All the pieces are in place, with the hopes of a new Eden emerging from the depths of their prisons, Kiron Gorrs hopes to make a new history for his people. But the motives of Kiron are starting to become clear, and his intentions are not peaceful.
Meanwhile, Aelan Marcus prepares to confront his old friend, but with the increasing realization that it can only end one way…
Kiron walked across the long line of stasis tubes that were filled with the denizens of Hell. If they were to be of any use, they needed to be at full health. While in stasis, Kiron was able to recover the people of Hell at an incredibly accelerated rate.
"Should we introduce the element now?" A voice asked. Kiron turned to see one of his two humans. This one had been also been trapped in Hell, which had provided Kiron with a most interesting aspect of humans, their resiliency. The Edenites and other beings in stasis still had a few days to go. Julio Doran had needed nothing more than three hours.
"Should we introduce the element, Excellence?" Julio repeated.
"I heard you the first time, Doran." Kiron almost snapped. He was still getting over that it was Julio that first brought the idea to light, and NOT Kiron, "No… They will need to be a full health before we even try such a plan. This formula could cause problems even to someone completely in good health."
"I see."
Kiron looked slyly over at the Terran engineer. "Why would you be willing to fight for my cause? The people of Earth might not appreciate the actions we are taking."
Julio sneered, and replied, "They abandoned me. Why should I have any compassion for them?"
Kiron smirked in response, "Good point. I like the way you think…"
North Am…
Noin listened intently as Aelan explained the functions of the mobile suit he designed, the project she saw on Aelan’s terminal, code-named, "Commadore". Supposedly, he had the plans in the works for several months, once he had decided that he could no longer follow the desire of Eden.
"The first thing you should notice is it’s unusual coloring. Alloyed Durium takes on a golden color, different metals alloyed with Duriam causing a slightly different shade." Aelan said, "There are some details that I thought to apply to some of the Gundams, but I decided not to interfere with suits that they are comfortable with. Like here, the wrist mounted beam sabres. With the sabre igniting through the hand mechanism, Commadore is considerably less likely to be disarmed."
Noin agreed, but techs on Earth had experienced trouble trying to keep the sabre from slicing off the hand of the wielding suit. Aelan’s answer? A phased ignition unit, where the thermal beam isn’t fully ignited until it clears the hand mechanism. Quite clever, she had to admit.
"I also have installed an inertial dampening system on Commadore. Using this, G-pulls and maneuvers that would normally cause most pilots to black out can be easily handled. I also took the liberty of installing similar units on the Gundams."
"I’m concerned with you utilizing the Zero System, however." Noin commented, "It’s not exactly known for keeping the pilot…"
"Sane?" Aelan finished for Noin. "I had some worries myself, but as I ran through the tests, it didn’t seem to bother me. Perhaps I am more capable of handling the barrage of information than most humans are."
"I see." Noin replied, but she could tell that he had another theory.
Aelan then pointed to the left shoulder of Commadore, where a very menacing black cannon was mounted. At the moment, it was pointing upward to the ceiling, but Noin was certain it had a swivel joint so that Aelan could pull it to a more feasible firing angle. "This is my pride and joy, the Matter Cannon."
"What exactly does that do?" Noin asked.
"It works on a similar principle to a matter transference beam, matter formed into energy, and when it reaches its target, transferred back into matter. However, there are two differences; one, there is no initial matter. The Matter Cannon generates sufficient energy to create a base matter equal to the mass of the target. The larger the target, the greater the charging time."
"And the second?"
"Usually, when a matter transference beam reaches its destination, it enters a buffer that stops the matter as it forms. The Matter Cannon doesn’t have such a buffer. At the point of impact, the target is struck with a mass equal to its… traveling at just under the speed of light."
"Ouch." Noin grimaced, "I take it the downside is that it isn’t exactly a multiple target weapon."
"Yes, although I’m working on that."
Noin’s features softened, and she asked, "Are you sure this is what you want to do, Aelan?"
Aelan nodded, then answered, "Kiron obviously doesn’t have anyone’s best interests at heart, I finally hacked into his terminal networks, and discovered his entire, repulsive plan. If he takes full control of Eden, which I can only assume he’s done, given time he will be a very difficult person to remove."
He took a deep breath, as if trying to control himself. Finally, he said, "Anyway, I told you all about this so that you wouldn’t be so shocked about this…" He tapped a few buttons on the console in front of Commadore. Another hanger wall pulled away, and as it rose, Noin gasped at the sight. It was another golden suit, although this one was painted a deep blue over most of the Durium armoring panels.
"This is yours, Lucrezia." Aelan announced, "I call it Cygnus, for its exceptional agility and grace, something that I think reflects its pilot."
Noin was too stunned to reply. She looked over the entire mobile suit repeatedly. It seemed to draw her to it, like it was made for her. ‘Wait, according to Aelan, this was made for me…’ Noin thought, amazing considering how her thoughts were racing.
Aelan glanced at her in slight amusement, then asked, "Are you going to try it out?"
Noin shook herself out of her reverie, and could only manage to nod. Climbing the ladder to Cygnus’s cockpit, the doors opening at her mere presence. Almost to the point of licking her lips, Noin stepped inside. Surprisingly, the cockpit didn’t seem unfamiliar, like she had seen it somewhere before…
"I tried to keep the control panels as similar to the Ares and Taurus’s you had piloted. That way, you didn’t have to spend months learning a new set of controls." Aelan said from ground level.
"Thank you!" Noin called down. "I appreciate that."
Settling back into the slightly textured seat, most likely so that she didn’t slide around during combat, Aelan then suddenly appeared just outside the cockpit, and said, "The only major difference I think you’ll find is its performance. It has all the modifications that Commadore does, with the exception of the Zero System, and that’s probably what will take some getting used to. You’ll be able to do a lot in Cygnus that you didn’t even dream of in any other suit."
Noin nodded, but she wasn’t really listening. As peaceful as she wanted to be, the idea of flying Cygnus into a battle made her almost drool. Aelan seemed to catch onto her giddiness, and he added, "I’ve called the Gundam pilots into a training session with us at 1200 hours. We’re going to need a lot of practice to make the most of these new units."
Three Days later…
Duo watched as Commadore suddenly pulled straight upward from a full forward thrust, a 90-degree change on Duo’s Z-axis, causing Duo’s Deathscythe Hell to nearly collide with Altron. Duo nearly screamed in disgust as Commadore fired two laser tags at the stunned Gundams.
"Two more hits for me." Aelan commented, "Currently, Heero still leads with 45 tags, Noin and I are tied for second with 41."
"THAT WAS AT LEAST A 15-G PULL!" Duo screamed, "How on earth did you stay conscious through that?"
"With the inertial dampening unit activated, it felt more like 5. You’d do better to remember that your Gundams DO have similar units installed. Heero doesn’t seem to have any problem."
Commadore pointed over at Wing Zero, which was ducking and dodging both Heavyarms and Cygnus. True enough, Heero had adapted to the inertial systems, and was using it to full advantage.
"I do have something to ask you, Aelan." Quatre asked, gently lowering Sandrock Kai into the assembled group of mobile suits. "It’s only been three days, and yet your piloting skills are on an even par with ours already. Are you really able to learn all the little nuances of combat that quickly?"
Commadore’s head dropped, probably mimicking Aelan. "Partly. There is something that I should explain about the Edenites. Since the beginning of our race, fighting has seemed to be in our blood. We were masters of war."
"That was 300,000 years ago, Aelan." Duo commented, "Don’t you think that it would have been weaned out of the Edenite psyche by then?"
"Compared to the existance of my race, 300,000 years is but the passing of an hour hand. The Tenant Council merely eliminated any records of the time before the rise of Eden’s New Order."
"I see." Duo answered, a smile starting to play on his face. Judging from the reactions of Altron and Sandrock, they all had the same idea. "Well, Aelan, I must say that you’ve learned a lot in three days, but there’s one thing you still need to learn."
Aelan sounded interested, and asked politely, "What’s that?"
Simultaneously, all three Gundams fired laser tags at Commadore, and Duo laughed, "Never drop your guard in front of an opponent!" The three Gundams broke their haphazard formation, taking off quickly.
"Even I can still be played for a fool by these pilots, it appears." Aelan mused before launching Commadore in hot pursuit.
Back on the World of Eden…
Kiron stood at the head of several tables set out for the people of Hell. There was well over 15,000 strong, and now fully healthy, more than enough to field the superior might of the new Edenite militia.
"People of the New Age of Eden, I commend your support." Kiron said to begin the celebration. Servers began pouring wine to the varied assembly, and Kiron poured a glass himself from the flask in front of him. He raised his glass in a toast, "Without you, none of what is about to happen would be possible. To a new Eden!"
"TO A NEW EDEN!" Was the unanimous reply, and everyone shared in the toast. Julio smirked slightly. If Kiron thought he hadn’t noticed that the new leader of Eden hadn’t drank from the same flasks as the rest of the assembly, he was mistaken.
"Nice try, Kiron, but I’m not nearly the fool you think I am." Julio muttered, as Kiron continued with his speech.
"The people of Eden are now building us the means in which we can defend this planet from those who would challenge us." Kiron said, "No race will have to be destroyed any longer by the superiority minded Tenant Council. No person will have to be imprisoned in Hell for seeing a different view."
In response, there was a multitude of cheers. Kiron then sat down, making sure his voice amplifier didn’t fall off the neck band of his uniform. He picked up his half-empty glass, and swirled the beverage around the lip, before he continued, "But, I can’t help but wonder why we should be content to merely defend."
The cheers suddenly quieted, and was replaced with a confused silence. Kiron then added, "I mean to say that we will have a force that is second-to-none in the galaxy. There is not a race that could even come close to challenging us. Why not take advantage of this obvious fact?"
He looked over the assembly, then said, "Why can’t this galaxy be ruled by the strong? Why must the weak whine about the control of those stronger than them, and why must the strong listen? Because of the writings of religions that no one has ever been able to prove are truth? Because of the pathetic wailing of pacifists who don’t have the courage to put their own lives on the line? I will change these things. The only god in this galaxy shall be ME, and my supporters will be my scribes; only my script will be written in the blood and the tears of the weak."
There were a number who seemed to support this statement, but it wasn’t as large as Kiron had hoped. Not that it mattered, soon anyone who didn’t like what he felt would have no choice BUT to follow his every word.
An hour later, Kiron leaned back in the throne that he had made the weaklings of Eden build for him. An Emperor needed a place in which it all started, and it was here that Kiron would become divine…
"Kiron, we need to talk." Miliardo Peacecraft spoke, approaching the throne and the raised dais it rested on.
"Please continue, my Terran friend." Kiron replied flippiantly, not even looking in the human’s direction.
"When you enlisted my aid, I was under the impression that you desired nothing more than the defense of Eden, so that no race would ever have to be destroyed at the hands of the Tenant Council." Miliardo seethed.
"Desires change, my associate." Kiron soothed, "Why must I be content with a little pebble when I can grasp the whole mountain?"
"I don’t think your desires have changed at all." Miliardo challenged, "I think this was your desire from the beginning."
Kiron finally looked at Miliardo. The Edenite’s eyes burned with a sadistic desire, and his lips curled in a sinister grin, "And you’d be right. I will be the ultimate being in this universe. Peace is nothing more than a recourse of the weak to avoid showing their weakness. I will not be weak!"
Miliardo had heard all this before, from himself. Had it not been for pure circumstance, Earth might have been the victim of Miliardo’s desire. Miliardo was not going to allow circumstance to play a factor here.
Pulling out the pistol he had hidden in his belt, Miliardo was about to end Kiron’s ambitions before they even started.
"Oh, I wouldn’t do that, Mr. Peacecraft." A voice said from the shadows. Julio Doran then emerged, his gaze reflecting the insidious desire of Kiron. "You see, I anticipated that many of the denizens of Hell would not be so enthused by Kiron’s plans. So, we had something extra put into the wine you drank at the celebration."
"What do you mean?" Miliardo demanded.
Kiron then laughed sinisterly, then replied, "My background as a Edenite medical technician helped me here. It was a formula that controls the brainwave patterns of the recipient. With the help of this little transmitter," Kiron held up a small black box, "I can control just what you think, and when you think it. Now, kneel before me." Kiron finished by pressing the transmitter.
Miliardo fought with every fiber of his soul, but the command was beyond his control. His eyes seething with hate, Miliardo kneeled before Kiron, and to the desires of the "New Eden".
Next Time…
Aelan begins to rally the support of the Earth Sphere Unified Nation, but discovers that his greatest challenge to his plan is someone he had assumed would be a staunch supporter. Finally, he gains the acceptance of the Earth, and leads the Terran forces to his home…
Coming in Episode 11: The Siege of Eden