Disclaimer: The kids and their friends are mine, the villains and Athena too but their parents ain't (well, aside from Ardy and Toby).

Pardon all the 'waking-up' scenes. For comments, suggestions, flames or reviews, you can email me at raizenheero@aol.com

Miles opened his eyes, finding himself lying on a hospital bed. "Huh?" He sat up, glancing around the room. He saw Sean, Ren, Colin and Dean on their respective beds, also in the process of waking up.

"My whole body is sore," Sean remarked as he tried to move and stretch himself.

"Well, mine too but at least it's not that bloodied and bruised like when we started training," Dean replied.

"What happened? The last thing I remember was going out of Sandrock's cockpit after being blasted by Stygma. Then blank," Ren said, his forehead furrowed in thought.

"The same happened to me. I think we all passed out after we went out of our Gundams. Then someone must have found us and took us here," Colin deduced.

"Right. After Jiiro took Reina here when she passed out in the HAVOC, he went to look for you 5 and his cousins then brought you all here to the nearest hospital," a woman's voice confirmed. They turned their heads and saw that the voice belonged to a familiar-looking brown-haired woman in some kind of a pigtail. She and a blonde entered their room. Miles, Sean, Dean, Ren and Colin wondered at the irony of it all. It was not so long ago that these two were their prisoners. Now, the situation was reversed.

"We're glad that you're all awake. I know that we've all met before but it was in a not so pleasant circumstance so I suggest we start over. I'm Midii, Trion's mom. And this is Sally, Lee's mom."

The 5 kids smiled. "It's our pleasure to meet you, Mrs. Barton, Mrs. Chang," Miles said.

"The pleasure is ours. Oh, and drop the 'Mrs.' All of our kids' friends call us Aunts. So I suggest you do the same," Sally told them with a smile. "By the way, how are you boys feeling?"

"We're a little sore here and there but it's no biggie. We'd experienced worse before," Sean answered.

"How long have we been sleeping?" Dean asked timidly.

Midii looked at her watch. "Well, about 3 hours since the end of the battle."

"Can you tell us what happened since then? And when you said that Jiiro looked for the 5 of us and his cousins, you mean Kai and the others right? How are they? And where's Qintaro?" Ren asked one after the other.

Sally and Midii laughed. "One question at a time, ok? Well, since the battle ended, we started rounding up the remaining Dais Rogue soldiers. We took all the injured soldiers here in the Brussels Hospital to be treated while the rest were transported to the Preventer's Main Base in the Sanc Kingdom. The Base is a little bent out of shape with the previous battle but Lady Une still thought it appropriate to have a talk with the surrendered soldiers there," Sally informed them.

"About your friends, they're fine. Jiiro was the only one of you young Gundam pilots who remained standing after the battle. He, together with his dad, our husbands and other friends are helping the Preventers. Trion, Lee, Kai, Rhys and Deity just woke up too. And having heard that we are short in personnel, they hurriedly jumped out of their beds and volunteered to help us. Reina is still unconscious though. But she'll be fine. She just needs a lot of rest, the HAVOC having drained her of strength," Midii added. Then, her face became sad. "Qintaro threatened to kill Reina so Jiiro had no choice but to fire at him. Stygma plummeted to the ground then exploded. Jiiro and Reina found the wreckage but they didn't find Qintaro. I'm sorry."

The 5 kids were shocked, speechless. First the General, now Qintaro. And though deep in their hearts, they were still clinging to that small hope that Qintaro managed to survive somehow, they still couldn't help feeling as if the world came crashing down at them. What were they going to do now?

Finally, Colin said, "We don't know what will happen to us but we want to help too, in any way we can."

Midii and Sally looked at each other. "We're glad that you feel that way. You see, that's why we're here. The soldiers Lady Une talked to told her that the next one in-charge after Qintaro is Miles. Is that true?" Sally asked.

"Yes," Miles answered while the others nodded.

"Well then, how soon can all of you be able to travel?"

Miles looked at his friends. They all nodded at him. "We can go as soon as possible. Why? Where are we going?"

"We'll be taking you and the remaining soldiers here in the hospital to the Preventer's base in the Sanc Kingdom. Lady Une is waiting for us there, supervising the repairs and the other captured soldiers," Midii told them. "We have a proposition for you."

9am

The first thing she saw when she woke up was a familiar pair of sky blue eyes watching over her with concern. "Kaasan?"

"Hey there," Relena greeted. "How are you feeling?"

Reina closed her eyes for a second before answering, "I guess I'm fine. Just tired." She looked around and noticed that she was in her room in the Peacecraft Palace. "How long has it been?"

"2 days."

"2 days?" Reina repeated, shocked. She had been unconscious for 2 days? She abruptly sat up and asked, "What happened? Where's Niichan and the others? Are they alright?"

Relena rested a comforting hand on her daughter's shoulder, trying to calm her down. She then arranged the pillows at Reina's back and motioned for her to rest against them. Reina dutifully leaned back against the pillows and waited for her mother to answer her questions.

"Jiiro, Deity, Trion, Kai, Lee and Rhys are with their fathers, returning the Gundams to their storages. We've all been pretty busy these past two days so this is the only time that they could get away to take back the Gundams. So for two days, they hid the 5 original Gundams and the Tallgeese in the hangar here in the Palace while the other 6 Suits they hid somewhere else near here, fixing them in their spare time and claiming that aside from Stygma, the 6 new Suits were also destroyed during the battle."

Reina understood why they thought it wise to hide the existence of the HAVOC and the 5 experimental Suits but not that other thing. "They're returning the Gundams to their former storages? The location of those storages had already been compromised!"

Relena smiled at her. "Do you honestly think that your Tousan hadn't thought of that? I'm sure that they already took care of that little detail."

Reina wanted to smack herself. How could she have doubted the capabilities of the Perfect Soldier? And not just him but the rest of her Uncles?

"As for your other friends, they were all taken into Preventer custody, together with the rest of the Dais Rogue soldiers who surrendered," Relena continued.

"What's going to happen to them now? Are they going to jail?"

Relena brushed Reina's hair away from her face. "Don't worry. They're not. They're too young to go to jail. Besides, we all know that this whole thing wasn't their fault. They were just following orders. So Lady Une struck a deal with them. And not only with Sean, Miles, Colin, Ren and Dean but also with the rest of the soldiers."

"What sort of deal?"

"All of them would be given full amnesty if they join the Preventers."

"Isn't that risky? I mean, I can vouch for Sean, Miles, Colin, Ren and Dean's loyalties but the other soldiers?"

"At this point, it's the only logical deal that would benefit both parties. Lady Une needs soldiers in order to rebuild the Preventers Organization. They, on the other hand, are good soldiers looking for their place in this world. Now that the threat of the Dais Rogue is over, everybody knows that if you were a soldier and you want to continue being a soldier, the only place you could go to is the Preventers. So that's insurance enough for them to be loyal. Aside from that, all of the remaining Dais Rogue soldiers are loyal to Miles, Ren, Dean, Colin and Sean. Having those 5 agree to the deal would insure the other soldiers' loyalty. Since Miles was left in command, the decision lies with him. And the last thing I heard, he already said yes."

Reina was glad that things worked out fine for everyone involved but weren't her friends too young to work for the Preventers? Sure his father, Uncles and some of her Aunts worked for the Preventers at the same age, but it still wasn't the same. What about their studies?

Sensing Reina's thoughts, Relena said, "Don't worry. Your friends are going back to RECON to study. And they're not going to work for the Preventers full-time, still being students and having Buena Park to manage." Reina looked at her questioningly. "They found Raidon's will and it says there that his 6 kids will inherit Buena Park upon his death. Raidon managed to secure their future afterall. But still being so young, they need someone to look after them, to be their legal guardians. Being under Preventer custody, Lady Une will decide who will their legal guardians be, if they were to remain as one family or be separated. Duo and Hilde, Trowa and Midii, Quatre and Dorothy, Wufei and Sally, Milliardo and Noin, Ardy and Catherine, Heero and I are all willing to be their legal guardians but the final decision lies with Lady Une."

Reina smiled, knowing that whatever happens, her friends would be in good hands. But there was still one thing she wanted to know. "Kaasan, did they find Qintaro?" Reina asked softly, her Prussian blue eyes locked into her mother's sky blue ones.

Relena shook her head sadly. Reina looked away, not in surprise but in sadness. Seeing Stygma's wreckage with her own two eyes, she wasn't expecting Qintaro to have survived that explosion. But there was a part of her that wouldn't let go of that small hope that he was alive. She would even settle for finding his body and giving him a proper burial.

"Qintaro was a nice boy. I really like him," Relena said, remembering that short span of time that she got to know him. After a while, she asked, "Are you mad at Jiiro, Reina?"

Reina faced her mother again then smiled sadly. "No. I can never get mad at him. He had no other choice. He did what he had to do." She paused for a moment, then continued, "Are you mad at me, Kaasan?"

Relena frowned. "Why would I get mad at you?"

"For piloting HAVOC. For killing a lot of people, blowing up a whole resource satellite even. For going against your ideal of Total Pacifism."

Relena smiled and placed a hand on top of hers. "Total Pacifism only works when everyone is willing to cooperate. In Raidon's case, there was no other choice but to fight. Just imagine what would have happened if your fathers didn't build the new Suits, if they didn't train you to pilot them and if you hadn't used them to reclaim the ESUN. I can never get mad at you for doing what you believed was the right thing to do. You, Jiiro and your cousins fought for what you believed in, just like what your fathers did before you. That's very admirable. And we're all very proud of you." Then, her face grew pensive. "But we still want to apologize for putting this kind of burden on all of you. We tried so hard to prevent this situation from ever happening, but we failed."

Reina hugged her mother tight. "No need to say sorry, Kaasan. You didn't fail, none of you failed us. On the contrary, if it weren't for all of you, we wouldn't be living in this peaceful world. And you don't have to worry about us. We did this because we wanted to protect peace. And we'll do it again if needed be. You always say that everyone should do his part in maintaining peace. And this is our part. Just like what Athena would say, we are our parents' children. And as your children, it's our duty to continue your legacy."

Relena returned her hug, happy that they succeeded in instilling such values to their kids, but also sad knowing what these values would exact from them. When they pulled apart, Relena said. "So, how's Athena? I only discovered that she's alive when Quatre told Raidon about you, Athena and the other girls fighting outside the Palace. Then Hilde, Noin, Sally, Cathy, Dorothy, Midii and Lady Une told me that Athena was the one who rescued them from Buena Park. I was expecting to see her right after the battle but she disappeared. I also had a talk with the guys and they all said sorry that they kept it a secret, even your Tousan. Then they told me that they hadn't heard from her since the battle, which I don't know if true or not."

"She's fine. We all like her. She's very cool. She's the one who trained me. Well, actually, she also trained the others, together with Tousan, but she focused on me, having chosen me as her successor to the HAVOC. " Reina smiled at her. "She told me that you're her first friend and that she missed you. Don't worry. She'll talk to you when she's ready."

Relena smiled back. Suddenly, they heard Reina's stomach growling. Relena grinned at her sheepishly then stood up. "Oh, sorry. I guess our talk made me forget that you hadn't eaten for two days. I'll get you some food. I'll be back quickly." She kissed her on the forehead first before going out of the room.

Six shuttles launched from 6 different sectors of the Sanc Kingdom, each of which was carrying 2 Suits and 2 pilots, headed towards the individual Gundams' storage facilities. Launching from one area and using one Mobile Suit transport cargo would be too conspicuous. So to avoid prying eyes, they decided that each pilot and his kid would take the original pilot's MS and the Suit his kid piloted (in Jiiro's case the Suit his sister piloted) to their respective storage facilities. Then they would all meet at the underground base where they would be keeping the BCS-integrated Suits and the HAVOC. True, the location of the storages might have already been compromised, Miles and the other kids, together with the remaining Dais Rogue soldiers having known the exact locations, but Heero and the rest didn't have any choice at the moment. They couldn't possibly fit all 12 MS in the underground base. So until they could build new storage facilities, Wing Zero, Deathscythe Hell, Sandrock, Heavyarms, Altron and the Tallgeese would remain in their former storages.

As the 6 shuttles landed in their respective destinations, two Suits could be seen emerging from each one. Upon reaching a dead-end, the older pilot would go out of his Suit then insert his ring on a hidden slot, causing the supposed-to-be dead end to part, revealing a hidden entrance. He would climb back inside the cockpit and the two Suits would enter, the door automatically closing behind them, reverting back to just being a dead end.

"It's nice to see you again, old buddy," Duo said before climbing out of Deathscythe Hell's cockpit. Deity also went out of Neo-Deathscythe and joined him by the security panel.

"I'm glad that it's all over," Deity remarked.

"Yeah. Me too," Duo replied. When he was done activating the security system, he turned to his daughter. "Hey, angel, how does it feel to save the whole ESUN?" he asked with a grin.

Deity rolled her eyes good-naturedly. "I think you know how it feels, Dad. You, Uncle Heero, Uncle Trowa, Uncle Quatre and Uncle Wufei also saved the world before."

Duo's face grew serious. "Our case was different, Deity. We grew up in a war-driven world, that was why we knew that our destiny was to fight. We couldn't run away from it even how hard we tried. You, on the other hand, had the chance to escape that kind of life. But because we screwed up, you were forced to become like us. Sorry, angel."

Deity smiled then hugged him. "It's not your fault, Dad. Nobody screwed up. To answer your question earlier, it feels good to be able to help out. And we'll do it again if we had to."

Duo kissed her on the forehead. "Even if it'll give you more nightmares?"

Deity pulled away, startled. "How do you know that I'm having nightmares?"

"Well, aside from hearing you and the other kids screaming in your sleep for the past two nights, I should know. Anyone who had killed, even for a good cause, would have trouble sleeping." Duo reached out and hugged her again, comforting her. "Don't worry. We're always here for you. You know that, right?"

"Right. And yes, even if it'll give me more nightmares."

Duo felt a pang in his heart. "I couldn't be prouder of you, angel."

"Same here. And oh, since you're the God of Death and I'm your angel, can I be your Angel of Death?"

Duo looked at her, his violet eyes sad. "Whatever you want, angel. Whatever you want."

"It's been awhile, Sandrock," Quatre whispered. "Goodbye, friend. Thanks for everything." With that, he cut off Sandrock's power supply.

Kai was waiting for him below. "Saying goodbye?"

Quatre nodded then went to the security panel. "Sandrock and I had been thru a lot together."

Kai grinned. "I know. And from what I gathered, you 6 have this habit of talking to your Gundams."

Quatre laughed. "I'm afraid you're wrong, Kai. Only me, Heero, Duo, Zechs and Wufei talk to our Gundams. Trowa doesn't. Even so, he's still fond of Heavyarms." Having finished what he was doing, he approached his son, placing his hands on Kai's shoulders. "You did a good job, son. Your Mom and I are so proud of you."

Kai bowed his head. "It's not a big deal, really, Dad. You and our other Uncles did the same twice before."

Quatre squeezed his shoulders gently, as if telling him to look back at him. Kai did so and was amazed to see pain and understanding in his father's expressive blue eyes. "It's really a big deal, Kai. You kids should never have experienced what we had experienced. You're supposed to live ordinary lives. But because of us, you were dragged into this mess. For that, I am sorry."

"No need to say sorry, Dad. We're cool about it. We knew that we're the only ones capable of doing the job. And we love peace just as much as all of you so we'll do anything to maintain it."

Quatre smiled. Somehow, his son's remark made him sad and happy at the same time. "Come on. Let's take Neo-Sandrock back to the underground base."

After placing Altron on its designated area inside the storage facility, Wufei remarked, "Justice has prevailed again, Nataku," in a soft but satisfied voice. He then went out of the cockpit and saw Lee also in the process of climbing down Neo-Altron.

Wufei went on his business quietly and efficiently while his son silently watched him. After he was done fiddling with the security panel, he moved towards his son. "With how busy we were these past two days, I haven't gotten the chance to say how proud your Mom and I of you. I know that it wasn't easy, having things suddenly came crashing down on you, learning that you have this great responsibility and in order to fulfill that responsibility, you had to fight and kill. Still, you rose to the challenge and did a remarkable job," he sincerely told Lee.

"Thanks, Dad. It sure wasn't easy, but I would never regret what I did. And I'll willingly do it again if ever the ESUN needed us once more."

"I'm happy that my son has a warrior's soul and a strong heart, someone who doesn't shrink away from his responsibilities but" Wufei trailed off, his eyes conveying a variety of emotions. "If I were to choose, I rather want you to be an ordinary kid. Not a soldier."

Lee nodded, understanding what his father was trying to tell him. It was his father's way of apologizing for not being able to prevent what just happened. "It's ok, Dad. I might be a soldier once in my life but I'm still a kid. I can still live an ordinary life." As if to prove his point, he smiled at him.

Wufei gave him a sad smile. "You might be a soldier only once, but you'll never be just an ordinary kid now."

"Hey, I never been an ordinary kid. I have a Gundam Pilot as a father, a veteran soldier for a mother, and all of my Uncles are Gundam Pilots too. Then there are my Aunts who are soldiers, business women or politicians."

This time, Wufei really smiled. "You have a point there. But enough chit-chat. Let's return Neo-Altron to the underground base. I'll use the glider."

Trowa jumped out of Heavyarms, executing a nice acrobatic flip. Upon landing, he looked back up at Heavyarms, a look of fondness flashing in his eyes. He then walked over to the security panel.

"With everything that has happened, all of us could understand you better now, having been in the same situation," Trion remarked before going out of Neo-Heavyarms' cockpit, also executing an acrobatic flip.

Without looking back, Trowa replied, "I rather have you kids understand us less if it meant that you didn't have to fight and become like us."

Trion slowly approached him. "Aren't you proud of me, Dad?"

Trowa whirled around. "Of course I am, Trion. You don't know how much your Mom and I are proud of you," he told him with a slight smile. "You were suddenly pulled out of your secure lives and told to fight a whole army using the deadliest of all weapons, given only a few days to prepare yourselves physically, mentally and emotionally. But even with these obstacles, you managed to succeed in your mission and come back alive. That was one incredible feat." He suddenly paused, his face sad as he looked at his only son. "Because of who we were, you were forced to take the same path that we had taken, the path of death and destruction. You might had taken that path only once in your life but you'll carry that one moment with you as long as you live," he told Trion, his voice laced with regret and apology.

"Don't worry about me, Dad. Or any one of us. We're strong, just like you. We'll be fine," Trion assured him. "I might carry the guilt of killing a lot of people my whole life but I'll never regret making the decision to fight. Just as I know you would never regret fighting for the colonies either."

Trowa placed a hand on Trion's shoulders, nodding at him. Trion smiled, understanding what his father meant to tell him. With that, he made his way up Neo-Heavyarms again.

Zechs maneuvered Tallgeese to its original position inside the storage. "It really has been a long time, Tallgeese," he addressed the Mobile Suit. Turning off the power supply, he went out of the cockpit and slowly descended to the ground.

Rhys saw that his father was activating the security panel. He went out of his own Suit to join him. "Dad, umm, we haven't gotten the chance to really talk these past 2 days so I'm taking this chance to say sorry for tarnishing the Peacecraft family name."

Startled, Zechs turned around to face him. "I don't quite follow you, Rhys."

"The name Peacecraft had always been synonymous to peace and I know that you and Aunt Relena went to a great extent in keeping it that way. She, by abiding to the Peacecraft ideal to the core and you, though you've been a soldier all your life, protected the Peacecraft name by taking on the name Zechs Merquise whenever you fight. I, on the other hand, was inconsiderate enough to fight and kill during the last battle bearing the Peacecraft name. Jiiro and Reina fought too but they bear the name Yuy so it's different. I'm really sorry, Dad."

"So, you'r saying sorry coz you didn't get the chance to think of an alias before going out in a Suit to save the ESUN?" Zechs asked lightly. He wanted to make Rhys realize how ridiculous it sounded. But seeing the pensive expression on his son's face, he knew that Rhys really believed that he tarnished their name.

Resting his hands on Rhys' shoulders, Zechs said, "It's true that Relena and I put a great emphasis in keeping the ideals of the Peacecraft name alive and intact so you must believe me when I say that you've done nothing to tarnish our name. On the contrary, you lived up to it, exalting it even more. You did a marvelous job, son, and we couldn't be any prouder."

Rhys' eyes lit up when he heard his father's words. All of a sudden, he noticed his father's face became troubled as he dropped his hands from his shoulders. "If anyone should apologize, it's us. We're supposed to be the only ones who had to fight. We gladly took on the burden of fighting and all the consequences that came with it so nobody else would have to, especially not you. But at the end, we weren't able to prevent our own kids from making the same sacrifice we did. We might have foreseen this day coming, having trained you bit by bit while you were growing up but we did the best we could to prevent this day from becoming a reality. But we still failed. I guess our best wasn't good enough."

"You didn't fail, Dad. You, Mom, Aunt Relena, Uncle Heero and the others succeeded in making a peaceful world for us to live in. And you know that you couldn't possibly prevent every disaster from happening. It's not your fault that we became soldiers. We fought on our own free will because we wanted to help. It might be because of the genes or maybe you guys brought us up well but the thing is we couldn't just stand there and do nothing when we know that we could do something to help. We made our choice to fight, so like you, we just have to live with it. Besides, I always believed that it's a blessing to die for a cause, because one could easily die for nothing." Smiling, Rhys continued, "Thanks for being proud of me, Dad. I was scared for a while there, thinking that I disgraced our family or much worse, I disappointed you. I know that someday I'll be Sanc's next Chief Representative. I just don't want to let our people down."

Zechs smiled. "You won't. You'll become a great leader, I'm certain of it. And you'll never be a disappointment to me, Rhys. Remember that."

"I will," Rhys replied, smiling back.

"Come on, kiddo. They're waiting for us at the other side."

"Thanks for guiding my son, Zero," Heero said inside the cockpit. As if hearing him, Wing Zero's eyes glowed green. Feeling Zero's acknowledgment, he quietly climbed down.

"How are you feeling, Jiiro?" he asked as he set up the security system, sensing that his son was standing just a few feet away from him.

"Tired. But I'm fine," he replied, pausing briefly, as if deliberating something. Finally, he asked, "Tousan, did you ever choose a future from the set of futures Zero showed you then not be able to execute it properly?"

Finished with his task, Heero turned around to him. "Is this about Qintaro?"

Jiiro nodded. "I remember you telling me that I'll know when to kill and when not to kill in order to defeat an enemy. With all the possible futures that Zero showed me, I chose the one that didn't involve killing him. I know that he was just upset and grieving, killing him wouldn't be the right thing to do. But I guess I miscalculated my shot or something."

Hearing what just Jiiro said, something occurred to Heero. But instead he replied, "You did what you had to do. I know Reina and your friends understand that." Heero held his gaze, 2 pairs of Prussian blue eyes locked onto each other. "You did an excellent job, Jiiro. It was your first mission and you had to face overwhelming odds but you pulled through. You saved the whole ESUN and the lives of your Kaasan, your imuoto, and your friends. Your Kaasan and I could never be more proud."

Jiiro smiled sadly at him. "Thanks, Tousan. Like what you said, I just did what I had to do. And I'll willingly fight again if needed be. Peace must be protected no matter what the cost. And I promise that I'll protect peace no matter what it'll cost me." He then looked at his hands. "I see blood. In my hands, in my dreams." He looked back at Heero. "Will it ever stop?"

Heero watched him for a moment before answering. "I'll be lying if I say that it would. No soldier would ever forget his first kill nor would he be able to wash away the blood in his hands. But as time passes by, it'll become more bearable, especially if you have family and friends who'll help you make things bearable." Heero stopped, looking at his own hands. "I committed many crimes in my lifetime but the most unpardonable of it was making you kids into something like us."

"What's unpardonable in turning us into someone like you, soldiers who fought for a cause? It was our choice to fight, Tousan and even before, we already accepted what that entails. We might carry the scars of the last battle all throughout our lives but we won't ever regret making that decision. We did what we had to do, just like you did what you had to do. You committed no crime against us. And you don't have to worry or feel guilty. We'll be fine. I just want to know if the nightmares would stop, that's all."

Heero approached him and tousled his already unruly hair. He was proud of him, of Reina and of all the kids. But even with all the assurance those kids and their parents told him and would continue on telling him, he couldn't stop feeling guilty for having dragged them into a war, just like he knew that no words of assurance would stop Jiiro from feeling guilty over Qintaro's death either. "Let's get going," Heero said as he went to Wing Zero's bust to open the elevator.

Jiiro nodded and climbed up HAVOC's cockpit.

Rhys, Kai, Deity, Trion and Lee jumped out of the 5 BCS-integrated Suits after placing them back inside the chamber in the underground base. Afterwards, they headed towards the computer terminal where their fathers were.

"All Suits are inside. You can close it now," Kai said to his father. Quatre nodded, pushing a button. A humming noise was heard as the wall at the far side went down, concealing the 5 Mobile Suits.

"Hey, Uncle Heero and Jiiro are here," Deity said, seeing Heero and the HAVOC emerged from the glass tube.

The older pilots nodded at Heero then returned their attention to the computer terminal where a map was displayed on the screen while the 5 kids watched the HAVOC and Heero went to the other end of the room, opposite the 5 MS' storage.

"Umm, all the Gundam busts match the DNA print stored inside the stone with the voice print of the holder of the ring, right? That's why even if they have Reina's ring, they still need Reina's voice to open the storage. So how could Uncle Heero and Jiiro access the HAVOC's storage when the only two people who could open it are not here?" Rhys asked.

A beep of an incoming transmission was then heard. "I think this will answer your question, Rhys," Trowa said as he answered the transmission. The map disappeared and Athena's face appeared on the screen.

"Good, you're all there. So kids, how are you doing?" Athena asked.

"We're ok. But Reina is still unconscious," Lee answered.

"So I've heard. But don't worry about her. It's a usual side effect of piloting HAVOC. It has been 2 days, right? I bet she's already awake by the time you return. Say hi for me, ok?"

"Will do," Trion told her.

"Thanks." Seeing Heero by HAVOC's bust, she asked, "Do you have Reina's ring, Heero?"

"Hn," Heero replied, showing her the ring.

"Ok then. Let's start." Heero inserted the ring in the bust's right eye. The stone's color changed into red. Afterwhich, an electronic voice said, "Please state your full name."

"Activate Override Sequence. Name Athena Arbus Mazaki. Code J1014F. Deactivate Voice Recognition," Athena said from the terminal.

The stone's color then changed into green. "Override Sequence Complete. Voice Recognition Deactivated. Please state your full name."

"Reina Keiko Yuy."

Upon stating Reina's name, the wall went up and the HAVOC made its way inside. With his task done, Jiiro desynchronized from the HAVOC and jumped down. Just as he stepped out of the chamber, the wall suddenly went down again, concealing the Mobile Suit.

Deity managed to voice out the question in the kids' minds. "You mean the busts could be overridden?"

"Yes. But only by the two people it recognizes. Like in this case, we have Reina's ring but she isn't here. So we used Athena's voice to deactivate the voice recognition program, causing the computer to just match the given name with the DNA print inside the ring's stone. It's only temporary though. The voice recognition program would again be activated as soon as the door closes," Zechs explained.

"Oh."

Duo crossed his arms and looked at the terminal questioningly. "Why can't you come here, Athena?"

Athena flashed him an apologetic smile. "I have things to take care of. Sorry."

"Is that also why you suddenly disappeared after the battle?" Wufei asked. "Relena, Lady Une and our wives were inquiring about you."

Athena looked sheepish when she answered, "Oh, that. Well, I was tired so I thought it best to immediately go home."

Zechs carefully studied her. After all these years, she was still running away. "They really want to talk to you, you know. Especially Relena. Though she wasn't mad that we didn't tell her that you're alive, knowing that you made us promise to keep it a secret, we still knew that she was hurt."

"She even made us tell her everything since the time we discovered you're alive and what you'd been doing these past years," Trowa added.

"And again, we had to lie when she asked us if we had heard from you since the end of the battle," Quatre told her.

"We didn't exactly lie to her, Quatre. We actually got to talk to Athena after Relena had asked us," Duo corrected.

"Even so, we still didn't tell Relena when Athena contacted us. I, for one, talked to her 3 times these past 2 days," Heero told them. His eyes bored into her and even though they were miles away from each other, Athena could still feel the intensity in his eyes. "You couldn't do this forever, Athena. You know that," he added meaningfully. "As soon as I get home, I'm going to tell her that I talked to you and that you're still on Earth. I couldn't lie to my wife anymore."

Athena nodded. "I understand. Sorry for all the trouble I caused you, guys. I didn't mean to make you lie or hurt anyone. It's just that I'm still not ready to face any of them, especially Relena."

"But you already faced them, didn't you? Most of them, anyways. You're the one who saved them from Buena Park," Rhys pointed out.

"That's different. It was a mission. Now, if I were to see them, it wouldn't be a mission anymore but a social thing. And I don't know if I'm ready for that yet," Athena replied. She then turned her head to the side, as if listening for something. "I better go. Is opening the HAVOC's storage all you need of me?"

"Hn. Thanks," Heero said.

"Ok. You know where to call me if ever you need anything. Bye." With that, the transmission was disconnected.

"That was strange. There's nothing that could keep Athena from going here to the base especially if we asked her to. Something is up," Trowa voiced out. He looked at Heero. "You're suspecting something," he stated.

Heero deliberated whether he would share his suspicions or not. Finally, he answered, "She's hiding something from us. I still don't know what but I have this feeling that we'll know soon enough."

It was Wufei's turn to regard him. "You said earlier that you talked to Athena thrice for the past 2 days but we only got to talk to her once. When were the other 2?"

Heero went to the computer terminal. "She first called the night after the battle to tell me that she's staying in her house in Brussels. She asked about everything --- how things were, the kids, the captured soldiers, the Preventers. Then she asked what time we would be in the Preventers HQ the next day. The next call was the one where she all talked to us in the Preventers HQ. She called again after that, when all of you had gone off to your respective assignments. She wanted to talk to Lady Une and the kids."

"What kids?" Duo asked.

"Miles, Ren, Dean, Colin and Sean."

"Why?" Lee queried.

"And why would she want to talk with Lady Une?" Zechs added.

"Sorry. As it stands, it's still classified," Heero answered. "It was also then that I asked her to come here so we could return the HAVOC, Reina still being unconscious. But she said that she couldn't come and instead told me to get Reina's ring." After punching some keys, the map of the 6 storage facilities was shown again on the screen. "Have you decided on the new locations yet?"

"Yes. Here are the new coordinates," Quatre replied, clicking a button. The new locations appeared on the map. "Predicting that you'll choose this location," Quatre pointed on a certain area on the map, "we'll be able to maintain this underground base as the center of the 6 points. But all new storage facilities would be a good 1 km further than the original ones."

"Which means longer hanging time in the glider," Duo voiced out.

Heero studied the map. "I guess I'll choose that point then. When can we start?"

Zechs, Trowa, Duo, Quatre and Wufei looked at each other. "We'll all be busy for the next few weeks so I suggest we start next month," Zechs said.

"I agree. I'm pretty certain that the Gundams will be safe in their former storages for that span of time, Sally having hyptonized all the Dais Rogue soldiers, planting a different set of coordinates for the individual storages," Wufei amended.

Duo rubbed his hands together. "That settles it then. Next month it is. I'm sure that I'll be able to procure all the materials by that time. We'll build the storages in a clockwise direction again, right?"

The 5 older pilots nodded. "So that means Deathscythe's storage will be built first, just like before. Great!" Duo exclaimed.

"What will happen to the old storages? Are you going to demolish them?" Kai asked.

"No. We'll let it stand there as a decoy. If ever the soldiers bypass the hypnosis that Sally did to them and remember the real coordinates, they'll find the storage but not the Gundams," Trowa told him.

Kai nodded appreciatively. "Very smart."

"Hey, Jiiro, why so quiet?" Rhys suddenly inquired.

"Nothing. Just tired. Piloting the HAVOC was exhausting."

Rhys studied him. "You're thinking of Qintaro again, aren't you?"

Jiiro didn't reply. Trion rested a comforting hand on his shoulder. "Hey, I know it's hard but you have to stop blaming yourself for what happened. It's not your fault. All of us understand that."

Deity hooked her arm around his. "It's sad that he's gone and we're all going to miss him but nobody's blaming you for it. We're not blaming you, even Miles, Ren, Dean, Colin and Sean are not blaming you. Remember our talk with them yesterday? They completely understand that you didn't have any other choice. Besides, it was what he asked of you. So cut yourself some slack, will ya?" Her eyes then got that devious look all of them knew so well. "If you don't, then I'll be forced to do this just to loosen you up," she said as she began tickling him.

Jiiro's laughter echoed in the underground base. Even with all the training he had and even after mastering the Zero system, he was still not immune to Deity's tickles. But being stronger, he succeeded in pulling away from her after a few seconds. Catching his breath, he muttered, "Ok, ok. I'll lighten up. Just get those accursed fingers away from me."

Deity placed her index finger near her lips, blowing it as if it were a gun. "Mission Accomplished." Everyone laughed.

"Since we're all done here, I think we should head back to the Palace," Quatre suggested.

"Yeah. We still have to go back the way we came to get our shuttles," Duo added.

The rest nodded then all of them headed towards the glass tube.

3 pm

Jiiro peered inside Reina's room. He saw her sitting up on her bed, obviously resting but definitely looking bored. "Can I come in?"

"Sure," Reina answered, watching her brother made his way towards her. He sat on her bed then said, "I just heard from Kaasan that you're up so I thought to pay you a visit. How are you feeling?"

"I'm fine. Really. I've been awake for 6 hours now but Kaasan won't let me get out of bed. She said that I should conserve my strength," Reina replied, pouting.

"I think she's right. Piloting the HAVOC really drained you. I was the one who piloted it earlier and all I did was walk it from the storage to the underground base but it still exhausted me. I couldn't imagine the toll it had exacted from you, fighting, flying, deflecting blasts. Do you know that you blacked-out when you were still inside HAVOC? I almost didn't catch you when you suddenly fell to the ground."

Reina nodded. "Well, Athena already warned me about it. It's a side effect, nothing to get worried about. Sleeping for 2 days straight made me regain my strength." Smiling at him, she added, "Thanks for taking care of me, Niichan."

Jiiro smiled back. "Anytime."

"Just got back from the underground base, I presume?"

"Hn," Jiiro replied, handing her key ring back to her. "The Gundams will stay there until Tousan and our other Uncles finished building new storage facilities. And as an added precaution, they asked Aunt Sally to hypnotize the remaining Dais Rogue soldiers, even our friends, planting a different set of coordinates in their minds. That way, they might think that they know where the Gundams are kept but in reality, they don't."

"Cool. They always come up with cool, efficient plans like that, don't they, Niichan?" Reina remarked with admiration. She slipped her ring back on her finger then looked up at him questioningly. "Do I still have to ask why you needed my ring when Athena could easily open HAVOC'c storage?"

"She couldn't come to the base so she asked Tousan to get your ring. She called when we were in the base then announced the override codes, knowing that the computer would recognize her voice and open the storage. She sends you her regards." Suddenly, Jiiro grew serious. "Reina, I'm so sorry."

Reina reached out to take his hand. "Why are you apologizing to me? You only did what you had to do. Actually, you did what he wanted you to do. I miss him and it hurts to think that I wouldn't see him again but what about you? I know that Qintaro means just as much to you as he is to me. I know that it was harder for you, having been the one who had to choose, the one who fired that shot. Nobody's blaming you for anything, so stop blaming yourself for something you had no control of."

"But I did have control. I have Zero. I swear, I never planned it to end that way," Jiiro said, anguish and sorrow evident in his voice.

Reina threw her arms around him. "I know. I was there too, remember? And we're twins so I somewhat had an idea what you were trying to do. I know that you weren't planning on killing him. You fired at him knowing that he would let go of me. Then when his Suit plummeted downwards, we would get him out and talk to him. But something went wrong and it wasn't your fault. Believe me, it wasn't."

"I might not want to kill him then but at the end, I still did. He might forgive me, you and our other friends might forgive me but how could I possibly forgive myself? I didn't only kill my bestfriend, I also ruined your chance to be happy with him."

Reina hugged him tighter. "Don't worry about me. I'm happy just thinking that he's with his dad and that wherever they are now, they're both happy and at peace. Maybe also thinking that will help you forgive yourself. Remember, you're Qintaro's best friend too. He wouldn't want you punishing yourself for something he asked you to do."

They continued hugging, comforting each other. Suddenly, they heard Rhys say, "Hey, Jiiro, you're 5 minutes are up. We also want to say hi to Reina."

The twins pulled apart and saw Deity, Kai, Trion, Lee and Rhys standing by the doorway. The 5 kids entered and also plopped on her queen-sized bed.

"Good to see you're up, Reina. You sure missed a lot of excitement these past two days," Deity said as she hugged her.

"I think she was lucky to have been sleeping all this time. Things got really crazy around here," Kai remarked.

"You look like you're ready for some action, Rei," Rhys said approvingly.

"Yup. I'm fit as a fiddle. I can sure use a good exercise. I know! Let's go to the combat room and do some combat exercises."

The 6 kids looked at each other. "I think we'll all pass. We haven't gotten any rest since the battle ended," Trion told her.

"Yeah. It's our turn to sleep. I'm ready to crash here and sleep for two days," Lee added, curling up into a ball and pretending to have fallen asleep. Everyone laughed and threw pillows at him. "Hey!"

Laughing, Jiiro said, "At least you guys got to sleep for 3 hours after the battle. I, on the other hand, was the only one left 'conscious' to carry all of you to the hospital then help the Preventers while you were sleeping."

It was Jiiro's turn to be assaulted by pillows. "Stop reminding us that we were knocked unconscious!" the 6 kids yelled.

They were still hitting Jiiro when Kai suddenly said, "Hey! I just thought of something."

Pillows stopped on midair as 6 pairs of eyes looked at him. "Well, I just thought that we managed to get the ESUN back and we're still alive. We pulled it off, guys!" Kai remarked, smiling.

The other kids smiled too. "Yeah. We certainly did," Lee affirmed.

"We should celebrate, you know," Deity suggested.

"Actually, I heard Mom, Aunt Relena and the rest talking about a celebratory barbecue that will be held a day before we all go back to space --- us kids to school while our families to their respective homes," Trion informed them.

"Kaasan told me all about it too. Even Sean, Dean, Colin, Ren and Miles are invited since they're going back with us to RECON," Reina said.

Jiiro looked at the calendar on the wall. "So that'll be the day after tomorrow, right?"

"Right. Now that's all settled, I suggest we continue hitting Mr. I'm-the-only-one-left-standing-during-the last-battle," Deity commented with a grin.

With lightning quick reflexes, Jiiro grabbed a pillow. "Oh no, you don't." And another pillow fight ensued.

Outside Reina's room, Heero and Relena watched the 7 kids smack each other with pillows, laughing and yelling. "They might have saved the whole ESUN but they're still kids afterall. I'm glad that they didn't lose their selves during the battle," Relena remarked.

"Hn. They are kids first, soldiers second. Now that the threat is over, they don't need to be soldiers anymore."

"But they wouldn't be just ordinary kids now," Relena said, her voice sad.

Heero wrapped his arm around her shoulders. "I'm afraid not. They are kids who knew of death, who caused death, who stared at the face of death and survived. Nobody with that kind of experience and with the responsibility of being peace's last resort would ever be ordinary. But they'll be fine. Their strength lies not in the Gundams they're piloting but with the understanding and acceptance of their duty."

Relena nodded. "Yeah. I guess I shouldn't be worried. They got us and they got each other. With that, I know that everything will be alright."

Heero gently squeezed her shoulder. They stared at the kids once last time before walking away.

Consciousness flooded his mind, making him open his eyes. He sat up abruptly, causing his head to spin. He laid down for a moment and tried to sit up again, this time slowly. He looked around, studying his surroundings. He was in a big room, fully furnished, with blue walls, a fireplace and its own bathroom. It didn't fit his conception of Heaven, or Hell for that matter. Actually, it looked more like a guest room. He placed his hands in front of him, then felt his body. Aside from a few scars, bruises and maybe one or two broken bones, he was ok. "I'm alive," he stated, puzzled. "But how?"

"I think you know the answer to that," someone told him. He turned his head and saw an auburn-haired woman by the doorway, carrying a tray of food, which he suspected was his. Maybe it was because she looked so familiar and that she obviously took care of him. Maybe it was the expression of understanding in her green eyes, which were very similar to his own. Or maybe it was just that his brain had been more damaged that he originally thought. Whatever the reason was, he didn't think of asking her the common questions anyone in his position would have asked, like 'Who are you?' or 'Where am I?'. Instead, he replied, "I'm alive because Jiiro didn't kill me."

She nodded, telling him that he was right. She entered the room and placed the tray on top of the table. "I'm glad that you're finally awake, Qintaro. You've been unconscious since I took you here from the battle 2 days ago. I was getting worried."

Qintaro was surprised, not only because she knew his name but also because he couldn't believe that he had been unconscious for two days. Finally, he felt his head working, his common sense kicking in. "I don't mean to sound ungrateful but Who are you? And where are we?"

She smiled at him. "I'm Athena and you're in my house, just a few miles away from the Presidential Palace. I live in L1 but whenever I'm on Earth, I stay here."

Qintaro studied her. Athena. Where did he hear that name before? Then he remembered. She was on their file. "Athena Arbus Mazaki. HAVOC's pilot."

Athena smiled at him again, sitting down beside him on the bed. Seeing her like that made him wonder how this sweet lady could pilot such a monster as HAVOC, much less be called the Goddess of War. Then again, there was something about her that told him instinctively how dangerous she could be.

"Former pilot," she corrected. "Reina is HAVOC's pilot now. And I'm proud to say that I made a good choice in training her as my successor."

He flinched when he heard Reina's name, nonetheless he asked, "But I didn't see you during the battle. How did you get me here?"

"I happened to be at the right place at the right time. When Jiiro blasted you, Stygma fell near the spot where I hid my jeep the day I arrived on Earth. I opened the cockpit and noticed that the self-destruct system was accidentally activated by the impact of the blast or your fall since you, being unconscious, couldn't have possibly initiated it. I hurriedly dragged you out towards my jeep and we're just a few meters away when Stygma exploded," Athena told her. Looking directly in his eyes, she said, "Everyone thinks your dead though."

Qintaro looked away. "I think it's better this way. After all I've done, I I can't possibly face any of them again."

"It might come as a surprise to you, but I know how you feel. But no matter how good you are at concealing yourself and no matter how hard you try, you can't possibly hide from them forever. Sooner or later, you have to face them, face the consequences of your actions. Believe me, I should know," Athena said softly.

Qintaro looked back at her, remembering that she was supposed to be dead too. "Oh, pardon me for talking too much. You need to eat. Remember, you haven't eaten for two days and your body needs to recuperate" Athena said as she lifted the tray on top of the table and placed it in front of him. "Feel free to tell me if you need anything else, ok?"

Qintaro nodded. "Thank you very much." Two pairs of green eyes then locked into each other. "Why are you doing this, Athena? Why take care of me?"

Athena smiled. "Because I like you. I know that you're a good kid. I'm good judge of character, Qintaro. It comes in the territory of being a good soldier and infiltrator. From what I've heard from Reina and the other kids' stories and from what I've seen and heard for myself so far, I realized that we're alike in more ways than one. Another reason is that I don't want to make Reina, Jiiro or any of your friends sad. They're all devastated that you're gone, you know."

"I still don't know if I can face them again."

"Let's talk about that later when you're done eating. And since I have this feeling that you're not sure what you're planning to do next in your life, why not stay with me? I know that we just met but I think that, you know, birds of the same feather should flock together."

Qintaro smiled. As she said before, they just met but he instantly liked her. Sort of a cross between a Mom and a friend. And now that she mentioned it, staying with her sounded more appealing every second. "It sounds nice. Thanks." He looked down at his food then asked, "Want to eat with me?"

"Thanks, but no thanks. I just ate. I'll keep you company while you're eating though."

He picked up his fork and was about to dig in when he looked back at her. "Umm, since we'll be housemates, I want to know more about you. Is that ok?"

Athena smiled. "Sure. What do you want to know about?"

"Everything."

"Everything? That'll be a long story."

Qintaro shrugged "I'm a slow eater."

"Fine then. But after I'm done, you'll tell me everything about you too."

"Deal."

Athena furrowed her forehead, thinking. "Hmm, let's see. I was born..."