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"Alternative Directions: Options "Written By: Karina Disclaimer: I don't own Gundam Wing or the lovely
boys and their girls in the series. Wish I did. Please don't sue me.
I haven't even got a brass razoo to give you. Rating: Deffinately PG in Australia, at the moment,
but probably safer to say R for later chapters. Not sure about international
ratings Warnings: It will be 6x2, even though it does
not start out that way. After all, Zechs and Duo never met in Gundam
Wing and only spoke briefly over a com line in Endless Waltz. I've
tried to keep them in character as I saw them in the series. A bit
of language creeping in under stressful conditions. Pairings: eventual 6x2, past 2xH, 2+H,6x9, 1+R
Summary: Directions is set post Endless Waltz
and roughly 2 years have passed. Zechs and Noin are on Mars and Duo,
after spending some time with Hilde in a relationship leaves L2 to
join Preventers. Hilde was not happy about his decision. I guess enough
said. Here t'is, and I hope you like it. This is also AU for the standard
setting, as well as the series and Endless Waltz. Spoilers: Gundam Wing Series and Endless Waltz Many thanks to Dulin for volunteering to beta this. //... // thoughts
"Alternative Directions: Options"
Chapter 113 2nd March AC 198 Sanc New Port City Time: 01:16 Chang Wu Fei “In, Chang and get that door shut.” He grunted, neither an affirmative nor a negative sound, merely an acknowledgement of the instruction, not that he was inclined to linger in the blizzard any more than he needed to. He was half frozen, soaking wet and fighting a strange compulsion to return to the house and to its charming occupant. That compulsion was most disturbing to a young man who had never before experienced its like, not even in his much younger days when he had been wed at the insistence of the Elders for the good of his clan. // I do not understand. Why should I wish to return to her? Meiran never affected me like this.// He knew that he had the reputation at Preventers for being a cold fish and that he was supposed to have something of a problem with the status of women and their capabilities, but he could not help it if a natural reserve and shyness around the female gender was misconstrued by the general population. He had nothing against women in general and he certainly was not homosexual. No, he had nothing against women except that he thought that too many western women were too forward. He had been raised in a traditional colony with a traditional if admittedly archaic upbringing where the women of a family were strictly reared and protected. There were exceptions of course, his Meiran had been a warrior and considered him to be the weak one. He forced down a smile at that thought, submerging the small flash of regret at what the past had produced and settled quickly into the front seat of the car, slamming the door against the elements. Leaving his birth colony had been something of a culture shock and he was not certain that he had totally recovered from that shocking revelation. Earth had been so different from the traditionalist select education he had been exposed to. To say that he was grateful that Une had the car heater on full was something of an understatement as the warmth began to tease at his extremities. He had not had sufficient time within the house to do more than begin to thaw and the heat of the car was most welcome. He was not even inclined to demand an explanation for his return to the ways of a terrorist until he was more comfortable. He spared a long look at the house as the car pulled away from the curb and thought he glimpsed a movement of curtain and fought the urge to smile in what was no doubt a stupid fashion. What was wrong with him? He was never prone to such behaviour. He could almost call it sappy but he already knew that if time and opportunity permitted he would find himself back at this house in search of this intriguing woman. He glanced over at the driver of the vehicle unable to squash the flicker of surprise that the Lady herself was behind the wheel, but after a moments reflection he realized that he should have been far from surprised. This was undoubtedly a covert operation and Preventer Earth wanted as few people as possible involved. She looked tired and tense as she glanced at him, her brown eyes agate hard as she inclined her head toward the back seat of the vehicle. “There is a thermos of hot tea in the back of the car and a sandwich. Hop over to the back seat and you will find there a change of clothes. You can change while we talk and then have a hot drink.” The flash of indignation and outrage was quickly squashed at the sheer practicality of the suggestion given their current situation. He was half frozen and soaking wet and even the heater was not going to make much of an impression on his condition if he did not somehow get himself into dry clothing. He needed that change of clothing and was he really such a prude that he would ignore the constraints of time and opportunity for misplaced modesty? Une, while being of the opposite gender, was his commanding officer and she would be concentrating on driving and would need to focus her attention on that effort considering the conditions beyond the car. Why would she need to peek? //Idiocy. Do not dare blush, Chang. // It was as well that he was not the tallest Preventer on her staff he mused as he worked his way over the seatback and settled there, sorting quickly through the packages scattered about. The backseat had to be the most awkward changing cubicle he had ever had the misfortune to need to use, not the least reason being for its lack of privacy. He was pleasantly surprised with most of her selection though most of the garments offered were not what he normally would have chosen for himself. Given the situation he was not inclined to be picky and the white T shirt was something that he might have brought for himself though the western style shirt of dark blue to go over it and the black hipster slacks were not exactly to his personal preference. At least she had had the sense not to produce jeans. He knew he coloured a deep ruby blush with embarrassment when he found the black briefs at the bottom of a bag and wished that she had thought to acquire boxers instead but the blush was more for the fact that he was going to have to strip down to bare skin in the presence of a female who most certainly was not his wife. It simply was not done, but unless he wanted to find himself hospitalised with a case of pneumonia or most likely frost bite he was going to have to get it over with. Lady Une glanced in her side mirror and wished that she could see more than a vague glimpse of the road at a point about level with the bonnet of the car. There was no suggestion of headlights reflected in the mirror which led her to believe that thus far the operation remained secret. Wishing that she dared drive at a pace that might perhaps outstrip a pedestrian she hunched over the wheel, peering into the driving snow. From the rustles from the backseat she knew Chang was looking over the offerings she had brought for him and if he did not approve of her tastes then that was simply too bad, he could go naked in the snow for all she cared so long as he got the job done. “Are you going to explain to me what this farce is all about?” Wu Fei struggled to peel the wet coat from his frame and laid the dripping heavy wool over the back rest of the front seat, ignoring the shudders of cold that ran through his slender body. Physical discomfort was to be ignored as insignificant and he wanted to know what was going on that warranted such drastic action as to have him return to the ways of a terrorist. Why had it become necessary for him to blow up not only the woman's own house but also the palace of a young woman who was rather a good friend to the Preventers. He had been promised answers by Une and he wanted those answers. Now seemed as good a time as any to get them. “Did you have the radio on at any time since you left headquarters?” // If you think a radio bulletin about a Raider foray onto a space colony is going to explain this idiocy then you have another think coming. I will not be satisfied with that.// “Yes. Has this operation something to do with the news from Mars? I do not understand what a Raider attack on that distant planet could possibly have to do with my needing to play the elusive pyromaniac but I am willing to listen to your explanation.” //And you had best make it good. // “It is involved in the circumstances, yes, but now we have far more to worry about than I had at first assumed. Originally I needed to find a means of turning the attention of the media away from the raid on Mars. Primarily you should understand that there is no raid happening on Mars. The whole thing is a propaganda exercise designed to cover up a botched quasi military operation that I should have seen coming. My timing was out and as a result the matter is out of my direct control.” “A military operation on Mars? Why would there be a need for an armed force on Mars and why would they need to give the impression that Raiders are attacking? Beyond that, though, I do not understand why an operation on Mars should disturb you. We have ships out there who are far more capable of investigating and acting on this matter than we can from here. Why does blowing up a house and the palace constitute a diversion from something happening so far away?” //I must have answers and they had best be very good ones to merit such destructive action. There is another matter. Did I injure anyone? I tried not to but how can one control explosions so precisely on the spur of the moment, and that is what this entire affair has been. Opportunistic. // “I understand that we may have no ships in the immediate area, space is large after all, but to suggest that a terrorist group is active in Sanc merely to turn the media attention from the story is some what overkill surely. Was anyone injured in the attacks?” “No, Chang, no one was seriously injured in the attacks. A few cuts and bruises, but no life threatening injuries were sustained by anyone. You did very well. I needed something big, flashy and fast and relatively controllable in this situation. I needed an excuse to have the Vice Foreign Minister and my daughter removed from New Port City and Sanc with uncommon speed and a terrorist threat is ideal for such an action to be taken. I also needed to throw a scare into certain politicians of high standing within the ESUN government and having their names on a death list is pretty much guaranteed to make them sit up and take notice.” Wu Fei scowled as he stripped off his tunic and tossed it over the overcoat, shivering at the air striking his wet chest and back. Despite the car heater running on full the back seat seemed chilled. A towel was laid on the back seat near the small pile of clothing and he made good use of it, drying himself off and rubbing vigorously at his shoulders, back and chest to encourage circulation to return and then slipped gratefully into the T shirt before he turned his attention to removing his shoes and socks. // There is much here that I am not seeing. // “Which politicians? There are many who need to have a scare thrown into them though it is only likely to grant them the concession to think themselves of greater importance than they truly are. I never did like politics but many of these so called peace oriented politicians make me sick.” He was not inclined to explain his reasoning and he did not particularly care if Une disapproved of this comment. He considered himself a warrior and he was still uncertain about the new world that was being created which seemed to have no place within it for those who had been soldiers. He may have listened to Heero once and changed his views but in the intervening years he had not noted what he considered to be great strides being made in the manner in which the soldiers were being dealt with. Yes, there were reform programs, retraining programs designed to retrain and refocus the skills and spirit of the warriors of the planet but there were simply too many displaced soldiers to be quickly dealt with. He had noted in the last six months or so a reduction in the development of such programs and he worried that it may be considered unnecessary to continue to assist those who had fought for the very peace that made their skills obsolete. If Une held differing views from his own that was just too bad as he was too cold to bother with caring about whether his personal views might offend the woman. He gritted his teeth as he began peeling his socks from his frozen feet. “The politicians who have been blackmailing Relena.” Wu Fei straightened with an owlish blink, staring in surprise at the back of Une's head, a soggy sock in hand as he considered her comment. // Blackmailing Relena? What have I been missing? // “What could they possibly hold over the head of that squeaky clean Onna? She is so clean she is boring.” Une winced and sighed at that rather blunt judgment of the girl. Relena had given up her young life to see this peace become a reality and to hear Chang Wu Fei so pointedly judge her as boring and squeaky clean brought to mind how much of a life the girl did not have. In her view the girl would rebel eventually against the restraints her position forced on her but by then the peace had to be secure even if it was too late for her to resume acting her age. This was a girl becoming a young woman who for years now had needed to act in a manner conducive to a woman ten years her senior. Relena was missing out on a lot of living and she would never be able to have these years back. However much she regretted the girl needing to miss out on enjoying her teenage years, arguably the most carefree and influential years of ones development she could not do more than keep her safe. In regard to Wu Fei's views this was neither the time nor the place to have a discussion with her agent on the virtues of having politicians who actually had no skeletons in their closets to be exploited by nefarious opposition parties. Relena was simply too young to have the usual vices that could be exploited by older politicians to garner her cooperation but that had not stopped certain parties from finding the means by which to gain control over her. “Her brother.” A soggy and icy cold sock hit the back seat, splashing a droplet of freezing water on her cheek and Une huffed in disgust. “Chang, stop putting your wet clothing on the seat. You'll only get yourself wet again when you return to the front seat.” A 'hn' issued from the back seat but the coat, tunic and socks vanished back into the rear of the car and she heard him mutter something in Chinese. Her Mandarin was nonexistent and she did not think his commentary would be entirely flattering to her but for the moment she would allow it to pass. // Merquise? What has that psycho done now? // “What has Peacecraft done now to threaten the peace?” Une blew at her bangs and rubbed a hand lightly over her face before she counted to ten to give herself time to bite back her irritation. She had known that there was no love between Chang and Milliardo Peacecraft but the open hostility between the pair did surprise her. There was something that she was missing between the two men that had been evidenced when Merquise had made himself scarce after the Barton Incursion and small comments that had been made in passing over the intervening years that suggested a problem existed. Chang should have had more understanding for the Prince of Sanc in her view considering the Gundam Pilot had been himself on the wrong side during the Barton Incursion, but she kept her personal view to herself. She did not, herself, like the Prince of Sanc after all, so she had no right to talk. “Other than being alive he has done nothing.” Wu Fei scowled as he considered the back of her head and bunched the wet clothing up into a corner of the seat. “I believe that he vanished a few days after the Barton incident, too much a coward to deal with the repercussions of his actions then or during the past war. I take it that you know where he went and what he has been doing since he departed?” He slipped off trousers and boxers quickly and using the towel rubbed himself down vigorously, seeking to rub some warmth back into his body, particularly into his feet then hastily donned the briefs, keeping a careful eye on the back of the Lady's head. He was deeply uncomfortable about this somewhat public change room he was forced to use and he was not going to stand for any peeking that might be done . He did not consider himself to be body shy but he had been raised to a society where nudity was a private matter best left between husband and wife. It did not help his comfort level that he was only too aware that he had no right to hold this grudge against Merquise. It was something that he could not entirely explain to himself so he had no hope of anyone else understanding his anger. Why should he be placed on probation and watched day and night for crimes of a far less severity than that Prince who had vanished and avoided paying for his sins? // Because of an accident of birth Merquise got away with threatening an entire planet without suffering punishment for his crimes and I am treated like a dog and put on a chain to be controlled and perform when my strings are pulled. A puppet. Nothing more than a puppet and now this woman who herself has crimes unpunished pulls my stings and has me return to the days where I held a different understanding of the concepts of honour. I will not be a tool. I will escape this net. // 'I do not understand. The entire Earth Sphere knows the part Milliardo Peacecraft played in the One Year War. If he has not caused more trouble since that time then what could be used against Relena Peacecraft to blackmail her?” “You would be surprised how his very existence can be used against her. Following the Barton incident it was decided that for the good of all parties concerned Milliardo Peacecraft would remain dead. It was arranged that Zechs Merquise would become a part of the Mars Terra Forming Project soon to be developed toward colony status and Lucrezia Noin decided that she would accompany him.” Wu Fei scowled as he worked his way into the trousers, reflecting that the slacks seemed a little tight but they would have to do given the circumstances. Absently brushing his hair from his eyes where it had come loose from his hair band he considered what he had thus far been told and he did not like the implications at all. “I believe that the Terra Forming project was not official at that time.” //Make a colony for Merquise to live in? All the little luxuries and an entire planet to run in. Where is the justice in that? He should pay as we all have paid.// “There has been a permanent base on Mars for around fifteen years, very basic in nature it is true and more of a research centre than anything. Some initial terra forming work had been done and what we call the Base Dome was almost completed at the time Zechs and Noin departed from Earth, but the project was not actually a terra forming mission to begin with. By the time they arrived on Mars Relena had managed to push through the project and classify it as terra forming. A secure colony sized enviro dome was to be constructed and made into a habitable self contained unit. capable of sustaining a population of seven million persons. The Base dome had modifications to be performed and the basic living standard had to be elevated from primitive to civilized but I understand it is still somewhat lacking in luxuries. The Alpha Dome will be ready to take the first colonists within six to nine months. These colonists will all be professional people, mainly miners to begin the operations now listed for Mars to establish viable trade with the Earth Sphere.” “I see.” a bitter taste tormented Wu Fei as he considered the view from the back seat of the snow swept night. “So her brother is on Mars building a society there instead of destroying something. Well, I suppose I must admit that that is progress.” Une sighed. She had not known that Chang had actively hated the man so much nor what reason he might have for that distaste. Off hand she could not think of any particular instance that might account for his emotions. To her knowledge Zechs and Wu Fei had never actually met. Had she realized the depth of the enmity Chang harbored for Merquise she might not have chosen him to act this role of terrorist. She hunched a little further over the steering wheel, telling herself it was in the hope of seeing the road better and not from an attempt to escape those fiery onyx eyes that just had to be glaring at her. “The ESUN Security Agency decided to step into the situation in a discreet manner at instruction from a select group of politicians concerned with the popularity that Relena was enjoying. Where you and your fellow pilots were placed on probation and required to work for the Preventers and be subject to observation when you were not on assignment to ensure your good behaviour, the Agency decided that something different was required for Zechs.” //It is insulting to be reminded of the indignity we are subjected to. Why should there be one rule for us and another for him? Because he is a Prince? It is not right.// “We did not try to destroy a planet and we are watched, restrained, our every action reported on. Why should He not be so constrained?” Wu Fei almost snarled, pulling on a sock with a vicious jerk. Une sighed. She had had no idea that Chang Wu Fei had issues outstanding with the Lightening Count and from every indication they were not small issues. She would need to be careful in her use of Chang in this situation. “No, you did not threaten to wipe out a civilization but neither are your hands free from blood, Chang, nor are the hands of the politicians who ensure that you are watched. The truth is that no one in the war was without blame, Wu Fei and that includes the non combatants. Sometimes those who simply ignore the problems of the world are even more to blame. We all have our own history and that history reflects of the shaping of the environment surrounding us. We all have our own version of how the war should have turned out and what the key actions were that shaped its currents. It is a sad fact in life that we do not necessarily understand the thinking of our commanders, our comrades or our enemies but we act regardless.” He considered her comments for a time, using the actions of pulling on the second sock and hunting out the pair of boots to cover his silence before he grudgingly had to admit to himself that she was right. Who was he to talk and point the finger at all those who had participated in the war? Even Merquise, he silently cursed, was only human and all humans made mistakes but … he was not prepared to let go of his anger. He had slaughtered so many people, soldiers and civilians in the war on the instruction of the elders of his colony and at the time he had not cared what others views on his actions had been. He had not questioned the teachings of the Elders and he knew now with that wonderful advantage called hindsight that he should have. He had not even cared why the other boys who were Gundam Pilots had chosen to fight. He had merely concerned himself with his self appointed mission to single handedly procure justice for the colonies. // I am not sure, even now that my Master and the people of the colony understood what they had been fighting for when they chose to construct the Gundam. I do not know why they chose that course of action or … I do not even understand why I chose to fight, not any more. It has all changed. It has become confused, clouded and it used to seem so clear. // “What you say is true.” he nodded sharply once, wanting a change of subject as this one only served to remind him that he was alone. He could not go to his people and ask them the questions that now raged within him and demand answers. They were dead, sacrificed to ensure that he carried through with his fight. Why? Why was a question he was very tired of asking and though he wanted to know, to assure himself that they had been right and that he had not made the biggest mistakes of his life at so young an age he simply could not ask. Death was a bridge that he could not cross. The path of asking questions was a path that was closed to him and he needed to accept that he would never know. “So in the end what did they decide was fit punishment for the man who threatened to destroy the Earth?” //I still think that no punishment save death is fitting for such a crime, but I suppose a bunch of pacifist bleeding hearts would see it in another light.// “Zechs is banned from ever setting foot on the Earth again and as none of the colonies would take responsibility for his confinement he was imprisoned on Mars.” Une slowed the car to a crawl having recognizing a vague shape in the blizzard as a landmark and knowing there was an intersection somewhere up ahead. She was not inclined to drive the car into someone's living room by missing the turn. “As a result of him being in an easily controlled environment it was a simple matter to place their people in such a manner to make it easy to threaten Relena with her brother's safety should she not bend when they wished her to.” “There is little honour in politicians I have found.” he laced the boots, admiring the soft leather and hoping they were adequately treated to shed water or they would be ruined in the snow and blowing on his fingers to try to warm them. Une hissed softly at the comment but she had to agree that there was some truth in the statement. “Some have honour, Wu Fei. You should not make the mistake of tarring everyone with the same brush. What you should know is that Lucrezia Noin has recently given birth to twins and now the threat to Relena is increased. To make a point they could kill Zechs and still have the children in hand to hold hostage to her cooperation.” “There is no honour or courage to be found in holding infants to ransom. They are disgusting.” Rage flashed in onyx eyes as he glared at Une before he began hunting amongst the packaging for the wool jumper he remembered seeing before he had spread clothing and packaging all over the rear seat and spilling onto the floor. “No,” Une sounded exhausted and she brushed absently at her hair. “there is no honour in what they have done. It is not so simple as holding the children hostage. It is much worse than you think. It appears that this reported Raider assault taking place on Mars is actually a ESUN covert operations force assigned to capture Zechs and the twins. It appears that Mars in now considered to be too public a place to adequately contain Zechs and my information suggests that he is to be taken into custody and is to be imprisoned at some as yet undisclosed location where they can be assured of having greater control over him. The children are to be brought to Earth and placed at a secret location and raised in a controlled environment where they can be taught exactly what good citizens of the ESUN need to learn.” She could not keep her distaste from her voice and knew she needed to exercise greater control, but she was exhausted and there would be no opportunity to rest for long hours. “Pawns.” Wu Fei snarled seeing the implications only too easily. While he had no sympathy for the father he was disgusted that the children were to be used as game pieces. “Yes, pawns, but it does not stop there. From the information I have gathered I believe that the ESUN operatives on Mars have been issued instructions that should Merquise not comply quietly with their demands then they are to secure him as best they may, take the children and wipe out all witnesses to their presence.” Wu Fei blinked, considering the news report of a mayday being received from Mars and the 'Raiders' mentioned. He was not liking the theory he was developing for the events taking place on Mars. “I am to assume from the reported mayday broadcast of an attack by Raiders that he chose not to cooperate and because of this there is a massacre taking place.” His first reaction was to curse Merquise for causing a blood bath by being selfish enough not to take his punishment for his crimes but he resisted that line of thinking and took the time to consider the events taking place. Were he a father could he permit his children to be taken away from him and be placed in the hands of strangers who would have no cause to love them? Merquise might have been many things but he was not blind to politics and the ruthlessness to be found in the current style of politics practiced within the Earth Sphere. He would not dismiss the possibility that his children would be held accountable for their father's actions or that those who controlled them might kill one to reinforce their control over Relena. “It would not have been an easy decision for him to make.” “No, it would not have been an easy decision for him to make, but the choice has been taken out of his hands. Before contact with my agents on Mars was lost I received word that Noin had made the decision for Zechs. The report suggested that it was an accidental meeting but she surprised a couple of the infiltrating agents and in the resulting melee she killed them. From that point on it would have been a slaughter.” // Noin. The woman from Lake Victoria Academy who pursued me after I attacked. She was volatile and not what I would consider disciplined. // She had never forgiven him for the killing of her students at the academy and while he had not been aiming specifically to kill the students the fact remained that he had slaughtered cadets. It had been an error of judgment on his part. He had mistaken the dormitories of the students for that of the single men's quarters of pilot rank and to this day though he had not admitted it aloud, he was not particularly sorry for those deaths that resulted amid the students. The cadets would have become pilots in the war soon enough and he had been given a mission to carry out. //It was war. They were the enemy. // A litany he had said to himself repeatedly over the years, so many times that he had long ago lost count. It simply was and he was not inclined to think more on it than he had, certainly not now. He pulled the sweater over his head, thrusting his arms through the sleeves and sighed, thankful for the warmth it offered him. //That was war and this is peace. Yet if it is as simple as that then why are people still dying, and why are they dying at the hand of their own government if she is right about what is taking place on Mars? If the ESUN government is covering up a botched infiltration with a massacre of their own people then I have to wonder what it was that I was fighting for then, and what it is that I am fighting for now.// Une scowled at the street lamp that emerged from the snow laden night and stopped the car, hissing softly as she stared into the snow. Look as she did she could not decide if there was a car coming on the intersecting road or not and with a huffed breath she accelerated and pulled onto the intersecting road. There was no screech of breaks or sudden illumination of the area around her and since there was no accompanying crunch of connecting metal she accelerated smoothly and drove toward her house, or what the explosion and subsequent fire had left of it. It had been her decision but she still was reluctant to see the results of her decision. She had liked that house and living there with Mariemaia. “The casualties on Mars. Do you have estimates of the casualties expected? Wounded and killed?” Une scowled and tossed her head in a negative, teeth bared in a silent snarl. “Casualties? Chang, I believe that at this time there is wholesale slaughter going on on Mars. I am not expecting there to be many merely wounded. Those who survive this operation will undoubtedly be ESUN agents and the rest will be dead. The entire Terra Forming team. Perhaps those out on long term surveys might be spared, provided they are not within view of the domes and are unable to see anything that would imply more than the government wants to be known. There will be a few casualties but there will be a couple of thousand fatalities.” “I have heard of such events taking place in times of war but in times of peace…” Wu Fei sighed and began sorting through the clothing and packaging on the seat. “How many were hurt at your house and at the palace?” Une shook her head slightly. “There were no serious injuries. A few cuts and bruises, the odd sprain and pulled muscles but nothing serious. It was good work. You are to be commended for being so accurate in these conditions.” “Hn.” he was relieved that he had put no one in the hospital or in the morgue and he pushed his soggy clothing and overcoat into the largest of the bags the new clothes had come in, piling them neatly on the back seat and then throwing the new coat over the seat back. He would wear the coat when they exited the car but for now he was thawing nicely and he would best appreciate that coat when he had no heater. “What was the kill count on Mars before you lost contact?” “Two. We had confirmed reports of two ESUN agents being killed but we have received no word since that initial confirmation that it had started.” “Do you expect that Peacecraft will surrender to the ESUN agents?” “No. No, once it begins they will not stop the slaughter unless they are forced to stop and while there are retired soldiers on Mars there are not many of them and Zechs is the best they have. He will feel it his duty to defend them but there is another problem that they will have to face. The ESUN cruiser Wellington is en route to Mars and was no doubt slated to be the pickup vessel. I have reason to believe that her captain has orders to complete the massacre of the base personal and leave evidence conducive to a raid from space having taken place. They have to blame it on Raiders and they have to make it believable.” While he hated the man he did acknowledge that Merquise was an exemplary strategist and no coward in a fight. “Not even Peacecraft can take on a Cruiser successfully with a Mobile suit of the class of a Gundam and he has no such suit on Mars. I believe there are only a few suits used for heavy work on that project.” “Yes, a few older Leos and a couple of Taurus suits, I believe.” “I would not expect Merquise to walk away from this battle unscathed. You know how many there are on the infiltration team?” “I have the files of the infiltration team but there were Sleeper Agents on Mars who would have been activated when the situation began to escalate out of control. The number of the Sleepers is not known. There might be two or three or twenty. I have no way of knowing at this stage.” “He has no Tallgeese or Epyon to assist him against the incoming cruiser and amid the terra formers he could not be assured that a supposed friend is not in fact a foe. I do not envy him his position.” “The situation we are now dealing with actually gets worse.” Lady Une indicated the glove box as Wu Fei slipped over the back of the seat and settled into his place in the front of the car, slipping a thermos and wrapped sandwich onto the seat beside him. “Open the glove compartment and take out the portable vid unit and the disk in the red cover. Another and possibly larger problem has developed. One that may actually benefit us at the moment but it has the potential to eventually lead us toward possible war. Watch the disk. It is a copy of a transmission broadcast through the entire Earth Sphere roughly an hour ago.”
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