Negotiation and Preperation

Lina smiled and bowed slightly.

"Thanks Zach."

Lina turned and walked away. She headed down the hall towards the bunks and located the showers. 'Easy enough' Lina thought as she turned the corner and saw the showers. Luckily the place was empty, so she didn't have to worry. Lina stepped inside the stall and quickly stripped, and pulled the tie out of her hair and let it fall free against her back. She put her cloths off to the side and turned on the water. It was cold and slowly heated up. Once it was hot, Lina stepped under it and let the water fall on her face and drip down her body. Just like she wanted, she could feel her troubles melting away with the water, but they'd come back. They always do, this was just some time for her to rest and relax. Lina smiled as her thoughts drifted to Val. What was he doing? How was he doing? Was he thinking about her as well? Or was he spending time with that Takimi woman? Lina clenched her fist and hit the side of the shower. She shouldn't have stayed, she should have gone back with Val, should be trying to spend time with him, but she also wanted to spend time with her sister.

"Oh, why can't I decide what I want to do? Ess is here, Val is on Earth....with that woman!"

It wasn't long before the water turned cold again, and Lina quickly turned it off before she froze.

"They must have a limited amount, should have realized that. Guess that's one luxury you really can't afford when you're drifting around in space."

Lina peeked out to make sure there was no one there, at least to males that would gawk and stare. Seeing that the coast was clear, Lina quickly opened to stall door hopped across the room, grabbed a towel and hopped back to the stall, closing the door. Lina took her time drying off, there was really nothing else for her to do anyways, so might as well. Once she was dry, she put her clots back on and opened the stall door. The place was still empty, and suddenly, Lina felt very alone. Lina let out a soft moan and tosses the towel in a hamper, out her hands in her pockets and slowly walked back into the hall. There were a few people in the hall, some waved and smiled, probably thought that she was Ess. Eventually Lina made her way back to the area where she had been working earlier. There was still nothing for her to do, but at least she could feel a bit more relaxed around an area that was familiar to her, or at least felt like an area that was. Lina took a seat on a bench and leaned back against the wall, looking around. Lina let out a sigh and closed her eyes and drifted off to sleep.

The shuttle from L3 docks back from it's mission on L3. Stacy watched as the Gundam Cygnus X-1 was placed next to the Gundam Epiphany. This image brought a smile to her face. Eota rode the zip line down from the cockpit and walked up to her.

Eota - You made an impressive mobile suit, Ms. Matta.

Stacy - Thank you Eota.

Stacy looked over at Yoshino as he walked off of the shuttle.

Stacy - Welcome aboard the Gilgamesh. She belongs to the Defenders. It's been our home since we first left L3, and now it's open to you as well. I'm sure Zach and Ess won't mind...they're the leaders of the Defenders. Zach pilots the other Gundam, the Epiphany.

Stacy turned back to the mobile suits and smiled. Then she saw Eota's Taurus, which made her think of Base down on Earth. This brought her spirits down just a tad. She hoped that he was doing well and that he would return soon. Stacy let out a sigh and then looked at Eota and Yoshino.

Stacy - Eota, would you lead Yoshino to the bunks. I'm sure he'd like to rest.

Eota - Sure. Follow me.

Eota walked off as he led Yoshino to the bunks on the Gilgamesh.

Lina awoke several hours later and looked around the still empty area, slightly confused. It took her several full seconds to remember that she was aboard the Gilgamesh and not back at Antioch on Earth with Val and James. Standing and stretching Lina decided to wander around aimlessly until someone could give her something to do, or until she could find something to do. In her random walking, Lina passed by the staging area where a shuttle had just finished the docking procedures.

"Wonder who this could be? Surely it can't be Val and the others can it?"

There was a tone of hope in her voice as she ran down the hall, she passed Eots and Yoshino on the way, but paid them no mind. Lina looked around once she was by the shuttle but only saw Stacy there. Lina had an obvious look of disappointment on her face and let out a sad sigh as she stood there, not exactly sure what to do, but knowing that she must look like a completely hopeless emotionally trouble girl at the moment.

The communication link on the bridge of the Gilgamesh blinked and Val's face appeared on the screen with a short message.

"To Lina and the Defenders. This is Val, speaking from Antioch. Base and Han left for Australia and I haven't heard anything from them since, nor from my shuttle pilot that went with them. I don't know if you are aware of this or not, but Han and base went to answer a distress call, either dealing with Jyotika, or that other man, who's name I don't know, but I do know he pilots the Tallgees II, so whatever it is, it can't be good. As far as we've been able to tell, Jyotika sill hasn't made a move in Sanc Kingdom or anywhere else for that matter. I'll keep everyone posted as to what's going on here, and I can only hope that you will keep me posted as to happening on your end as well. Val out."

Eota had just finished showing Yoshino were the bunks were when his communicator beeped. Eota took it from his pocket and pressed the button.

Base - Eota...? Is that you?

Eota - Yeah, Base. What's up?

Eota could tell there was something wrong with his best friend. His voice was shaky and filled with sadness.

Base - All hell's broken lose down here. Han...Han and I were responding to a distress signal in Australia....

Base went quiet for a moment. Eota already guessed the worse.

Base - Han...Han's Taurus got destroyed by some guy who's taken over Australia. Han's in critical condition...I...I tried to contact Kiyoshi but he didn't respond...I don't know what to do Eota...

Eota looked shock. Han was a combat veteran, this pilot must have been good. Eota then remembered the Cygnus. It was Kiyoshi's Gundam. He had to get it to him...

Eota - I'll let everyone know what's going on...I'll be coming down soon.

Base - Eota...tell...tell Stacy I miss her...please.

Eota - I will. If you get a hold of Kiyoshi...tell him I'm bringing him a present.

Eota put the communicator back into his pocket and looked at Yoshino.

Eota - Looks like I'm going to Earth.

Yoshino looked confused as he sat down on one of the bunks.

Yoshino - We just got here...

Eota - I'm going alone. You're a pilot right? You stay here and protect the Gilgamesh...once you're all better anyway. They could use another pilot. You can use my Taurus while I'm away.

Yoshino - What are you taking down?

Eota - The Cygnus.

Yoshino again looked surprised.

Eota - I piloted it on L3...I can pilot it through the atmosphere, just to bring it to Kiyoshi. I'll pick up some other mobile suit when I get down there. Look...I know we don't know each other too well, but...but...the man who trained me and Base has been badly injured. I have to go.

Yoshino made a slight nod understanding. Eota then walked out heading towards the hanger. Stacy was standing by the Cygnus doing a quick status check. Eota had piloted the Gundam well on L3, even if it wasn't truly complete, but this would have to do. Looking up from the terminal that was hooked up to the Cygnus's pilot system, she saw Eota walk in as he zipped up his pilot suit.

Stacy - You going out?

Eota - I need you to equip the Cygnus with atmoshutes.

Stacy - What!?

Eota's serious expression didn't change.

Eota - You heard me. I'm taking the Cygnus to Kiyoshi. He's going to need it.

Stacy - I'm sure of that...but what's happened!? I was hoping to run a few more tests on the Cygnus...make sure it's as good as it's going to get...

Eota - No time. Equip it with the atmoshutes.

Stacy stood up and walked right up to Eota and looked him in the eyes. Her eyes widened.

Stacy - It's about Han and Base isn't it...

Eota looked away as he picked up his helmet.

Eota - Han's been badly injured. Base is freaking out. I have to go down there.

Stacy - I'm coming with you.

Eota turned and glared at Stacy.

Eota - No. If you go down there you'll just make things worse. The situation seems to be bad, if you're down there Base will have to worry about protecting you. We'll need to be as focused as we can. Kiyoshi is going to need his Gundam...the fastest way to get it to him is to take it through the atmosphere.

Ess - I'll equip the Cygnus with the Atmochutes...

Eota turned to look at Ess.

Ess - We just got word from Val about the same situation, though Val didn't know anything about Han. I guess Base hasn't told him yet.

Lisa walked into the hanger. Base had obviously just contacted her and told her about Han. She moved to Eota as fast as she could and held onto his shoulders.

Lisa - You have to take me with you.

Eota - No.

Lisa - Han isn't going to recover anytime soon! Please...I have to see him!

Eota - Why!? You're just going to get in the way!

Lisa slapped Eota as hard as she could.

Lisa - I'm pregnant.

Everyone went quiet. Ess finally put an arm on Lisa's shoulder.

Ess - Then that's even more of a reason for you to not go down there. We'll all go down to Earth soon. If the situation is as bad as everyone thinks, then we all need to be down there.

Lisa started to cry then she looked at Eota, his face red where she slapped him.

Lisa - Eota...I'm sorry.

Eota - I probably deserved it.

Lisa - Will...will you tell Han...?

Eota - Yes...I will.

Lisa - Thank you.

Ess - Lisa why don't you go back to the bunks and rest. Stacy help me equip the Cygnus with the atmochutes. Eota you get inside the cockpit and get ready to launch.

Stacy - Yes, Ma'am.

Eota nodded in confirmation then rode the zip line up to the cockpit of the Cygnus. Eota sat back in the pilot's seat and closed the hatch. He sat in the darkness for awhile, collecting his thoughts. Han was badly injured, Lisa was pregnant, the situation was an odd good and bad scenario. Finally, Eota brought the Cygnus to life and watched as it was equipped with atmochutes. Soon, both Ess and Stacy had finished, and it was time to launch.

Eota watched as the large hatch doors open. He could see the blue planet, with swirling white clouds in front of him.

Eota - Ensign Eota Mars, Gundam Cygnus X-1, Launching!

Eota gripped the controls as the catapult slung the Gundam out into the abyss known as space. He used the verniers on a low setting to maneuver the Gundam towards Earth. Knowing that the communicators that Kiyoshi had given them could be used as tracking devices, Eota used his to find Kiyoshi's location and laid in a course. Eota looked back at the Gilgamesh once more, hoping that it wouldn't be the last time he saw his friends. He then turned his attention back forward as the Cygnus began to enter the atmosphere.

Lina looked around as she felt the Gilgamesh shake slightly. Something had just taken off. Lina ran around until she found out what had just happened, the Cygnus had just launched for Earth. Running to where the Cygnus had been.. Lina came skidding to a halt when she reached Ess and Lisa. Lisa was in tears while Ess and Stacy where watching the hanger doors where just seconds ago, the Cygnus had launched.

"Sister, what's going on here? Why'd the Cygnus just launch and who took it?"

Lina stood there, looking back and forth between the three other ladies, not prepared for what she was about to hear, but wanting to know none the less. Since she had been on the Gilgamesh Lina had done everything she could to help, but she really missed Val, and she also had been out of the loop, and this proved it. Ess, Lisa, and Stacy each knew what was going on, and poor little Lina hadn't the slightest idea, and she didn't like it when that happened, which was happening more and more as time was going on. But soon Lina would learn that sometimes, it's not always best to know everything.

Lisa dried her eyes and looked at the other three girls.

Lisa - I'm going to go lay down. I'm sorry.

Ess turned to look at Lisa sympathetically, Stacy gave her the same look.

Ess - It's alright, don't worry about it.

As Lisa walked off, Ess looked over a Stacy.

Ess - I think you should go with her. You both know each other more than I do, so I think it would be for the best.

Stacy nodded in agreement.

Stacy - I guess I'll see you all later.

Stacy made her exit as Ess turns to Lina. Ess made a heavy sigh as she closed her eyes.

Ess - Everything has been so hectic lately. I'm sorry that we haven't really had a chance to catch up. Basically, the leader of the L3 Defense Force, Commander Han Richards, went down to earth with Ensign Base Rynolds. They've apparently ran into some trouble, and Han became badly injured. Stacy and Eota Mars, went to L3 to build the Gundam Cygnus X-1. Once they got back, Eota learned from Base about Han being injured. Eota then decided to take the Cygnus down to Earth for Kiyoshi to use in the battles that are most likely soon to come.

Ess opened her eyes and again sighed.

Ess - I think it would be best if we stayed up in space a little while longer. We still don't know the full details of the situation in the Sanc Kingdom, and there's already plenty of people on Earth. We'll act as the cavalry if we have to. Though, that means we don't have much to do, except run maintenance on the Epiphany and the remaining Taurus from the L3 Defense Force. Which if you want something to do, those two options are open. I'm going to go head up to the bridge and update Zach on the situation. Take care, sis.

Lina stared as Ess spoke then walked off. Trouble on Earth. Was Val alright? Ess didn't say anything about him, so he must be. Ess would have told her is something had happened, surely she would have. Lina sighed and turned, might as well go back and do work on the Mobile Suits. After all, that why she was here. Lina headed back to the hanger area and headed over to the Epiphany. This was the first time she'd actually seen it. It was a beautiful suit. She still thought the Hyperion was going to be better looking, but she was biased, having been one of the two major constructors of the suit. Lina was the only one in the hanger, so she pulled off the jump suit she was wearing, leaving her in a pair on tight gray shorts and a white shirt. Lina put the jumpsuit on a hook and went over to the computer that was hooked up to the Epiphany and began running a scan on it. Maybe some of the things on this suit could help with the construction of the Hyperion.

"Lets go down the checklist just to make sure that everything is alright."

Lina was still alone in the hanger that held the Epiphany. Lina had hooked the computer up to each of the systems separately to make sure they were in the green and so far everything had checked out. All that was left to do was the once over of the movement and sensor systems, which were her specialties. She reached down and pressed record on a standard voice recorder that was clipped to her shirt. She liked keeping a record of what she did to the suits, that way if something went wrong, she could go back and find what was missed.

"Lina Greywood, notes on the Epiphany page one, begin. Ok, visual systems are on."

The computer screen flashed as Lina activated the visual sensors in the head of the Epiphany. After a few seconds of static images appeared on the screen, the same as the pilot would see if he was in the cock pit.

"Visual sensors are green for standard check. I'm going to access the Mobile Suit's head and do a quick motion sensor test."

Lina typed a few lines on the keyboard and had access to the Gundam's head movement. Lina slowly moved it back and forth with the controller that she and James had invented. It wasn't anything special, but it allowed for easier control of a single part of a Gundam or any Mobile Suit while a mechanic was doing work on it. After checking over the relay data Lina moved the head up and down and again check the data, then moved the head in circles. After that Lina set down the controller and turned back to the computer.

"Visual sensors appear to be functioning normally. Al relay data and movement speed is normal and in the green. Next I'll move to the right arm and check the hydraulics and movement systems in that."

Lina entered another few lines into the keyboard and disconnected from the head and accessed the right arm. Picking up the controller again she made the right arm bend at the elbow then looked back at the computer to see the data that was collected. Turing back to the Gundam, Lina opened and closed the right hand then moved each finger individually. Lastly, Lina set the arm back down at the side and lifted it at the shoulder joint.

"All movement is in the green for standard speed and power output from the generator. Joints are bending at normal speed and there is actually less tension on them than on standard suits. Interesting, haven't seen that happen before."

Lina set the arms data off with the data from the head that she had collected and disconnected access from the right arm and accessed the left arm. Lina ran the same tests on the left and got similar results. The left arm was in a little better shape than the right arm, which she made a note of in her recording, on the data in the computer and on a side piece of paper that she had been scribbling random notes on about how the Epiphany compared to the Hyperion.

"Both arms are completely in the green. As with the right arm there is less tension on the joints than on other suits. As far as I can tell that effects the suit in no way, other than longer life of those parts, assuming that the suit doesn't get totaled in a battle. Next I'm going to access the right leg. But before I can do that I'll have to lift the suit up off the ground a bit. Lina Greywood, notes on Epiphany page one, end."

After turning the recorded off, Lina stood up and stretched. She looked around, she was still alone in the hanger. She was sure that the sound of the Epiphany moving would have attracted someone. Maybe they checked and thought it was Ess working. Lina shrugged and walked over to the Epiphany. Lina paused and looked up at the suit. It loomed over her like a goddess would loom over those who worshiped her. Smiling, Lina walked to the controls that locked the Epiphany in place. Accessing the controls, she lifted the suit three feet off the ground, then locked in back into place. After checking to make sure everything was properly set, Lina walked back over to the computer and sat down again.

"Lina Greywood, notes on Epiphany, page two, begin. I've just lifted the suit off the floor by three feet, which is more than enough to do the movement tests on the legs. Now accessing the right leg."

Line entered lines into the computer again and the scree flashed with blueprint data on the right leg. Picking up the controller again she moved the leg at the hip joint and checked that data that appeared on the screen. Then she bent the leg at the knee joint, then the ankle joint, each time checking the data that appeared on the screen as she moved the leg.

"As with both arms, the tension on the hip, knee and ankle joints are less that usual, so I'm assuming that it will be the same with the left leg. Other than that, all data is in the green. From the looks of it all the Epiphany needed was a quick once over to make sure she was in working condition. And so far, she is, the left arm is in a little better shape than the right arm, but that's nothing that a few quick adjustments can't fix. Nothing is visibly wrong with the left leg. But I'm going to access that anyway just to be sure."

Lina returned the right leg to the position that it started in and cut access from the right leg and access the left leg. She ran the same tests on the left leg as she did with the right leg and got the same results.

"As expected, tension is less in the joints on this limb pf the Gundam as well. All movement systems are responding perfectly and are in the green. Cutting access to the left leg, now."

Lina typed on the keyboard for a few seconds, and accessed the full specs data that she had collected, which would take a few minuets. Lina stood up and walked back to the controls that locked the Epiphany in place and unlocked it, then lowered it back to the floor before locking it back into place. Making sure it was completely locked she walked back over to the computer, which had finished putting the data together. Lina inserted a disk that she had brought with her of the movement data on the Wing Zero, Deathscyth Hell, Heavy Arms, Sand Rock, and Altron. The collective data from he five original Gundams appeared on the screen by the data she had collected from the Epiphany.

"According to this data that I have in front of me, the Epiphany's movement systems compare almost equally to that of the original five Gundams. It is less than the movement of the Deathscyth Hell, Altron and Wing Zero. But is greater than that of the Sand Rock and Heavy Arms. But over all the collective data says that the Epiphany is weaker than the original Gundams. Is that right?"

Lina went over the data again, but she got the same conclusion. Finally she got it. The Epiphany wasn't meant for battle the way that the five original Gundams had been. And all the data she had was based on how the suit would preform in battle.

"The Epiphany is in almost perfect condition. And the reason that it doesn't compare to the other Gundams is that all the data I have is based on how the suit performs in battle and from the looks of it, the Epiphany wasn't built for heavy combat. All systems check out and now I've finished with the Epiphany, I'll go and check on the Taurus suits that are here. Lina Greywood, notes on the Epiphany, page two, end."

Lina was less enthused about working on the Taurus suits to say the least, frankly it didn't interest her at all, but it was something to do, and she was here to help with mechanical systems and the mobile suits. When Lina reached the area with the Taurus suits she paused to look at them. There were several suits, and from the look of things, all of the suits just needed the same system checking that she had just given the Epiphany. Lina signed and walked over to the computer system. All three of the Taurus suits were already hooked up to the system check network, which means someone had already been working on them. Lina checked the data and sure enough, two of the suits had already gone through the system work out, the third still needed to be done, so Lina picked up where who ever was working on the suit finished. Lina put the third Taurus though the same paces she put the Epiphany and recorded all the data into the network system and onto her recorder. Once she was finished, she compared the data on the three suits and saw that other than a few minor adjustments that had been made, the suits were perfectly normal. She then pulled the data on the Taurus that she had from numerous battler records and compared the data from these three suits to the data from the disk. All three were operating at the same level as the rest of the human piloted Taurus suits.

"Lina Greywood, notes on L3 Taurus suits, overview begin. I've collected all the data on the movement and sensor systems and all three suits are in the green. They are working with their capabilities and have no major adjustments made to them. The few adjustments that have been made appear to be done to make it easier for the pilot to maneuver the suit during battle, nothing major. That's all for these Taurus suits, now I'm going to head back to the Epiphany and just look her over to see what I can find. Line Greywood, notes on L3 Taurus suits, overview, end."

Lina headed back to the Epiphany and gathered all the data from the computer that had been used in its construction and began looking it over, making notes on paper when she found something she hadn't seen before or something that she believed could help in the construction of the Hyperion.

Several hours had passed by the time Lina had ended looking over and taking notes on the Gundam Epiphany. While she did find some interesting things, she didn't believe that she found anything that would help in the construction of the Hyperion. Lina made notes about how the tension on the joints was lessened but other than that, the Hyperion was built about the same as the Epiphany was. This didn't surprise Lina too much, seeing as they were both Gundams. Looking around, Lina was surprised to see that she was still the only person in the hanger.

"What, am I the only person here? Sure seems like it. Well I'm done here. Time to go back and take another shower. I sure do need one right now."

Lina looked down at her arms and legs. Since Lina hadn't been wearing the jumpsuit, all the grease and oil had gotten on her skin instead.

"Well, at least my cloths will still be clean."

Zach sighed as he looked at the current satellite imagery reports. It would seem that Jyotika was slowly removing his forces from his home, the Sanc Kingdom. It wasn't the epic revenge he had hoped for, but it did bring some calm. Things seemed to be calming down, but he knew that wasn't true. There was movement in Australia towards Asia, which Zach had guessed was why Jyotika was moving out of the Sanc Kingdom, and there were several reports coming from L3 that the FRE Faction, though suffering a minor loss during the }{G's attack on L3 Prime, were growing in numbers.

The FRE Faction's leader, referred to as Lord Winson, made the claim that the }{G's attack showed how Sin had lost control of his former allies. And this signaled for a new leadership over the colonies. These ideas were not working well in L1 or L2, which had remained relatively out of the FRE Faction's influence. In L4 and L5 it was a different story. Winson had placed FRE Faction agents within both those colony clusters. He was gaining large support in L4 with his plans to "Purify Mother Earth", calling for a mass immigration to the Space Colonies for the planet to return to it's natural state.

The colonists were accepting this ideology because of the fact that it would remove the prejudice against them. With no one on Earth, they would be in theory all equal, or at least that is what Lord Winson has said. Zach didn't trust this man, he saw him as a threat, but the Defenders weren't sure how to move. He was afraid that if he sent anyone to L3 that a similar incident, with someone being captured, would happen again. Just this time, it wouldn't be with someone who had the hospitality that Kiyoshi had displayed. Plus, if a situation occurred on Earth that needed the Defenders, if they had people in L3 they would be spread two thin. It was a difficult matter. However, seeing Jyotika move out of the Sanc Kingdom, albeit slowly, made him long to return to Earth.

Both Stacy and Lisa had asked if they could go down to Earth because of their concern of their friends, particularly Commander Han Richards who had been injured. Zach stood to his feet as he looked over the bridge.

Zach - Prepare a shuttle. Ess, Stacy Matta, and Lisa Nichruen, and anyone else will be heading back down to Earth to meet with Val. I want the Epiphany ready to go down as well.

Zach then made his way to a console to send a message to Val.

Zach - This is a message to Val. According to our recent reports, Jyotika is slowly withdrawing from the Sanc Kingdom to deal with some growing force in Australia. I have decided to return to Earth, along with a few others. We will be arriving at your base soon.

Zach of the Defenders, over and out.

Lina just happened to be walking by the room where Zach was when he sent the message out. Lina poked her head into the room as Zach finished the message.

"We're going home? Back to Antioch?"

Lina didn't eve wait for an answer as she bolted down the hall towards the showers. Once there she quickly stripped and almost hurled herself into the shower and eagerly began scrubbing. She needed to be as clean as she could. She wanted to look her absolute best when she got home and saw Val again.