Gundam SEED Fan Fiction / Vandread Fan Fiction ❯ GunDread SEED- The Second Stage ❯ Part 3- End of the Path... ( Chapter 13 )

GunDread SEED The Second Stage

 

Disclaimer: Figure walks up to recording machine…he presses Play message: I don't own either Gundam SEED or VanDread, so I make no profit from this…

 

He goes back to work…

 

Chapter 6

 

Part 3

 

End of the Path…

 

**************

 

The Nirvana…

 

Kyo was in his room…he had changed from his pilot uniform and wore his normal clothes. The uniform had to patched up and have it's armour replaced with a fresh set, plus his body was healing nicely thanks to the medical treatment he received, but he didn't mind any of it…he had other issues to deal with.

 

He sat in his room while he ran his hands through his released hair, thought made it all over his mind. Battle tactics, solutions, and ideas were among them…but another occupied his mind more than the others.

 

Jura… and how he felt about her and the others.

 

Flashback…

 

Kyo was in the Conference Room of the pirates, almost dead to the world as he, Gascogne, Buzam, and Magno listened to the reports coming in from various sections of the ship. Ever since their lucky escape, the crew began to hard and long process of repairing the ship. New Dreads had to be built, Vanguards who lost appendages had to be retrofitted with new ones, sections damaged by the fighting had to be repaired.

 

Duero and Max came in and that was when Kyo looked by after staring at the Conference table for so long, had he been able to develop heat vision, he would have burned a hole all the way to Launching Bay.

 

“How are the crew?” Magno asked the two medics.

 

“A lot of them have been injured badly but are recovering…we were very lucky this time though, they all had broken bones and some considerable tissue and organ damage from the numbers of enemies we had to engage…and we've got some in critical condition so they are not able to fight for the next…”

 

“How's Jura doing?” BC asked, as she knew that Kyo would have asked the question, but considering how enraged Kyo was at this point, it would be far better for the question be asked than to let it be hanging in the mind.

 

Kyo's face went from dead pan to deadly serious as he waited.

 

Duero began to giver his report on the blonde pilot. “Jura's badly wounded and it took us several hours to heal her. The GunDread's Neutron Jammer Canceller saved her from being badly injured by the energy waves. She suffered massive blood loss from several torn blood vessels and had many pieces of shrapnel hit her in the abdomen and on the arms, legs and shoulders. Some of her organs were hit and we had to use reconstructive surgery to take away the damage…she was very lucky though, had some of the shrapnel been larger they would have caused immense damage to all her organs. Plus the graphs on female anatomy we found a few weeks prior had allowed us to be successful in fixing the damages.”

 

“What about her…?”

 

Max continued with the report. “Her uterus…well, that's where she was lucky also, there were only smaller shrapnel pieces that struck near that area and thankfully there were few that hit it…had the shrapnel been larger…then that would have been so badly damaged…she may not have been able to have children at all. In that regard however, Jura is fine and can still have future generations…so Jura is safe, but she's going to be confined in the Medical Bay through the situation.

 

The looks of relief in the Conference Room were something else…but Kyo's was far more prominent. He looked as if a great burden was removed from his shoulders…and that was saying something.

 

**************

 

End of Flashback…

 

He was now in his room…spending the last few minutes after the announcement crying tears of relief. He never had any trouble being honest with his emotions and so he didn't feel any shame in crying. But afterwards he felt the need to bleed out the stress he was in.

 

After Jura had been wheeled into the Medical Bay's surgery room, he had been there in the Medical Bay for almost two hours until Paiway gently reminded him that others were waiting to be treated, and with that he left, but made a promise to check up on Jura now and then.

 

He then sighed as he left the men's room and wandered around the place.

 

**************

 

Later…

 

Kyo once more waged a battle, but this time within himself as he realized something…

 

That at anytime…he could die…and only the crew of the Nirvana would remember him, but…most of all…what could he do if any of the ones he loved the most died and he lived. This wasn't a trip back to Talark and Megele anymore…

 

This was war…and his previous death, and Jura nearly dying…made one thing very clear to him…death would claim any of them at any time.

 

Images of the others in the same shape as Jura was flooded his mind…all of them bloodied and in great pain…Dita…Meia…Sara…Mai…even Misty. He couldn't help but feel sick at the thought of them dying and he would have no power to save them…and what he felt for them…would die with them…along with a part of him that they unknowingly held.

 

He then recalled what Jura wanted to say about him about having a baby…and that was another crucible he had to deal with…

 

Having a baby was a very personal and emotional experience, and wasn't something to be treated as something trivial. Blood ties were very important, and Kyo was very serious if he ever became a father, though his memories of his father were still vague, he knew his dad cared deeply for him and his mother, so he wanted to be like his dad and love their child and his wife with every inch of his being, no matter what would happen…and if any enemy would dare threatened them…then they'd better pray for death for no place in the universe would be a safe haven for any of them from him.

 

If he did have a baby with Jura…and she went into battle with their child within her womb, it would have been killed easily, just as she would have been. The mere thought of it and his inability to be there to protect both her and their growing son and daughter made him sick to the very core of his being. He would never forgive himself, nor forget how much he failed them both if they were killed.

 

Jura would have made a good mother; sure she was still flighty and irresponsible at times. But when things mattered the most she was there to lend a hand, and her growing attitude and changing personality added to her physical beauty. Plus he had no problem seeing her holding a precious bundle in her arms. She would have been a real different mother to a baby…that was for sure.

 

But like her…there were others as well.

 

Dita was also a prime candidate and knowing her fixation and growing affections for him, she would have jumped instantly at the idea of having a child with him. He couldn't help but chuckle despite his still lingering sick feelings at the thought of Dita holding their baby in her arms. <Heh…she'd probably call our baby, a cute Alien! God! How will my son or daughter ever deal with that name?!> Dita was a bit of a child and an airhead at times, but her kindness and friendly nature more than made up for it and helped cheer people up rather quickly…not to mention she was becoming a bit more mature around him and despite the fact that she hadn't done ANY of the things Jura had done…she had her own way of getting his attention, she loved to cook and act like a young mother when she loved to impress him, and that added to the picture of her being a prime candidate for giving birth to and raising a baby.

 

Meia…well, that was something else. He wasn't sure on that account. Meia had been one of his greatest antagonists when he first joined the crew. But over time, they became comrades after she talked about her past…and so did he with her, then they were friends…now, who knows? Seeing her in the dress a few weeks before sent him into a loop…plus her desire to know more about him was really making him feel rather uneasy. Their relationship was beginning to evolve into a relationship that made him very aware of her own feminine qualities, and he wasn't blind on why she wore the dress either. She wanted to know if he found her attractive, and also if they could be closer. He knew that Meia must be wondering why she was doing those things, but his male side was not complaining the very least. The idea of having a child with her wasn't a bad idea either, as more of her kinder and gentler personality came to the front, combine that with her toughness and capable strength of will, he had no doubt that she'd be a great mother.

 

Sara…on her case, she was his subordinate commander of the Crusader Squadron. She was tough and very capable as a leader, naturally those were attractive qualities in themselves…but combine that with the fact that Sara Elsman was a gorgeous woman and that would make Kyo wondered how he would deal with her when he was looking at her as a woman and not as a fellow pilot and soldier. They were also rivals when they first met, as he recalled their first meeting when he was to take command of the first all female Vanguard unit, and she wanted to show him his place in her mind. He smirked a bit after the end of the fight, she was not happy, but he was impressed by her and she became his trusted commander of the Vanguard teams when he would combine with the Dreads, so they began to respect one another. As time passed, she began to take an interest of him when they weren't on the battle-field, and although Kyo had known military laws, and one of the was that having a relationship with a fellow female officer was a serious violation of military culture and protocol…he knew that he wasn't an official soldier, and neither was she. She was nice and with her skills and athletic back-ground she'd be a good candidate, and despite her apparent military upbringing, she had qualities as a mother, she likes to cook and had a cheerful, dynamic nature when not in battle.

 

Mai…well, this was also different. She had been raised by her parents from the very day she could walk and talk to hate men like him the moment they saw each other. To tell the truth, he was not happy with her when she hated him even after he saved her life. But when he learned about her family's past…he began to understand her. Despite her conditioning, Kyo saw that she was a hard-working girl with a kind demeanour when he worked in the Register, he was a bit surprised when she began to change when he was near months after they met. Plus…the day she told him the whole story of her family's creed towards men, he could see the truth, he also told her how he saw her ancestor's decision as a man and he was happy that she didn't take it to offence. She was also very attractive…no doubts there and Kyo wondered how he was able to work near her and try not to leer like a blasted pervert as she was dressed in the waitress style uniform of the Register. Her qualities made her a good candidate as a wife and mother as well.

 

Kyo thought also about Misty Cornwell, she seemed adamant on catching him as her boy-friend when she competed with the others, and despite she was by all human age standards seventy-seven years old soon to turn seventy-eight in a few more months, she STILL looked fourteen in his eyes…so the idea of him being married to her was very much wrong to his moral stand-points. She was too…young. But he wasn't an idiot to not see that she was a babe in her own right. She had a feisty personality and spoke her mind, which naturally made her have not that many friends among the crew of the Nirvana. Not to mention she wasn't afraid to get mad whenever Dita came close to him, and she even argued with Jura…though she had yet to take on Sara, Mai, and Meia. But she had her own moments, she was very romantic when the mood came on her, she knew how to flirt with him the way a normal woman would when she wanted a man. And despite her attitude, she was the only young woman he was comfortable with, to a degree anyway, when discussing the more physically intimate relationships between men and women. And that was the problem, out of all the women, only she, with the exception of Jura now, knew the driving instincts between men and women…and what the results would be. He didn't know if Misty knew the results if he did become intimate with her, but considering her…she might know about it very well and might know what would happen to her.

 

All in all…the situations he found himself in with them, compounded with Jura's close brush with death made him realize that if he didn't come true with what he felt, then it would be a death more permanent than the real thing…since it would always come back and haunt him, in that regard he understood what Magno meant about him containing his feelings, and how dangerous it would be for not just him, but everyone around him. He wanted to tell Jura how he felt about her and try to see if she felt the same… but still…he knew that he would have to tell the others about his own emotions…

 

<Arrgggh!>

 

Kyo groaned as he decided to leave and think over the situation and made a quick bee-line to the Bio Park. Much to his surprise he ran into Ezra and Lacus…the gentle woman was sitting on a bench while feeding her baby with her milk bottle.

 

Ezra spotted Kyo and smiled. “Hello Kyo.”

 

Kyo managed a weak smile and greeted the young mother. “Hello Ezra…I think I should…”

 

“No, it's all right, you helped me give birth to Lacus, and you saved our lives, I don't think there's anything wrong with you being here. Come, sit beside me.” Ezra said as she made room for Kyo to sit down.

 

Kyo nodded and took up Ezra's offer as he sat down and watched Lacus as she took in her food. The baby was adorable, she had green hair and Kyo realized that it would mean that the hair was from Ezra's partner back on Megele, Lacus's Ohma if he got it right. As Lacus opened her baby eyes Kyo was happy to see she had Ezra's gentle brown colour in her eyes.

 

As Ezra was done feeding Lacus she tried to get her baby to burp, but had some difficulty in that. Kyo noted that and decided to help her.

 

“Let me do that, I know what to do.”

 

With that he rubbed a part of Lacus's back gently near the shoulder blade, and with that Lacus burped and giggled…making Ezra and Kyo laugh as the baby smiled at her mother and her god-father.

 

Kyo didn't know why but he couldn't help but push forward a question. “Can…can I hold Lacus for a while Ezra?”

 

The young woman nodded with a smile as she gave Lacus to Kyo, though she expected Lacus to cry when she handed her to Kyo. She did the same thing when some of the other crew held her…but to the amazement of the mother Lacus didn't whimper, fret, or cry as Kyo's hands touched her, it was as if she knew she could trust the man holding her.

 

Lacus looked at Kyo and began to giggle and smile with joy as she tried to reach for Kyo's blue/violet eyes, making the young man smile and laugh at her attempts and this made Lacus smile and laugh even more. It seemed that Kyo also had a way with children… which began to show as Lacus smiled at some of the funny faces he made towards her, that also made Ezra smile and laugh. Lacus then snuggled into Kyo's arms as he held her gently, almost like a mother himself. He held her for a while, and as she slept a few minutes later, the Gundam pilot gently handed the sleeping baby back to her mother, Lacus flinched a bit but as Kyo sang a low but melodious tune, she settled back and her mother sang the rest of the song as she snuggled into her mother's arms.

 

Ezra looked warmly at her child and then to Kyo. “Wow, you certainly have a way with children Kyo.”

 

“Just a few things I learned when I wandered the universe.”

 

Ezra smiled and saw something in his eyes when held Ezra, it was something saying to her that Kyo had done this before and was very comfortable around children. “You know…you would make a wonderful ohma Kyo.”

 

Kyo looked surprised, blushed a bit, and scratched his head. “I don't think I'd make that great a parent Ezra.”

 

“Nonsense, I think any child would certainly be a happy child to have you as an ohma…or in the old days a father. You certainly had an easy time with my daughter.”

 

Kyo was happy for the praise, and then he began to see him standing near Jura with her holding a smiling baby, then the scene changed to him and Dita, then him and Meia, and the scene went on with Mai, and Sara, Misty was nearby, but Kyo didn't seem to picture that well….

 

But that scene of beauty was replaced with the stark scene of Jura bloodied and wounded severely, then she was replaced by Dita, Meia, Sara, Mai, and even Misty. The fact that Jura was fine and recovering and the others were safe did nothing to stop the look of torment and grief that replaced the happy look in Kyo's face.

 

He gave a sad sigh and faced the park's trees and scenery. “I don't think I'd be a great father…what kind of father am I if I just let my life partner and my child go through this kind of horror? No child deserves to grow up surrounded by death…and I wasn't able to save…”

 

Ezra sympathized with Kyo, she was there when he was in grief and in rage over the wounded blonde pilot, she saw from the monitors how anguished the young man beside her was while he carried the unconscious woman in his arms, not caring at all if he too was wounded.

 

She then recalled the times Jura had come to her and asked how she felt being a mother. Jura fussed over Lacus and smiled at the child when she laughed or smiled. She also wanted to help Ezra take care of her child, and asked many questions on how to take care of a baby. She also heard how close Jura came to not being able to have children at from her injuries.

 

“You shouldn't blame yourself over what happened to Jura Kyo, and she did make it out from the mess and she's still alive and with us.”

 

Kyo nodded but felt a tear run down his cheek. He began to releases his grief, but carefully as not to awaken the sleeping baby.

 

“I should have been there…I…I…should have done something! I should have pulled back and got her to medical treatment! But I knew that…if we didn't do what we did, you and the others would be in danger…I just wish that I could have…stopped those Harvesters so Jura didn't have to…to go through so much pain trying to help me…I couldn't do a damn thing…but watch her being injured right in front of me... All my skill and power, all my Gundam's weaponry…nothing could protect her when she needed it the most…damn it!”

 

Kyo placed his hands on his face and began to sob in grief, regret, and frustration. He didn't care if he wasn't being a tough man who could suck up any punishment and keep on moving, he just wanted to release it before he could go crazy with despair over this.

 

Ezra watched in understanding and sympathy as Kyo released his grief. It wasn't often a woman would see a man in tears. Back on Megele such a thing was considered a true sign that men were inferior to women. But the gentle bridge officer didn't see it that way. Kyo was human, with emotions, and to see a man crying in grief over a woman was a first, it showed how much he cared for those around him, including Jura who changed a great deal when she was with Kyo, she heard that the blonde to shed tears like Dita did when Kyo died the first time, so she knew that Jura felt something deeper for Kyo.

 

As soon as he calmed down and wiped his tears away, he spoke. “Jura nearly died, and she wanted to have a baby so badly…with me of all people.”

 

“I know, she would come to me and ask me so many questions on how I feel about being a mother…she wanted to be one…and she wanted you to be the ohma.”

 

“I know…I mean, I understand why she wants a baby. I know that when I pass away someday, it's hard if nobody remembers you…very hard and very painful. For you Lacus would be taking part of you with her in the future as she grows up…and I know Jura wants it also…”

 

Kyo sighed as he closed his eyes. Ezra noted that and gently spoke to him. “Then you should go to her.”

 

Kyo's eyes opened. “What?”

 

“Make her feel safe and strong, she always told me that's how she feels when you're with her.”

 

“I don't…I don't think I can do that…I mean…after what I didn't do.”

 

“She will accept you, I believe that she does care more about you than she lets on, and considering how she is feeling, she'll need your presence now more than ever.”

 

Kyo looked at Ezra for a few minutes, and nodded solemnly as he got up and made his way to the Medical Bay.

 

*************

 

In the Medical Bay…

 

Jura lay on the bed looking at the ceiling calmly, resting as she awoke a few hours earlier after recovering from surgery. When Duero and Max said that she was barely able to pull through, she wanted to know, and they told her that her uterus was damaged and she feared the worst…she wouldn't be able to have children, but she was relieved to hear that they were able to repair it and she could have children, but they also warned her of the intense danger she had been in and it was only due to luck that she survived.

 

She wondered about her decision to go back to where Kyo was, in the deepest fighting, especially in her injured state previously. Why did she go? Why did she go there to be with him even if she knew that she would be injured even further or even killed? Why did she do it, when Kyo insisted she return to the Nirvana?

 

She knew that their GunDread could have the power to block the shots the transformed Nirvana clone and that new Gundam the crew had named the Behemoth Gundam. But she was shocked at how much damage they had suffered. But for now she had to rest, and ponder what she should do with her feelings, for it seemed that all that mattered to her was that she would protect Kyo no matter what.

 

She then heard a sound as the door opened in came Kyo. Both their eyes met and Kyo walked up to her.

 

*************

 

In the rest of the ship…

 

The rest of the crew were very busy in order to deal with a load of work that cropped up. Engineers went from section to section to repair damaged areas of the ship, and the Vanguard pilots were out of the ship to provide security and to aid in the repairs. Kyo had requested that Parfet and her crew gain some Mobile Suit training with the Vanguards in order for them to lessen the danger of her crew being accidentally caught in the cross-fire of an attack, plus it would lessen the risk of them being unprotected from the various dangers of space when repairs outside the ship were a priority.

 

In the Dread training and assembly room…

 

Meia was busy running some new battle-plans in the simulators, but she had few options, many of the Dreads were badly damaged and repairs on them would take too long, plus building new Dreads from their supplies was becoming harder than ever, both on time and parts.

 

The Dreads that were not affected by the Paeksis were made from at least three components. The first was the fuselage and cockpit, housing the cockpit and systems for the use of the Dread, the second where the engines and power plant to serve as the body, and the third and last were the wings. All these served the pirates and the Megele military well, a Dread could be assembled very effectively. If the wings were destroyed, then the Dread can be attached new ones, and if the engine and cockpit were hit, then it too could be replaced, only fuselage and cockpit was given exceptional defensive properties to protect the pilot.

 

Only a handful of still functional Dreads were available, and her Dread and Dita's were the only Paeksis enhanced Dreads that were available, Jura's was still being repaired by the engineers while the pilot was in the Medical Bay resting from her surgery.

 

She turned and saw Dita as the redhead entered the simulator room.

 

“Leader, have you seen Mr. Alien?” Dita asked worriedly as she went up to her commander.

 

Meia shook her head, she hadn't seen Kyo when they all saw him rush up to Jura's damaged Dread and take their wounded and barely conscious blonde comrade to the Medical Bay, she and Jura were friends despite their bickering at times, and with their unspoken and unseen war for Kyo's affections, so she felt very sad that Jura was badly hurt, and she also felt relieved when the announcement came that Jura will pull through.

 

“I haven't seen him Dita. I think we should look for him later since we've got a load of work to do.”

 

She however felt another fact tug at her. The fact that Jura nearly died and nearly lost the chance to have children got her to realize that she too would be killed, this was no longer a trip back home, but a war that would determine if their worlds and all others would be saved from the Harvesters. Jura's brush with death reminded her of the fact that she was mortal and unlike Kyo who was brought back to life, she might not be. This made her wonder if she could be remembered by anybody in the future. She and her family didn't always get along, but she was happy now that she made peace with her past and thanked her fahma and ohma for bringing her into this world. The though of having children was something she didn't want or consider due to her traumatic past…but she too wanted to have a chance to be remembered and like all women of Megele she grew up knowing that having a baby was a great mark for any woman, but she also felt that she wanted not to have a baby in the way of her world…but with someone close to her heart, and only one person seemed to hold her heart….Kyo.

 

Both this and her feelings for Kyo made her realize another thing, if she died, she would be denied the chance to tell Kyo how much he meant to her, and to her that would be more painful than any fight she had been in as a street thug. She thought about it even more and wondered what she should do about his feelings fro the young man that meant so much to her.

 

Dita also thought in the same lines as she thought about her friends Jura and her Mr. Alien. Like Meia, Jura and all the other crew of the Nirvana, she too was raised to know how wonderful and important it was to give birth to a child. And the feeling of losing that ability to have children made her shiver with fear. Not to mention she thought that she would never get the chance to tell Kyo how she felt about him.

 

She was now getting used to thinking about calling Kyo by his real name, though her habit of calling him Mr. Alien seemed more appropriate, but she did hope that one day she could grow out and call him by his full name, that is until she learned all she could about him. Dita also felt this desire to show to Kyo how much she cared for him, that was the reason she began to change some habits, one was not to glomp hard on him and try to talk to him, more as to gain a chance to know more the object of her affections. Her heart raced at times when she was with him and she felt this warmth in her when she got to feel his hands on hers. The thoughts of it at times made her blush hard, coupled with the times she recalled seeing him without a stitch of clothing on. She prayed that she would get the chance to finally tell Mr. Alien, before something bad would happen.

 

Naturally…they weren't the only ones who thought about Kyo…

 

“Sara…It's going to be another three hours before we can get the power conduit replacements for your Vanguard. They took a serious beating and need to be reinstalled again.” An engineer said as she spoke to the woman in question via communicator.

 

“Understood, take your time.” Sara Elsman replied as she was in her room. She was busy thinking about the situation they were in and what possible solutions they could try. But her mind was filled also with the thoughts on what happened to Jura…and what it meant to symbolize.

 

She thought about her own upbringing…just like all the other members of the pirate group she too had been born with the ideal of giving birth as a great gift that should be cherished and respected in their world and where they would be. Sara's family knew that well, and their daughter, the second of three knew that too. Her elder sister was already the proud ohma of two beautiful daughters, and her youngest sister was soon to graduate from school and had many friends, all of whom loved to have a baby themselves. She liked the idea, but devoted herself to training to uphold the heritage of her family since her ohma was a combat instructor and her fahma was a field reporter. They agreed with her joining the pirates due to the fact that they didn't always understand why men should be considered as enemies, but they held the belief that women were better, and she naturally wanted to prove the truth in their teachings.

 

The thought of not being able to have children of her own made her feel horror, and that was enough for her to consider that maybe once the raid on the men was over nearly a year before she'd settle down and have a family.

 

Back then, after the raid she'd find a willing partner on Megele and settle down with the rest of the pirates, but naturally the event with the Paeksis had changed her plans. She worked hard so she and her fellow women would make it back home, but along the way she was assigned to the newly formed Vanguard squadron under Kyo's command.

 

Back then, the idea of her following a man's orders made her shiver in disbelief and disgust…but with Kyo, it was different, they didn't click well that was for sure, but they did fine, and seeing a softer and gentler side of the tough male pilot made her smile. Despite the fact he was her commander she'd wonder what it would be like for her to have a partner like him. The idea of her having a relationship with a man would have shocked her entire family and her world's society in general, and she honestly wondered at times why she felt this strongly for Kyo. But she thought now that with time, things could be very much different. Kyo was a man worthy of respect and he was…nice.

 

The reality that she or Kyo could be killed in this war made her realize something…that was, that someday she would have to see how Kyo would take it if they had a relationship that went beyond that of commander and officer. She liked him and who knows where that would lead to, and she was willing to find out since it would make her understand what it was like in the past, as she began to take an interest in it since learning about men and women living together.

 

In the Register…

 

“Incoming delivery for the Dreads!”

 

“The Vanguards need more servo-parts!”

 

“The engineers need more tools for the repairs! Somebody get them and send them to them quickly!”

 

“Easy girls, one order at a time, no need to get rushed or over-worked. And smile!” Gascogne called out to her staff as the Register was busy filling out orders for the needs of maintaining the ship.

 

“Yes Ma'am!”

 

Mai sighed as she also smiled and worked on helping out her fellow Register members and coordinate the repairs of the Nirvana and the Dreads and Vanguards. But she had her mind on other things as well.

 

Gascogne noticed that and decided to give Mai some time to think since she already had an idea as to what or who she was thinking about.

 

“Mai, you need to rest.”

 

“Oh…I'm fine Miss Gascogne. I'm sorry if I'm holding you and making you worry.” Mai realized then that she had diverted all her attention on something that she didn't need to think on, there was so much to do.

 

Gascogne merely smiled. “No worries, besides once things are back into working order you'll need to prepare for the reprisal assault on the Harvesters. I'll handle the work-load.”

 

“But…”

 

“No buts…as you're boss in the Register, I insist you take a break.”

 

With that Mai was taken out of the Register, and many agreed since she was among the others of their group who were part of Kyo's Crusader Squadron.

 

As Mai walked to the room where she was in she wondered about the situations they were in. But her concern was with Jura. Her relationship with Jura was that of comrade and she felt very sad that she was badly injured in the fight they had with the Harvesters, and she felt relief that she was safe. But she learned from the incident that at any time she or others could be killed in this war. Nothing was permanent in the universe.

 

This also made her realize that the same could happen to Kyo, though he was brought back to life by the power of the Paeksis, she doubted that it could happen again, and this would mean that her chance to form a relationship with him would be gone forever. The thought of her having a relationship with a man back in the past would have horrified her and made her feel like she broke all the rules and teachings of not just Megele, but her family.

 

Kyo however wasn't the kind of man that her family had described, nor was he the kind of man portrayed in the many propaganda films her world had shown to them when they were children. She was the second eldest of four children, her ohma was a military advisor and her fahma, was a factory supervisor, thus showing why she worked hard and learned quickly the trades. Though her ohma and fahma were disappointed in her joining the pirates, they agreed and made sure that a supposed `accident' made it seem that she was lost in a routine delivery. Her ohma and fahma didn't like some of the things the Megele government did, but they made sure that she would never forget her family's creed in dealing with men. Now…she realized that the creed was no longer an idea that would be very beneficial at all. Kyo had shown that not all men were vile, honourless, and cowards. He showed that although men were not perfect, they were very much capable of honour, respect, kindness, and dignity. This made her feel ashamed when she thought about how she acted around him in the past…and she was happy that things were smoother between them, though she still hoped that she could get the chance to get to know him more, besides…she still had a date with him.

 

*************

 

In the Medical Bay…

 

“Kyo…are you all right?”

 

“I should be the one asking you that question Jura, not the other way around. How are you?”

 

Kyo walked over to Jura and got a chair to sit beside her. He couldn't help but stare at her. Her head had a bandage on it, her hair was a mess of tangled curls looking like a tornado had played on the tresses, she had bandages on her arms from other shrapnel wounds, and he knew that she had bandages on her body, namely where…she had been seriously wounded, even if she had a blanket on her. He avoided staring at it, but admitted one thing…

 

Despite being bandaged, still in recovery, looking like a mess…Jura was still one thing…beautiful…beautiful and alive.

 

“I feel fine…no matter how crummy I really feel. I must look like a ragged doll to you right now.”

 

“Not really. We need to talk.” Kyo said as he gazed at her and held her hands.

 

“I know…”

 

“What in the name of all that's sane made you go back there? You could have been killed, and you nearly were too.” The desire to shout at her was still there, but Kyo know that it would just make her feel even worse than she already was. But certainly didn't mean he didn't feel angry towards her.

 

“I know…I'm sorry…I…I just didn't want to lose you.” Jura said lamely as she looked at him, she saw in his eyes how angry he was, there was relief in his eyes as well, but she knew that what she had done must have been a shock to him.

 

“So you think by going back and nearly dying I'd be safe?!”

 

“No! Look, I don't plan on losing you…and I don't want to…”

 

“Look…I…appreciate what you did, but losing your life would not have been a good idea…”

 

“I know…but you…”

 

“Does this have anything to do with you wanting a baby? Jura, you have any idea how close you came to NOT having any?!”

 

“So what would you have wanted me to do…stand by and watch you die, along with my other comrades?!” Jura forced herself up, rather angry and despite the pain that began to creep up on her she glared at Kyo.

 

“That's not what I meant!”

 

Jura got angry and pushed Kyo's hands away. “You have no idea how I feel, do you?!”

 

“What?”

 

Jura began to cry as she pounded him on the chest, she was still weak so her hits didn't register as too much pain on Kyo. But Kyo realized that she was still healing and if she began to struggle like this, she'd aggravate her own injuries. He held her but she didn't stop hitting him.

 

“Jura, stop this, you'll make your pain worse. I'm sorry, it's just…”

 

Jura however didn't stop as she looked at him with tear streaked eyes…making Kyo wish he never brought up the subject of her risking her life and nearly losing the chance to have children. But she surprised him by moving away and slapping him on the face, the hit wasn't hard and Kyo ignored it, but wondered why she did this, he then decided that she was having a great deal of emotion and didn't react, but she then held her hands n her face and sobbed even more.

 

“You…have no idea how I feel…about you…”

 

Kyo was stunned when he heard that. “What?”

 

“I…want you…I want you so bad…and even now I can't fully understand it. Every moment I think about you…my heart feels so empty if I don't see you…”

 

“Jura…”

 

The blonde then glared at Kyo with moisture in her eyes. “No, hear me out. Please…”

 

Jura sobbed and decided to tell him what she felt. “…and when I see you, my heart beats so fast, and I feel weak and strong when you're near. I want to see your face so much, it hurts me when I don't. When you kissed me on Anpathos, I felt like my body was hot and I felt I'd collapse…and when you kissed me after that, I feel so safe with you…”

 

“When you died the first time, I felt a part of me died with you…and when you came back to life… I felt like I could fly. I loved it with when you would blush and stutter when I get close to you. I feel happy when you call me beautiful I feel safe when you are with me. I even have dreams about you…and me…together. At first…back before you kissed me, I would have considered those things…these…feelings as a mistake….I should have…but they keep coming and instead…instead of being a mistake…I feel like they were the most wonderful feelings I have ever had…. When you kissed me and…nearly…had sex with me…I felt like I was in paradise, the way I feel about you… is so new…and I…I don't want them to…go away…ever. As much as I don't…want you to leave me…”

 

Jura cried once more and Kyo decided to just hold her. She didn't resist and her sobs became quieter as they embraced.

 

“I don't want you to die…I feel so much with you…that…that if you die, and I…I didn't try to save you…I would die all over again…and this time…now that…I…feel this much for you…I don't think…I would…survive it.”

 

Kyo knew that what Magno told him was the truth, the feelings the girls, such as Jura had for him were deep, and if he didn't at least acknowledge how he felt for any of them, including Jura, then he would be hurting them deeply, and the wound would be more painful than any physical pain they or he would suffer.

 

“Now you understand why I am angry with you.”

 

Jura's eyes shot open and she looked at Kyo who looked back at her and before she could do anything, he kissed her on the cheek first. Then he spoke…

 

“Because I care about you too Jura, and if you died…in front of me…then part of me will surely die with you, and I don't think I could survive that.”

 

Jura said nothing as more tears flowed down, and Kyo kissed her, and like what they did when she nearly succeeded and making him have sex with her, they kissed deeply…as if they wanted to remember this moment for all time, no matter how long or short it would be.

 

The deep kiss lasted for nearly three minutes, but to the two, it felt like three long years.

 

Kyo thought about what he was doing, and also how would the others react if they saw this. Meia and Dita would be crushed and shocked, and he didn't even want to know how Sara, Mai, and Misty would take this. He knew that he had feelings for them too, very strong feelings, and they were separate and unique from the feelings he had for Jura. And their reactions to this situation would be unpredictable and no doubt they would be hurt and angry…at both him and Jura.

 

But for now, just for now this was just between him and the blonde pilot. He would have to talk about the situation he was in to them all soon, but for now, Jura's pain was the one thing he wanted to suppress and heal. She needed this…

 

Jura thought about what she was doing, and also how would the others react if they saw this. Meia and Dita would be crushed and shocked, not to mention things between them will become even harder to deal with, and she didn't even want to know how Sara, Mai, and Misty would take this. Dita, Meia, Sara, and Mai all had feelings for Kyo, very strong feelings, she knew that for a fact, and if they saw this, there would be some very serious problems between them.

 

They were her comrades for many years and as they went on this journey she saw them change because of Kyo, along with her…and if they saw this, they would never forgive or forget it…but for now, that wasn't her concern… She needed this so much… to know that Kyo did care for her.

 

When the two separated, Jura merely smiled and Kyo looked at her while wiping away her tears with one hand. She felt some of her burdens removed since Kyo admitted that he cared deeply for her.

 

“Thank you…but I know…you care too much about others too…”

 

“Yeah…that's why I can't exactly…well, be intimate with anyone right now. You have a lot of friends and comrades, apart from Barnette on this ship…long before I ever came into your life. I don't want to break that friendship with me presence.”

 

Jura was silent at that, she wasn't as flighty as others would think since she liked to observe. Dita was becoming more mature around Kyo, Meia was loosening up and becoming more open, no doubt to being close to Kyo, Sara was becoming better and more capable, Mai was getting past her family's policy towards men…and Misty was trying at the very least to make due with the people in the ship. Many others began to change due to Kyo showing that men and women could work together and could achieve so many amazing things together, and this changed many of the crew for the better.

 

Kyo changed a lot of people, including her.

 

He then gave a slight smile. “And to add to that, you want a baby…with me. I still don't think that now is a good time for me to be a father of all things.”

 

“You mean…you don't want to have a baby…”

 

“It's not because of you…hell, any guy I know who's been around women all his life would jump at the chance to be with you. Plus I felt that I could be like my dad, even if I didn't see him before, I know he loved my and my mom. But I don't want to leave and disappear to leave our child as if I never existed if we fight out there. I don't want any child or our child whether it is a boy or girl to grow up in the world, without either of us taking care of him or her…”

 

“Not to mention…if we did have a baby and you went out in battle…pregnant with our baby, and what happened to you would happen again…but our child would…die…how hard do you think it would be for you to live with that?”

 

Jura was silent as she nodded. The thought of her bringing a baby in a dog-fight and getting her child killed sickened her immensely. She was a pirate and it would be needed for her to fight, but no way she would endanger and innocent life, even more so if the life as that of her child. And she considered what would happen if she did have a baby with Kyo's seed, then how painful would it be for the child if something happened to her and she wouldn't be there for her baby. Or…if Kyo died and she and her baby would be alone… she didn't want that, she wanted Kyo be near her and their baby. She wanted to Kyo to teach their child all that he could so their child whether boy or girl would be prepared for the new world they were fighting for.

 

“Or how would I handle losing our child…or both of you at the same time? I will never be able to live with myself if that happened to you and our child. I'd fail in my duty as a father, and as a…husband. And that kind of failure will haunt me till the day I die.”

 

Kyo looked at Jura and hoped that she could understand his dilemma when it came to things like this.

 

“I do care about you…very much Jura, and I hope you can understand me since' I'm like this right now.”

 

“I understand…and I'm sorry. But I still won't give up on having a baby…but, thank you for telling me…I appreciate it.” Jura said she began to lie down back on her bed.

 

Kyo gave a sigh of relief in his mind as he helped her lay back down on her bed. “Thanks Jura, now you need to rest, get well and maybe…things will work out.”

 

“I hope so…” Jura said as she rested on the bed.

 

Kyo then kissed her one last time and she responded lovingly as they parted. Though both knew that they still had deep feelings for each other and they would still have a long way to go before things could be serious. But at least their cards were now on the table…

 

Both mentally chuckled at themselves for using Gasco's favorite phrase.

 

*************

 

In the Nirvana's halls…

 

Kyo walked into the Register and looked at the darkened room, he spotted the deck that he normally used when he battled with Gascogne, and decided to sit down and think over the situation. The head of the Register and her crew ere busy helping the rest of Parfet's engineering teams to help get as many Dreads and Vanguards operational as possible

 

He knew that this was a critical time, and the ship's crew was going to have to do something drastic to win this one. He began running some scenarios in his mind so they could come up with a solution…

 

“Smile, smile.”

 

Kyo turned and drew his sword halfway out and spotted a strange mushroom shaped doll making some weird motions, he frowned a little as he waited for his unexpected companion to show him/her self.

 

It didn't take long for him to see Dita pop out like a jack in the box near a table, the doll was a hand puppet and appeared to be one of Dita's playthings. The Dread pilot smiled and gave a cheerful expression.

 

“Hello Mr. Alien.”

 

Kyo shook his head a little and sighed, his thoughts were so focused in the situation they were in that he didn't sense the redhead. He got up and faced the Megele girl who stood up and faced the object of her affections, who sheathed his half-drawn sword.

 

“What are you doing?”

 

“Just trying to make you smile Mr. Alien.”

 

Kyo sighed, since sometimes he wondered what it would take to get Dita really down, and shook his head. “Just how can you remain so cheerful when things are this bad anyway? You have any idea how serious things are right now?”

 

Dita looked away a bit and looked a little downcast. “I…when I was still a little girl, something happened to me.”

 

Kyo realized that what Dita would say was serious. “What happened to you?”

 

*************

 

Flashback…

 

We see a housing complex on Megele become dark as it's power was taken from it and we see all the inhabitants, young and old mill around in shock and despair. Voices of sadness and disappointment filled the air as the women tried to come to terms of the events that had just taken place.

 

There, stood a little redhead, who appeared to be only eight years old, holding a little doll that looked like a classical alien figure. The little tyke was wearing pajamas made of yellow cloth. Her deep blue eyes shone with innocence and confusion. And her long hair of crimson flowed behind her like a banner.

 

As the images flew, the little girl tried to help out her fellow women, but winded up making a few messes, one of then included spilling a bucket of water intended to clean and mop the floors. However, instead of making angry noises and scolding the little girl, the others smiled and began to laugh, as the little redhead looked on in a clueless and innocent manner.

 

The laughter continued and so did the smiles as the little girl asked silly questions about a book that she was reading as the women crowded around her and laughed and smiled.

 

The little girl then continued and made a funny face and smiled joyfully as the women around her smiled and laughed as all feelings of sadness left the others as they gazed at the smiling little girl.

 

The little girl's name was…Dita Liebely.

 

*************

 

End of Flashback…

 

“That little girl…was you?”

 

“Yes…that's why I don't like it when people I like are sad, because it makes things so lonely and scary. That's why I want them to be happy, so that's why I always smile. But I wonder if I overdo it sometimes.” Dita said as he sat down next to her Mr. Alien.

 

“I think that you did great in that respect, you're always making others feel happy, so there's nothing wrong. I heard how you gave that speech back a few months ago…that was very good, and you made other people happy from then to now, so don't be sad or think you're overdoing it.”

 

“Thank you Mr. Alien!” Dita said as she glomped onto him, naturally making him very aware of his hormones once more. But he quickly restrained them as he and Dita heard an incoming call from Meia.

 

“Kyo, we need you in the Planning Room, we may have something to beat the Harvesters.”

 

*************

 

On Earth…

 

“The Nirvana is still undetected, our forces are scouring the location as we speak.” The lead technician reported to the Council as they waited in anticipation for the final battle and eventual death of the Nirvana, and it's crew…with them gone, the Harvest will not be stopped.

 

“We do not care, have ALL areas of the sector scouted, find them…and terminate them.”

 

The leader merely watched as he and the other members of the Council waited for the out-come of the operation. There was now way the Nirvana will survive this trap.

 

*************

 

In the Nirvana's Planning Room…

 

“All right, I'm all ears on this plan you have in mind Meia.” Kyo said as he and Dita came into the room, with her holding him tightly by the arm. This naturally gained some stares and some hidden glares on the bubbly redhead. Kyo sighed a bit and hoped that things don't get out of hand even more.

 

Meia broke her stare at Dita when she heard Kyo's question. Just like many times she was getting rather peeved at Dita when the apprentice Dread pilot glomped onto Kyo, though she resisted the idea, knowing how much Dita had grown due to Kyo's influence…like she did.

 

“You recall that Message Unit that Misty had with her when we found her?”

 

“Yeah, the one with the trap virus that went around and disabled the Nirvana. I haven't forgotten how much of a pain that was. So you want to download the virus in that module into the CPU of the Harvester's battle-ship?”

 

Meia nodded as she began explaining the strategy to him and the others. “That's the main idea. Remember how this module nearly shut down all the systems on the Nirvana?”

 

“How could I forget? I spent most of the battle time trapped in an elevator.” Kyo answered. <Not to mention delivering Ezra's daughter.>

 

Parfet nodded as she brought in some more information on the War Room's holographic monitor. “According to the data we recovered from our last encounter with the enemy, we discovered that all of the smaller units, their Gundam units, and their new weapons, are controlled by the Earth Battle-ship, which uses special remote control wavelengths. But in the situation we're in, it appears that the battle-ship that doesn't have Mirage Colloid is the main command unit. It has been the only one sending those special wave-lengths to the rest of the battle-ships that are part of it's fleet.”

 

“Hmm…that would make sense. Not to mention the energy requirements of Mirage Colloid are very high. That would explain why most of the other battle-ships' weaponry are either removed or reduced in power consumption. The power would be used to contain the Mirage Colloid particles to ensure that the ships would remain invisible. Kouji and Maia told me that they needed to watch their Gundams' power cells so they don't burn too much energy with either the Mirage Colloid or the Phase Shift Armour. So that means the other battle-ships had to sacrifice a lot of features to make room for both the Mirage Colloid generators and the power reactors, since not only do they have to keep out of sight, but also their own units until they were deployed were also under the Mirage Colloid's influence.” Kyo said as he gazed at the latest data readouts in the screen.

 

Duero McFile nodded as he was also there in the briefing along with Max McFile.

 

“According to the research we both have done, the Harvester Armada in general acts like a living organism. That is to say, that each separate unit, such as the Cube Fighters, the GunDread Clones, their Gundam units, and even their latest weapons functions as extensions of the main `brain' as you could describe it. The brain is naturally the central computer of the Earth's Flagship. It's through that, which allows the Harvester forces to be able to act in concert with each other. If one component is attacked, the others would defend it. However, if the main control network was attacked and disabled, then in theory, the entire fleet will become inoperative. It may be possible however that the other Harvester battle-ships may still have basic combat protocols to activate should they be deactivated, hopefully the virus will affect them as well.” Duero replied.

 

“Why can't we just jam their wavelengths?” Barnette asked.

 

“That would reduce their capabilities, but not halt them entirely, Barnette.” Max interjected. “There will be the possibility that they have back-up communications waves should the ones they use will be rendered worthless by us.”

 

Parfet nodded as she brought up an image of the cucumber-like battle-ships. “Max is right, the main Earth battle-ship has more than enough firepower on it's own to destroy us, and even those battle-ships that gave up a lot of weaponry to house their Mirage Colloid system have considerably high amounts of fire-power. From what I can tell, the Harvesters are merely toying with us. Besides that, we can't jam their frequencies forever since they operate on a random energy modulation pattern. The best shot we have of winning is to take out the central control system. Once taken out, the other units will lose all their primary command and function protocols. Plus the other ships that have Mirage Colloid rely on the main ship without the stealth feature for data, and they too will be infected by it since the virus was retooled to `piggy-back' as Duero puts it on the Harvesters' communication networks…if the main battle-ship is infected then it's communications will send the viruses to the other battle-ships as well.”

 

“We can cause a big diversion and secretly send in a raiding squad into the ship. Once they get in and reach the main system, the virus can be uploaded, which will cause major functions to cease. Furthermore like I said, once the virus gets online, it will also infect the others as well. We can take them down with one clean shot. Though how we wipe them all out is going to be one heck of a trick.”

 

“What about the other battle-ships? I doubt they plan to let us just waltz up to their main command ship and let us in.” Sara asked. “Don't forget we still have to deal with that new Gundam they have…the Behemoth. And the new clone…”

 

“Well, according to our analysis, we've got the exact amount of fighters and pilots to pull this one off. Plus, Parfet and her staff have one more surprise for the enemy…even those two.” Meia replied

 

The bespectacled girl nodded. “Even though we can't disrupt the Harvesters' control frequencies indefinitely, we can launch a sizeable electromagnetic pulse that will cause them to lose momentary contact with their all forces. You all have just about a ten second window. That should be enough time for you and I-Freedom to combine with Meia and punch your way through the command Earth battle-ship's hull. The rest of the raiding team will follow. We've done some close estimations to the main computer's location, once you all get there, upload the virus, and the rest will fall into place….hopefully.”

 

The other pilots nodded as they realized that this was their best chance of winning this encounter. Kyo however felt that it might not be that easy. He felt that the enemy had other secret weapons in their demented arsenal waiting for all of them. Plus there were two factors that bothered him.

 

His first concern was the lack of any Gundams in the Harvesters' side. Apart from the Behemoth Gundam, there were no signs of any Dominion units, no GunDread Clones either. It was as if they were relying solely on numbers and their Cube Fighters more than made up in that department. But even with their updates they were still not in par with the pirates since the pirates were very much familiar on how weak they are in many ways. Granted the Nirvana clone was deadly in itself, but it too would have weaknesses, especially if it was attacked in point blank range.

 

The second concern in his mind was also still the absence of Dominion Gundam units. If the Harvesters could build a Gundam of the size of the Behemoth…then what would happen if they had developed other Gundam models…and where they being held in reserve? There was a massive amount of room in that battle-ship so he won't e surprised if there more Dominion models, and any of the new ones he felt the Harvesters had in reserve.

 

*************

 

Kyo's suspicions were right on the money…since right now…

 

In the bowels of the Harvester battle-ship…the one managing the whole mission…the Gundam units held in reserve were still there and ready to be deployed. The Devastator, Hell-Fire, and Wyvern Gundams were still being held in reserve but they were also being given new directives.

 

It was possible that the pirates would try something soon…so the Mirage Colloid armed battle-ships were spread out in a loose net pattern as they probed the area, searching for their quarry. The new Gundams remained as reserves and the trump card against the Infinite Freedom Gundam. Had they been manned with pilots, the people would have been itching terribly for a fight, but since they were CPU operated, they were to wait until given the go signal.

 

*************

 

The Nirvana…

 

While the crew of the pirate vessel prepared for their latest gamble against the Harvesters, a certain blonde Dread pilot lay on her bed thinking about what she had heard from Kyo…about how much he really cared for her

 

Kyo: “Because I care about you too Jura, and if you died…in front of me…then part of me will surely die with you, and I don't think I could survive that.”

 

<I know he cares so much for me…and even if he didn't say what I wanted to hear him say. I didn't say it either…but do I really feel…that for him?> Jura thought as she pondered on what she can do with her feelings for Kyo, and both their respective confessions.

 

On her world of Megele, she had grown up with the belief that creating a new life was the most sacred thing, and a woman had that sacred duty to help create the new generation. Becoming an ohma or a fahma was to be cherished, as the children she would create of give birth to would carry a part of her into the distant future. While she had grown up, she had always looked forward to the day she would hold a precious bundle in her own arms. Her dreams became even grander as she decided that Kyo could be part of her child.

 

Then…something changed. She couldn't explain it fully, but according to what the Captain had told her, she had begun to develop certain feelings and emotions towards the Gundam pilot, which by Megele standards, brooked close to both heresy and blasphemy. She was still shaken when Magno had told her…what she felt for Kyo…

 

*************

 

Flashback…

 

“NO! That can't be! That can't be true! I can't be…in…lo…love…with Kyo…I can't be…” Jura's voice trailed away like dust in the wind as she couldn't believe what the Captain told her about the feeling she felt for Kyo.

 

“Well, as far as I can tell, you've got all the signs and symptoms. Why else are you so determined to have his child and him by your side?” Magno stated as she gave the blonde woman a warm smile.

 

“And I have to be honest, I couldn't be more pleased and happy for you Jura. Kyo in my book is more than qualified as a husband to you and a father to your children. Though I think some of your fellow pirates may have those same feelings for him.”

 

“But…but…it's…impossible!!”

 

“Who said so?” The aged woman asked.

 

“It's…it's…impossible to feel LOVE for a man!”

 

“Oh? Why?”

 

“Because…”

 

“Because what?”

 

“Because…just…because! It's not done that way on Megele! There's NO WAY a woman…could fall in…love with a man…”

 

Naturally, the elderly Captain of the Nirvana was totally amused to see the normally proud and vain Jura, become so flustered and embarrassed over something so simple and natural since she was radiating it when Kyo was near, and she knew Jura wasn't the only one who had those same feelings as Meia and Dita were radiating them as well, though not yet in the same degree as Jura was. She patted Jura's shoulder to ease her tension and offered her some advice.

 

“Well, in case you have forgotten, we're not on Megele and besides, you haven't been back on our home world, since you joined this group four years ago. So does it matter if you are in love with Kyo and Megele thinks it's wrong? You joined up with us all since like many of the other girls, you wanted to get away from Megele and all of it's rules, it's mistakes and stupidity. Love is one thing we can't control, and I know that love that blooms between man and woman is no lie or crime…but is the most wonderful thing that can happen…yes it has hard times, but also has good times too. Remember the main reason why the pirates were formed? I formed the pirates and I became a pirate in the first place, because I wanted to explore new options and ideas. And to live the way I wanted to, free and with no stupid rules stopping me from making my own destiny, and not having to deal with the problems, that made me lose my home in the first place. And I hated the fact that I was not there with my husband to live with him and my son, who grew up without me to be with him.”

 

Magno then showed Jura a picture of her and her family…and Jura saw from the frame the love and security Magno had when she was with her family. To think that the elder woman was denied the chance to live with her family for nearly a hundred years was terrible.

 

“The day I left Megele to be a pirate, even I didn't know if my husband and son were alive…but I wanted to be free and explore the world once more and not restricted from finding my future for myself, the future I wanted to share with others, namely my family, though they may not be with me anymore. Out here, we all can decide what we want, how we want it, and when we want it. We don't have to worry about what others think, because we all were entitled to live the way we want to. We all work together because we all want the same thing, and that is freedom. We want the freedom to choose, the freedom to explore, and the freedom to live our lives to the fullest we can manage. We have no idea what the future holds for us, but we can face it properly if we are ready and willing to face the consequences that our decisions and choices bring along with them. That's what life is all about.”

 

“But…if what you're saying about how I feel about Kyo is true…then…”

 

“Then you need to ask yourself, is that what you truly want? And don't think on what the people back on Megele's government would think or say about it. They have absolutely no business with your own life. This is your decision and yours alone.”

 

Jura remained silent for a very long time as she thought about living with Kyo, and then considered the possibility without him by her side. Finally she gave the captain the barest of nods, which signified her decision.

 

Magno nodded back to her. “I see that you've made your choice, and I pray that good fortune will be with you.”

 

“I know, I guess no matter what, I made this decision so I must see it through to the end.”

 

*************

 

End of Flashback…

 

Jura sighed as she recalled that discussion, and wondered what she should do now. At the moment, she could still fly but her pain hadn't subsided and her wounds still need time to heal. But she felt very restless and wanted to do something to help the others, even in her current state. When Barnette came and greeted her, the two friends began to talk to one another about their situations, and the plan of the pirates to defeat the Harvesters. It was there that Jura made another decision, that would be a change for her. She then asked that before she left to fight, Barnette would call over Duero and Max.

 

*************

 

The Harvester Fleet…

 

The lead scout Cube Fighters were busy reaching the nebula where the Nirvana was last seen escaping from the fleet. They were about to activate their shields, when the lead fighter was suddenly blown to pieces…and in the flash a massive storm of beam fire came from the nebula, reducing over forty of them in a heart-beat. The others retreated to assess what had happened, but they were also attacked by an incoming barrage of missile fire.

 

From the nebula came the hated I-Freedom, and behind the Gundam came Dreads and Vanguards, with them came another hated unit, the ATCISS, the Liberty. The Cube Fighters got ready to fight, it was time…

 

*************

 

In the Nirvana…

 

“You want us to do what?!” Duero and Max were flabbergasted and shocked at Jura's request. The blonde had just asked them to give her some pain-killers so she could go out and fight with the others!!! That was probably the dumbest thing to ever ask a physician in the battle-zone.

 

“So you'll do it?” Jura asked.

 

“NO!! What you are asking is something that goes against every code of ethics we have as doctors!” Duero interjected.

 

“Besides, Kyo would never forgive either us or you if we let you out there and get yourself killed.” Max replied as well, adamant in the fact that Jura needed to heal instead of going out to get killed.

 

“Please…I need to do this.” Jura begged.

 

“No! What you should be doing is to rest and recover, and that's final!”

 

*************

 

The battle in space…

 

“I'll clear the front until Barnette can fire the weapon made by Parfet, we need to hit as many of the Harvesters as we can!” Kyo said as he and I-Freedom flew past several Cube Fighters and tore them apart with the beam sabers. He then placed one saber aside and took out one of his anti-ship swords, ignited the beam edge and jammed the massive sword into the closing maw of a Seed Ship, he pulled the weapon down, following the beam saber going upward. He then jetted away as the Seed Ship exploded in two pieces behind him.

 

Several Seed ships decide to gang up on him and fire their tendrils, but the Gundam nimbly dodges the attempt and slices into one Seed ship with it's anti ship sword from top to bottom, and with amazing forces, tosses the beam saber like a spear…skewering a Seed ship in the mouth as it was readying another batch of Cube Fighters and passing right through it and was picked up by the Gundam, who then stabbed a Seed ship from behind as that one too tried to release another batch of Cube Fighters.

 

More Cube Fighter conversed on the force of the pirates, and were being cut up by the pirates in a coordinated fashion. Most of them however focused on the Gundam and it's Ultimate Coordinator pilot, since the two were the greatest threats, that also was a mistake as the pirates took advantage of that focus.

 

Kyo took out his beam rifle, split the weapon and like a maverick cow-boy began shooting down Cube Fighter after Cube Fighter as they came in range. The casualties of the Harvesters kept on pilling and Kyo decided it was time to really cut a swath through them. He accessed his HiMAT and began targeting as many Cube Fighters and other Harvester units as possible…once all of them were detected, he charged all his ranged beam weapons to full over-charge mode.

 

He also went into Seed mode and in a moment…

 

The feathers once more broke from their crystal casings and flew beside their master and powered up, along with his other beam weapons, and they fired…

 

A massive wave of beam fire and solid projectile fire from the I-Freedom rained out and swarmed all over the gathered Harvester units like a wave of destructive energy lances. Hundreds of Cube Fighters were blown apart in mere moments, Seed Ships were skewered and reduced to desiccated wrecks, and Urchin ships were stripped of their spines exploded like balloons. The Harvester forces that were facing the Nirvana's strike team had just been severely mauled.

 

One Harvester battle-ship armed with Mirage Colloid faced off with the charging Gundam as both it and the Liberty fused once more, the ATCISS merging it's own Prominence Phase Shift Armour system with that of the I-Freedom. The anti-ship swords and their rack had been lifted and had become beam cannons on the side of the Liberty as the blade emitter on the front had been retracted and the beam emitter in the handle and grip became a beam cannon, adding another set of weapons to the ATCISS. They had to destroy the cursed Gundam no matter what it took.

 

Kyo once more bombarded the Harvesters' vast numbers with his beam and solid weapon arsenals and that of the Liberty's, as he spotted the incoming Harvester ship. For a moment, he recalled his near death when he was with the Melanos forces against one of those things, and his defeat and death in the past when another tagged teamed with the first Dominion Gundam. He however had been given back his life and he was wiser and more powerful now. He was going to show this battle-ship and it's AI HOW he really fought.

 

Dodging with amazing grace and speed the incoming weapons-fire, Kyo guided his Gundam very quickly and fired it's arsenals once more, reducing a group of Seed ships trying to stop it from attacking…he then ignited the Liberty's massive beam sabers and slashed the sides of the cucumber like battle-ship, since it had shed off it's Mirage Colloid cloak. The beam blades tore into the ship like a knife heated by fire would cut through melted butter. The two units flew close to it, and alternated between slashes and overhead stabs, giving the battle-ship an IMPRESSIVE amount of scars and filled with explosions.

 

As the two units separated, the battle-ship attempted to turn and destroy the Gundam, but Kyo had another plan. The feathers once more broke free from the wings and got ready to fire…

 

“YOU ARE NO MORE!!!” Kyo shouted in Seed mode as his eyes glowed once more…

 

The Gundam unleashed another barrage of beam fire that carved into the battle-ship causing massive damage…but the real attack came from the feather cannons as they swarmed all over the battle-ship, hitting it in various areas of value…namely the areas where Seed ships were released, the thrusters at the rear, the weapon ports, and even in the front where the main cannon would be…

 

The Harvester ship was now in a network of explosions and the damage was so overwhelming that it's CPU could no longer handle the massive strain of damage reports and short-circuited, coupled with that, the ship was no longer able to fight…

 

The ship now drifted like a wounded or dead whale as explosions continued to occur in the ship and it's forces could no longer fight at all, as many of it's units were now useless and floated in space like dead bodies.

 

Kyo was tired from the fighting but sucked it up and guided the rest of the Nirvana's forces as they mop it up and took the fight to the rest of the Harvesters. The Harvesters were reeling with the loss of one battle-ship, but that certainly didn't mean they were out for good.

 

*************

 

In the Nirvana…

 

“Damn! I have GOT to get Kyo to teach me how to do that!” Bart said as he watched in awe as Kyo took out a Harvester battle-ship in two minutes since he attacked.

 

Magno and BC were impressed along with the others. Sara, Mai, and Meia were in awe as Kyo took out a battle-ship in such a short time! The Dread and Vanguard pilots were in awe as well, and followed Kyo as both he, his Gundam and the Liberty continued the attack (*)

 

“WOW! THOSE BAD ALIENS ARE REALLY GOING TO GET IT NOW!” Dita cheered as she and the others moved in for the attack.

 

*************

 

As the fight moved on…

 

The Behemoth Gundam and the massive Nirvana clone wasted no time in greeting the Nirvana strike team with weapons-fire. The loss of one battle-ship was enough to make them get serious…if the I-Freedom could take out and literally cripple to death one battle-ship…then what would happen if it got to the main command ship?

 

Hordes of Cube Fighters were released from every functional Seed ship, and every functional Urchin ship went into the fight as the pirates came ever closer, a massive cloud of debris behind them.

 

Kyo however knew that now would be the best time to launch their true attack. He got into contact with Barnette as she flew next to him.

 

“Barnette…once I separate from Liberty and charge, I`ll fired another barrage then you fire Parfet's weapon. The blast is right in range since those two new weapons will be coming in fast and hard.”

 

“Understood…juts clear the path for me.”

 

Both Dread and Gundam closed the gap, dodging even more weapons fire. Kyo then disengaged his Gundam from the ATCISS, took out his beam rifle, split it into two weapons and began bombarding the incoming units hitting at specific weak points of the Cube Fighters and hit tem quickly. In order for Parfet's weapon to work effectively she would not be allowed to fire either missiles or beam cannons…since this weapon was a one shot deal.

 

Kyo began to wait as he once more locked in his full beam arsenal…his Gundam's cannons immediately opened and the wings' feathers broke away from the wings. In a heart beat after acquiring all the targets, Kyo fired all his weapons in full power.

 

Another barrage of beam fire tore into the hordes of the Harvesters…more Cube Fighters were blown to bits since they had bunched up like grapes, and several Seed and Urchin ships were also returned to the scrap heap. The Cube Fighters decided to break their formations and make it less likely for more than one to be hit, but this was the move Barnette was waiting for.

 

“Here you go…we've got a real nice gift for you!”

 

From the special weapon pod the engineers had installed in Barnette's Dread came a glowing red ball of powerful energy. Once it was able to bypass the mess of Cube Fighters that broke up. The pulse ball exploded in less than a few seconds. Covering a massive sector of the central Harvester forces…and where both the Behemoth Gundam and the Nirvana clone were.

 

He energy bathed every harvester unit in the area and they all went dead as their CPUs were shut down by the powerful energy sphere's blast that was created by the Nirvana's engineers. The Cube Fighters and other units were put to sleep…but the pirates knew that it was not going to last.

 

Kyo once more fired his Gundam's weapons on full overcharge mode at one point in the main Harvester battle-ship, near the best spot close to the heart of the ship's CPU network. The full blast of all the weapons tore a massive gap for the strike team to get inside.

 

“Meia! Let's do it! Dita, Barnette, close the gap and let's fall in! Sara, Mai, you and the rest of the Vanguards and Dreads keep them from following us. If they get through, there's now way the rest of us will ever get out from here.”

 

“Roger!”

 

As the two machines united into the GunDread, the ATCISS fused with them to form GunDread Meia Alpha and they made a beeline towards the hole the Gundam had made…not caring for the numbers of Harvester units that got in their way.

 

They had just passed both the Behemoth Gundam and the Nirvana clone when the nearest Harvester units began to reactivate. But by that time, Meia' Kyo, Dita, Barnette…and their guest the Navi-bot Pyoro dove into the insides of the Harvester battle-ship.

 

The rest of the pirate strike team went on to their positions to hold the only escape route for the insertion force.

 

*************

 

In the Harvester battle-ship controlling the whole fleet…

 

The CPU was not in a good mood…apparently the pirates had found a way to deactivate it's forces and those from it's sister ships that converged to protect it. The attack from the Gundam of the pirates had left a massive hole in the side and it became apparent that the pirates had deployed a small but lethal strike team into it...no doubt they had figured out that it was the main command node for the entire fleet and they were after it.

 

It began to activate it's internal defences and deemed now would be the right time to spring the three new Gundams into battle…plus the reserve forces it had on combat stand-by just for this occasion.

 

*************

 

The pirate strike team were in shocked awe as they made their way through the bowels of the Harvester battle-ship. It was unknown as to why the Harvesters had covered the internals of their ship with pseudo-organic alloy, but it certainly scored points in the psychological shock factor. They all felt like they were in the body of a huge monster, and they were like bacteria to the Harvesters.

 

But they wasted no time on it since if they were bacteria…they were about of give this Harvester monster a serious stomach problem.

 

Out of nowhere came barrages of weapons fire some sections of the wall in random but lethal intervals. Apparently the ship had internal defences, but the pirates moved it up a notch and were able to avoid the weapons fire. They tracked the signal marker to the exact location as to where the CPU node of the Harvester ship was located. Once the got there they were awe as the inner hanger of the Harvester battle-ship resembled a humongous stomach and they realized just how easily the Nirvana clone and the Behemoth Gundam were stored in the ship they were in now.

 

Kyo then separated his Gundam and the ATCISS and then merged with Dita Dread to form their GunDread, while Pyoro used it's gravity filed generator to reach the target.

 

“Wow! I'm floating!” Pyoro said with glee…naturally that irritated the tense Gundam pilot.

 

“Need I remind you Pyoro, that we are literally in the enemy's guts and there's no telling just how long we have before they respond and blow us up to kingdom come?! So if you don't plan on winding up as floating junk in this behemoth's belly, quit playing around and get to work!!!” Kyo said with gritted teeth.

 

“Fine, I'm sorry…give me a few minutes to find the right access port.” The Navi-bot replied calmly as it moved to where the walls were and a possible access port. When others would say such things, the robot would sassily ignore them and retort, but with the Ultimate Coordinator Kyo, the robot knew better than to get on the guy's nerves with it's antics.

 

“How long will it be before they find out we're in here?” Dita asked as she scanned the area for the Harvesters' units.

 

As if in answer to the redhead's question, out from several areas of the ship came some Cube Fighters, and some GunDread clones, each of Meia's, Dita's, and Jura's GunDread forms…all of them ready to fight.

 

Barnette glared at Dita disapprovingly. “You just had to ask, didn't you?!”

 

“Sorry Barnette!” Dita said with an apologetic tone.

 

As the enemy forces came closer, Kyo checked himself and their GunDread. He then spoke to Pyoro.

 

“This place is about to get really crowded, you'd better hustle it!”

 

“I'm working on it!”

 

*************

 

The Nirvana…

 

“We've got word that the insertion team has entered the Harvester command ship and is now locating the access port needed to download the virus.” Misty announced as she kept track of the rest of Kyo's team via audio/radio/and visual connections.

 

“Seems that the Harvesters have given them some company too, I'm picking up multiple contacts from the Harvesters coming in.”

 

The rest of the bridge crew were silent as they waited for the success…or failure of the commando team they had deployed.

 

*************

 

Inside the Harvester command ship…

 

“Damn! I don't have time for you birdy!” Kyo shouted as he grabbed the wing of a GunDread Meia clone that had been annoying both him and Dita with constant attacks. The GunDread clone tried desperately to break free…but Kyo was in no mood to let it got without a farewell gift. The GunDread clone was brought even closer and the original GunDread Dita slammed it's blade armed right fore-arm and shattered it's head like a rotten melon. The two pilots then tossed the headless metallic carcass of the slain clone into a mess of Cube Fighters, and fired their cannons the second those locked into their shoulders. The blast caught several of the Cube Fighters and turned them into junk and ripped the arm off one GunDread Dita clone.

 

The two began blasting at every clone GunDread they could see to protect the little, Navi-bot until it did it's job.

 

Pyoro used a small laser in it's forearms to cut through pseudo-organic tissues and finally uncovered the circuits inside. He then began looking for the access port he needed to upload the message pod in and release the virus. The virus would then be uploaded to all of the Harvester ship's systems and in theory disable the entire fleet of the Harvesters they same way it nearly did the Nirvana a month and a half ago.

 

*************

 

“Damn! They certainly are getting more determined. Hey Pyoro…is there a waiting period on what you're doing?! This place is getting very messy!” Kyo asked he and Dita used one of their cannon s that melded with the arm to slash off the arm of the clone of their GunDread and slammed the weapon right in the chest and blasted the thing into nothing be recyclable junk. They then blasted more GunDread clones and Cube Fighters with the aid of Barnette and Meia, along with Liberty which quickly fused with GunDread Dita to activate Alpha mode. Outside, the rest of the commando team held the lines… the Vanguards had maxed out their stores of fuel and munitions and so did the Dreads…since the hole Kyo had made would be their only way out of this place.

 

“I'd like to see you get out of your Gundam and try doing this!” Pyoro retorted as it worked even faster…he then gave a happy chirp as he found what he was looking for.

 

“Hah! Found it, now for the hard part.” The robot said as it locked in the pod and began uploading the virus.

 

At this point the Harvesters realized that the little Navi-bot was the reason the pirates were not going to leave anytime soon and whatever the robot was planning to do would be a danger to the ship. So it made sense that one GunDread clone of GunDread Jura was going in at full throttle and got past Kyo and Dita, and Meia and Barnette were too far away to respond since they too were occupied by several clones. It almost appeared that the little machine would be reduced to junk as the machine closed in…and Kyo couldn't fire the GunDread's cannons since he might hit Pyoro.

 

But just as the enemy began to arm up and fire, another fighter came into the mix as a scarlet streak appeared and fired a massive barrage of laser bolts. The unexpected attack stopped the GunDread clone cold, allowing GunDread Dita Alpha to grab it and send it slamming into two more clones one of their un-enhanced GunDread and that of Meia's GunDread. They then unloaded their arsenals and reduced all three into worthless junk and leaving quite the mess on the wall as massive gaps and explosions covered the area, and even more so as some Cube Fighters got peppered hard.

 

*************

 

“I hope to late? I hate to make it to a party that's already halfway through!” Jura said happily as she got her Dread into defensive position with the others.

 

Jus then her communications came to life as Duero and max both appeared. “Don't forget Jura the pain-killers we gave you are NOT permanent, along with the stimulants, you still haven't recovered properly. You better come back alive, or Kyo will skin both of us.”

 

The blonde nodded and thanked the two physicians. It had taken her a load of cajoling and pleading to both the physicians and to the commander and captain to let her go out and fight.

 

*************

 

The Nirvana…

 

“Oh no! Captain, the Nirvana clone and the Behemoth Gundam are breaking through the lines and heading to where the insertion team is at!” Ezra reported as they saw the two behemoths in question break past their own forces and make for the hole that the Gundam had made.

 

*************

 

Pyoro then gave a cheer as he finished the last of the connections and activated the uploading command in the message pod. Considering the size of the ship the time for proper activation would be around twelve minutes tops for the virus to do it's work and destroy the main computer permanently. Hopefully by that time the insertion squad can hold out. But that was going to be something else as the room began to buckle and tremble as massive tearing sounds were heard all over the place.

 

It was also when the CPU of the Harvester ship gave the go signal as three pairs og eyes glowed in the darkness away from the fighting and three forms began to move and appear.

 

*************

 

“Commander! We can't stop them!”

 

Kyo got the message and spotted from the entrance as the Behemoth Gundam and the Nirvana clone came through the enlarged hole that they came from. Both were like eager men who were hungry and spotted a feast. But the Gundam pilot was in no mood to be in anybody's guts.

 

Before they all could react in time the giant's chest glowed once more as it fired the same red sphere at the enhanced GunDread Dita…which quickly blocked using it's cannons as shields. Kyo gave a scream of pain as the cannons barely held back the blast and he, his Gundam, and Liberty were forced back and apart from Dita's Dread. The redhead's fighter was badly hit and was sent to the far side of the room, with severe damage and with reduced functionality. She was still alive but that would be of no comfort to her as her Dread could not move to aid Kyo.

 

“Dita! Hang on!”

 

Meia rocketed towards her stricken comrade, but the Behemoth Gundam spotted her and unleashed it's cannons, sending a massive barrage of weapons fire. Meia spotted that and managed to avoid most of the attack but was hit in the engine and one of her main stabilizers just blown to pieces…the damage didn't make the Dread explode but rendered it inoperable. She tried to control her Dread as best she could but ended up floating right next to her comrade's own wrecked Dread.

 

“DITA! MEIA!” Kyo called out as he spotted them floating in the far away area. He was thankful they were alive…but he was not sure if that would remain a possibility if the two behemoths attacked. He then headed for Jura's Dread along with Liberty, since the GunDread Jura Alpha's shield would be their only chance though he wondered even more if it could hold.

 

But before he could reach Jura who also knew that they had to combine, another set of beam fire came out of nowhere, stopping him cold and hitting the Dread near the engines, and a large beam edged weapon came out of nowhere and slammed into Jura's Dread. It struck the blonde's fighter at the front shearing of one of the pincer like front parts, sending the Dread flying aside and near the rest of her comrades.

 

“Jura!” Barnette screamed as she frantically used her sensors to check on her comrades. She was relieved to see that all three women were alive and well for the moment.

 

*************

 

Kyo righted his I-Freedom Gundam as he then began scanning around for the source of the sudden attack. He spotted the triple pronged beam spear embedded in the nearby wall connected by a beam line.

 

<No way could that have come from either the Behemoth Gundam nor that Nirvana clone! So where?!”

 

In that same instant the weapon was pulled back and retracted to a spot near the wall that opened up and out came from the shadows a figure that had some similarities to a Gundam's frame.

 

<A Dominion Gundam model? No…the shape doesn't match…is it a new Gundam of Earth?>

 

The guess was correct as the frame looked somewhat less of the Dominion. It had bat like wings behind it and in the right had was it's beam edged wing spear. On the left arm appeared to be a pair of concealed gatling cannons. The Gundam was in deep red and black, and near it's back was what appeared to be claws. It also appeared to have a pair of short heat whip spears in the shoulder pods, and a beam cannon in it's head.

 

It too had Phase Shift due to the energy emissions coming from the surface of it's armour.

 

Kyo didn't realize it…but he was staring at the Earth's latest Gundam model…the Wyvern (**)

 

*************

 

The Nirvana crew were in shock as they viewed the arrival of the latest model of Gundam units in the Harvester's arsenals. The image of the Wyvern Gundam was now being relayed to them via Barnette's Dread.

 

“The Harvesters have a new Gundam model?” Buzam gasped as she looked at the Gundam that was now facing Kyo and I-Freedom.

 

“This one seems to be totally on the side of Earth.” Amarone answered as she scanned the Wyvern Gundam.

 

“Well it's not the only one! I'm picking up two more transponder signatures that are both Mobile Suits and have the Harvester signatures on them!” Celtic warned as she detected the said signatures.

 

*************

 

Kyo shook his head in disbelief as two more Gundam shapes appeared out of nowhere to flank the new Gundam of the Harvesters…and they looked to be just as lethal as their companion…

 

The second Gundam which was bigger in size, was decked in deep blue-green colours. areas of orange and red on them, like the new Gundam that first appeared this one had the signs of having Phase Shift Armour.

 

It had a full array of ranged weaponry…on the shoulders were massive beam cannons, there were two chest installed heavy energy cannons, there seemed to be missile pods and what appeared to be folded cannons similar to that of his Gundam collapsible rail-guns, plus it carried what appeared to be a massive bazooka, it was armed with head installed machine guns and even it's mouth appeared to have a beam cannon. Even it's shield appeared to have a set of weapons, namely a pair of gatling gins and what appeared to be an energy shield emitter.

 

Kyo now faced the Devastator Gundam…(***)

 

The last Gundam was decked in black, and dark green. It was slim and very fast in terms of appearance. Like it's two companions…it too was armed with Phase Shift Armour.

 

It was armed with gun pods on the forearms, along with a set of beam guns in the hips, and there was some sort of weapons pack that made it look like a demon…with two massive shield like appendages that had spear-like protrusions on the shields…along with what appeared to be magnetic rails on the inner area of the weapons pack. In it's hands was a massive anti-ship/anti-Mobile Suit scythe…giving this Gundam the look of a spectre of Death.

 

Kyo at last gazed at the final weapon of the Harvesters…the Hell-Fire Gundam (****)

 

Kyo wasted no time as all three new Gundams and the Behemoth began to strike at him and his Gundam.

 

*************

 

The three Dreads…

 

“Mr. Alien!!” Dita cried in horror and fear as she and the others watched as Kyo and his Gundam Infinite Freedom was attacked on all four sides. She then called up Meia and Jura in the communicators.

 

“We've got to do something for Mr. Alien!!! He's in real danger!!!”

 

Meia sadly shook her head as she tried desperately to reactivate her own Dread. “:No good, the Behemoth took out my Dread's stabilizers and one of my main thrusters has been totally destroyed. My Dread's nothing but a floating mass of metal and parts now!”

 

Jura also shook her head sadly. “The same here… My beautiful Dread's now worthless as a weapon! No matter how I don't want to say it…but Kyo's on his own.”

 

Dita tried desperately to power up her Dread…for a second the fighter came to life and made it by a few feet…but then it powered down and gave out. All three Paeksis powered Dreads were now worthless.

 

As it floated in the bowels of the Earth battle-ship, the Navi-robot was waiting to be picked up by Barnette's Dread.

 

“I hope Kyo can hold on until the virus kicks in!”

 

*************

 

Kyo wasn't technically alone as Barnette and the Liberty unit continued to pour weapons fire to support the Gundam…but they were held back by none other than Nirvana clone. Under the combat directives in it's CPU it would make sure that no one would interfere as the new Gundams will finally destroy the I-Freedom as per the orders of the creators. The technicians of the Harvest finally want to see the end of the I-Freedom's power by the hands of their new weapons.

 

*************

 

“Crap!”

 

Kyo shouted as he guided I-Freedom away from an incoming stab from the Wyvern's beam spear, but barely blocked an incoming strike from the Hell-Fire's heavy scythe. He jetted away, and was about to retaliate but had to use his Gundam's crystal wings to block a massive barrage from the Behemoth Gundam's cannons. Once eh cleared the blast he dodged another swipe, but was suddenly shocked as massive super heated green flame came out of nowhere…following the swing of the Hell-Fire's massive scythe.

 

Apparently the Gundam had special plasma gas containers in the scythe's blade holder, which released the gases and there was an ignition device that made the gas explode and ignite, creating a fire-storm of super heated plasma that could melt apart ship armour…the weapon would not only slice off a part of the target, but the super heated plasma gas that ignited would severely melt the target, adding even more damage to the enemy.

 

The I-Freedom jetted away and had to avoid a massive barrage from the Devastator Gundam that wasted little time trying to blow to pieces the vaunted Gundam of the pirates. It fired it's beam cannons on the shoulders, then the ones in the chest and the next in the mouth. As Kyo dodged the attack, the hip mounted guns came to life and fired out some solid projectiles that looked like grenades…and they were too…

 

The explosions were avoided, but they worked like fragmentation grenades (Frag Grenades to any Counter-Strike or FPS game buffs reading this part) as they released high explosive impact needles. The I-Freedom's Prominence Phase Shift Armour held tough, but that certainly didn't make things easy as Kyo barely dodged and incoming wave of beam bolts from the Devastator's shield.

 

Kyo charged at fought back, making the Devastator use it's shield's beam emitter as Kyo took out his Gundam's anti ship sword. He had to stop the attack as the Wyvern showed why it had the name. It turned into a dragon-like machine and charged…it's wings suddenly releasing beam emitters that created blades on the wings' front. T apparently tried to do what Barnette had done on her Dominion opponent with the wing of her SwitchBlade Gundam…and this time it was cut the I-Freedom in half!

 

Kyo evaded, but the transformed Wyvern suddenly turned around the fired it's heat whips, grabbing his Gundam by the leg and the left arm. It then aimed it's tail at him, with the tip being the beam spear, the weapon was poised like a scorpion's tail…ready to skewer him…

 

“Oh no you don't!” Kyo shouted as he quickly slashed off the nearest heat whip, namely the one holding his Gundam's leg. The Wyvern had to retreat and release him, Kyo intended to finish the new Gundam but it's partner the Hell-Fire unleashed another slash and this time when Kyo dodged it, his Gundam was hit by a barrage of bullets right in the chest and abdomen.

 

As he righted his Gundam he gave a growl as all four Gundams decided to strike en-masse to finish him off. He blocked a blow from Hell-Fire's scythe, but got hit by another batch of exploding needles from the grenade launcher of the Devastator. He then had to dodge multiple beam bolts from both Gundams as they tried to blow him to pieces. He was about to retaliate but once more had to dodge and use his Gundam's wings to block another barrage of weapons fire from the Behemoth Gundam. When he tried to recover he got hit by the long length of the Wyvern's beam spear it suddenly appeared beside him. He blow sent him flying into the direction of a wall.

 

“DAMN!!!!”

 

*************

 

“MR. ALIEN!!! YOU BAD ALIENS!!! LEAVE HIM ALONE!!!!”

 

“KYO!!! PLEASE DON'T LOSE!!!”

 

“STOP IT YOU BASTARDS!!!!”

 

*************

 

In the Nirvana…

 

As if sensing the desperation of both Kyo and the girls who were close to him…and were those it had welcomed into it's depths, the Paeksis began to glow with great intensity, almost like a mother…ready to protect her children. The crystal then began to make sudden changes on the Nirvana…as it began to access a certain head engineer's computer files.

 

Parfet was suddenly surprised as she detected that some of her data files were being hacked into.

 

“What the heck?!” She watched as files were being converted into pure energy…namely that of the data schematics of a certain Gundam. She had been able to download massive portion of Kyo's Gundam design specs, before when it was still the Freedom Gundam, and now when it became the I-Freedom, she also had been using the design specs for experimental ideas on a project she planned to do on her free time…it seemed that the Paeksis had determined them to be useful.

 

She then realized that it was the Paeksis that was doing the down-loading…she then looked at the crystal reactor.

 

“What are you doing now Paeksis?”

 

*************

 

The bridge…

 

Magno, BC and the others watched in horror as the I-Freedom was being hit on all sides by the four Gundams. They wished that thy could do something…anything.

 

That was when all the bridge crew saw their system being hack…

 

“What the heck is going on?!” Buzam asked as she spotted the Nirvana suddenly begin to act on it's own.

 

“Parfet! What is the Paeksis doing this time?!” Magno called into the Engineering Bay as she and the others were stunned as the Nirvana once more became alive.

 

“I don't know!” Parfet reported from the Engineering Bay. “The Paeksis is also downloading ALL my files on the Freedom Gundam before and after it became the I-Freedom! It's converting the data into pure energy!”

 

“What?!” The bridge crew were stunned as the Paeksis was once more acting alive. That was when they got a surprise from Bart in the Navigation Well.

 

“Captain! The Nirvana's taken command of the guns from me!!! It's changed it's targeting coordinates to these…give me a moment to figure them out…” Bart had taken a lot more training so as to be more effective in using the cannons. “What the?! That can't be right?!”

 

“Where are the cannons aiming at Bart?” Buzam asked the navigator, not liking the sound of his shock and panic.

 

“It's aimed…right at where Dita, Meia, Jura, and Kyo are at!?”

 

“WHAT?!”

 

They could do nothing but watch as they had tried to override the cannons but nothing could be done as energy began to make it's way into the cannons. They thought that something had gone horribly wrong and they were about to kill their own comrades when Parfet noted something.

 

“Hold on! The energy being fed into the cannons…matches the energy patterns of my converted data files!!! The Paeksis isn't going to destroy either the Dreads or Kyo's Gundam…but is actually going to download those files into them!!!”

 

The crew were shocked and surprised by this statement as the beams were unleashed by the Nirvana. Like the beams fired by their navigator/gunner the beams avoided hitting their forces and went deep to where the strike team were in. (*****)

 

*************

 

Kyo gritted his teeth as it looked like this would be the last battle as all four Gundams got ready to open fire. But he certainly wasn't going to let any harm come to the three girls behind him as he stood defiant towards the four Gundams of Earth…

 

The Hell-Fire, Devastator, Wyvern, and the Behemoth Gundams charged up their full weaponry intent on crushing the Nirvana's forces and wiping out of existence…

 

Dita, Meia, and Jura braced for the end….but they knew Kyo would defend them with his life…just as each of them would fight to protect him. If they were all going to fall, they would fall together as friends…and with him.

 

Kyo suddenly felt something…the same presence he felt in his Gundam when he went into SEED mode alongside his Gundam. It was telling him that tings would be all right, for him and his comrades.

 

Unknown to the three Dread pilots…their Paeksis enhanced Dreads had crystal power cores, explaining the power and strength of their Dreads…and as if in anticipation those cores were beginning to resonate with power.

 

On top of each Dread came a small crystal piece…like a jewel…

 

*************

 

The four Gundams open fired, unleashing a powerful wave of destruction right at them…but going a full distance ahead were the beams fired by the Nirvana…aiming right at the jewels.

 

*************

 

“NO!!!!” Barnette cried as she watched the event that would spell the death of all her friends and their bid to stop the Harvesters from winning…

 

*************

At that very instant… the beams fired by the Nirvana struck the I-Freedom, and the three Dreads…suddenly they all were surrounded by a nimbus of light.

 

*************

 

The firepower of the four Earth Gundams struck like a tsunami, engulfing the four machines in an explosive display of pure destructive energy. The four machines seemed to vanish and it appeared that this was truly the end…

 

Or was it?

 

*************

 

Inside their Dreads each girl closed their eyes…expecting the end…but instead of blinding light and pain unbearable…they felt a calming breeze surround them…and they opened their eyes…

 

They each were in a black world…and in that moment each of them were bombarded by memories of their past lives…some were good, others were too painful for them…and then they were replaced by their respective memories of none other than Kyo.

 

Dita saw every scene as if she watched a movie of her times with Mr. Alien…the good times, the bad times…and even the intimate times, which made the redhead blush as she recalled them…namely when she now saw herself locking lips with Kyo

 

Meia likewise saw her times with Kyo, from their hostile meetings, to their days learning to respect and trust one another, their growing friendship…and the times they were getting closer, despite her denials…she once more blushed as she saw herself in the dress and Kyo's adoring stare at her.

 

Jura saw her own times with Kyo, from the times she tried to get him to merge his Gundam with her Dread, the times she was sad…and when he kissed her on Anpathos, the times she tried to seduce him, plus the time they nearly had…sex. And recently their own private moment in the Medical Bay. Jura smiled and blushed as she recalled that.

 

A voice then called to them…a female voice…

 

“Not by will alone…or by strength alone…can you protect someone or something you care about. But by what you want the most and with…the right sword can you gain and protect that person or reason…”

 

They each Kyo nearby…waiting for her, he turned and smiled at her…waiting…

 

“Are you ready to take that sword and protect that one thing you want the most?”

 

All three girls nodded and answered the voice.

 

“YES!”

 

*************

 

Kyo was in awe as his Gundam was protected once more as massive amounts of energy flooded the systems of his Gundam. But he wondered how good would it be if his friends…and loved ones died while he lived.

 

That was when the presence told him that Dita, Meia, and Jura were not dead but were just…getting their swords.

 

<What the heck does that mean?!> he turned and spotted something…amazing…

 

The three Dreads were wrapped in a crystal cocoon that glowed like a heart. He wondered what was happening in there.

 

*************

 

All three girls opened their eyes…eyes that showed that they were in SEED mode. They saw that their Dreads had not been destroyed…but appeared to be in some crystal cocoon. But they saw that some things had changed…

 

An image projector suddenly appeared in front of the startled girls…and there was a glowing button, and they felt this urge to press it, feeling no malice near them…they did.

 

The projector began showing a OS system, it was moving a great rate…but the girls could understand it. The OS was running tests on their Dreads CPU, and to their own natural reflexes and skills. Weapons equipment options were displayed. Power networks and distribution protocols were also shown. Data drive use and information transfers were also being done at an amazing pace…

 

Each Dread pilot suddenly saw the image of their ship the Nirvana being displayed in a menu….filled with green light markers…and there was a title…and below it were six words:

 

MOBILE SUIT NEO OPERATION SYSTEM

 

Generation
Unsubdued
Nuclear
Drive
Assault
Mo dule

 

All systems updated and green-lighted

 

 

*************

 

The four Gundams were shocked as they watched the unbelievable…the I-Freedom had survived their concerted barrage where normal units would have been turned into nothing but atoms! They got ready to defend themselves as their sensors were nearly overwhelmed by the power readouts from the I-Freedom! But they were also stopped cold as they detected massive power centres coming from the three cocoons behind the I-Freedom!

 

Kyo grinned as he got ready to fight, and then he felt something behind him as he turned…and saw the cocoons begin to break apart…and out came three forms and when the light began fade…he saw the impossible.

 

“I don't believe it!”

 

*************

 

“Amazing!!!” Barnette said as she too was in awe at the sight of what had come out of the cocoons…

 

*************

 

When the light cleared from the three forms completely…the three girls were in awe as they looked at what their Dreads had become!!!

 

Dita's Dread was still in it's normal colour scheme of blue and green…but instead of the bulky GunDread of the past… it now resembled Kyo's I-Freedom! It didn't have the wings or the feathers, but had thrusters binders behind it with wings on it. The hips had collapsed cannons like Kyo's I-Freedom, there was a cannon in the abdomen and it appeared to have a pair of it's own beam sabers as well! There were two rifles behind it and there appeared to be energy condensers and formers on the forearms. And the head was totally similar to the of Kyo's own Gundam! And she noted that her new mecha now had the same armour system of Kyo's Gundam and that being Prominence Phase Shift! (*A)

 

Jura was in awe has her Dread took on the form it had as a second form when Kyo fused his Gundam with her Dread when they faced off with that hydra unit of the Harvesters over Anpathos! And this one has sleek feminine curves in selected areas…much like her GunDread Alpha form…including the same hair at the back of the head! On her new mecha's left and right forearms were diamond-like shields with green crystal as the centre. The energy emitters that formed her GunDread's shield were scattered in strategic parts of her body. The pincers of her Dread were now behind her and had handles, giving them the looks of massive anti-ship swords in the form of scimitars. There appeared to be powerful thrusters in her new mecha's back and legs. And like before her new mecha's armour colour scheme was still red. And she too could tell that her new mecha had the same Prominence Phase Shift as Kyo's Gundam! (**B)

 

Meia was also in awe as her new mecha was the same in form as Jura's but had her wings like that of an angel! The head do of her new mecha was the same as Kyo's own Mobile Suit. Her mecha was deep silver, gun-metal grey and with blue eye-lights. Her new mecha was sleek and powerful designed for speed and manoeuvrability…juts like her GunDread was. There appeared to be some of her Dread's old weapons and some very powerful looking new ones as well! There were some weapon pods on the underside of her mecha's forearms…and a beam rifle on the back of her machine's shoulder in easy reach. There were also collectors on the chest and front of the hands of her new mecha, plus some cylinders that looked like handles for swords. And like her other comrades' new machines her mecha too was armed with Prominence Phase Shift! (***C)

 

The three girls now realized that they were not going to pilot Dreads on this fight since their Dreads had now become…Gundams!!!

 

Kyo shook his head and smirked…The playing field had just been changed…BIG TIME!!!

 

*************

 

To be continued…

 

Author's notes:

 

Hi, I know this was supposed to be posted on Monday next week, but since I'm back to school and there's a food festival I might not be able to have enough time to update as often, so I'll post this now and update in ever chance I get.

 

Sappy, very sappy and dramatic, I know…but come on, at least Kyo's honest about it. Not to mention a lot of male heroes grief also when they find out the ones they care about, whether they acknowledge that they care a great deal for the person in question or not is their decision, namely their love interests are hurt…so Kyo's not that isolated, plus it makes him more like his dad, remember how Kira cried in Gundam SEED when he watched others die, and he felt that he did nothing to save them?

 

I know there are some guys who scorn others who cry, but at least those guys are honest about how they feel about something, instead of hiding it and letting it become even worse.

 

*************

 

Well that officially finishes this chapter! Things are going to be rather interesting now that the three Dreads have become Gundams! But don't think that's the only surprise I'll be pulling out from my hat!

 

That also means that don't think that the Super GunDread idea is out of the can either! I've got some special (and I mean special) ideas for that part of the story!

 

I'm going to enjoy my town's food festival so I won't make a new chapter until the end of the festival and my rest break at the beach. That means there will be a new chapter for next week only. Catch you later!

 

Stay tuned for the next chapter!

 

I need reviews and comments, constructive critiques, and suggestions so to make the story worth-while, so send them to me. Flames on the other hand shall be kicked out of here faster than a football in a soccer game.

 

*************

 

(*) Remember the scene in Gundam SEED Destiny when Kira gets the Strike Freedom after losing the first Freedom in a duel with Shinn…and he defeats 25 ZAKU and GOUF units…and when he takes out four Nazca class vessels using his rail-guns and the Dragoon beam cannons, leaving the crew alive in each ship, and leaving the ships dead in space? Well…you can guess the inspiration for the scene.

 

(**) Based on the Earth Alliance's second generation G-Weapon, the Raider Gundam

 

(***) Based on the Earth Alliance's second generation G-Weapon, the Calamity Gundam.

 

(****)Based on the Earth Alliance's second generation G-Weapon, the Forbidden Gundam.

 

(*****) This was based on the remote charging system in Gundam SEED Destiny, which is the Deuterion Beam Energy Transfer System or D.B.E.T.S utilized by the Saviour, Impulse, Gaia, Chaos, and Abyss Gundams to remote charge while in the battle-field.

 

However this version is used to transfer data of the Gundam design specs Parfet had taken and allowed the Paeksis cores in the Dreads to reformat and remodel the Dreads into Gundams…but sadly this is only once in the story as it is a one shot deal… you will never see this again in the other chapters to come.

 

*************

 

Now let us see where the designs for Dita, Meia, and Jura's newly constructed Gundams were based upon?

 

(*A) Based on…none other than Kira's new Gundam in Gundam SEED Destiny! The X20A Strike Freedom! Looks like she's going to really love her new closeness with Kira's son now isn't she?

 

(**B) Still the same design as that of the Sword Impulse, but with a greater set of surprise weapons and some of the lethal sexiness of the GunDread Alpha form…Jura is going to love them!!

 

(***C) Based closely on none other than the X10A Freedom Gundam piloted by both Kira and Kyo in the story! And it too will have some rather interesting weapons to go with it.