Crossing Orb: Newtype Commander

Chapter 115 The End of the Red Sea

The radar beeped in the cockpit of the Aegis Gundam, sharp and urgent, like the final lament of some dying creature. Athrun's pupils contracted, his fingers clenched tightly in the sand, sand leaking through his fingers and shimmering golden in the morning light.

"The ZAFT rescue team," Aslan's voice was hoarse, "is ahead of schedule."

Kira stood up, his gaze passing over the shoulder armor of the Aegis and looking towards the sea. In the distance, several black dots were emerging from the gap between the sea and the sky—three ZAFT rescue boats and two escorting Zonos. They were moving quickly, their white contrails drawing three parallel arcs on the sea, like three scissors closing together.

"Kira, ZAFT's rescue team is approaching!" Mu's voice came through the communicator, tinged with tension. "Distance—30 kilometers, estimated arrival in 15 minutes. You need to evacuate now."

Kira didn't move. He looked at Athrun, at that face that appeared exceptionally pale in the morning light. The weariness, pain, and a barely perceptible sense of relief on his face were complex emotions about his impending "return to the team." He was going back to ZAFT, back to the place that commanded him to kill, commanded him to fight, commanded him to forget "Athrun Zala" and become "Red Elite Athrun Zala."

"Athrun," Kira's voice was soft, "Do you really want to go back?"

Athrun stood up and brushed the sand off his hands. He didn't look at Kira, but stared at the approaching black dots on the sea. "I am a ZAFT soldier. I have no choice."

"You have it." Kira walked up to him, extending his hand. "Come with me. There's Lacus on the Archangel, there are people who understand you, and there are ways to protect others without taking lives. Commander-in-Chief Asuka said we've always had a choice."

select."

Aslan stared at the hand, a complex light flickering in his amber eyes. That hand had reached out to him in the Heliopolis armory, reached out to him in the darkness of the Junius VII wreckage, and reached out again on the beach of this deserted island. Each time, Kira was trying to pull him in a different direction—not the direction of PLANT, not the direction of the Union, but the direction of "peace."

But each time, he refused.

"Kira, I can't." Athrun's voice was hoarse, each word seemingly spoken with all his might. "It's not because my mother's death makes me hate Naturals, nor because I believe in my father's ideals. It's just because if I leave, Yzak, Diego, Nicole, those people I care about, their futures will be ruined, their families will be implicated."

I cannot let them bear the consequences of my choices.

Kira's fingers tightened slightly. "So you want to keep fighting? Keep killing? Keep creating more hatred?"

"I will try my best not to kill. I will only destroy the machine, only paralyze the target, and only kill when absolutely necessary..." Aslan couldn't continue. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. When he opened his eyes again, there was a resolute look in them.

"Kira, you should go. Leave this island before the rescue team arrives. The next time we meet, we might still be enemies."

But at least today I don't want to fight you.

Kira stared at him for a long time, then slowly lowered his hand. "Athrun, I'll wait for you."

"What are you waiting for?"

"When you're ready to accept that hand."

Kira turned and walked toward the Strike Gundam. His steps were slow, each one leaving deep footprints in the sand. The sea breeze blew from behind, ruffling his hair and stirring up the fine sand on the beach, blurring Athrun's vision.

"Kira." Athrun's voice came from behind.

Kira stopped and didn't look back.

"If I were to die on the battlefield one day, would you attend my funeral?"

Kira's figure appeared particularly lonely in the morning light. He remained silent for a long time, so long that Athrun thought he wouldn't answer.

"You won't die," Kira finally said, "because I'll pull you out of the battlefield before you die. No matter how many times, no matter how long it takes."

He continued walking forward without looking back.

The Strike Gundam's thrusters ignited, and the machine slowly rose from the beach. Kira sat in the cockpit, watching the deserted island grow smaller and smaller through the screen. Athrun stood at the foot of the Aegis, gazing up at the departing Strike Gundam, his figure appearing exceptionally small in the morning light.

"Athrun," Kira whispered, "we may fight again next time we meet. But at least today we chose to communicate."

He pushed the control stick, and the Strike flew towards the Archangel. Behind him, ZAFT's rescue team had already reached the shore on the sea. Three rescue boats were anchored on the shallows. Zono's mobile suit braked and landed, splashing up white waves. Athrun was surrounded by soldiers. Some were checking his injuries, some were refueling the Aegis, and some just stood there, watching the Strike disappear into the distance, their eyes filled with complex emotions.

Mu's Sky King swooped down from high altitude, flying alongside the Strike. He looked at Kira's profile through the canopy; that face, which looked exceptionally young beneath the pilot's helmet, carried a heaviness beyond its years.

"Kira, are you alright?" Mu's voice came through the communicator, carrying a hint of gentleness.

"It's alright." Kira's voice was calm. "Mr. Mu, do you think Athrun will change?"

Mu was silent for a moment. "I don't know. But at least he knows there's another path he can take. The seed has been planted; whether it sprouts or not depends on him."

"Seed," Kira repeated the word softly, "Why does everyone like to use 'seed' as a metaphor?"

"Because seeds need time to sprout." Mu's voice carried a hint of a smile. "War won't end in a day, hatred won't disappear in a day, and people won't change in a day. But as long as we keep sowing, one day we will see the flowers bloom."

Do you believe that day will come?

"I believe you." Mu's voice was calm and firm. "Because Commander-in-Chief Ashar planted seeds in Orb, Miss Lux planted seeds in PLANT, and you planted seeds in this desert. With so many people planting seeds, one day, a sea of ​​flowers will bloom."

Kira's lips curled into a slight smile. "Mr. Mu, you're quite naive too."

"Perhaps. But only the naive can see what others cannot. That's what you said."

The Strike and Sky Overlord left two white trails in the sky above the sea, flying towards the Archangel. Behind them, the deserted island gradually disappeared below the horizon in the morning light. But Kira knew that the island would always remain in his memory—because there, he and Athrun had talked a lot, ate the same compressed biscuit, looked at the same sea, and, at the moment of parting, chose to communicate and understand each other.

The Archangel hangar.

As the Strike Gundam landed on the catapult deck, Kira released his grip on the control stick. His arms trembled, not from pain, but from a more complex, indescribable emotion. The cockpit door opened, and technicians rushed in. Some checked the damage to the machine, some helped him out, and some simply stood there, watching him with mixed feelings in their eyes.

"Kira, did you see Athrun?" Thor's voice came from the crowd, tinged with tension.

"I saw him." Kira climbed out of the cockpit and stood on the inspection rack. "He's fine."

"What did you say?"

Kira was silent for a moment. "He talked a lot. He talked about his childhood, his mother, and the war. He also talked about Commander-in-Chief Asuka's ideals."

"What did he say?"

He said I was naive.

Thor's lips moved as if he wanted to say something, but in the end he only sighed. "What's wrong with being naive? At least you're still willing to believe in the possibility of peace."

Kira's lips curled into a slight smile. "Thor, the way you talk has changed too."

"What do you mean?"

"The way he speaks always makes me feel that maybe it really is possible."

Thor blushed, the color spreading from the base of his neck to the tips of his ears. "I...I was just kidding! Don't joke with me!"

A burst of good-natured laughter echoed through the hangar. Kira looked at those smiling faces—Thor's embarrassment, Miriam's gentleness, Sai's composure, the technicians' relaxation—and a warm feeling welled up inside him. Even if the war continued, even if more people might die tomorrow, at least at this moment, in this hangar, they were safe, they were alive, they were together.

"Kira, the captain wants you to go to the bridge." Mirialia walked to his side, holding a camera. "She said it's important."

Kira nodded and walked towards the bridge. When he reached the hangar entrance, he stopped and glanced back at the Strike Gundam.

Like an unyielding monument.

"Strike," Kira whispered, "thank you for taking me to see him."

No one answered. Only the hangar's air conditioning hummed.

Bridge of the Archangel.

Maru Ramias stood at the tactical table, a holographic screen displaying a real-time situation map of the Red Sea region. The Izumo's course was approaching from the south, expected to rendezvous with them early tomorrow morning. ZAFT's surface fleet had also withdrawn from the Red Sea region after the Zono forces' retreat, and no new threats had been detected. However, at the northern end of this sea area, at the entrance to the Suez Canal, a coalition checkpoint awaited them. Passing through there would grant them access to the Mediterranean Sea and reach coalition-controlled territory.

"Captain, Kira is here." Natal Bakiru's voice came from the fire control console.

Murrue turned and looked at Kira walking onto the bridge. The boy's face was weary, dusty, and stained with sweat, but his eyes remained clear and resolute. In those eyes was something she hadn't seen in him when she first met him in Heliopolis—not experience, not skill, but something deeper, more essential. It was growth.

"Kira, sit down." Murrue gestured to the chair next to her and sat down herself. "I need to talk to you."

Kira sat down opposite her. "Is it about Athrun?"

“Not entirely,” Maru looked at him. “It’s about yourself. Kira, do you know your role on this ship?”

Kira was silent for a moment. "The Strike's pilot. The one who protects the Archangel."

"More than that," Maru's voice was calm. "You are the 'pillar' for many people on this ship. Not just because you pilot the MS."

"The technology is because you gave them hope."

Kira's fingers paused slightly.

"Do you know why those refugees were willing to come with us? It wasn't because the Archangel was so safe, nor because the Allied forces' rescue was so timely, but because of you. You saved them in Heliopolis, protected them in Artemis, and found them food and water in the Junius VII wreckage. Your very existence is proof of hope."

"Captain," Murrue interrupted him, "let me finish. Kira, you're exhausted. I can see it. You're holding on by sheer willpower, like a drowning person desperately clinging to the last piece of driftwood. But you can't keep going like this forever. You'll break down."

Kira lowered his head, staring at his hands. They were the hands of a warrior, but also the hands of a boy.

"Captain, I don't know how to stop." Kira's voice was soft. "If I don't fight, the Strike will be unmanned. If the Strike is unmanned, the Archangel cannot sail safely. If the Archangel cannot sail safely, everyone on board will die. I can't stop, because I'm afraid to."

A moment of silence fell over the bridge. Natal loosened her grip on the fire control panel, turned around, and looked at Kira's retreating figure.

A complex emotion flickered in her eyes—not pity, but understanding. Because she felt the same way. From Heliopolis to Artemis, from the desert to the Red Sea, she had never stopped. Not because she didn't want to, but because she dared not.

"Kira," Murrue's voice was soft, "you know, you look a lot like someone I know."

"Who?"

"Commander-in-Chief Askha"

Kira looked up and gazed into Maru's eyes. A gentle light shone in them.

"He's the same way. He always says he's fine," always says he can manage," and always leaves the most dangerous tasks for himself. Miss Mina and Dr. Erica worry every time, get angry every time, and always say, 'When are you going to learn to take care of yourself?' But he never listens, because he can't let go."

Maru paused for a moment, then a slight smile appeared on her lips.

"But you know what? He's changing too. He promoted the Manifesto in Orb, not for politics, but to convince himself that there are other paths besides fighting. He developed the Innovator program, not for power, but to give humanity the possibility of mutual understanding. He never stopped, but the way he stopped was different from ours."

"In what way?"

"He found another path. Not to stop fighting," but to fight so that he would no longer have to fight. He believed the war would end one day, so he was willing to work towards it. Not by killing, but by sowing seeds."