when her brain processed that she had just shot at what looked like a teenager in civilian clothing.

Kira had been on the ball, and flung himself at the blonde, getting her out of the way of the shot and just barely avoiding getting shot himself. “Damn, we need to get out!” He leapt to his feet and hauled the girl up, before both of them took off running.

“What are kids doing here?” Murrue asked in shock as she reloaded, before sighing, “Thank god that kid got her out of the way.”

Kira yelled back at her, “Crying won’t help! We need to get to safety first!”

She wiped her tears and her face hardened, “Right. Thanks.”

He smiled back at her reassuringly, “I’m Kira.”

“Cagalli.” She smiled back wanly.

…

Outside the factory, the ZAFT forces had already managed to succeed in their mission. Well, some of them had at any rate. Yzak Joule, Dearka Elsman, and Nicol Amalfi had boarded the GAT-X102 Duel, the GAT-X103 Buster, and the GAT-X207 Blitz respectively. Yzak whistled, “Wow, pretty cool. This thing is way better than a GINN.” He grinned, “Dearka, how’s yours?”

“Great. Update activated. Nerve links reconstructed. Calibration set. It’ll move.” He looked at the specs, “Jeez, this thing is a powerhouse. I can’t believe the Naturals were the ones to come up with it.”

“Credit where credit is due.” Yzak smirked, “Of course, they did have Orb’s help with these things, so it’s not impossible for Coordinators to have helped. That’s way more likely.” He eyed the Blitz which still hadn’t moved, “What’s the hold up, Nicol?”

“Almost done. You know I’m not the best programmer.” Nicol groused as he typed at hyper speed, “These things are insane. Commander was right.” His eyes widened as he read the specs on the Mirage Colloid system. “Where’s Athrun and Rusty?”

“Taking their sweet time, apparently.” Dearka replied as the Blitz joined them in standing.

“Hmph, well it’s not like they should have much trouble. We’re not babysitters. Let’s get these machines back to the ship now before they get damaged.”

“Yeah, or else Commander Le Creuset will have our hides.” Dearka powered up his thrusters, and the three darted up and towards the exit.

…

Back inside the factory, Kira’s heart sank as he saw the red lights above the shelter entrances. “Oh no.”

“Shit.” Cagalli cursed, realizing they were going to be refused.

Kira tried anyway, pressing the intercom, “Is anyone there?!” He yelled, “Please tell us there’s still room!”

“What?” A voice responded immediately, “There’s still people out there? You have to be kidding!”

“Yeah, my friend and I need shelter!” Kira responded, but Cagalli had already turned away, looking across the factory and trying to see if there were more shelters.

“Sorry kid, but we’re all full! You’ll need to try the left block! Shelter 37!”

Kira punched the wall, “It’s a warzone over here! How are we supposed to make it?! Can’t you at least take my friend?! She’s just a girl!”

“Hey!” Cagalli whirled around and glared at his back, “Like hell I’m leaving without you, moron!” She stomped on his foot, getting him to yelp.

“We can’t take her regardless! If these lifeboats end up having to launch, anyone not strapped down will just be getting thrown about and ricocheting off the walls!” The man replied, “They’d be safe from the fighting, sure, but that doesn’t mean they wouldn’t crack their heads open in here! Sorry kids! I wish I could take you both, but I can’t!” The intercom went dead.

“Damn it!” Kira punched the wall again, denting the metal with just his fist. Cagalli’s eyes narrowed.

“Just a girl.” Cagalli glared at him, “What, so girls can’t be tough?”

“Of course not!” Kira groaned out, “But if it had worked, then only one of us would have had to run across a damn warzone!”

“Let’s get going before things get worse.” This time, she grabbed his hand, and they took off again.

Down below, Murrue called out orders, “Hamana, get them running!” She never noticed the ZAFT Green behind her on the catwalk, aiming his rifle.

But Kira did. “Behind you, look out!” He yelled down at her.

She immediately dropped, whirling around, and finding the target. A bullet instantly painted the wall behind him red. “Those kids again… why did he?” She tried to reload her rifle, but one of her fellow soldiers got killed. She threw herself forward and aimed her pistol, taking out the Green that had killed him. She got up, “Come down here!” She yelled at the two.

“We’re just running for the shelters in the left block! Don’t mind us!” Kira yelled back.

“No, get down here now! There are no more shelters in this area! The entrances in the left block were blown to hell!” Murrue yelled at them.

“Oh, shit!” Cagalli cursed. And then another explosion blew the two off their feet. As the two got up, they started running and Murrue called to them to follow her.

Kira turned to Cagalli, “Hey, jump o-” -n my back, was what he was going to say. But Cagalli just vaulted the catwalk railing, yelling at him to hurry up. Kira gaped for a moment as she landed with far greater ease than she should have been able to, and as he followed her, he realized she was probably a Coordinator like him.

Murrue gasped as she saw the two fall and land almost nimbly despite the great height. Off to the side, her aid and direct subordinate Hamana finally managed a perfect shot, killing one of the ZAFT Reds instantly. As he fell back, the other Red gasped, “RUSTY!” With a roar of rage, he dove from cover and ran, firing a hail of bullets that killed Hamana.

“Hamana!” Murrue roared furiously, aiming for the final Red.

But the soldier was quicker. Moving almost supernaturally quickly, his final shot burrowed itself in Murrue’s arm. Kira and Cagalli gasped and ran for her, as the Red tried to see if he had any ammo left. Finding none, he growled and dropped his rifle, pulling out a knife and leaping several meters up to land on the mobile suit Murrue had fallen to her backside on.

As he got closer, yelling in rage, Kira gasped, “Athrun?!”

The Red froze, allowing Kira to clearly see his face, his blue hair, and his emerald eyes. “K-Kira?” He stuttered in horror, his knife lowering.

‘Oh boy…’ Cagalli thought to herself, realizing these two definitely knew each other as another explosion rocked them.

Kira stood, and Murrue opened her eyes and raised her pistol, grimacing from the pain in her arm. Athrun leapt back, avoiding the final three shots, and raced towards the final machine inside this part of the factory. Murrue stood and grabbed Kira’s shirt, before throwing him sideways into the Mobile Suit. “Get in!” She yelled at Cagalli, who hurried to jump in, and then Murrue hopped in after them, closing the cockpit. On the other side, Athrun got inside the final machine.

Inside of the machine, Murrue was holding herself up and off of Kira and Cagalli, “Please get behind the seat.” Cagalli went left and Kira went right, with the boy grunting a bit from the uncomfortable landing, “I didn’t get a chance to thank you.” Murrue said as she clicked a couple buttons to turn on the Strike. “You saved my life. I’ll remember that.” The screens all came on, “And because of that, I can at least save one machine.”

Kira looked at one of the screens, his brow furrowing as he looked at the other G-Weapon. ‘Athrun… what the hell are you doing in a ZAFT uniform? Didn’t you hate the idea of war too?’

He looked down at the main screen where O.M.N.I’s symbol was displayed. Cagalli read off, “General unilateral neuro-link dispersive autonomic maneuver synthesis system?” She blinked, almost looking cross eyed, “Who the hell came up with that?”

Murrue couldn’t help but chuffing as Kira said, “Just take the first letters and call it GUNDAM.”

“Catchier than G-Weapon.” Murrue’s lips twitched, before her expression tightened, “Let’s do this!” She yelled, mostly to hype herself up.

Screeching of metal rang through the factory, almost drowning out the explosions as the machines got to their feet. As the GAT-X105 Strike got to its feet, another massive explosion and conflagration illuminated it from behind. As the facility continued to explode around them, the Aegis joined it on its feet, and the two of them launched themselves out of the factory.

Kira’s friends were still nearby and attempting to find shelter as they fell back from the massive explosion only a couple hundred feet away. The Aegis landed beside the GINN that had been shooting everything up, “Right on!” Miguel, the pilot grinned, “Is it Athrun or Rusty in there?”

“It’s me.” Athrun said, before his voice dropped, “…Rusty failed.”

“What?!” Miguel gasped in horror.

“The other one was boarded by an Earth Forces officer… and I think two civilians. Not certain if they were just out of uniform, but they looked really young.” Athrun told him.

“Shit.” Miguel glared at the Strike as it stumbled about, moving very haphazardly, and looking like a toddler that had just started learning how to walk.

Inside the Strike, the cameras were displaying a bunch of different feeds, and one caught Kira’s attention, “Oh no! My friends!”

“They haven’t escaped yet?!” Cagalli exclaimed, “How did we end up in the safer position, damn it?!”

“Please keep quiet! This is hard enough already!” Murrue yelled in frustration. She then grunted as she was forced to stumble around some shots from the GINN.

Miguel put away his rifle and drew his sword, “Get out of here before that thing takes damage, Athrun. I’ll capture this one.” He sighed, “Damned kids. I’ll try to be gentle here.”

“These machines are powerful. Don’t underestimate it just because a Natural is piloting it.” Athrun said as he started reprogramming the thing, “Gods but this OS is awful. No wonder they’re stumbling about like idiots in there.”

Miguel roared as he charged forward, swiping at the Strike with his greatsword. Murrue ground her teeth as she made the machine leap back, and the rough landing dislodged Kira. Cagalli had known better and had braced, but Kira ended up flying face first into Murrue’s breasts. “Get out of my way! Do you want to die?!”

“It’s not like this is a two-seater!” Kira yelled back in protest, blushing madly.

“Oh shit!” Cagalli yelled as the GINN advanced on them again.

Murrue threw herself forward and pressed a red button, and the words ‘Phase-Shift Activated’ were displayed on the screen. On the outside of the machine, the formerly gray and drab machine turned a bright white, with sections of it becoming blue and others becoming red. Murrue crossed the Strike’s arms, and the blade smashed into them and started throwing an insane number of sparks around.

“What the hell?!” Miguel backed away in shock.

Kira and Cagalli were equally surprised, “This Mobile Suit…”

“It took no damage?” Cagalli bit the side of her fist lightly, ‘Was this what you wanted for Orb, father? Was this worth this disaster?!’

“It’s Phase-Shift Armor.” Murrue explained, though she winced as her shoulder twinged in pain again, “Uses electrical currents running through the armor plates to almost nullify any solid body impacts.” On the other end of the road, Athrun was explaining the same thing to Miguel, with the machine turning blood red.

“That’s got to be too expensive for mass production.” Kira said absently, “And it looks like it’s draining the battery really fast.” He calculated the number of hits it could take from a GINN’s sword almost instantly, “Based on the energy lost from the GINN’s sword, it can’t take more than 142 blows. Stronger impacts would lower that even more.”

‘…’ Murrue almost took her eyes off the battlefield, ‘That…. That was an absurdly quick calculation for him to have gotten it.’ She knew the machine’s specs, and Kira had nailed it exactly for the calculated number of sword impacts from a GINN.

“Get out of here, Athrun.” Miguel said, “Follow the plan. Leave this to me!” Miguel darted forward, “I might not be able to cut you, but I can damn well run that battery down!”

Murrue was gritting her teeth as she started firing the Igelstellungs. The head unit flashed as the bullets flew, but not one of them hit their mark. Kira twitched, ‘The calibration is all off! The bullets aren’t going where she’s aiming!’

Miguel was smirking, “Doesn’t matter how good that armor is. You can’t hit the broadside of a Laurasia!” He slashed the Strike across the chest, “And you can barely move!” He kicked the Strike square in the torso, knocking it into a building with a loud crash.

Kira held on this time instead of getting flung, and Cagalli was growling, “Damn it! We’re getting nowhere with this!” Was she really going to have to pilot a goddamn Earth Alliance Mobile Suit?!

But Kira wasn’t paying attention as Murrue apologized. All he could see were his friends still displayed on one of the feeds. Running for their lives. Miriallia had turned for a moment, and he could see the sheer terror on her face.

Murrue had gotten the Strike up, and had paced it back as Miguel readied his sword for a straight thrust. ‘No! My friends!’ Kira screamed in his head, before leaning across from Murrue and pressing a button. He grabbed the throttles and moved one of them back, making the machine bend its knees. The sword sparked against the shoulder armor before Kira threw the Strike forward and shoulder tackled the GINN.

Miguel screamed as his GINN was launched backwards and crashed on the open pavement.

Murrue could hardly believe her eyes, “How did you?”

“There’s still people all around here!” Kira said as he started pressing buttons to bring up the Gundam’s M.O.S.

“Nice save, Kira.” Cagalli breathed a sigh of relief, having realized that the thrust would have launched them back and crushed Miriallia, Tolle, Kuzzey, and Sai a split second after he had. He had only beaten her to the punch by that much.

“Please move.” Kira told Murrue, looking back at the brunette, “This operating system is all wrong for this machine. The guns you fired aren’t even properly targeted.”

“It hasn’t reached completion yet.” Murrue said as she got back, “They were more concerned with the hardware than the software.”

Kira took the pilot’s seat, “Typical.” He snorted as he pulled his keyboard up and rapidly started typing, “Wait a second, I recognize some of this code! Has Professor Kato been using me for THIS?!” He growled out angrily as the screens flashed in front of him.

“Ouch.” Cagalli winced in sympathy.

Kira shook his head, “This is ridiculous. Some of the parts of the OS are outright contradicting other parts! How can you operate a complex machine like this?!” He finished the first part of his fixes in just a bare few seconds, right as Miguel got up and darted at him. Kira pressed on the triggers, and this time when the Igelstellungs fired, they were all bullseyes, tearing some small gouges out of the GINN’s armor.

“What the?!” Miguel was forced to pull back slightly, but continued forward.

And then his GINN got punched in the face, sending him flying backwards a second time.

Inside, Murrue was gaping once again, as Kira immediately used the lull he’d generated to start fixing more and more of the OS. ‘This kid…’

Cagalli was equally as shocked, ‘What the hell?! How is he doing this?’ It wasn’t what he was doing, but rather the speed with which he was doing it that was catching her attention. She could do it too, but he was making literally zero mistakes and was moving so fast even she could barely keep track of the changes he was making. She shook her head, realizing she could do something productive. “Miss.” Cagalli grabbed Murrue’s attention, “Let me see your arm.”

Murrue looked over, and suddenly realized she was definitely feeling a bit faint. ‘Oh, right.’ Murrue stared at her bloodied top, ‘There was that as well.’ She moved more behind the chair, “There’s a first aid kit there.” She pointed, and Cagalli grabbed it.

Cagalli tore her sleeve and hissed at the gouge in her arm, “That’s gotta hurt.”

“Honestly?” Murrue mumbled, “I think the adrenaline was too high for me to feel it.” She grunted in pain as Cagalli cleaned it.

“You’re lucky. It didn’t hit an artery.” It had still taken a bit of a chunk out, though. “Okay, it’s too dangerous for me to stitch it mid-combat, so this will do for now.” She placed gauze on top of it and then started wrapping her arm.

As they were doing that, Kira was wrapping up his changes to the Strike’s OS. Miguel had stood his GINN up again, “What’s with this guy? How is he suddenly moving like a seasoned pilot?!” He put his sword away and drew his rifle. His bullets blasted the Strike, but did no damage to it.

Both machines leapt into the air and their thrusters kept them up there, “Weapons?” Kira checked it off, and his jaw dropped as he saw that the Igelstellungs and two “Armor Schneider” combat knives were all that the machine had, “What the hell kind of weapons complement is this?!”

Murrue would have told him about the Striker Packs, but then they got hit with some serious G’s as Kira drew the knives and started running forwards. Miguel continued shooting, and Kira yelled, “NOT THERE!” He started flying forwards, “STOP IIIIT!” He got right by the GINN and stabbed it first beneath the armpit and then in the neck.

Miguel grunted as his machine stopped responding, its arms falling limp. “You’ve got to be kidding! Hydros not responding! Multidrive system offline. Damn it!” He grunted as he unlatched his harnesses and pulled on his emergency self-destruct. The cockpit blew open and he flew out with the aid of his jetpack.

Murrue gasped, “Oh no! Get away from the GINN! It’s gonna blow!”

Kira reacted immediately, kicking the machine in the chest, and sending it flying back. Even with that action, it wasn’t far enough, and the explosion sent the Strike back too. Murrue and Cagalli screamed as they were thrown about roughly, and it was only luck that kept them both from smashing their heads open. Kira was jostled roughly as well, but he was in the seat and safer.

“Ugh…” Cagalli grunted, squeezing her eyes, and shaking her head, “You guys okay?”

“Grk… yeah.” Kira shook his head as well. “Miss?”

They looked, and gasped as they realized Murrue was out cold. “Shit!” They both exclaimed as Kira sat the Strike up and opened the cockpit so they could get out and lay her down, “Please don’t have a head injury too…”

-]|[-

Natarle was simply floating there, her Earth Alliance hat missing from her head. She was near the ceiling when a blood-soaked corpse knocked into her and jarred her awake with a pained groan. Her vision swam as she opened her eyes, and the first thing she saw was the body in front of her. She gasped as they floated down, before she raised a shaking hand to her lips. Her breathing was heavy as they touched down, and she forced herself to look past it. She could not focus on it, otherwise she was lost. “Th-the ship?” She looked around, “Where’s the Archangel?”

She quickly made her way back to where she had last seen everyone, “Anyone!” She called out, “IS ANYONE STILL ALIVE?!” She cried out, fighting the panic rising inside of her. Everywhere she looked, all she saw were bodies. Floating shoes with the viscera still attached here, a blood-covered helmet there. Torn flight suits and dismembered bodies…

The Captain’s hat floated in front of her, and she grabbed it, tears prickling her eyes as she let out a sob, “No, damn it!” She let go of the hat and desperately started making her way through, “ANYONE!” She called out, her voice breaking, “ANYONE PLEASE!”

And then gloriously, she whipped around as she started to hear thudding. A dented metal door flew out, and one of her fellows stepped through. She nearly sobbed once more in relief as she laid eyes on him. “Ensign Badgiruel. Good to see you safe.”

She took a shuddering breath, and placed every part of the past few minutes into a box in the back of her mind, “What’s the situation?”

…

“Almost everyone dead…” Natarle was still fighting that panic attack as Neumann (who had also miraculously survived. His unconscious body had drifted in a different direction from hers) gave her the sitrep. “Is the ship at least okay?”

“Yeah.” Neumann said, “Everyone that was in the ship when the explosions happened survived. This girl’s too tough for explosions like those to take out. Especially when they were targeting the infrastructure and not the ship.”

“Good. At least we have some good news.” Natarle said, “What’s the status of the ZAFT vessels?”

“No idea. Communications are dead.” Neumann replied, “But I do have one last bit of good news.” He smiled lightly.

“What is it?”  Natarle looked at him.

“The last of the G-Weapons had been aboard for a demonstration.” His smile widened a bit, “At the very least, we still have one left. I don’t think ZAFT had a clue.”

A wave of relief crashed into Natarle, “Good news indeed.” She finally smiled, “But now’s not the time to celebrate. We’re not out of the water yet.” She managed to turn the ship on, “Let’s see what we have to work with here.”

-]|[-

As the fighting continued to rage outside the colony (With Rau Le Creuset leaving the Vesalius to pursue Mu La Flaga on his own) and Natarle started to get the Archangel operational, Murrue was starting to stir.

She grunted, and her first sight was Miriallia, who had taken it upon herself to watch over her. “Hey, she’s awake!” The young girl cried out, and Kira and Cagalli immediately made their way over.

“How are you feeling?” Kira asked.

Murrue grimaced, “As well as can be expected, I guess.”

“Here, some water.” Cagalli said Kira helped her sit up, “Hope the arm is feeling better? I was able to clean it again and get it stitched up while you were unconscious.” Murrue was still busy quenching her thirst, so she bumped Cagalli’s arm in thanks. “We weren’t sure what to do with that thing.” She inclined her head over at the Strike, “But I kept the others from being idiots and climbing all over it.” Tolle, Kuzzey, and Sai’s ears were still burning from the reaming she’d delivered when she had seen them climbing it like a damn jungle gym.

“Thank you. For everything you’ve done so far.” Murrue let out a gasp after she finished downing her water.

“You’re welcome.” Kira said gently, “Can’t say I enjoyed being in that thing, but I’m glad I was able to help.”

She pursed her lips, “You know I have to detain you all, right?” She asked softly, and Kira stiffened in shock.

“What?!” Miriallia gasped, and the three other males looked to be varying degrees of angry at the announcement.

“Do you though?” Cagalli raised an eyebrow, “Cat’s already out of the bag. ZAFT made off with four of the damned things. Whatever secret advantages you all were hoping for are already gone.”

“I know.” She groaned as she got to her feet, “What were you two even doing in the factory district, anyway?”

Cagalli sighed, “I was being an idiot. Kira was trying to stop me from being an idiot. And then we couldn’t get onto any lifeboats.”

Murrue’s eyebrows furrowed, but she shook her head, “You’re lucky this entire thing happened. I hate to say it, but if this disaster hadn’t been occurring, every one of you would have been detained at best or shot and killed by the military at worst, depending on how close you all got to the… Gundams?” Everyone but Cagalli froze in horror, “The military takes security over black projects like this incredibly seriously. You can liken it to civilians trying to approach a secret military base. At best, you have guns pointed at you as you’re told to turn around and leave. If you persist, well…”

“Well, how did ZAFT find out about it, then?” Sai asked curiously.

“I have no idea.” Murrue growled, glaring at the Strike, “But if I had to guess, either a spy we missed or a traitor.” She shook her head, “Regardless, while I anticipate the extreme circumstances will mean the Earth Alliance’s leaders will all clear you of any wrongdoing and simply have you sign NDA’s regarding the technology you’ve witnessed, I do not have that authority. If I don’t follow protocol here, not only am I likely to be dishonorably discharged or even arrested, but then they’ll go after you anyway. I don’t want to involve you kids any more than you already have been, but I don’t have a choice here. Until I can notify the proper authorities for them to be able to determine how to properly handle this situation, you all have no choice but to remain with me.”

Kira needed to protest, “Okay, me and Cagalli, I suppose I can understand. But why my friends too? Why do they need to be involved in this? They didn’t climb into the machine, ZAFT already has four others, AND there were other fleeing civilians! Are you going to round them all up too?”

Murrue clenched her jaw lightly, looking at each of them. “Sorry, forgive me. What are all of your names?”

“Cagalli.” The blonde crossed her arms, staring at her expressionlessly. Murrue would have to deal with that later.

“Sai Argyle.” Sai responded.

“Kuzzey Buskirk.” Kuzzey gave her a nervous little wave.

“Tolle Koenig.”

“Miriallia Haw.”

Kira stared at her for a moment, “Kira Yamato.”

“Thank you, everyone.” Murrue responded, having nodded to each of them in turn, “I’m Murrue Ramius, Lieutenant of the Earth Alliance. As for why them as well? You’re not going to want to hear it, but unfortunately, you can only blame their bad luck. They’re here. Everyone else who might have seen it is not. And as I was unconscious, while I’d love to take your word that they did not enter the Strike, I can’t.”

“That’s-!” Tolle clenched his fist, “You can’t just- We’re citizens of Orb! How can we be subject to your Earth Alliance’s regulations? You all aren’t even supposed to be here!”

“You’re not wrong.” Murrue replied, “Unfortunately for you, we were. And you stumbled into the blackest of Black Ops of the past century.” She stared him down, “Look, I don’t want to detain you here. I haven’t even pulled my gun out to intimidate you into following my orders as I technically should have.” The teens all stiffened, except, again, for Cagalli. Something Murrue noted. “I have to do this. Even if I were able to let you four go free, I’d still have to detain Kira and Cagalli at minimum. And if even that were not the case, at this point there’s no way you all can leave anyway. The lockdown is already at the level where they can’t allow anyone in anymore, isn’t it?”

Miriallia’s head dropped, “Yeah. We were actually in the streets because the lifeboats all filled up.”

“Exactly. And moreover, I can’t say that I don’t need your help. Especially with my injury, there’s no way Kira, Cagalli, and I could do everything we need to get done.” Murrue sighed, “So please, cooperate with me, and I will do everything I can to see you all to safety.”

Sai bit his lip, before nodding, “Okay.” He smiled wanly, “I suppose we should be thanking you for not being a hardass and sticking a gun in our faces.”

Murrue snorted, “Yeah, that was more Natarle’s speed.” She mumbled under her breath, “Alright, we have a few things we need to do. Other than that main factory, did any of the others get completely annihilated?”

“No.” Miriallia shook her head, “They got shot up, sure, but the GINNs seemed like they were only really aiming for military hardware. Most of the buildings seemed to be mostly intact.”

“At least there’s some good news.” Murrue said her praises, “Okay, Kira, please get back into the Strike and see if you can contact any Earth Alliance forces.” Kira nodded, and ran over to the Gundam and hooked his foot into the slot. He pressed down, and the cable started to retract, bringing him up to the cockpit. “Sai, Tolle, Kuzzey, Miriallia, do any of you know how to drive?”

“Sai and I do.” Tolle told her, “Kuzzey was kinda scared and never got his license, and Miri never bothered.”

“Okay, there will be a couple trailers of equipment for the Strike. We designed it so that it could field swap its equipment on the fly. Please find the number 5 trailer over at Morgenröte and bring it here.”

“You got it.” Tolle, Kuzzey, and Sai took off running.

“Cagalli, Miriallia, I suppose it’s too much to hope that one of you knows how to use a gun?” Murrue asked the two ladies.

Miri flinched, “Oh, no way. I’ve never even seen one up close.”

“Can’t say the same.” Cagalli said, and that drew surprise from the other two ladies, “You need me posted in case ZAFT shows up on foot?”

“Exactly.” Murrue nodded, “There should be an armory in that building over there.” Murrue pointed, “This is a secure outpost, after all.”

Cagalli didn’t say another word before running off. Miri turned to her, “Do you need anything from me, Miss Murrue?” She asked hesitantly.

Murrue smiled gently at her, “It’s a tall ask, I suppose, but if you can find me some painkillers, I’d appreciate it.” Miri nodded and took off as well. There was actually a nearby store that sold them. Hopefully it hadn’t burned down.

-]|[-

“Damn you, Rau Le Creuset!” Mu growled out as his Moebius’s main cannon fired again. His gunbarrels were flying around and trying to at least blow his nemesis’s wings off. He hated this, especially because the fighting had gone back into Heliopolis. They were currently blasting at each other on the inner docks and were bound to hit something they really shouldn’t at some point.

“You always seem to get in my way, Mu La Flaga!” Rau growled, “Though I suppose you’d say the same about me!” Something twitched in the back of his mind, and he made his CGUE dodge another round of fire from Mu’s gunbarrels. Rau returned fire, and actually succeeded in destroying one of the gunbarrels, which forced a temporary retreat from the orange Mobile Armor. Rau smiled in anticipation as he gave chase.

…

Natarle was looking at all of the damage displayed on the screens as one of the other surviving officers went out to collect the rest of them. There were definitely parts of the ship which would need repairs, but from what she was seeing, they could launch.

Neumann reported something that made her growl, “The debris from the explosions have blocked the harbor entrance.” He punched the console, “We’re stuck in here.”

‘Like hell we are.’ Natarle thought to herself. She turned the radio console on, and saw nothing but static and low signal bars. She frowned, “So there’s still interference. Does that mean ZAFT hasn’t left yet?” She stiffened, “Wait, no, that’s not right! This whole thing has to have been a diversion! Their true target must have been Morgenröte!” Neumann inhaled sharply, but before he could respond, a very staticky voice started to come from the radio. They couldn’t really make out what the person on the other side was saying, catching maybe three letters at a time, but it galvanized Natarle. “Our people are still out there!” She got in the Captain’s chair, “We’re launching!”

Neumann twitched, “That’s impossible! Didn’t you hear what I said? There’s a mountain of debris blocking us in!”

“I heard you just fine.” Natarle growled out, and heard the door open.

“I gathered everyone up, like you requested, Ensign Badgiruel.” Petty Officer Jackie Tonomura reported.

“To your stations people! Get this ship online as fast as possible! Just follow the computer’s instructions!” Natarle barked out, “And once we’re ready, make sure the main guns are online.” Neumann gasped, “If our forces are still fighting out there, then we need to support them. We’ll blow right through that debris! Begin launch sequence! Due to the nature of the situation, we’ll omit C30 through L21 from the process.”

Several screens lit up with the power output, “Power increase stable. Four hundred and fifty seconds to required rating.”

“That’s too long!” Natarle growled, “What’s the status of conduits to Heliopolis?”

“Undamaged!” Tonomura reported after a quick check.

“Then set us up to draw power through them! Get those conduits online! Relay power to accumulator!”

“Connection confirmed! Flow stable! Twenty seconds to required rating! Life support systems, normal. CIC, online. Weapons, online!” They all ran through the rest of the checks, and Neumann was able to report that all systems were online.

“Seal all airtight bulkheads. All hands, be prepared for sudden impact as well as possible damage to the ship! Advance with caution. Launch, Archangel!” The ship’s engines started to glow, and off they went. The two ‘legs’ of the ship opened up, revealing twin, massive cannons.

…

Rau smirked as he blew the rest of Mu’s gunbarrels off, destroying the last of them with a stomp of all things. He was now in the much more advantageous position of the two machines, and pressed that advantage. Mu was forced to flee, clenching his fist as he led his nemesis deeper into Heliopolis.

Down below, Kira was kneeling the Strike in front of the trailer, which was open and displaying a green cannon along with a bunch of other equipment. “Hey, which one is the battery?” He called out to Murrue.

“It’s all integrated!” She called back, “Mount the whole unit!” They all flinched as another huge explosion rang out, and they looked up at one of the trusses. “Oh no!” The Moebius flew out, chased closely by the CGUE.

Rau smiled as his screens showed the defenseless Strike, “Good. There it is.” He shot off for it.

“Mount the equipment before it’s too late!” Murrue yelled at Kira, running forward as the Moebius tried to head Le Creuset off. Kira was desperately typing as Mu was forced into a maneuver that ended with his last remaining weapon getting cut in half.

“I’ll take you down now, while I have the chance!” Rau yelled out as he rushed for the Strike.

Kira yelled as the Launcher Striker was fully equipped and he got his Phase-Shift armor turned back on. He stood the machine up and got ready to fight.

He didn’t get the chance.

…

“As we hit maximum combat speed, fire the Lohengrins!” Natarle yelled.

The cannons started to glow white and red, and then two terrifyingly powerful beams of positrons erupted from them, racing out at blistering speed. The beams had chaotic red cores surrounded by even brighter and more chaotic white halos. Everything the beams touched was simply annihilated, turning into pure energy in chaotic explosions. The main hangar doors into the colony interior exploded, drawing the attention of everyone still on the ground in Heliopolis.

“What the?!” Kira gasped as he saw the massive vessel bursting from the ground, “Oh hell, not more enemies!”

“The Archangel!” Murrue’s face lit up, “Kira, that should be a friendly!”

Kira let out a sigh of relief. On the Archangel, Dalida Lolaha Chandra II reported that the Strike had been activated, and it was in combat. “Oh, great.” Natarle growled. The CGUE had redirected its attention, with Rau aiming for the ship first before it could offer fire support. “Evade!” Natarle roared, and the ship started rolling to starboard and getting around the enemy Mobile Suit.

Which was just what the ZAFT Commander wanted, as it left the Strike exposed. “Let’s see how you handle this!” He started shooting for the Strike, not caring if he hit the obvious civilians that were nearby.

“Hit the dirt!” Cagalli and Murrue yelled at the same time, and Kira reacted immediately, kneeling the Strike in front of them and blocking the enemy shots with his Phase-Shift armor.

“Not even an enhanced APSV?” Rau mused, his voice still calm despite the obvious disadvantage he was in. He’d likely be unable to take out the Strike like this, but the Earth Forces would be unable to shoot back at him unless they wanted to risk hitting the colony.

Apparently he hadn’t expected Natarle Badgiruel in that calculation, “Load aft missile tubes 7-10 and get ready to fire on my command! Ready laser designators.” She narrowed her eyes, “You are not to hit the shaft or the ground, do you hear me?! That’s an order!”

A foolish order from a woman not ready to be a Captain. An order that was impossible to follow unless they simply did not shoot. But the Archangel’s skeleton crew did as commanded, and the missiles flew towards the CGUE.

“Heh, I underestimated their ruthlessness.” Rau mused as he shot one missile out of the sky and simply dodged behind the shaft to avoid the next. Three missiles ended up impacting the shaft as they chased him, and the metal immediately weakened. Screeching rang through the air as the fires started melting the cables and weakening them further. On the ground, Miriallia screamed in horror, knowing that hits to those were very, very bad.

“Are they stupid?!” Kira exclaimed. ‘Heliopolis can’t afford to take hits like that. I have to stop that Mobile Suit before those idiots fire even more missiles!’ This thought was, unfortunately, the definition of ‘the road to hell is paved with good intentions.’ As Kira prepared and aimed the AGNI 320mm Hyper Impulse Cannon, a panicked Murrue tried to get his attention.

It was far too late.

The AGNI shot a beam that looked not unlike the Lohengrin that the Archangel had fired, just on a much lesser scale. Also, despite the similar appearances, this was not a miniature positron cannon. Instead, it fired highly compressed plasma energy in bursts. Despite not being anywhere as powerful as the Lohengrin, the damage it could do was still immense. Rau clenched his jaw, losing his cool for the first time as the beam touched his CGUE’s arm and completely disintegrated it. The beam continued on without losing a beat and crashed into the colony wall.

Before Kira’s horrified gaze, the attack he had launched blew a hole large enough to fit about three or four mobile suits through (if they were stacked on top of each other) right into the colony. The vacuum of space immediately started sucking the atmosphere out of Heliopolis. It would take hours to fully vent the colony, but in that one attack, Kira had essentially made it unlivable without major repairs.

Rau Le Creuset fled straight through the hole, unable to believe the amount of firepower the Earth Alliance had stuffed into the machine that got away. When he arrived on the Vesalius, the rest of his crew could barely pick their jaws off the floor.

With the fighting at an end, the Archangel landed. Kira picked up his friends and Murrue with the Strike, and gently flew up into the ship at Murrue’s behest. He lowered them down, and they were met with the rushing forces that had survived the attack. “Lieutenant Ramius!” Natarle slowed and came to a stop, saluting her superior, “It’s a tremendous relief to see you safe, ma’am.”

“Ensign Badgiruel.” She saluted back, though she had to use her other arm. “Good job protecting the Archangel. Your assistance was vital back there. You saved us.”

The Strike’s cockpit hissed open, and Kira started to descend. One of the officers gaped, “What the hell?! What’s a kid doing in the Strike? He looks like he’s barely learned how to shave!”

“Kira!” Cagalli gave him a hug, “Idiot, why did you have to use that thing?” His friends were quick to stand near him as well.

“I…” Kira took a deep breath as he squeezed her like a lifeline, his body still trembling, “I didn’t know.” He looked at Murrue, “Why the hell does that thing need that much firepower?”

Murrue sighed, “Sorry Kira, I should have warned you before we started equipping it. That cannon was designed for use only in space where you can’t hit anything else before the shot loses power, or on the ground where the goal is to destroy as much as possible. It’s a bunker buster and an enemy ship destroyer.”

“It wasn’t your fault.” Cagalli mumbled, letting go of him. Miriallia gave him a hug next, with his other friends offering comfort as well.

“Uhm, Lieutenant Ramius, I request an explanation.” Natarle said slowly, looking at the young man consideringly.

Before Murrue could respond, a new voice rang out, “Well, well, this is a shocker.” Mu walked towards them, unfamiliar to all of them there. They only recognized him via his Earth Alliance pilot suit, though he had a custom Ace scheme in black, purple, and gray. “Lieutenant Commander Mu La Flaga of the Seventh Orbital Fleet.” He saluted, “It’s an honor.”

The soldiers all saluted back, with Murrue saying, “Lieutenant Murrue Ramius of the Fifth Special Division. I’m a crew member of this ship.” Natarle also introduced herself, being part of the same division.

Mu dropped his hand, “I would like permission to come aboard this vessel. Unfortunately, the ship I came in on was destroyed during the battle. Where is the Captain?”

Murrue didn’t actually know, so she turned to Natarle. Natarle sighed, “…The Captain and most of the superior officers were killed in the bombings. We’re all that’s left, and most of us remaining are noncommissioned officers.”

“Wait.” Murrue panicked for a moment. “Then that means-?!”

“I believe so, ma’am.” Natarle responded, “You’re the Captain now.”

Murrue’s anxiety shot through the roof. She had not signed up to be a leader! She wasn’t ready for this!

Mu started rubbing his forehead, “An unmitigated disaster, all around. Oh man…” He shook his head, “Regardless, I request permission to come aboard.”

Murrue stumbled through her words, “Ah.. uh, sure. Permission granted.” She very carefully did not look at Kira Yamato, knowing he was even less prepared to be their Mobile Suit pilot than she was to be Captain. If he could do all that he had already, she would have to suck it up and do the same. Still, she did have a card to play that could get her out of it. “Though if you are joining us, that does put you above me in rank.” It was unlikely and she was already anticipating his response, but protocol had to be followed. She was only a Lieutenant to his Lieutenant Commander.

“And I don’t know the first thing about this ship, ma’am.” Mu looked amused, “I’m a pilot. An Ace pilot sure, but a pilot, nonetheless. I can’t be stuck in a chair with ZAFT gunning for us when we make our escape.” Murrue nodded, inwardly feeling the urge to stamp her feet in frustration. Mu turned to the late teens, “And who are they?”

“As you can see, they are all teenaged civilians who had been studying at the University division of Morgenröte. Through several twists of fate, he and the young lady with blonde hair ended up in the factory district, and he ended up saving my life. As I knew there were no more shelters in the area, I was forced to bring him and her into the G-Weapon. His name is Kira Yamato.” Murrue smiled slightly, “Through his efforts, we were successful in saving this last unit, and he was able to fight off one of the ZAFT GINNs.

“Seriously?” Natarle looked shocked, “That kid actually did it?” She didn’t even remember to correct her new Captain on the matter of them having saved one additional unit.

“Well, good on you, youngster.” Mu approached Kira and held out a hand to shake, which Kira took hesitantly, not really sure he wanted to be praised for something like this, “My mission was to escort the pilots we had selected to pilot those machines here. I saw them in action. They could barely get them to move even on the simulators.”

“Well, that’s what happens when you design hardware and don’t have an OS capable of actually running it.” Kira deadpanned, which drew a smirk from Mu.

“Where are they now?” Mu turned to Natarle.

She bowed her head, “Also gone.” Several people winced, “They were with the Captain when the bombs went off.”

“Damn…” Mu said softly, before looking at Kira. “You’re a Coordinator, aren’t you?”

Kira stiffened, as did several of the soldiers. Kira’s expression fell slightly, something Mu noticed and made him internally wince. Damn his big mouth. Kira confirmed it, “Yes.”

Immediately, several of the foot soldiers that had accompanied the officers started readying their guns, and Mu whirled around, “Hey, hey, there will be none of that!” he groaned, “Me and my big mouth.”

Kira’s friends and Cagalli had all jumped in front of him, and Tolle and Cagalli were glaring murder at the soldiers. Cagalli snarled, “You’re all on Heliopolis and there is no discrimination against Coordinators in Orb territory. You didn’t even listen to what your Captain said about him saving her life! Kira is no enemy! Are you out of your damn minds?!”

Murrue was quick to follow up, “Put those guns down!” She snapped, and one soldier even yelped as he hurried to lower his weapon, “Cagalli is right. Did you not hear anything I said? Kira is the only reason Ensign Badgiruel isn’t now your Captain.” Natarle blanched. If Murrue was unprepared for the role, then what the hell was she? “I won’t have anyone on this ship mistreating him or his friends.”

“Thank you, Miss Murrue.” Kira said, having lost some of the tension inside him. The others relaxed too.

“You probably only took refuge here because you wanted to avoid any involvement in the war, right?” Murrue asked.

“Yeah.” He said softly, “Especially since I’m a first-generation  Coordinator.”

“Meaning your parents are both Naturals.” Mu said as he rubbed his neck, “Sorry kid. Should have waited to ask you that later. I was just curious, is all.”

Kira nodded, not saying anything.

Natarle turned to Murrue, “Also Lieutenant, you were incorrect.”

Murrue blinked, “About what?”

“We managed to save two machines.” Natarle smiled victoriously.

“What?! I thought they were all accounted for!” Murrue gasped. She knew she had been guarding the Strike and the Aegis, but she had thought the other four were all together, “Which one?”  

“The GAT-X202 Guren.” Natarle smiled, “The Captain had decided to move one machine to the Archangel for a demonstration last minute, and as the Close-Combat model, it was decided it was the best option for indoor use.”

“Well, that’s certainly a shot in the arm!” Murrue said, smiling in relief. She then froze, ‘Wait… crap, we don’t have a pilot for it!’

“Indeed.” Natarle agreed, “What do we do now?”

“What do we do?” Mu asked, turning to her, “We get ready. I was just shot down, and the Le Creuset team is waiting just outside Heliopolis.” The Earth Alliance forces all stiffened. That was a name they all recognized. And holy hell, did it shove ice down their pants. Unnoticed, Cagalli’s eyes narrowed. Oh, she certainly recognized that name. And this attack made a whole hell of a lot more sense now. It certainly did have that blonde asshole’s fingerprints all over it. “In any case, we can’t afford to spend too much time here. I’d get ready to move if I were you.”

-]|[-

Aboard the Gamow, the ZAFT pilots were ready to get back into Heliopolis with much more destructive equipment. Yzak, Dearka, and Nicol were sitting uneasily. Well, Nicol was. Dearka was in not as much of a joking mood as usual, and Yzak was putting on airs, “D Equipment huh?”

“I suppose the Commander is planning on raiding a fortress?” Dearka replied to the silver-haired fellow Red.

“Serves them right.” Yzak looked unconcerned, “And they call themselves a neutral state. What a joke.”

“This is too much.” Nicol was very worried, “What if they miss? Enough hits to important infrastructure and the colony is sure to be destroyed! Heliopolis may have broken their neutrality by helping with the design of these Mobile Suits, but that doesn’t mean I want to see another shattered colony. The civilian population had nothing to do with it! They probably had no idea these things were even here!”

“Let’s hope for the best, then.” Dearka said, “With any luck, this many GINNs will be capable of overwhelming that last machine. Can you believe it damaged the Commander’s CGUE? That cannon it used must be even more powerful than the one my Buster has!”

“It’s why the Commander is adamant that we destroy it.” Yzak shrugged, “The fact they found a pilot is the more surprising part. Maybe that one had a complete OS?”

“Not a chance.” Nicol said, “Miguel told me it initially moved even worse than ours.” That put a frown on Yzak’s face, as he considered what that could mean.

-]|[-

The Archangel was as busy as possible, with all able-bodied men that could be spared driving truck after truck up the ramp and into the ship. They were taking all the supplies they could aboard, though not everyone agreed since it felt almost like looting. The mechanics were hard at work with repairs and resupply of the Strike and the Moebius, but the priority was the Strike. Next to it sat another Mobile Suit, one which looked much more vicious than any of the others.

In the interior of the ship, Kira was fast asleep in a bunk. His friends and Cagalli were around him, and Kuzzey mumbled, “I’m impressed he can sleep at a time like this. I’d be way too wired.”

“He’s exhausted.” Miriallia said sadly, looking up at him.

“You guys have no idea how tiring being inside one of those things is.” Cagalli spoke up, closing her eyes. She wasn’t about to drop any secrets, so instead she said, “I wasn’t even in the pilot’s seat and I’m tired. Just holding on and trying to keep from being flung around was tiring. Kira had to pilot it and all three of us felt every movement.”

“Jeez…” Tolle rubbed the back of his head, “Hey, uh, we never got your name, I don’t think?”

“Miss Murrue said you were Cagalli, right?” Sai asked, making Tolle wince.

“Yup.” She replied, “Just Cagalli is fine.”

“Thanks for clarifying, Cagalli.” Miri said, sitting down next to her, “It must have been so tough for you all… I can’t even imagine.”

“It was tough, yeah?” Kuzzey mumbled, “Well I guess it’s hard to argue against that…but…”

“What are you getting at?” Sai narrowed his eyes slightly.

“It’s just… but when it comes to Kira, all we can think to say is that it was tough on him, and we just leave it at that. He told us all how he rewrote the OS for that machine, right?” He looked at Sai, “When the hell did he do that? When did he have the time? He can’t have had any previous knowledge of that thing.”

“He did, actually.” Cagalli said, and no one noticed her slightly balled-up fist.

“What?!” Kuzzey looked at her in shock, joined by the rest of his friends.

“Not much knowledge, to be frank. Most of it was new from what he told me.” Cagalli said, “But while we were onboard, he realized he did recognize some of his work. Apparently your professor was in on this whole thing and was using him without Kira knowing it.”

“That’s!” Miriallia looked furious, “That’s despicable! How could he?!”

“Beats me.” Cagalli laid back and put her hands behind her head, “I imagine the same way a country that claims to be neutral could help the Earth Alliance in secret.” She spat.

“That’s just insane.” Tolle growled. Sai and Kuzzey agreed. “Were you going somewhere with this before Cagalli interrupted, Kuzzey?”

“Yeah… it’s just… I suspected Kira was a Coordinator for a while now. Those Coordinators who are byproducts of genetic engineering… they do these mindboggling things… but to them, it’s just kind of tough.” Cagalli again clenched her jaw, unnoticed by the rest. “And those ZAFT guys? They’re the Earth Alliance’s enemy. Do they even stand a chance?”

“Do you have something against Coordinators?” Cagalli sat up and glared, making Kuzzey flinch. “Don’t confuse ability for willingness. Kira said so himself. He chose to come here to avoid all the fighting. And yet he was thrust into a fight anyway.” Kuzzey held up his hands in surrender, “And I’m sure he hasn’t internalized it yet, but he’s going to have to fight again. Don’t you think that’s eating him up inside?” All four of them flinched as Cagalli laid back again and started ignoring them.

…

Murrue was in her full uniform again, as was Mu. Murrue put down her phone, “Well, the colony is almost 100% evacuated.” She sighed, “But the latest incident has raised the hazard level to nine. Even if we wanted to drop the kids off in a shelter and found one with enough room, we wouldn’t be able to.”

“Which means they’re going to have to join us in our escape.” Mu groaned, “This is getting worse by the minute. Untrained children on a military vessel about to head into combat. What a disaster.”

“It can’t be helped.” Natarle said, “Lieutenant Ramius detained those children because they’d been exposed to military secrets. We couldn’t exactly let them go free.”

“The fighting is going to be heavy. There’s no guarantee we’ll survive.” Mu said, “And if we go down, so do they. They didn’t sign up for this, nor do they want any part of it. That puts a bad taste in my mouth, regardless of the necessity.”

Everyone was silent for a few moments, before Murrue bowed her head with her eyes closed. “We’re going to have to rely on the Strike.”

“We’re sending it into battle again?” Natarle looked confused.

“What do you think our chances are without it?” Murrue raised an eyebrow at her XO.

“The kid’s not going to be happy.” Mu shook his head.

“Wait, why don’t you pilot it?” Natarle turned to him and asked.

“You’re joking, right?” Mu snorted, “I tried just to move it, and I had to activate the Phase-Shift just to keep it from taking collision damage.”

Murrue’s lips twitched, “It was pretty funny, Commander.”

Mu twitched, “What?!” He looked at her wide-eyed. “Oh hell, please tell me there’s no-”

“Footage?” Murrue’s smirk widened, and she clicked a few buttons. Mu’s attempt at moving the Strike appeared on-screen, “In HD even.” Even Natarle had to hide a sputter as she watched the ultra-expensive machine stumble about drunkenly like an old, infamous computer game she had tried to play back in high school. “It looks just like QWOP.”

“Har, har.” Mu forced a laugh, “Please delete that. I’m not sure my reputation can survive.”

“Sorry Commander. We’ll need that footage to prove relying on a civilian is the only option.” Murrue replied, not really sorry.

“Can’t we just rever…t-” Natarle sighed in defeat, realizing how ridiculous the suggestion even was before she could finish it. “Look, all I’m saying is that it’s hardly appropriate to shove a civilian into this role. A role he apparently wants nothing to do with.”

Murrue sighed, “I got him into this. It’s my responsibility. I’ll go talk with him.”

…

The Gamow and Vesalius were both ready to move. The GINNs started to launch, all leaving with racks of heavy missiles and massive beam rifles, the only ones ZAFT had been able to create. (And didn’t that rankle? The G-Weapons ALL had even smaller beam rifles! The Earth Alliance had beaten them to the punch!) Once the hangars were empty of the mass-produced Mobile Suits, one of the techs floating about with a space suit ordered that the hatch be closed.

And then the Aegis unhooked itself and got to the catapult, launching from the ship. The rest of them were shocked, and the Captain of the Vesalius Ades snapped, “Call him back! He did not have authorization!”

“Belay that.” Commander Le Creuset countermanded him, “This is interesting. I’ve never known Athrun to be the type to do something like this. It’s more Yzak’s speed. Let him go.” Rau smiled, “We’re done with the data extraction, and this is the perfect chance to see what these weapons can do. Let’s see what happens when we pit one of these super prototypes against the other.”

…

“Miss Murrue, please don’t get us any more involved in this war.” Kira said, taking a hardline stance with his friends behind him inside the room.

“Look Kira,” Murrue said, putting a hand on his shoulder, “You’re already involved, whether you want to be or not. There’s no one else that can pilot that Mobile Suit. Commander La Flaga tried and almost damaged it. The Strike looked like QWOP under his command if you’ve ever played it.”

Kira’s lips twitched involuntarily, “Not…the best example to use for me.” He’d beaten the game easily, after all. But he’d seen Kuzzey fail at it enough to know what that looked like.

Murrue smiled briefly, “I thought not.” She became serious again. “Look, I don’t want to send you out there any more than you want to be the one going out. But the Commander’s Moebius is damaged, and without a good OS, we can’t even send him out on the other machine. He could at least move that one, but that didn’t mean he could fight. He’d get killed instantly in a battle. The Strike is out of the question. As it is now, I don’t think even another Coordinator could fly it properly.”

“Damn it all!” Kira clenched his fists, “We don’t want any part of your war! That’s why we chose to live in neutral territory!”

“Speaking of.” Cagalli moved past his other friends and looked at Murrue, “Why the hell were you developing these things in Orb territory? We’re neutral! Why the hell would we break that and risk an attack by ZAFT?! It’s exactly what ended up happening!”

Murrue was glad for the distraction, “Do you want the official answer or my own thoughts?” She asked dryly.

“Either works.” Cagalli crossed her arms.

“The official answer is that I don’t have a clue.” Murrue said simply, “But if I had to guess? I’d suppose that Orb’s government (or even one or two of your noble houses on their own) felt that eventually, Orb would be threatened despite their neutrality, and decided to aid in the project in order to develop their own Mobile Suits.”

Cagalli growled like a lioness, “That… that makes too much goddamn sense.” She slumped. It wasn’t just possible, but probable.

With Cagalli satisfied, Murrue turned back to Kira, “Kira, if you say no, you’re not out of the woods either. The colony is fully evacuated at this point, and the shelters are all in full lockdown. We can’t drop you off, as we suspected before the Archangel showed up. You all are stuck in here, and with or without you in the Strike, we’re going to be forced into combat.”

Cagalli stepped forward, making Kira and Murrue yelp slightly as she grabbed both by the arm and started dragging them away. “Cagalli, what are-”

“Just shut up and come with me.” She said, leading them to another bunk room and shutting the door, “Look Kira, if you refuse, I can pilot one of those things myself.” She said bluntly, drawing gasps from both.

“So, I was right…” Kira mumbled.

“That I’m a Coordinator too?” Cagalli asked rhetorically. “That’s right.” She crossed her arms again, “I’m not ashamed or anything, but apparently blurting out potentially uncomfortable information is a habit around here, and your friend Kuzzey pissed me off. I don’t want the others to know unless I say something.” Kira winced. Kuzzey did lack a brain to mouth filter most of the time.

The revelation both frustrated and elated Murrue in equal measure, “Then you-”

“I’ll be blunt, Murrue.” Cagalli rudely interrupted the Captain, “I want to get in one of those things even less than Kira, for various reasons. None of which are really any of your business.” She closed her eyes, “But if dying is the alternative, then I will.”

Kira bowed his head in defeat, “Alright already. I’ll do it.” Murrue felt a wave of relief flood through her.

Cagalli gripped his hand, “Thank you…” She breathed deeply, “I won’t let you do it alone.” She turned to Murrue, “I’ll join you in the CIC. You’re short-staffed, right?”

“We are.” Murrue glared lightly, deciding not to fight the girl on it. It wasn’t worth the energy. Though it did give Murrue a hint regarding just what Cagalli’s reasons were for not wanting to pilot for them. What sort of teenaged civilian girl was confident enough to just barge her way into a CIC? Murrue was certain of it. Cagalli was trained. Maybe not a real soldier, but for sure, she had training. “And I suppose you’re going to refuse to wear a uniform on the bridge too?”

“Damn right.” Cagalli scoffed at the idea.

And then the alarms went off, and all three of them jumped. “What the?” Murrue hurried to the monitor, “What’s the matter?”

Mu’s coldly furious voice answered, “We have incoming.”

“Are they mad?!” Murrue, Kira, and Cagalli gasped, “They’re not even going to wait for us to exit the colony?!”

“It’s Rau Le Creuset.” Mu said in way of answer.

Murrue punched the bulkhead, “Silly me, thinking that bastard would have grown a heart when dealing with a neutral colony. Level One Battle Stations!” She turned to Kira and Cagalli, “Let’s go!” They all rushed out, not even stopping to speak with the other kids again. They split off, with Kira heading for the hangar, and Cagalli following Murrue to the bridge. As they got on the elevator, Murrue turned to the blonde, “Who are you, really?” Cagalli stiffened, “Don’t think I’m a fool, Cagalli. A regular girl, even a Coordinator, would never be as comfortable as you are on a warship, nor capable of just jumping into a CIC with no prior knowledge. And that’s not even getting into your assurance that you’d be able to pilot a Mobile Suit if not for whatever other misgivings you have.” She saw how Cagalli clenched her jaw and fists, and she let out a sigh. “Fine then. Keep your secrets.” She told her. They were nearing the bridge anyway, so time was up, “But eventually, you’re going to have to come clean with someone.”

The door swished open, and Murrue stepped onto the bridge. Natarle immediately noticed Cagalli, who went right for the CIC without so much as a by-your-leave or instructions as to which location she should go to. “What are you doing here?”

“Isn’t it obvious?” Murrue asked Natarle, “She’s helping with the CIC. We’re too short on hands to deny help.”

“But she’s not even in uniform.” Natarle protested!

“Is that really what we need to be worrying about right now?” Mu asked the XO blandly.

“Get used to it.” Cagalli said, practically scoffing. “I’m not an Earth Alliance soldier. I’m just here so Kira doesn’t have to do this alone.” She turned the screen on, and saw Kira in the pilot’s seat for the Strike. “Wh- Kira, you have to wear a pilot suit!”

“…Little too late for that, isn’t it?” Kira asked her, though he acknowledged that yes, that was probably a good idea. “Also, I have no idea where I’d even get one.”

“We’ll have someone show you later.” Murrue called out, “Going out to fight without one is asking for trouble. Now enough chatter. We’re getting ready to go into a battle.”

“Yes ma’am.” Cagalli switched tacks like flipping a switch, “Kira, I went over the Strike’s manuals before you woke up, and we’ll be loading you up with the Sword Striker this time. That should prevent us from accidentally doing damage to the colony again.”

Kira sighed in relief, “Thank you. That’s good.”

“Now, the armor on the left side of the machine will have an Anti-Beam coating on it. We have no idea what they’re going to be bringing to the party, but if Rau Le Creuset’s reputation is deserved then it will be massive overkill. If you can block a beam with the armor, do it! Depending on how powerful their guns are, they could do massive damage to the colony’s infrastructure if you try to dodge.” The Earth Alliance officers all blinked at her in surprise. She was good. “But if it’s impossible to block, don’t hesitate to dodge because your phase shift armor won’t help at all with beams. Don’t get yourself killed.”

“You got it.” Kira took a deep breath, “Thanks Cagalli.”

Murrue smiled. Maybe they had a chance after all. “Our priority is escaping Heliopolis!” She declared, “All hands, try to keep from doing any more damage to the colony than has already been done.”

An alarm started blaring, and Chandra II yelled out, “Contact! It’s a GINN!”

The machine in question appeared on the screen, and at the same time that Cagalli was calling Rau Le Creuset a son of a bitch, Mu was gaping, “What the hell are they thinking?! Are they trying to destroy the whole colony?! That’s D equipment!”

An explosion rang out, further damaging the colony, and more GINNS raced in through the hole they created. “Damn it! They all have D equipment! Every single one of them!” Cagalli snarled, “I…” her breath hitched, “I don’t think not damaging the colony is going to be an option.”

“Load Korinthos into the missile tubes and get the laser designators ready!” Natarle called out.

Tonomura then got one final machine blip, “Wait, that’s the Aegis! They’re already sending the stolen G-Weapons out?!”

“Phase-Shift resists all physical impacts!” Murrue called out, “Ready Gottfrieds! Fire at will!”

Outside, the Strike was already racing towards the enemy Mobile Suits, and Miguel was back in a new GINN and ready for round two. The Gottfrieds were readied, and four beams of green energy raced out. The machines all dodged as Miguel called out, “Olor, Matthew, get the ship! Athrun, show us that same spirit that made you defy orders!”

“You got it.” Athrun said blankly.

Kira met up with Miguel first, and he GINN’s pilot roared, “TIME TO PAY YOU BACK, STRIKE!” He fired his heavy ion cannon.

Kira remembered what Cagalli had said, and he maneuvered his left arm into a block. The beam splashed against his armor and stopped cold, splashing away. It was a good thing he did, because if he hadn’t, it would have hit and disintegrated one of the many lesser support trusses for the colony.

“Damn! How is he already this good?!” Miguel roared, firing a second shot. This time he aimed so that the arm couldn’t reach, and Kira was forced to dodge. The massive beam impacted a factory down below, destroying it in another massive explosion.

“Thanks, Cagalli!”  Kira called out.

Cagalli ignored it, “Kira, that’s a M69 “Barrus Kai” Heavy Ion Cannon. Those things only have three shots per cartridge and then they have to reload.” Mu whistled, impressed by her knowledge. “Get in close and make it waste the next shot so you can finish it! Use your Beam Boomerang if you have to!”

Kira launched the strike forwards, yelling loudly. The GINN fired again, and Kira blocked it again. He raced forward and surprised Miguel, slashing out with his Anti-Ship sword. Miguel grunted as he pulled some heavy G’s, dodging out of the way. But Kira had already pulled the boomerang out and threw it as soon as he spun around.

“Oh shit!” Miguel panicked and tried to duck beneath it, but Kira had been too close. His attack almost sliced off the GINN’s arm and head completely, and did succeed in essentially disabling the machine. His cameras weren’t working, and so he never saw the blade that cut his machine in half. Kira hadn’t tried to go for the cockpit, but it didn’t end up mattering. The machine went up in a gigantic fireball.

“MIGUEL!” Athrun had been racing towards the two dueling machines, but he hadn’t been fast enough. And now, one of his good friends was dead!

Kira meanwhile came to the realization that he had just killed someone and started to unravel. Cagalli barked in his radio to get his attention, “KIRA, FOCUS!”

“But, but I-” Kira stammered, his hands starting to shake on the controls.

“I know, Kira.” Cagalli said, gently. “But right now, you can’t think about it. You can’t, otherwise you’re next. I know it hurts, but right now, you have to put that feeling in a box for later, okay? Focus on helping the ship. We’ve been under heavy fire!”

Indeed, the Archangel had been doing all it could to blow every missile it could out of the sky with the Igelstellung CIWSs. But even with all the weapons the ship had, they had taken some hits from some pretty powerful missiles. The number four weapons bank had been hit and had needed to be sealed off.

And then the GINNs started firing their massive missiles. “Incoming!”

“Intercept them!” Natarle roared.

“There’s not enough time!” Tonomura replied.

“Give me manual targeting control!” Mu called out, trying to blast them out of the sky.

“Evade!” Murrue yelled, “Starboard forty degrees! Full speed!” The ship dodged the missiles, but that meant that the weapons all hit the ground or the heavy structures holding Heliopolis together. The explosions were all massive, shattering trusses, melting cables, and blowing huge mounds of dirt and concrete into the air. “Damn them! Don’t they care at all?!”

Inside the shelters, all of them were warned that the threat level had been upgraded to ten, meaning that the shelters might all be ejected as lifeboats. On one of them in particular, a beautiful redhead screamed in fear along with the rest of the occupants as their shelter rocked a good deal more than the others.

Kira was gasping at the destruction of his home before his attention was drawn by the Aegis. “That Mobile Suit!”

And then his radio came on, with the pilot of the Aegis sending him a message, “Kira! Kira Yamato!” Kira gasped, “So it is you, isn’t it Kira!” Cagalli immediately cut the transmission to the rest of the bridge, making sure only she would be able to hear this.

“Athrun Zala!” Kira hissed in surprise. “What are you doing here?”

“You should talk! What the hell are you doing in that thing?!” Athrun yelled, “Why are you fighting with the Earth Forces?! AGAINST your own people!”

Kira growled out, “What am I doing?! What the hell are YOU doing?!” He yelled back, “I was just studying here peacefully with my friends! I wouldn’t even be in this damn thing if you all hadn’t attacked a neutral colony! I got trapped while trying to find shelter and ended up having to get in this thing to survive!” Athrun paled, and Kira was now a hundred percent taking out the fact that he had just killed someone on his old friend.

Aboard the Archangel, Mu shot the Gottfrieds, and destroyed one of the GINNs with a perfect shot. Unfortunately for him, the Mobile Suit was just a bit too close to one of the main trusses, and the residual energy from the ion cannons was enough to melt right through it. The entire structure collapsed into a dozen pieces, no longer supporting Heliopolis. “OH SHIT!”

Murrue stood up and Cagalli started to feel tears leak from her eyes. How could this possibly be repaired? “We CANNOT damage the colony anymore!” She cried out.

Kira and Athrun were both just floating there, facing one another, and Kira had built up a head of steam. “Once was bad enough!” He yelled at Athrun, “Why are you all attacking AGAIN?! And with ARTILLERY on top of it! Are you all TRYING to destroy another colony?!”

“Kira, I-” Athrun was cut off as their worst fears came to pass. Mu killed the last of the GINNs, blowing off its entire lower body. Unfortunately, the missiles it was carrying weren’t destroyed, and a malfunction in the launchers activated them. They all launched just before the rest of the GINN detonated, aiming directly at the final main support truss. “Oh no!” He cried out, mirrored by Kira.

The colony was no longer able to hold itself together with ninety percent of its entire support structure destroyed. All the redundancy in the world couldn’t help it here. The colony’s spin worked against it, and the gigantic structure started tearing itself apart. Massive sections of the structure ripped open, throwing everything that was once Heliopolis into the cold vacuum of space. Buildings collapsed, and an insane suction started voiding the colony of its atmosphere. Tornadoes bigger than any that had ever been seen on earth formed instantly, throwing everything within reach around.

Outside the colony, Ades was on his feet, staring in horror as the colony ripped itself apart before their very eyes. All of the colony’s shelters launched, turned into lifeboats. The archangel bobbed and rolled from side to side from the absolutely brutal winds.

Athrun was forced to watch in horror as the Strike, and his friend with it, was sucked into the cold dark of space. But he couldn’t pay it much attention as the winds gripped him too and sucked him out as well.

What had once been a proud, peaceful colony was now nothing more than yet another floating ruin in space. A testament to both humanity’s potential and their appetite for their own destruction.

-]|[-

Hope you guys enjoyed! Gawd, I loved this series back when I was younger. Really wish it had a more active fanfic section.

So first, let me just get some things out of the way.

First, yes, Cagalli is a Coordinator here, and no, she and Kira are not related. This is for two reasons: One, I never actually liked that reveal much, because it didn’t actually do much of anything that they didn’t already have in their relationship, and instead only served to sink even the possibility of them getting together. Something which wasn’t really needed with Kira and Lacus so into each other, and Athrun and Cagalli the same. And second: I don’t want to have pat re on screaming at me.

Second: I didn’t make this clear in-story, but I did do some aging up. Kira and those his age are two years older, while the rest of the cast is basically the same.

Also, if anyone has a title idea, I’m all ears!