Romafeller was in chaos. All contact with the media was cut off as the organization struggled to cope with what had happened. Traces on the money were unsuccessful, and attempts to locate and identify Tranquility's Shadow were impossible. Dermail was awaiting the arrival of Oz and Romafeller's top computer experts in his office. Pacing, he shot occasional furious glances out the window as his frustration grew. How the hell had this happened? The high level of Oz's computer security was near legendary, and now these, these, rebels with bizarre names were accessing it nearly every day! His hands shook as he read printouts of the latest tracing efforts. Nothing! How could there be nothing? They didn't just vanish into thin air. Millions of dollars did not just vanish into thin air. There would be answers, and someone would pay, dammit!
His vid-phone announced an incoming call, and he snarled as he hit the button to connect it. "What?!"
The serene face of Relena Peacecraft stared back at him. "Shall I call back later, Duke?" she asked.
Struggling for composure, he forced himself to sit down. "No, Miss Peacecraft. I apologize for my tone. We are in the midst of a bit of a, um, situation here, and I'm just handling it."
"The bank funds diversion? I heard about it on the newswire."
Dermail flushed. "It is not as big of a problem as the press is making it out to be. It is being handled. What can I do for you?"
"I need nothing from you, Duke Dermail. I thought that perhaps there should be a public statement from Romafeller. I'm receiving many calls, and though no information is being given out, I think that there should be something said officially soon, especially if the matter is not serious. Letting things hang means that the public will perceive things are as bad as the press is reporting, or possibly worse."
Dermail dug his fingers into his leg in an attempt to remain composed. The bitch was right.
Relena continued. "Would you like for me to make this statement?"
The Duke gritted his teeth and smiled. "Of course. Thank you for your foresight. I shall have one of our speechwriters send something over shortly, and will arrange for the press conference."
"Thank you, Duke. Good day." Relena signed off.
She sat very still at her desk, wanting to compose herself. She was used to wearing the mask of innocence, but at times, when talking to someone as pompous and downright evil as Dermail, it was hard to keep it place and not spit in his arrogant face. Pleading a headache, she left her office, and went to her private quarters. From her own laptop, she sent the signal for another meeting to the other members of Tranquility's Shadow, and then lay down on the bed for a brief rest. Still trying to calm herself after talking to the Duke, she let her thoughts drift again to the formation of the group.
She knew that Noin was still skeptical, but would prove to be a valuable ally once convinced of the viability of the project. Two could work faster and more effectively than one, and her goals could be achieved sooner and, hopefully, with less bloodshed. Relena pondered what Noin had told her about Sally. Apparently the doctor was also quite skilled with computers, a fact that not many people were aware of. Relena was hesitant, even though Noin's trust in Sally was obvious. More people meant an increased operation, but also meant an increased risk for detection. Was the risk worth the gain? She had to find out.
She began to plan.
She couldn't risk her identity and role being revealed if Sally wanted no part in the operation so she had to set things up through Noin. They installed an elaborate video surveillance system in one of the underground rooms that would allow Relena to monitor the other two women without identifying herself to Sally.
Noin finally convinced a highly skeptical Sally to join her late one night. She explained that there was a computer problem that she needed help with. As Noin led her through the maze of underground tunnels, Sally's confusion and fear grew, and she turned to leave.
"Noin, what is going on? Where are we?"
"Sally, please. Just trust me for a little while longer, and then I can tell you more. Know that this is crucial to defeating Oz and bringing about peace."
Sally raised an eyebrow. "That's a rather dramatic and mysterious speech, Noin."
Noin smiled. "I know. And, since you know that I don't usually make such speeches, hopefully it will convince you that I'm serious."
"Fine. For now, that will do. Let's get this over and done with so that I can know what the plan is."
Sally sat down at the desk, and powered up the computer. "What's the problem?"
Noin explained that she had been monitoring Relena's e-mails and suspected that Oz had been using Relena's computer as a portal to discover Sanq's defenses and other classified information.
"I need confirmation though. And, I need to know if there's a way to disable their monitoring so that they wouldn't be aware."
Sally tapped away at the computer for a few seconds before stopping. She looked up at Noin.
"What? Is there a problem?" Noin asked.
"Noin, we've been friends for a while now. I'm here because I trust you. That trust is why I've allowed this to go on this long. But I am not about to do anything else until you tell me the real reason that I'm here." She held up her hand before Noin could respond.
"Please don't hand me that lame story again. We both know that's a lie, and there's another reason you want me here. Obviously, I'm being tested on the computer. I want to know by whom, and why before I go any further." Sally folded her arms, and sat back, staring at Noin.
Noin paced the room, fueled by nerves and guilt. She had just opened her mouth to speak when the door opened. Sally pushed the chair back, and stood, gaping at the sight of Relena walking through the door.
"Please, do sit down, Sally." Relena motioned to her abandoned chair. She crossed the room, and sat down across from Sally. Noin took a chair in the corner, crossing her arms, and sighing as she observed the other two women.
"Sally, you're here because I asked Noin to bring you here. We need your help. Before I explain exactly why, I'll need your promise of absolute secrecy. Should you choose not to join us, you'll need to forget you were ever here. If you don't do that, and tell anyone about this meeting, I'll have to use my position to discredit you. That is not a threat, just a fact. This is important to me, and important to peace on Earth and the Colonies. Please, at least listen to me."
Sally, unable to find words, gestured for Relena to continue.
"Noin has agreed to join me. Her computer skills match mine. She suggested that your skills might complement ours."
Sally finally found her voice, and Relena paused to let her speak.
"You...you know a lot about computers? As much as Noin?"
Noin let out a noise that was suspiciously like a snort. "More."
Relena continued. "I know, that's difficult to believe. I can show you in a bit. But, first, let's discuss what I want us to do with our computer skills. I want us to cripple, and eventually destroy, Oz."
Sally continued to look bewildered. Relena smiled.
"It really is quite simple when you think about it. But military organizations rarely think in the simplest terms, and that is why they will fail and we will succeed. Simple, systematic, planned, and highly successful computer hackings to aid the peace effort."
Sally simply sat back and let her mind try to wrap around the fact that petite, soft-spoken Relena Peacecraft intended to destroy Oz from the inside out. She laughed out loud.
"Sally?"
"I'm sorry, Relena. I mean no disrespect, but when I last saw you, your main concern seemed to be following that Gundam pilot around the world. I'm just trying to reconcile that person with this one here before me."
It was Relena's turn to laugh. "I understand, Sally. Ask Noin how she felt."
Noin simply sat back, and smirked. Relena continued.
"I had no idea when this war started that I would take this path. I just knew that I would have to do something eventually. I didn't know what that might be. I did, however, know that a girl whose only concern was her wardrobe and the opposite sex would be seen as no threat to anyone. As I'm sure you well know, women are always underestimated, and the more stereotypically female we appear, the more men are happy to view us as vapid and brainless. When they do, they have no problem revealing all kinds of information, knowing that we could not possibly care about such mundane matters."
Her lips curved up. "So, I played the role of love-stricken, pampered rich girl. And, I waited. When my father was killed..." Her smile dropped away as her eyes clouded. "When he was killed, I was thrown into such complete confusion and despair. Finding out I was a Peacecraft nearly drove me over the edge. I wanted revenge. I could taste it on my lips, feel it in my soul. I had a gun pointed at Lady Une, and felt the thrill as her fear rose. I had power. Then, I heard my father's voice."
--And don't ever let anyone intimidate you. Your intelligence may someday be the only weapon you have available to you.--
"I stared at Lady Une's face down the barrel of that gun. I realized that if I killed her, I would be letting her defeat me. I would be throwing away all that I stood for, all that my father stood for, and all that the Peacecrafts stood for. Any words I spoke about pacifism and bringing an end to violence would be rendered meaningless by my actions. So, I shot over her head, and ran. I knew that I had to do as my father had made me promise to do -- use my intelligence. What did I know? I knew computers, knew them inside and out. I would use them. And, that's what I'm doing. Hopefully, what you'll be doing too. I know that you and Noin are skilled fighters, but I'm asking you to use computers as your sole weapons for now. If we work together, I think we can accomplish a great deal. I realize that you may think that I'm horribly naive for thinking this, but, allow me show you some of what I've done so far."
Relena sat at the desk, sliding the laptop in front of her. Her fingers sped over the keys. Finally, she turned the screen so that Noin and Sally could see it.
"Duke Dermail's e-mail account?"
"For starters." Her fingers continued to fly. "Here. The design specs for the mobile dolls, and..." She tapped a few more keys. "The doll control system."
"Holy...," Noin choked back an expletive as she leaned forward.
"What do you intend to do with that, Relena?" asked an awed Sally.
"For now, nothing. We still need to get organized, and make sure that anything and everything we do is completely secure and undetectable."
Relena pushed the laptop over to Sally, and sat back, raising an eyebrow. "Interested?"
Sally looked at Relena, then at Noin. They all sat in silence as she thought. Finally, she pulled the laptop toward herself, and began to type. She told herself that she was probably insane for joining the other two, but she was so impressed by the possibilities, and the chance to work with the others. Smiling, she continued to type. She knew what it was to be underestimated because of gender, and relished the thought of even a chance at three women wreaking havoc with Oz.