DISCLAIMER: Gundam Wing belonged to Sunrise and co. I’m not making any profits out of this, so don’t sue. Oh, those you think you’ve never heard before belong to me. And feedback is very welcome, people!☺

TIMELINE: The story mostly takes place after Endless Waltz. To be more precise, one year after Endless Waltz. That means two years after my very own Treize’s Revenge series.

NOTE: There’s a reference to the Gundam Wing the tv episodes at the end of this story. Just thought of acknowledging it☺

SURVIVAL OF THE FITTEST VII: BROKEN.

By Arayelle Lynn.

                A child of long golden hair ran across the meadow, laughing. She was a beautiful child. Her eyes were deep forest green, her lips red and skin as fair as the sun. Though very young, her childlike beauty was undeniable, promising even a greater beauty of a young lady in the future only very few can compare. And in reality, not even the most beautiful Empress of the Telrhani could surpass the serene beauty of the little girl.

                The child ran towards her sister, her hands showing the great singing flowers of the meadow’s lake. It was a rare flower on the planet and only those with keen eyesight could spot it. Her sister, only five years older, laughed in delight. The love for her little sister was clearly showed in her eyes. Her little sister was all she had, ever since leaving their parents to die in a slave camp years ago. And she intended to raise her little sister with her two, still small, hands.

                Suddenly the skies darkened as the wind blew hard, nearly swept her off her feet. She looked at her little sister, who had stopped and was looking around her surrounding. Then the meadow they were standing on was gone, replaced by a barren land in the middle of nowhere. There was a crack of thunder and the little girl covered her ears with her hands.

                The older girl ran towards her sister, knowing she had to protect her from this unknown enemy. From afar, she heard her little sister started to cry as she sprinted. Suddenly, the ground started to crack and a shadow appeared and taken a form behind her little sister. It was a woman, a very beautiful woman and she was holding her sister by her hair. She ran faster, hoping she could rescue her sister, when the woman took out a gleaming blade. To her horror, the woman decapitated her little sister and hold her beautiful head up for her to see. The woman laughed as the girl was frozen in horror. Then a scream escaped her lips…

                “Tsylar!” Mylin rose from her bed. Her heart pounded faster than usual and her body was drenched with sweat. Her chest heaved for air as if she had been underwater for hours and her hands were outstretched, as if she had been trying to reach something that wasn’t there.

                For a moment, she sat there, gasping for air. She tried to shake the feelings that always came with the nightmare as well as the image of her little sister. She looked around the room, searching for something, or someone. But when she finally realized that that someone was gone, her body shook. Unable to control the feelings inside, she hugged her legs, burying her head between them and started to cry.

                “Commander,” a voice chimed over the intercom. “Warleader Varishk wishes your presence on the bridge.”

                When Mylin looked up, her tear-stricken face was gone, replaced with the serious mask she always portrayed on everyone around her. Her voice was steady, as if she had never had the nightmare earlier. “Tell him I’m on my way.” She jumped from the bed and started to dress quickly but calmly. When she was finished, she walked towards the door and stopped.

                She looked back at her bed, thinking of the nightmare that had been real a few years ago. She knew she would have the same nightmare again and again until the day she dies. But despite the horror of it, she found herself yearned for it because it was the only time when she would be able to see her little sister and be happy again.

                Remembering her mission, she walked out of the door.

>>>@@<<<

                Warleader Varishk waited, patiently. Beside him, Sira stood, watching everything around her carefully. Then, the door slid open and a raven-haired beauty appeared before him. “Warleader, I am here,” said Mylin, bowing in respect. He studied her for a moment, liking what he saw. The young spy was beautiful, almost rivaled to Sira’s own but there was something even harder inside her.

                Then, he was aware of the forest green eyes glaring at him, warning him against continuing his trail of thoughts. “Mylin, though you have just returned, I’m afraid I have another task for you,” he said, smiling. Mylin kept her silence, awaiting his command. “I want you to go to Earth and wait for your further orders there. I have a special mission for you and your team in near future. But in the meantime, I want you to study Earth’s defense. Find its weakness” He paused. “The time of the final battle is drawing near and I want to make it a glorious victory.”

                Mylin saluted him. “Your will, Warleader,” she said, well aware of a pair of dark brown eyes watching her carefully. As she walked out of the bridge, she threw a glance at Sira, silently promising to make her pay for her endless nightmares.

>>>@@<<<

                As Heero was entering the lounge, he heard voices of people arguing. Seeing Relena was in the room, he started to steer himself away but they’d already saw him. “Heero,” said Relena, looking at him. Trying to stifle the emotions that she always stirred inside him, he looked at her.

                “You’re back early.”

                “Well, the meeting with the representatives had been pretty short. They still don’t know what to do.” She turned to Lady Une, the person she had been argued with. “But a few of them agreed with our suggestion to contact the Telrhani and make peace with them.”

                It was then Heero noticed Vincent Dupree was in the room. The young man seemed to watch him carefully when suddenly his eyes widened at the sight of something behind Heero. “Quatre Winner?” he gasped, as someone behind Heero froze. He spared a glance at Quatre who was as surprised as Vincent was. “What are you doing in the Preventer’s headquarter?”

                Quatre looked around, uncomfortable. He wished that he could just disappear right there and then but with Duo, Trowa, Wu Fei and Kylie blocking his only exit, his only choice was to duck behind Heero. But even that proved too late. Vincent Dupree had already identified him. “Uh…” he started, thinking furiously for an excuse but couldn’t find any. He looked at Relena, hopelessly.

                “Quatre’s a Gundam pilot, Vincent,” said Relena, knowing there was no point in hiding the fact. She and Vincent would be working together with the Preventers from now onwards and sooner or later, he would figure out who the Gundam pilots were. A glance at Heero showed her that she had his approval. “All five of them are.”

                Vincent looked at the faces of the people he had wanted to meet the most. All of them were very young, barely eighteen. He had heard reports that the Gundam pilots were just kids but at the time he had thought they were nineteen or so but… ‘Gosh, they were only 15 when they went into the battlefield!’ he thought, finally solving the math.

                And Quatre. Gentle, mild-mannered, vulnerable Quatre was actually one of them! Shaking his shock off, Vincent walked towards the five of them and extended his hand. “I’d like to thank all of you for what you did and what you’re doing now,” he said. “The human race would be in a lot of trouble if it wasn’t for you guys.”

                Heero and the others were taken aback. No one had ever come up to them and thanked them. This was a new experience for them. Heero then shook his hand. “You would’ve done the same if you were in our shoes.”

                “I would but I wouldn’t have the strength like you people to fight losing battles,” said Vincent. “Even now.” He then shook hands with Duo, Quatre, Trowa and Wu Fei. He stopped when he saw Kylie. “We’ve met, right?” he said, uncertainly because of her different appearance.

                “She’s Heather Leong, remember?” said Relena, knowing Kylie’s short hair had made her looked slightly different. Kylie threw Relena a warning glance and turned to Vincent who asked, “Who are you, really? I know you can’t really be Winteridge’s assistant if you’re here.”

                “Who am I is not important,” she answered. “Just think that I’m fighting this war with the Gundam pilots.” She then looked at Heero and the rest of the pilots. “I’ll be in my room,” she said as she was leaving.

                Vincent stopped her. “Don’t worry. If we’re lucky, there won’t even be a war.”

                Kylie’s left eyebrow rose at his statement. She then looked at Relena and Lady Une and then at the five Gundam pilots before returning her gaze on Vincent Dupree. She shrugged. “Whatever you say, pacifist,” she said but her doubts were clearly voiced. Before Vincent could reassure her, she was gone.

                Duo turned to Relena. “What does he mean that there won’t be a war? Are you telling me we’re surrendering?”

                “Not at all,” said Relena. “The representatives agreed that Vincent and I should find peaceful solutions with the aliens.”

                “How?” asked Quatre. “They’re here not only to invade but to gain cheap manpower, remember? They want slaves.” He took a step forward. “What could we possibly offer to them if all they want is to enslave us.”

                Vincent shook his head. “That’s where you’re wrong,” he said. “We could offer them other alternatives besides slavery. Maybe we could establish close relation with them so we could send workers instead of slaves to work with them. I’m sure they’re a reasonable race.”

                “The issue is, we know almost nothing about them,” said Lady Une. “We don’t know their culture and their beliefs, we don’t even know how they got here and where they’re from. For all we know, slavery could be part of their ancient culture like the old civilizations of mankind.”

                “But slavery did stop at some point in the ancient civilizations, right?” said Relena. “Maybe we could teach them that.”

                Trowa shook his head. “It won’t work,” he said suddenly, making the others turned to him. “Who are we to teach them anything?” He looked at Relena and Vincent. “You might rate humanity higher but these Telrhani only saw us as creatures of the lowest hierarchy. It would be like teaching god to create a perfect world.”

                With that he exited the room. Relena looked at the rest of the pilots and Lady Une. “Never mind. The point is, the president himself has asked Vincent and I to try and talk to the Telrhani so we could avoid more bloodshed.”

                “This is war, woman,” said Wu Fei, a little too harshly. “Bloodshed is part of it.” He looked at Heero. “But then again, why am I here wasting my time arguing with these pacifists? I’m the one fingering the trigger in the battle not them.” Then he too, left the room heading towards his quarters.

                “Wu Fei is right,” said Heero finally. “And so is Trowa.” Relena looked at him, expecting him to challenge her as usual. “In order to achieve peace with the aliens we must first survive this ordeal. But in order to survive, we must fight even if it means destroying the alien’s fleet. And maybe then pacifists like you can step in and create whatever ideals you have in your mind. Provided, if you survive this.”

                Heero left, followed by Quatre and Duo, leaving Relena surprised by his words. It wasn’t the words that surprised her because she half-expected it but it was actually the way he said it. How cold and hard it sounded to her ears. Heero had more than often showed her a cold attitude but just then, she noticed that he actually gave her a cold shoulder. Suddenly, one glance at Vincent told her why.

>>>@@<<<

                Duo waited patiently as the operator put him through. After the ordeal with Heero and Relena and Vincent, he suddenly realized that he had yet to call someone. And a few seconds later that someone appeared. “Duo!” that someone exclaimed.

                “Hey, Hilde,” he greeted. “How’s it going?”

                Hilde beamed. “I’m fine. In fact…”

                “What about that deal with Harrison?” Duo interrupted. “Did you handle it as I told you to?”

                She frowned. “Of course. I told you I can handle it, remember?” She opened her mouth to say something but he cut her off. “And the business? The shipment that was due yesterday?”

                “It’s fine, Duo,” she said, losing her patience. “Listen, Duo. I can handle things here, okay. When are you coming back? I really…”

                Duo shook his head. “I don’t know, Hilde. Maybe a while since the aliens is much stronger than us.” He smiled excitedly. “Hey, did you hear the news? Me and Deathscythe are partners again.”

                “Yeah, I heard. You guys were on the news every time.” She looked less than thrilled as she smiled. “I guess you’re pretty excited, huh?” Duo nodded. “Of course I’m excited. It’s been a long time since me and my buddy soar through space together.” He looked at her, dreamily. “When I’m with Deathscythe, I feel everything is possible. It’s like being reborn once again.” He looked at her. “You know what I mean?”

                “No, I never had a Gundam before,” said Hilde, coldly.

                Duo continued, failing to hear the resentment in her voice. “But they all have to ruin it by telling me I need to use the Zero system to stay alive. Can you believe that? I’ve survived before without the Zero system so why should I need it now? Deathscythe and I could take care of each other well enough not to need that deadly system.”

                “Duo,” said Hilde, her voice was even. “I want to break up with you.” He blinked and looked at her, surprised by the words.

                “Huh? What did you said?”

                “Something I should’ve said a long time before,” said Hilde. “I’m leaving you, for good.”

                Duo was shocked. “But… but why?”

                “It’s seems like you and Deathscythe made a better couple,” she said. Suddenly she decided to tell everything that was playing in her mind and heart. “I’m tired of you, Duo Maxwell. I’m tired of your business, I’m tired of your need to flirt with every girls in the colony. And most of all, I’m tired of listening about Deathscythe!”

                “Wha…”

                Hilde interrupted him. “It’s always been about you and Deathscythe. Always. But three years ago, I can take it. I can sit around and listen to you talking about your adventures with that piece of machinery. But it gets old, Duo. And I can no longer stand it!”

“I’m your girlfriend, Duo Maxwell. But you never thought about talking about us. About our future. All you thought about is that sorry-piece-of-Gundanium-alloy. If Deathscythe is more important to you than me, why don’t you go and marry it?”

                Duo took a step back, surprised by the hurt and resentment in her voice. Part of him wanted to reach out, to hold her and tell her that he was sorry for hurting her. But part of him angered that she dared to insult the only friend and protector he ever had. And that part won.

                “Fine! If you want to go, just go. Do you see me stopping you?” he said, his voice cold. He was tired, stressed and Hilde’s outburst was not helping. They made his head hurt. “Deathscythe and I have been doing great together before we found you. Heck, we were doing fantastic before the other guys joined us.” He looked at Hilde who was staring at him in shock. “We don’t need them. We don’t need the Zero system. We don’t need you. We do better without any of you!”

                As soon as the words left his mouth, he suddenly wished he could take it all back. Hilde was looking at him, her face paled and eyes filled with pain. Then, her eyes started to fill with tears as she looked down and smiled at him, weakly. “Now I know exactly how you feel. I won’t bother you anymore, Duo Maxwell. Farewell.”

                The transmission was broken. Duo stared at the screen of static as he tried to comprehend what just happen. His head was still pounding as his heart. But in his confusion, he finally realized what just happened. Hilde was leaving him!

                “No, Hilde,” he said, reaching out to the screen, feeling lost. “What have I done?”

                “That’s good,” said a voice behind him. He turned to see Trowa, leaning against the entrance. “Throwing your frustration at the only person who loves you. Why stop here? Why not go take Deathscythe and erase her existence from the world, Duo?”

                Duo watched him leave. Suddenly, his fatigue, frustration and pain started to weigh on him and he fell onto his knees. Shivering, he gathered his legs in his arms and rocked himself back and forth. Everything started to dawn on him. Every word Hilde and Trowa said. He had just pushed the person who loved him away. Just like…

                ‘Oh, my god! I did what Heero’s doing to Relena!’

>>>@@<<<

                His breathing slowed as he tried to picture his opponent. Then, he lashed out with precision few can match and spun around, pretending that there was an enemy behind him. Wu Fei kept his eyes closed, forcing himself to fight in the darkness so his mind could picture the enemy he recently longed to defeat.

                But every time he pictured her, his heart started to race as the memory of his late wife came into his mind. Her beauty, her passion, her spirits, all the qualities that made Wu Fei loved her so even if it was a fixed marriage. When she was killed, Wu Fei had vowed to himself that he would never let another woman made him feel like that. Made him feel so weak and helpless. And he kept that vow until now. Until someone else opened the door without meaning to.

                From there, he thought about Kylie. He knew she could never be his. Not because of Quatre, yes, he knew about Kylie and Quatre although the two had been very discreet about it. But because he and Kylie were too similar. Both were souls tainted with the darkness. Both were responsible for killing so many innocent lives. Both were so much like Heero Yuy.

                That’s why they need someone from the opposite world to care for them. Someone who radiate lights to balance the darkness inside them. Quatre was that light for Kylie and Relena was for Heero. Both of them found their lights to brighten their lives. But Wu Fei doubted he would find the light again. His light was shattered when Lon Meirang was killed that fateful day. And since then, he would have to live his life in total blindness.

                Suddenly a shift in the air snapped his eyes open. There, standing before him was Zechs Merquise. “Sparring alone isn’t a good thing, Chang Wu Fei,” said the Epyon pilot. Wu Fei smiled at him, mockingly. “I suppose you’re volunteering to be my sparring partner?”

                As an answer, Zechs raised his rapier. “I’m not as good as Treize in swordplay. But I can assure you I can be a quite formidable opponent.” He slashed his weapon for an effect. “What do you say, Wu Fei?”

                “Sure,” said Wu Fei as both men saluted. Wu Fei advanced as Zechs blocked. Then Zechs thrust as Wu Fei took on a defensive stance. And they stayed in that pattern for some time. “So tell me, what’s with you and that lady of yours?” asked Wu Fei, attempting to get to know the Lightning Count better.

                “What do you mean?” asked Zechs as he parried.

                “You know what I mean. Do you love her or is she a touch-and-go like your loyalty to Treize?”

                Zechs’ jaw was set. His loyalty to Treize was a sensitive subject as his relation with Noin. “Why do you want to know?”

                “I just want to decide if you’re as weak as your lady,” said Wu Fei, knowing he’d pushed the right button.

                Zechs immediately stopped. “It’s none of your business but if you must know, Noin was everything to me. You can think me as weak but Noin whom you thought is weak was the only one who could give me my strength. She was the one who made me stronger.” He paused as his voice grew cold. “And I don’t think I need to explain to you about my loyalty to Treize.”

                Suddenly Zechs smiled. “But I know you’re trying to test my reaction, Chang Wu Fei. And I know that you know my issue with Treize is the most sensitive. So, I will only tell you this. I love Treize Khushrenada as a great leader, a brother and a friend. He made me who I am today.”

                “What happened to you and Treize is none of my concern,” said Wu Fei, shaking his head. “But I was curious as to why you and Noin are keeping things from Relena?”

                Zechs looked at him, surprised. Then, Wu Fei picked up a gold chain from the floor with his own rapier and showed it to Zechs. The older man looked at the dangling gold ringlet and felt his chest, reflexively. “Why didn’t you tell the others that you and Noin are married?”

>>>@@<<<

                Trowa lay on the bed. After hearing the argument between Duo and Hilde, he suddenly felt very drained. He secretly thought that Duo was the luckiest among them. He had someone whom he could share things with. Heero could be as lucky as Duo but he had personal issues that prevented him from accepting Relena’s love. Wu Fei, on the other hand, has lost his desire for love a long time ago making him as unlucky as Trowa was.

                And Quatre, he would be joining Duo soon, once he noticed Dorothy’s love for him. But as Trowa recalled Quatre’s behavior lately, how happy he was, it made Trowa wonder whether Dorothy was the cause of it. Wonder if she had confessed her love for Quatre and that somehow they became a couple? …Or was it because of another person?

                All his musings shattered when the door slid opened. Trowa jumped out of the bed when he saw who it was. “Cathy!” he said, walking towards her. “What are you doing here?” he asked, as Catherine gave him a hug.

                “I miss my little brother so I came to see you. Sally Po was kind enough to let me in. I guess visitors are not really a normal thing in the Preventers headquarter,” she explained as he led her to a chair.

                “I miss you too, Cathy but you shouldn’t have come. It’s too dangerous. The aliens could be attacking at any time. And this base is the most dangerous place for you.”

                Catherine looked at him. “I know, Trowa. But I’m worried about you fighting with these aliens. I know I’m okay with you being a Gundam pilot and have to save mankind and all but it still scares me whenever I heard you go into battle.”

                At that Trowa hugged her, tightly. Surprised, Catherine could only returned his hug. “I’m sorry, Cathy. I should’ve called you. I’m sorry I didn’t consider your feelings. You must’ve been worried sick,” he said but she was more concerned by the weariness in his voice.

                Gently, she pushed him away and stared at his face. It was then she noticed the weariness on his face as well. And pain? “Trowa, what is it?” she asked. The last time Trowa looked like this was when he lost his memory. But now, Catherine could clearly see the pain in his eyes. “Trowa?”

                He looked away. “Nothing, sis,” he said. When he looked back at her, he was smiling. “I guess I’m just tired.” He sighed. “So many things had happened. I’m just glad that I got Quatre back and that you’re still safe and sound.”

                Catherine held him. She knew only Quatre could effect Trowa emotionally. She didn’t know why, but there’s this brotherly bond between them that no one could break. Her only wish was that she could get to know the other boy well enough so she could share Trowa’s responsibility in taking care of him. Maybe then she would understand why Trowa pained when Quatre was hurt.

                But suddenly another thought came to her mind. The pain that was showing in Trowa’s eyes had been slightly different than usual. And Catherine knew Trowa well enough now to know that something else was causing him pain. Something that was closely related to Quatre but different.

                Then she realized it. ‘Could it be that Trowa’s…’

                “Cathy, could you do me a favor?” asked Trowa, breaking her thoughts.

                She looked at him. “What is it?”

                “When you leave this base, please go to L2 and look for Hilde Schbeiker. She lived in Duo’s house, you know the one, right?”

                She nodded. “I think I remember her. Why?”

                “Take care of her for me, please? She’s hurting now so please take care of her. It’s not safe for her to move out from Duo’s just yet.”

                “Alright. I’ll stay with her as long as you need me to.”

                Trowa smiled. “Thanks, sis. I’ll contact you as soon as I can.”

                As Catherine watched him closely, she realized that she had been right. ‘Trowa is in love. But with whom?’

>>>@@<<<

                The silence of the galley seemed to suit Quatre well. Though tired from the previous battle, he found himself too troubled to sleep. His mind wondered what made Trowa and Wu Fei thought that the Zero system was the only thing that could save all of them. He also wondered if he had done the right thing by denouncing his need for the system.

                Secretly, he knew the others were right. The Zero system had definitely gave them an advantage over the enemy and that if all five Gundam pilots, excluding Zechs and Kylie, used it they could all be equally strong as the Mican Warriors. But Quatre very much doubted he could master the system once again. It had taken him everything in his willpower to master the system when Heero installed it in his suit years ago. And it drained him dry after the battle and made all the painful memories appeared again. It took him a long time to get over the effects of the system and a lot of emotional agony. Can he went through that again?

                Is the suffering soul inside him more important than the suffering of the human race?

                “Quatre?” said a voice, making him jump. Noin came over and sit on a chair beside him. “Sorry to have startled you but why are you still up? It’s too late and too early to be up and about,” she said, gently.

                For a moment Quatre didn’t answer but smiled, anyway. After a moment, he sighed. “I wish I was someone else,” he said, surprising Noin. “I wish I was like Heero or at least as tough as Trowa and Wu Fei. Maybe then I won’t be the weakling that need to be protected all the time.” He paused. “Maybe then, I would have the strength to use the Zero system.”

                “Don’t say that!” said Noin, rising from her chair and nearly knocking it over. “Don’t you know that the others wished that they were like you?” she said, much to his surprise. “You are the only one who is able to feel something and show something that they can’t. You have so many kindness and love in you that swayed many hearts. You showed them that it’s okay to follow their hearts and to give people a chance to enter them. You taught them many things about their humanity. In fact you returned their humanity to them, Quatre.”

                He looked at her, surprised. “But I thought my emotions are the things that make me so weak. I thought they are what is not needed in this war.”

                Noin gently put a hand on his shoulder. “Emotions are needed in war. And it is needed in your team, Quatre. You may not realize this but you are actually the one who is keeping the team together, you know. If it wasn’t for you, the other Gundam pilots wouldn’t be fighting in a team. You showed them that you five can work together. And now you’re teaching them that you five could work even better with Zechs and Kylie in your team.”

                “Think about that when you doubt your importance in the team.” She looked at him, proudly. “You’re a lot stronger than you think, Quatre Raberba Winner. And would be more if you stop doubting yourself.”

>>>@@<<<

                Lady Une found Kylie in the hangar, working on Nova. Other than the girl, there’s no one else in the huge room including the engineers and mechanics. “Kylie, what are you doing up so early?” she asked, walking over towards her.

                Instead of answering her question, Kylie chose to change the subject. “Why is the Zero system deactivated? And why is the self-detonation device is not installed?” she asked, freezing Lady Une in the middle of her steps. She looked up only to see a pair of cold blue eyes staring down at her.

                She sighed. “I requested its removal,” she answered.

                “Well, install it then. And I want the activation code to the Zero system,” said Kylie, closing the panel. She exited the cockpit and jumped down as the zero gravity cushioned her fall.

                “Kylie, is there anything I could say to stop you from using the system?” asked Lady Une, pleadingly.

                Kylie looked at her. “No. I don’t want to be a liability to the Gundam pilots.” Her eyes narrowed. “If you don’t want to do it by the time I got back, then I’ll do it myself.” She then grabbed her coat and started towards the exit.

                “Where are you going?”

                “Breakfast, if you must know. I promised someone I would meet them.”

>>>@@<<<

                Relena made her way along the hallway quietly. She hadn’t been able to sleep all night and when the clock struck 6 a.m. she decided to begin her day early. But when she stepped into the lounge, she froze and backed a step. There was a figure sleeping on the couch, a puppy was also sleeping at his feet. Realizing who he was, Relena started to leave, as not to awaken the peaceful slumber of the boy. But it was already too late. Heero Yuy had already opened his eyes and was looking at her, alert.

                “Good morning,” she said, smiling as Heero put aside a magazine that he had been reading before he had fallen asleep. He rubbed his eyes as Relena mused how innocent and child-like he looked right then. But his response reminded her that this boy though young seemed to age triple his years.

                “Hm…” was his response. Heero watched as Relena sat across him. Adin, who was awakened by the sound of Relena’s footsteps, stretched and leapt onto her lap. He licked her as she smiled. Aside Trowa and Quatre, Relena was Adin’s favorite people. He immediately took a liking towards Relena just as he had towards Quatre and Trowa.

                For a moment they sat like that. Relena playing with the puppy and Heero watching both of them. At that peaceful moment, all things including the war were behind them. It was as if the world existed only for the three of them and their presence for each other was enough.

                But Relena next words shattered that world. “I didn’t get to thank you for saving my life a few months ago,” she said, referring to the time when she and Quatre were being targeted.

                “Don’t thank me,” said Heero. “It wasn’t you who was really in danger, it was Quatre. But if you want to thank anyone, thank Kylie. She was the one who decided to include me in her plan.” He paused. “Besides, the case is far from over. We still haven’t destroy the person who was trying to kill Quatre.”

                “But we do know who the assassin is, right?”

                Heero nodded. “Yes but Kylie and I decided that Wu Fei should be the one who handle her. He felt he need to do this.” Suddenly he frowned as his eyes turned cold. “But we’re more concern about who hired the assassins. Since the remaining assassin has nothing to do with the other assassins, we are no closer to finding who wants Quatre dead.”

                “Could it be one of his corporate rivals? I mean, Quatre will be one of the richest man once he reached 21. That’s when he shall have full control over the Winner family’s business.”

                “It could be anyone, Relena. Even his father’s old friends,” said Heero. “But I’m very sure that one day, the truth will reveal itself. And when it does, I will be there to handle it personally.” Then he looked at her, his eyes softened. “Anyway, if there’s anyone who should be thanking someone, it should be me.”

                Relena was surprised at that.

                He continued. “What you did back then and now is commendable. I should thank you for sticking by our side when McGarth and his cronies were trying to convict us soldiers.” He paused. “That was a bold thing to do for a believer of pacifism like you.”

                “I know that by defending you, I would be exposing myself to scrutiny on my ideal of pacifism. But I believe that humanity would benefit more if they could utilize the rogue soldiers to help rebuild what was lost in the war and build a new future together.” She looked away. “But now that the aliens are attacking, most of the inactive soldiers have all taken up their weapons again to fight them. How can we achieve peace when all we want to do was to reach for our weapons at the first sign of trouble?”

                Heero shook his head. “Don’t judge them so harshly, Relena. They’re actually learning their lesson.” Relena looked at him, surprised. “Remember what you learned during the Operation Meteor conflict? That peace cannot be handed over and that they must fight for it. That’s what they’re doing now, Relena. To fight for that peace and the survival of the human race.”

                “But what if all of them were killed? Who else is left to build a peaceful world?” asked Relena.

                “The children,” he answered. “They would learn from the sacrifices made by those who have died and would learn to appreciate what they have. That’s why Treize staged that war three years ago. His motive was to teach mankind to appreciate the peace.”

                “And that’s what I’m fighting for,” he continued, rising from the couch. “What the seven of us including Zechs and Kylie are sacrificing our lives for. We are fighting for mankind as well as the future generation of mankind. Your own children, Relena. That’s why we can’t stop fighting now.”

                “Heero,” Relena whispered.

                He walked towards the door where he stopped. “Go to Vincent, Relena. He’s the perfect man for you.” Then he was gone, leaving her to wonder what his last comment meant.

>>>@@<<<

                Kylie waited patiently for her contact to arrive. She had been early, of course, but she didn’t mind spending a few hours sitting by herself. She needed the time to think. Then, as she was finishing her third cup of coffee, she arrived. With someone else, much to her surprise.

                “Kyle!” a voice called out as Kylie rose from her seat.

                “Amy,” she answered and then nodded at the gaping guy beside her old friend. “Jack, didn’t expect to see you again,” she said, noticing that he and Amy were holding hands.

                Jack shook his shock away. “Sorry,” he apologized. “Amy told us who you really are but it’s going to take us a while to accept who you really are.” He then had enough sense to blush. “Especially how beautiful you look as a female.”

                Amy slapped his arm, playfully as Kylie decided to ignore his last statement. She gestured them to sit down. “I actually didn’t expect to see you again, Jack,” she admitted. “I thought I was totally out from the band’s life.”

                Jack winced. He had been the one who decided to fire her… or Kyle then. “You know we have to do it, Kyle… uh Kylie. Imagine the chaos if people find out who you really are. And besides, you were a hunted man… uh woman at the time. You could cause us a lot of trouble.”

                “I understand, Jack. In fact, I would’ve quit myself if you hadn’t fired me,” she explained. “I heard the new guy is pretty good. Gary’s his name, right?” Jack nodded. “Great and call me Kyle. Kylie’s just a name long forgotten,” she said, then looked at them curiously. “Now, is there something important you want to tell me or is this just a social call?”

                “You tell him, Amy. Kyle is closest to you,” said Jack as Amy looked at Kylie, her face beaming with happiness. She took Kylie’s hands in hers. “Kyle, you are my best friend as well as my only brother or sister and my protector. You are the only family that I have left and I would like you to be a part of this.”

                Kylie raised her left eyebrow in curiosity. “What are you saying, Amy?”

                “Will you give me away? Will you take part in my wedding day?”

                For the first time in her life, Amy saw a surprise look on her face. Then Kylie glanced at Jack and immediately knew what was happening. She had always knew that there was some sort of attraction between the two of them since they met and it didn’t really surprised her that the two finally found each other. It’s just how quickly it was going.

                Then Kylie smiled and nodded. “Congratulations, both of you,” she said, shaking Jack’s hand. “Treat her right,” she said, pointedly at him. Jack nodded and gripped her hand, promising to take care of Amy with all his life.

                “Come to the wedding, alright? It wouldn’t be a wedding without you,” he said.

                “I’ll try but I can’t promise you anything,” she answered. “We’re at war, remember?”

                Jack nodded, knowing exactly what she meant. “I remember.”

                “Jack, would you be a dear and order something for us?” asked Amy, seeing that no waiter had come to their table to serve them. Jack nodded and kissed Amy on her cheek, knowing she wanted to talk to Kyle alone. Amy turned to Kylie, concerned. “Are you okay with this, Kyle?” she asked.

                In reality, before she had known Kyle was a girl, Amy had always tend a crush on Kyle. She saw Kyle as her very own knight-in-shining-armor and that no matter how she denied it to herself and to other people, she had loved Kyle. She even went as far as fantasizing their wedding. Kyle had always been the person she could trust and leaned on. A person that she could spend her entire life with.

                But now, she found those qualities in Jack. Not that he used to be a soldier-turned-assassin or someone who saved her from a falling building but someone who had helped her through when she was healing herself from losing Kyle in her life. Someone who was there for her.

                And it meant everything to her to have Kyle’s approval of her choice of life mate.

                Kylie blinked, unexpectedly. “Of course I’m okay with it, Amy,” she said. “There’s no one in this world that I trust to take care of you except Jack. I know he would make you happy, Amy. I just know it.” She paused. “And I’m happy when you’re happy, okay.”

                It was then Amy noticed that something had changed in Kyle. Something that was so discreet that others might missed it entirely. The way Kyle smiled was different. It was as if she was warmer and happier although her eyes hid it well. “What is it, Kyle?” she asked, curiously. She didn’t realized that she had said it aloud.

                “What?”

                “You’ve changed, Kyle. You’re not the same person any more.”

                As soon as the words left her mouth, Amy regretted it. The new Kylie suddenly vanished, replaced by the one who had greeted them that morning. “I’m still the same person, Amy,” she started to say when suddenly she trailed off and looked away. “Heero?” Amy heard her whispered. A second later, the sound of siren shattered the air, warning the colonists of an attack.

                Amy looked around her in confusion but returned her gaze back to Kylie when she whispered, “Quatre needs me.” She then shook her head and looked at Amy. “I have to go, Amy. I’ll call you later.” With that Kylie ran off, leaving Amy who watched her leave.

                By then Jack had already joined her. “Kyle’s gone to the battlefield?”

                Amy nodded. “Strange but it could also be possible,” she muttered, her voice full of wonder.

                “What is strange and possible?”

                “It’s Kyle. I think she’s in love!”

>>>@@<<<

                When the Mican trooper converged their attack on him, Quatre immediately knew that he’s in for a big trouble. With Keil’n fighting to destroy him, Quatre barely had enough strength and opportunity to divide his attention on defending himself against Keil’n and destroying the Mican troopers. The others were too far away and too busy with the other Mican warriors and fighters to help him. Every time they tried to get to Quatre, their opponents would try to stop them.

                ‘It’s like they’re planning to destroy me first,’ he thought as he furiously tried to block Keil’n’s beam chain and at the same time dodged from the firing range of the troopers. He tried to destroy the trooper that had taken a shot at him but to his surprise, it wasn’t there anymore. Then, Sandrock took a hard hit as Quatre were thrown forward.

                “Hold on,” suddenly a calm voice said. Then, two of the Mican trooper exploded into pieces as he looked up. From somewhere in space, Nova appeared, heading towards Quatre and his adversary. The alien fighters immediately converged their attack on her, trying to stop her from getting there. But aside from firing and destroying some of them, Gundam Nova kept on coming, absorbing any weapon fires that connected it.

                Keil’n then sent off half of the Mican trooper that was with him but Nova or rather Kylie, was too determined to get to Quatre in time that she even ignored their attempt. She only destroyed those who were directly in her way.

                Suddenly, K’Rin broke off her engagement with Zech’s Epyon and stood in Kylie’s path. “Stay out of my way,” the Nova pilot warned, her voice icy cold. Her eyes were on the battle between Quatre and Keil’n.

                “As long as I’m here,” said K’Rin. “I will not let you interfere with Keil’n’s birth wish, to destroy his mortal enemy.” Suddenly she shot at Epyon, stopping it from moving any further. “And that means you too, Zechs Merquise. Today is the birth of Keil’n and I will not let you interfere too.” She turned to Kylie. “You will only fight Keil’n once he destroyed your friend, for revenge if you wish.”

                In his cockpit, Zechs could almost hear Kylie growling in her throat. Then he suddenly realized that he was growling too. He knew even if the Winner heir decided not to use the Zero system, mankind couldn’t afford to lose a Gundam pilot right now. Not until they face the Warleader in the final battle.

                “Come on,” said K’Rin. “Give me all that you two can throw. I’m sure that I could handle both of you just fine but just try and prove me wrong,” she taunted them. She was eager to fight these new Gundam pilots to see if her skills matched the skills of two Gundam pilots.

                Without saying anything, Kylie pushed the throttle forward. As Nova flew directly towards K’Rin, Zechs could see that there’s something dangerous in her eyes. K’Rin’s Mican suit braced itself for Nova’s attack when suddenly the bright gold Gundam veered off, heading straight for Keil’n.

                “I HAVE NO TIME FOR YOU!!” was the only thing Kylie said, her voice colder than usual. Seeing that K’Rin was ready to go and intercept Nova, Zech’s Epyon quickly stood in her way. “I have time for you so don’t disappoint me.” They then battled.

                Although Kylie had broken away from K’Rin, she’d still have to face the Mican trooper and the alien fighters. The other Mican warrior tried to stop her too but the only thing that they managed to do was slowing her down. Which was enough for Keil’n. He found that his opponent was getting too exhausted and too distracted to defend himself, let alone attack him.

                But somehow, something seemed to answer the Sandrock pilot’s silent prayer. Coming from Earth, a troop of mobile suits were heading into the battle, destroying the other alien fighters as well as the Mican troopers. They were all heading straight for Keil’n and Quatre’s way.

                “Wha…” said Quatre when a shot connected Keil’n’s suit, throwing his aim off. He turned to see… “Rashid!”

                The leading brown mobile suit flew towards him. “Master Quatre, we heard that you needed some help.”

                “Yeah, it’s been a long time since we done this. It’s really good to be back,” said Abdul, who was helping out Nova. “Even if we’re risking the possibility of imminent death in this war.”

                Keil’n observed the newcomers with interest. They had come unexpectedly. Suddenly, he felt as if he had judged the Sandrock pilot wrong. ‘Maybe the boy isn’t a weakling after all. He has everyone ready and willing to die for him,’ he thought with a newfound respect.

                Then, he decided to end all this. They had achieved what they came for, although he didn’t get his birth wish, but he gained a respectful opponent. “Commander,” he said to K’Vai. “Let’s retreat for now.”

                “Are you sure, Keil’n?” asked Trecna, still battling Trowa.

                “If we press on, it’ll ruin this joyous day,” he answered. “Besides, I think I’ve found something much better.”

                K’Vai looked at him for a second and nodded. “Understood. Let’s return to the Warleader for further instructions.”

                Then, the aliens left with the human heroes watching them. Each knew that it wouldn’t do any good to keep on fighting each other. They will fight each other again in near future. The main concern was to survive to see the ending battle.

                Rashid held Sandrock, which was suffering some heavy damages. “Are you alright, Master Quatre?” he asked, gently.

                “What are you doing here?” asked Quatre as he pushed himself upright. His body was hurting all over.

                “Like we said. You seemed to be in need of some assistance,” Rashid answered. “We of the Maganac corps seemed to have forgotten to dispose our mobile suits so we had them lying around in the old base. Lucky for our side we still have them and they work like brand new.”

                Deathscythe came over then. “Well, I could only tell you people what a good timing you have. We certainly need all the help we could get,” said Duo. He then winced at the damages Deathscythe suffered from the fight. “A really good timing.”

                “Yeah, and with the other soldiers of the former OZ, Alliance and the guerillas had recently volunteered to fight with you in this war, I think we could actually win,” said Ahmed, coming up next to Deathscythe.

                “Winning a battle is one thing,” Kylie suddenly said. “But winning a war is an entirely different story. We barely able to hold on with their small attacks, do you think we’re ready for the major ones?” With that, Nova flew off, heading towards the Preventer headquarters.

                Ahmed snorted. “Sheesh, the least she could say is thanks. Who is that girl?”

                “Someone you would love to hate, if you’re not into Ice Queens,” said Duo.

                “No, Kylie’s right,” said Quatre, surprising them. “If we Gundam pilots could barely hold ourselves against these aliens, the others wouldn’t stand a chance against them.”

                Rashid looked at him. “What can we do to help then, Master?”

                “Stay as close to Earth as possible,” he answered. “Right now, the Telrhani only attack those living in the colonies but it won’t be long when he decided to attack Earth.” He shook his head. “No matter what, we can’t let Earth fall into their hands. It is the only and last place for humanity to survive should we lose all the colonies in space.”

                He looked at each and every member of the Maganac corp. “You are humanity last line of defense. If we Gundam pilots failed or were killed trying, you must continue our effort and protect the fate of humanity.”

                For a moment there was silence as each member tried to digest the weight that was placed on their shoulders. They longed to fight alongside their master but they knew it was even dire that they protect Earth from harm. “Alright, Master Quatre,” said Rashid. “We will protect Earth to the bitter end, that we promise.”

                Quatre smiled, weakly. “Thanks, my friends.” He paused. “And good luck.”

                They departed after that. The Gundam pilots headed toward the Preventer headquarters while the forty Maganac corp. members headed towards Earth. Each was determined to fulfill the mission given by their beloved master.

>>>@@<<<

                “I see,” said Warleader Varishk, nodding. “I’m sorry you didn’t get your birth wish, Keil’n but I’m really pleased that you found something even better.” He looked at them all. “Go and rest my Mican Warriors. Your final battle will be sooner than I anticipated.”

                He then turned to Sira. “Commander, will you come with me please,” he said as he stood up. They then left the bridge, as all occupants bowed before their leave. They walked for a moment towards a room where they had enjoyed all the pleasure with each other.

                As soon as the door slid close, Varishk sat, facing the beautiful woman before him. “I think it’s time we raise the stakes, Sira,” he said, his eyebrow curved, deeply pleased. Knowing exactly what he meant, Sira nodded. “I’ll handle it, Warleader,” she said.

                “I know you’ll handle it well but I’m only reluctant because then I wouldn’t be seeing you for quite some time.”

                Sira knelt before him and held his hands. “I’ll be back, lover. No matter what happen,” she said, softly. “Nothing can come between us. Nothing,” she said. Varishk leaned forward to kiss her. And then the kiss turned to a hungry feeling for each other.

                “Come,” said Varishk, pulling away. “Let’s enjoy what little time left we have with each other.”

                “I’m yours forever, my lord.”

>>>@@<<<

                Heero ran a thorough diagnostic on Wing Zero. Since the others had finished repairing their Gundams, the hangar seemed a little quiet without the sound of clanging metal and sizzling sparks. When the diagnostic showed him the result, Heero was satisfied enough that Wing Zero had returned to its top condition and turned off the panel. He was about to call it a day when he heard a clang.

                He looked at the end of the room, only to find his twin sister still working on Nova. When they entered the hangar, Kylie hadn’t been there but when she returned, she told them that she was just giving Amy Pierson a call. Then, she just went to Nova and began her work, silently.

                As Heero assessed the physical damage Nova sustained, he determined that she will have a lot of work to do. That she would be spending another night repairing the damages on Nova despite its Gundanium armory. “You shouldn’t be taking too much beating for Quatre, you know,” he voiced, feeling the need to say something.

                Kylie turned, surprised to see him there. “Although Nova is made of Gundanium alloy, nothing in this world is perfect. If you keep on taking the beatings, you will end up weakening the armor.” He paused. “You should stop taking the beating for Quatre now or he would get you killed too. Along with him.”

                For a moment she didn’t say a thing. But when she finally spoke, she didn’t look at him. “I have too, Heero. I’m doing this not just for Quatre but for all of us.” She looked up at him. “Quatre is the only person in our team that could really lead us. The only person that could really bind us together. If we lose him, we would eventually scattered the way we were a few years ago and eventually get ourselves killed fighting the aliens alone.”

                “You know that all of us could only think about fighting alone. That all of us are trained and very used to fighting by ourselves,” she said. “But Quatre, though he was trained to fight alone, he could still team up with the Maganac corp. because he’s a team player. And only he could really pull all of us together.”

                “And that’s why I’m doing this,” she said. “If I were killed in action, that’s fine. You only lose a good pilot. But if we lost Quatre, we not only lose a good pilot but a good strategist and a leader.” She looked at him. “Tell me seriously, Heero. Who is Quatre to you?”

                Heero stared back at her, deciding how much he should tell her. But remembering that this was his twin that he’s talking to, he decided to come clean. “He is the heart of the team.” He nodded. “You’re right. If you hadn’t taken the responsibility to protect him, I would.”

                “I know you would.”

                In the shadows, a figure backed away from the entrance, after hearing the exchange between Heero and Kylie. He gently placed the tray of food on the floor, near the door and started to walk away. He didn’t know that that’s what they really feel about him. He hadn’t realized how important he was to everybody.

                Remembering what Noin had said to him earlier, he realized that it must have been true. But that only made his decision-making more difficult. Now he had to consider if his sanity is more important than the lives of his people and those he loved.

>>>@@<<<

                Relena blinked as she read through the message. Then she rubbed her eyes, still couldn’t believe the content of the message. Vincent, who was standing next to her, studied her carefully. His excitement was clearly written on his face. “You see?” he asked, grinning.

                “I see it but I found it hard to believe it could be this easy,” said Relena. Then she frowned. “But it is possible that we had a defector in the enemy’s camp. Maybe he or she finally sees that this war will bring both sides nothing but more deaths.” She looked at Vincent. “If we could somehow convince this person to have peace with us, maybe we could persuade the others too.”

                “So, you are going to meet this Telrhani then?” he speculated.

                She nodded. “Of course. If there’s any chance we’re going to have peace with them, we have to grab it. After all, we were wondering how to get our message across to the Telrhani. Maybe this one could relay that message to the others.”

                “So you’re not afraid if this could be some sort of trap?”

                “The thought crossed my mind,” she admitted. “But what good will that do to them? They’re here to invade, remember? Why take hostages?” She shook her head. “No, this could be our only chance to forge peace with another race. We may not have another.”

                Vincent nodded. “Good, because I think the Telrhani’s call just got in,” he said, motioned towards Relena’s vidscreen. She turned to see an image of a female Telrhani. She was beautiful as she was alien looking. Her hair was green and her eyes were dark brown, without whites.

                “I gather you got my message?” she began, seeing the two of them.

                “Yes, though we were quite surprise by it,” said Vincent. “How did you know it was us you should contact?”

                “You’ll be surprise if you know how many spies we sent to Earth,” she answered without elaborating anything. “I know the two of you, so I should tell you who I am. For now, I go by the name of Celcie. I am a faithful servant of the Warleader Variskh.”

                Relena and Vincent exchanged glances. “If you were faithful, then why…?” she asked.

                The woman shook her head. “Don’t get me wrong. And don’t get the Warleader wrong, too. He takes no pleasure in this war. The real enemy is really Emperor Gylendar. He is the one who ordered the invasion of this galaxy. The Warleader, despite his hostile appearance, was really a man of peaceful nature. He had seen a lot of deterioration of our people and decided that if we were to survive as a race, we should stop warring with the other races and start living together in peace.”

                “But the Emperor has many spies known as the Emperor’s Eye. Fearing that he would be discovered, the Warleader decided to work secretly. Which is why he chose this galaxy to invade.” She paused. “This galaxy had been the farthest yet from our homeworld and he thought distance could make it easier for him to launch his plan for peace.”

                Relena shook her head. “Then why attack us? Why not just send us a message of peace?”

                “He can’t. There are Emperor’s Eyes everywhere in his fleet. So he took the pain of staging battles with your people.” Celcie looked at them. “Notice that he only targeted your Gundam pilots and not attacking Earth directly.”

                The two nodded.

                “He was hoping that the pilots would be strong enough enemies to keep themselves alive while he tried to detect the Emperor spies. And you have my word that as long as the spies are not found and killed, he will continue to stage these small battles with your Gundams.”

                “What if the Mican Warrior killed them in the process?” asked Vincent.

                Celcie shook her head. “They won’t. The Mican Warriors are faithful to the Warleader. They would obey his every order and right now their order is to provoke the Gundams without causing any permanent damage.”

                “Yeah, I see what you mean,” he said. “Your warriors have a lot of opportunity to destroy our Gundams and yet they choose not to.”

                Celcie nodded in respect. “Actually, your Gundams are pretty impressive themselves. Especially their pilots. They have withstood things that could’ve killed any lesser race.” Then she straightened herself. “I can’t stay here long. My being here was only to tell you that you have a friend here. I’ll try to keep in touch with you whenever I’m able.”

                “When will we meet personally?” asked Relena.

                “Soon.” She nodded at them. “Be safe, my new friends.”

                Relena nodded as the image faded. “Stay safe.” She then looked at Vincent. “Looks like we’re in for a rough ride.”

>>>@@<<<

                The Earth smelled exactly like the green meadow she was in when she had been a child. But the difference was that on Earth, they had flying creatures that could sing called birds. There was nothing like that in the meadow where she lived years ago. Nothing like that at all in her world.

                And the skies were blue, not the tinge of amber of her planet, which darkened the skies. Here, everything was so bright, colorful and alive. And Mylin’s favorite light would be the at break of dawn, where the skies would have a tinge of purple-blue before it was replaced by the golden tinge of the sun. In her world, the skies would only gave a darker shade of amber during night because of the presence of the two red sun, making most of the things on her world either red, brown, yellow or dark green.

                But here, there were more color and more sight. The flowers aren’t all red and yellow. As she explored, she had caught sight of purple, blue and pink flowers. And the trees were green, and only turned red, yellow and gold when it was autumn or so she learned from the readings she’d done on the planet.

                Savoring the beauty of the planet deep in side her heart, she turned her attention on the creatures that lived there. Although she had been living among them for a short while, they still mystified her. Sure, there were similarities between them and her kind. Their thirst for war, appreciation for beauty, their loyalty to their leaders but still there’s one thing that she would call as unacceptable about these creatures. They don’t see some of them as being above all others. They looked at as each other as… what was the word…equal?

                That had been unacceptable to Mylin. Among her people, it was dire for some to be above the others. Some were masters of all and many others were slave for the masters. The strong would became stronger and the weak would be repressed until they get weaker and eventually ceased to exist. It was part of their life that they should all looked out for their own self. If you don’t, you would be one of the weakling and would’ve sealed your fate forever as a slave.

                Mylin’s life had been the exact case. Her parents had been slaves for a master of an estate all their lives. But somehow, they managed to produce a large family with thirty kids. On Telrhan the master or slaver would forced their slaves to mate and produce younglings so they could either sell them to get money or send them to work on the fields or the mines. Mylin was the 27^th child and was going to be sold to a tavern when she was only five. Somehow, the owner of the house saw the beauty that she would grew up to be and decided to buy her at a very young age. And he also had convinced her parents’ master to sell Mylin’s youngest sister, who was just a baby, when she’s old enough.

                But Mylin, even in that age, determined not to live like her parents and brothers and sisters. And so one night when the master’s guards had been sleepy and drunk, she ran away with her baby sister without carrying anything valuable to finance their journey. They fled deep into the forest, hoping the seclusion would swallow their marks, erasing their existence forever.

                It had been a tough and rough journey. Her sister was barely a year old and Mylin had to be the one to look for food in the vast and thick forest. First they fed on fruits for a few months but when their bodies were forcing them some meat, it was then Mylin first learned to kill a creature. She also learned to steal from any passing travelers so they would at least have the taste of real food coming from the cities.

                When Mylin was ten, they were forced to move back to the city after hearing the news that their master was still looking for them. Mylin and her sister journeyed for a long, hard time before they entered Jorkas, the city that’s far away from where the came from. Here, they planned to blend in with the other slaves, hoping that none would see that they’re not owned. By that time, Mylin was good enough a thief to steal food to sustain their needs and found a well-hidden place for them to live in.

                Until one day, she happened to come by. That day, Mylin had told her sister to wait for her at the usual place where she would hand her the food she stole. But that day, Sira was in the city, patrolling. It was that day, Sira’s eyes landed on the beautiful child that was Mylin’s sister. It was that day, Sira’s jealousy surfaced and instead of turning the girl to the nearest whorehouse, she killed her. And it was that day, Mylin’s life changed.

                The rest was all blurry to Mylin. The how she became the Emperor’s Eyes, how she was sent to this so distant galaxy to serve her master. Right then, Mylin’s only purpose in life was revenge and revenge alone. She became the person that she herself had ran away from, the servant of a master. Only here, she wasn’t a slave and only here, she loved the man who was her master.

                She sighed. Things were different in this world. Those who were weak were not tortured but supported. There were no sign that said the leaders were beyond the law like the one in her world. And most of all, everybody looked out for each other and lived together in peace. So much like the ones who lived in the colonies.

                Again, she wondered. What was the thing that made these lower creatures so easily to live with one another? She knew that it couldn’t be love because although her kind does love but still they took advantage on those who were weak. It couldn’t be loyalty because loyalty did exist among her people.

                ‘What is it that made your race so different from my race?’ she pondered, thoughtfully. ‘What is it that made me so calm and relaxed whenever I am among you? What makes the raging soul inside me rest so easily?’

                Suddenly her musings were interrupted when a girl appeared in her line of vision. She was a little girl with light brown hair and blue eyes. She was about five years old, the same age when her sister was killed. And there was a child-like innocence on her beautiful face that reminded her of her little sister.

                “Hi,” she said, shyly. Then she thrust her hand forward. “You seemed you could use a few of these,” she said. It was then Mylin noticed that there was something in her little hands. It was a bunch of wild flowers.

                Mylin took it, not knowing exactly what to say. Nobody had ever give her anything. Nobody. Not even her Emperor, which was to be expected. She’s the servant and he’s the master. If anything, she’s the one who’s suppose to give him something.

                But this little creature’s gesture somehow touched Mylin, deep. Deeper than she knew. And somehow, a warm but choking feeling started to overwhelm her. “Right,” she said, feeling the need to say something. “You may leave now.”

                The girl frowned and then she laughed. Again, Mylin longed for the presence of her little sister. “You forgot to say thank you,” said the little girl. “Grandpa always said to thank those who gave you gifts. It’s polite.”

                It was Mylin’s turn to frown. “I wouldn’t know. I never had a grandpa.”

                “Oh?” said the girl, suddenly feeling guilty. Then she brightened. “Well, you can share my grandpa. It’s only him and me now. I think he wouldn’t mind taking another granddaughter.”

                That made Mylin laughed. It wasn’t that it was amusing. It was just that the choking feeling was overwhelming her and she felt she should cover it. It’s also because of the irony of things. Here, her race was about to be invaded and enslaved and the girl was talking about adopting her, an enemy. And without knowing that soon her grandfather wouldn’t be in a position to offer haven to anyone.

                But surprisingly, that thought troubled her. She didn’t know why but deep inside, she craved for the tranquility that Earth had to offer. And she knew once her people came and conquer the world, the tranquility would vanish too. And that thought alone saddened her.

                “Coming, grandpa!” the girl suddenly shouted over her shoulder. She turned back to Mylin. “That’s grandpa. He said we got to go because he has an important dinner party to go to. You see, grandpa is a very important man,” she said with pride.

                Mylin smiled. “I’m sure he is.” Then suddenly she did the thing that she hadn’t done in years. She leaned over and kissed the girl on her head. “I’ll see you soon, okay?” she found herself said. The girl blushed and smiled happily. And that she ran back to the old man that was waiting for her a few yards away. Once the girl was gone, Mylin found herself missing her already.

                ‘Why did you have to go?’ she thought, to the little girl as well as to the spirit of her little sister.

>>>@@<<<

                Kylie worked patiently but somehow, she felt her patience running thin. She had been repairing her Gundam since the day before and at the same time trying to bypass the security code Lady Une had put in to deny her access to the Zero system. She had planned to finish repairing Nova first before attempting to break the code but when she heard that they ran out of a few parts for the Gundams, she had to wait for the new shipment which will be due the next day. To use her time productively, Kylie opted to try and bypass the code since Treize’s former assistant refused to give her the access code.

                But until now, she failed to do it. Somehow, Lady Une anticipated all her moves and had installed a program that blocked her every attempt at hacking into the system. Frustration eating her very being, Kylie decided to tear herself away from the screen and turned to the section that needed repairs. Again, she fought the urge to steal some parts from the other Gundams and decided to make do with what she had and improvise.

                She was examining a burnt part when her vision started to cloud over, reminding her that she hadn’t been sleeping for two days now… correction, three days. Usually, she could go on not sleeping for five days but lately things had been tiring and the fact that she was still under the doctor’s advise for a good rest made her body tire easily.

                Suddenly a noise made her jumped. Quatre Winner gave her an apologetic look, his hands was holding a tray. Seeing who it was, she relaxed. “Sorry to have startled you but I noticed you didn’t have anything to eat since this morning, so I brought you some food.”

                Kylie glanced at the tray. The soup smelled good and very tempting and as before, she immediately recognized his handiwork. “Thanks but you shouldn’t have cooked for my sake. You could always give me those stuff they’re feeding the others.”

                “The cold stew?” he said, disbelief, “No way. Besides, I want to do it for you.”

                At that Kylie looked at him, her expression unreadable. Then she smiled. “Thanks for caring, Quatre,” she said, putting down the burnt part and came over to him. He handed her the bowl and watched as she eat. Neither of them talked for a long time.

                “Actually, I should be thanking you,” said Quatre, surprising Kylie. She looked at him, questioningly. When she realized what he was referring to, she stared at the steaming soup. “No, don’t thank me,” she said, surprising him now. She then looked at him. “Just help me to help you.”

                At that Quatre looked away. “True, it was your fault that a colony was destroyed three years ago. True, it was you who caused Trowa to lose his memory.” She looked at him, seriously. “But you’ve already atoned for it, Quatre. You’ve paid whatever you did wrong a long time ago.” At that he looked at her, surprised. “It’s time to let go, Quatre. It’s time to forgive yourself.”

                “Kylie, I…” He buried his head in his hands. “I don’t know what to do.”

                At that, Kylie put a hand on his shoulder. “Listen, Quatre. You have to listen what Sandrock wants. He will tell you what you have to do.” For a moment, they stared at each other. Quatre was searching for something on her face that would banish the uncertainty inside him and she was showing her support for his decision.

                He then rose and walked over to Sandrock. Like Nova, it still needed a few works and the parts that were coming the next day. He leapt into the cockpit and ran a diagnostic on its system. Thinking about what Kylie had just said, Quatre leaned back and closed his eyes. “Sandrock, please. Tell me what I should do? What you want to do?” he whispered.

                For a moment, nothing happened so he just stayed there, letting his mind wandered. Then suddenly, the image of three years ago flashed in his mind. The first time he board Sandrock to go to Earth to commence Operation Meteor, his first meeting with the others at the New Edwards base, his father’s unjustly death, his moments of insanity and his duel with Dorothy. The words he said to her.

                “I wouldn’t fight if I could help it. But unless I keep on fighting you people won’t surrender and the war would never end…”

                “I have to fight if I’m going to ward off my family’s sorrow…”

                “I’m not fighting to receive any kind of compensation…”

                Those words and the images suddenly been replaced by the most recent one. The previous war where he, Trowa, Duo, Zechs and Noin were fighting a losing battle against the Mariemaia’s Army. The part where Zechs and Noin asked them to retreat.

                “If we were fighting to kill, we would be done long ago. But if we did, then there won’t be any meaning at all in our coming back here…”

                “And that’s the reason why we’ve always been able to remain as ourselves…”

                He had said those words to Noin and Zechs, telling them the reason why they had been fighting losing battle all their lives. And even now, they themselves were fighting losing battle, against the more superior alien race, the Telrhani.

                But that was not what struck Quatre then. The words he had said earlier then, it had not only come from within his heart but also from someone else. Or something else. It was then he realized that Sandrock wanted the same thing that he desired. That the two of them were more than partners. Both of them, like Heero, Trowa, Duo, Wu Fei and their Gundams, were the same as one. Each can only exist when both are together.

                Suddenly, the heaviness in his chest started to lift. Quatre finally saw what he must do. Feel it with all his being. With that, he started to smile to himself as he drifted on…

                Kylie went back to work. But as she was cleaning a greasy part, she said to Quatre, “You should probably go to your room and get some rest, Quatre. I’ll be finishing soon, anyway.”

                When there was no answer, she drifted over to Sandrock’s cockpit, worried. But what she saw right then put a gentle smile on her face. Sitting on the seat was Quatre, sound asleep with a smile on his face. She thought that he looked more like an angel then and more child-like. She then returned to Nova and slipped into the cockpit to grab the blanket Howard provided her.

                Then she returned to Quatre’s side and put the blanket over his body. Seeing that a stray hair had fallen onto his eyelid, she brushed it aside, affectionately. She almost kissed him on the forehead when something inside her warned her off. Shaking that feeling, she smiled and whispered, “Sleep well, Quatre. I’ll be here when you wake up.”

                Then, she returned to Nova and continued with the repairs. The warm feeling stayed with her as she started to hum a nameless song.

>>>@@<<<

                Dorothy strode along the corridor, feeling confused and angry. Then came the feeling of betrayal and pain that started to overwhelm her. She had just seen what happened between Quatre and Kylie. A few minutes ago, she had spotted Quatre walking over to the hangar with a tray. She thought that he was planning to work late that night. Seeing him then, gave her the strength to tell him exactly what she felt about him and she followed him, thinking that the quiet hangar would be a secluded place enough for that kind of conversation. But what she found was Kylie and Quatre, talking.

                Her being there was expected. Somehow, the two had been close friends ever since they were taken prisoners. But the words they said to each other, the way they said it, warned Dorothy of something. But she hadn’t know what it was until Kylie’s last words to Quatre, when he was fast asleep.

‘What has happened? How did that happen?’ she asked herself, feeling cheated. ‘Both of them are involved? My Quatre and Kylie? Why did it happen this way?’ she thought as she made her way back to her room. ‘Why?’

                Then her chest started to burn as the feeling of betrayal and pain crashed over her, completely. She felt betrayed by Kylie, who should have been observant enough to realize that someone else was in love with Quatre and felt pain because he didn’t see that she loved him with all her heart. Suddenly, her body started to rack with emotions that she cannot control and felt tears starting to pour out.

                Trying badly to hold back tears, Dorothy ran into her room and buried her head under a pillow. Then, everything inside her burst as she found herself once again alone in this world. Without hope, without love.

TO BE CONTINUED…