"Ming, wake up..." a kind, gentle voice told him as his mind started coming to. He was lying on a bed, he thought... A soft warm bed. And he could almost feel somebody right beside him... "Wake up..." the voice repeated, and Ming started to open his eyes. He once again found himself face to face with Sandra, but this time her face was different. Her face was set in stone, as a doctor should be when examining a patient, but not her eyes. They seemed sad somehow... Was she...?

"Ming! You've finally woken up," Sandra declared as her face quickly changed from one of worry to one of relief, "Are you feeling alright?"

"I... I guess so..." Ming replied as he started shaking his head. He felt a little dizzy, but he decided that he was probably alright. That was until he noticed that the bandages on his right leg, "What the..."

"You nearly got squashed by those falling steel beams, remember?" Sandra reminded, knowing Ming must have suffered from shock after the accident.

"Yeah... it's coming back to me now," Ming replied as he remembered what had happened. How the steel beams had started falling straight for Sandra... And how he had pushed her away... Idiot! He thought to himself, why the hell did I do that?!

"Well don't do that again," Sandra continued disapprovingly, "The beam fell right on the lower part of your tibia. If the bone had broken, it'd take months to heal, and maybe if you were really unlucky..."

"You might have ended up dead..." Ming added unconsciously, still trying to figure out why he had risked his mission to save her life... She was only a stranger. A stranger that had already helped him to be sure, but still a stranger. Worse still, she was also part of the Federation that he so hated, and if she knew who he really was...

"Well... yes," Sandra admitted uncomfortably as she looked away. He HAD saved me back then, she thought, just like "he" did so long ago... "Sorry I forgot to mention it first, but thank you."

"Don't mention it," Ming replied, "You did help me out after all," he added, trying to justify his actions to himself and to her.

"But that was one hell of a selfless thing to do in return," Sandra replied jokingly as she turned to face Ming, "But that reminds me, how about your relative at Oak street? Would you like me to..."

Ming's eyes went wide at that. Oh ****! I should've been there hours ago and...

"Look, I can contact them if you want to," Sandra offered as she saw Ming's near panicked face, "Till then you could spend the night here in my clinic."

"No, I have to..." Ming started as he tried to stand up. Much to his pain and dismay, he found that his leg could not support his weight, and he would have fallen to the floor had Sandra not grabbed him by the shoulder.

"Whoa! Stop it!" Sandra warned angrily as Ming struggled to get up once again, "I'm a DOCTOR, and I am ORDERING you to get back on that bed!"

"Who are you to..." Ming started in reply until he saw Sandra's icy stare. They were so cold that it felt as if the room temperature had dropped down a notch, and Ming quickly did as he was told.

"Good..." Sandra noted as her downturned mouth quickly turned into an approving grin, "Now about your relative again..."

"Sandra, please, let me handle it," Ming quickly interjected, "I don't want to trouble you anymore than I have to..."

"Is that why you didn't show me this?" Sandra suddenly asked as she tossed something into Ming's lap. It was his fake ID.
-----------------------------

"Lieutenant Jake Stark, eh?" Side 2 resistance leader Major Rex Gibbons noted as he went over Jake's papers, "The same Jake Stark who sank three cruisers at the Ruum?"

"Sir, that was from a very long time ago..." Jake muttered in reply, trying hard not to remember his past, "I'm not the same man that sank those three cruisers anymore."

"Bull," Gibbons answered in reply, "I knew your old CO, Colonel Hoffman, and he said that you and your wingman was the best damn pair that had ever served under him. And he said that exactly two days before he died at A Baoa Qu."

"A lot can happen in two days, Sir," Jake replied as he set his eyes downcast onto the floor, "Like being the only survivor out of your whole unit..."

"Look, SOLDIER," Gibbons continued sternly, "As far as I know you're a very skilled and experienced pilot, and soldiers like you are a rarity these days. I expect a lot from you, mister."

"With all due respect sir," Jake replied as he looked up to face Gibbons again, "Captain Ming is probably a lot more skillful and dedicated than I am, it's probably better if you rely more on him..."

"You are here, and Ming is not," Gibbons replied coldly, "We're looking for him now, but he seems to have disappeared. We're afraid that he might have been captured, and we were really counting on having an ace like him for our next mission. And if we can't find him, you'll have to take his place."

"I'm not good enough to replace him, Sir," Jake repeated. And I'm not that willing to risk my neck out anymore... Not after all that had happened...

"Too bad, because you don't have a choice," Major Gibbons replied as he pulled out a map and handed it to Jake, "Study this well, you will need it soon."

Jake nodded uncomfortably as he glanced at the map. It was a map of the military base.
-----------------------------

"I'll get that Major Dolvich..." Ivan Romanov thought as he led his squad of mobile suits up a low hill. Although the base at Santa Fe was in poor condition, it did have a lot of open spaces available for maneuvers, and the Major had been quick to run a training exercise to test out their skills. They'd beat that arrogant Major, he was sure. Especially since she was stupid enough to go out with only one wingman against his team of six.

Unfortunately for Ivan, the wing_woman_ the Major had picked wasn't just an ordinary pilot. In fact, she had been shadowing Ivan's team since they had left their hangars, completely undetected. And she was more than ready to show that Ivan what she thought of him, "Sylvie here, they're almost on top of you, Major."

"Thank you, Captain..." Natalie Dolvich replied as she gripped her trigger more tightly. She was sitting on the opposite face of the hill, hidden in a defilade right below the hilltop. As the ground began to shake from the "enemy" MS Team's giant footsteps, she quickly pulled out a grenade from her GM Kai's shield and primed it. All that was needed now was for Sylvie to start shooting...

Ivan quickly signaled his team to stop and lay low as his GM Custom finally reached the hilltop. He quickly surveyed the area in front of him, and seeing nothing, ordered his team to continue. Had this been a real battle, it would have been the last mistake they would ever make.

Sylvie quickly aimed her GM Custom's "simulated" beam rifle at one of the GMs. Sylvie regretted that her rifle didn't really shoot beams, at least not ones that could burn through titanium, but at least certain "modifications" they had made would most certainly make the experience all the more embarrassing for Romanov. As the squad prepared to move once again, Sylvie depressed the trigger, and a tiny infra red beam quickly shot out of her "rifle's" barrel, heading right for one of the GMs' cockpit...

Ivan had just taken a step when one of his GMs suddenly erupted in smoke and collapsed on the ground. For "realism" the participating units had been designed to power down and emit smoke once hit, and Ivan just belatedly realized that his team was under fire. He was just about to order his men to scatter, but before he could do so an alarm claxon went off and his GM quickly collapsed on the ground, buckling Ivan from his seat as it did so. As he got up, the screens around him declared in big, bold letters: YOU'RE DEAD!

"Elite soldiers of the Federal army eh, Captain?" Major Natalie suddenly taunted as her face appeared in the video screen, "Return to base immediately for the After Action Report. You have a LOT of explaining to do," she ordered, before signing off.

"DAMN!" Ivan growled as he stared at the screen, still flashing the message in front of him. He had failed. Failed like "he" did. "Damn it!" he thought, I won't be like him! I won't let those spacenoids kill me. I won't!
-----------------------------

"Look, I can explain..." Ming started as Sandra waited for his explanation, tapping her foot impatiently as she did so. Great going Secret Agent Ming, he thought to himself, what the hell do I tell her now?

"Look, just come clean with me, and I won't call the police," Sandra encouraged, "Are you an illegal immigrant or something?"

"Sandra I..." Ming started again, looking very uncomfortable, "I..."

"I was a medic during the One Year War, and it was my job to save people, whether they were from Zeon or the Federation," Sandra explained, "And I still think that way, even now, so don't worry if you're from Zeon."

"I somehow doubt that..." Ming replied too automatically, a result of his long exposure to Zeon propaganda.

"Why?!" Sandra demanded, "You don't REALLY believe the stupid lies those Zabis preach do you?! We aren't brutal killers."

"It's not lies, it's the..."

"Truth?" Sandra finished for him, to which Ming firmly nodded in reply, "Well then it's time to stop believing that bull**** Ming," she continued as she picked up a small velvet covered box from her desk and passed it to Ming, "Open it, and tell me what's inside."

Ming bit his lip and slowly opened the box, suspicious about its contents. What he found completely surprised him. It was a collection of dog tags and military insignias, probably souvenirs from the war. But most of them didn't come from Federation soldiers. They came from HIS countrymen... from Zeon, "Where did you...?"

"Most of my patients usually give me a souvenir or two once they get well," Sandra explained, "Since most Zeon soldiers don't have a lot to give, I just ask for their insignia or dog-tag as a remembrance. They're my lucky charms you see, and I've yet to lose a patient," she finished rather proudly.

Ming nodded as he picked up one of the dog tags, this one seemingly having a few bloodstains. Private Joachim Altmark, of the 1st Terrestrial Mobile Division...

"Now back to you, Ming..." Sandra suddenly interjected as she grabbed the tag and put it back in the box, "Why are you carrying a fake ID?"

"I'm sorry Sandra, you know about how bad the war was... and you know that we're not exactly welcome in this part of space..." Ming replied quietly, still trying to digest what Sandra had told him. Had he had been fooled into hating people he didn't really know all along?

"Yeah, I know," Sandra agreed, "If I wasn't there, Alejandro and his construction crew might have made your stay quite unpleasant. They all lost family during the war."

"What about you?" Ming asked comfortingly. Did "we" do anything to you as well? He thought. Because if so, how could you act so kindly to somebody who was once your enemy?

"I... I was an orphan," Sandra replied quietly, "Never had any family, nor any real friends. Even when I went on that medical scholarship. I'm kinda the shy type you see..."

You? Shy?! he thought but did not say out loud. But at least that explained part of it. She had not felt the pain of losing somebody like he did, and so had probably remained naive of the true nature of war... "Oh... I see..." Ming answered in reply.

"What about you?" Sandra asked, turning the tables on Ming.

"Sandra could we not..." Ming started, not wanting to remember about the death of his whole family.

"Alright Ming," Sandra replied with a nod, "Is this why..."

"Yes," Ming replied firmly, "I still don't trust the Federation. I don't want them to know that I was from Zeon."

"I see..." Sandra said with a thoughtful nod, "Well next time, be a better actor, alright?"

"I'll try to keep that in mind..." Ming agreed.

"And about your relative..." Sandra started again.

"Actually, he's not really a relative of mine," Ming explained, "I was really just looking for a job that my friend had recommended to me. I'm sure I won't be missed."

"Oh.. Alright," Sandra replied, though with some doubt in her voice, "But that means you won't be moving around until you're well, right?"

"Don't worry doctor, I won't," Ming promised, though he wasn't sure if he could keep that promise.

"Alright," Sandra replied with an approving nod, before suddenly holding Ming's left hand and pulling her face only inches away from his, making Ming blush, "And if you want to talk about anything, just tell me, alright?" she told him in the most gentle tone she could manage.

"Yes..." Ming just barely managed to say as his eyes met hers and he felt his pulse racing. Thankfully, Sandra nodded and took a step back after his reply, looking a little embarrassed at her actions.

"I have to go get dinner ready, I'll be back soon!" Sandra declared as she started to turn around towards the door, "And sorry about that... I get a little sentimental at times you see..."

"Sure... don't worry about it..." Ming replied as he watched her step out of the room. He looked at his left hand, and began to nurse it with his right. It had suddenly felt cold after she had let go...
-----------------------------

"Arnold, somebody's here to see you..." Herbert declared nervously as he entered the former Colonel's office.

"Who is it?" Jefferson inquired in a tired tone. He had been busy the past several days looking for a safe shuttle to get Herbert to Side 2, but to no avail. The Titans had proven deadly efficient and professional in monitoring the dock areas after the initial "incident" he had witnessed, so much so that people now saw them as symbols of justice and not another way for paranoid Earthnoids to maintain control over the colonies...

"It's a lady named Estella," Herbert explained, "But since you look..."

"Estella Madrigal?" Jefferson suddenly asked as he nearly got up from his chair, "Here?"

"Glad you still remember me. Arnie," a tall young woman declared as she entered the room, smiling impishly at Jefferson as she did so.

Jefferson sighed before replying, "Yes, but could you PLEASE stop calling me Arnie..."

"Your name sounds cuter that way..." Estella replied jokingly, "Besides, we're old friends aren't we?"

"Maybe I should..." Herbert started.

"No..." Jefferson interrupted before Herbert could finish.

"Yes, please..." Estella suddenly countered before Jefferson could say anything further, "I'd like to talk to him alone."

"Yes mam," Herbert replied as he quickly stepped out of the room. So... the Colonel DOES have a personal life, doesn't he? He thought. The plot thickens yet again...

"Estella..." Jefferson started.

"Don't worry Arnie, I'm here for business," Estella explained, "Mainly for Fiona, and mainly because of my job."

"And why would an investigative reporter want to talk to me?" Jefferson asked, "Other than the fact that we went to high school together?"

She smiled at his last remark before answering, "Captain Ming Chow."

Notice: This story and all related material is copyrighted by Thomas E. "Zinegata" Ting, no part of this story may be taken by any other person. If you wish to use any material, please contact me first. Gundam and all related trademarks are owned by their respective companies.