Looking at the tense figure in front of him, Kain could tell at a glance that the other person was female.
Young, too. She gave off the impression that she was not even an adult yet.
And with that boyish disguise, plus the long golden sideburns showing beneath the cap she had pulled low, he could not help but think of someone.
Surely it could not be that much of a coincidence.
Another princess, no less.
"Cagalli Yula Athha?"
He tested the name out loud, and from the way her body jolted even harder, that was all the confirmation he needed.
So it really was her.
"Cagalli Yula Athha?"
Lacus also looked at the girl in mild surprise as she finally raised her head completely and met their eyes. She really did resemble the Orb princess from the files Lacus had seen.
She had never expected to be followed by her, much less have her witness what had just happened.
Oh dear. She looked thoroughly frightened.
Which was understandable. Seeing someone appear out of nowhere like that really was terrifying.
Put in theological terms, it would feel like some kind of supernatural being had just manifested.
Though in an age like this, no one was likely to jump straight to old ghost stories and superstitious monsters.
From a scientific point of view, it would look more like spatial transfer.
And that was still terrifying.
Because it was absurd.
And Mr. Kain had clearly noticed Cagalli's presence from the very start, which was why he had deliberately made the other three figures appear as well, just to frighten her even more.
Come to think of it, one of those three was clearly A2 herself, while the other two looked like 2B and 6O from the broadcasts.
Had they come along too?
No, not the real ones. These looked more like robots without self-awareness.
"Lacus, what should we do? She reacted this strongly. She saw our secret after all."
"That is troublesome indeed. If word gets out that I've made contact with a third category, that could create quite a problem."
"Third category?"
Cagalli could not help murmuring the words in confusion.
Third contact?
Did they mean that kind of third contact?
If so, then that impossible appearance of his really did go beyond anything human technology should be able to do. The idea sounded absurd, but it also refused to leave her mind.
And if it really was that, a chill crawled through her whole body.
"It is not nice to joke around like that. She looks like she really believed it."
"Hm? I was joking, Miss Cagalli. Please don't take it seriously."
That made Cagalli's fists clench.
These two were making fun of her, weren't they?
"What are you going to do to me? Just spit it out already!"
She spoke through gritted teeth.
"Um, my apologies. Please don't be angry~"
Lacus immediately bowed with complete sincerity in apology.
Just as expected, this Cagalli really did have the same straightforward personality as in the anime. Even a small joke like that really did come off as rude to someone like her.
"Miss Cagalli, I need your help."
"My help?"
Cagalli arched a brow. Were they planning to take her hostage or something?
"Yes. I want to invite you to join my side, and become one of the forces that will help me change this world."
The invitation was so sincere that it only made Cagalli even more suspicious.
Still, she was not all that surprised.
PLANT had invited Orb more than once already, pressuring it to stand on PLANT's side.
And now the Chairman's daughter had come to approach her directly, hoping to use her as a breakthrough point.
"Not to join PLANT, but to join my side. A third force, independent from both PLANT and the Earth Alliance."
That additional clarification made Cagalli pause in surprise.
"A third force? What do you mean?"
"Exactly what it sounds like. If a third force appeared, one strong enough to stand alongside both PLANT and the Earth Alliance, strong enough to threaten them both, then neither side would continue the war so easily. They would not want to exhaust themselves only to let a third party reap the benefits."
Lacus explained it in a few simple, direct sentences.
In her plan, Orb was meant to become part of that third force, which made the Cagalli before her an indispensable piece.
But the look she got in return was distinctly skeptical.
To put it bluntly, Cagalli was looking at her like she was an idiot.
There was not much trust there at all.
Which was perfectly normal.
"Who is he? And how did he appear just now?"
If they wanted her trust, then they needed to reveal at least some information about him.
Especially that impossible appearance. Cagalli wanted an explanation for that more than anything.
"He is Mr. Kain, my partner. He does not belong to either side. As for how he appeared..."
"Optical camouflage. That's all."
"Optical camouflage?"
Cagalli looked openly doubtful.
"Yes. If you do not believe me, then come with me."
Kain walked back toward the platform from before, and under Cagalli's stunned gaze, the Ho 229 gradually came into view.
Then he stepped aboard the aircraft and activated its optical camouflage again, causing it to vanish from sight.
"Miss Cagalli, you can try touching it."
Hearing that, Cagalli cautiously stepped forward toward the aircraft, a machine whose design did not match any fighter she knew. It had vanished again, yet his voice was still coming from where it should have been.
As she approached, she confirmed that the landing gear should be right there and slowly reached out a hand.
She touched it.
And the instant her fingers made contact, ripples spread through the hidden surface, faintly revealing the outline of the machine.
So it really had been an optical camouflage effect just now?
"Evidence. Show me the evidence that you can build this third force. Evidence that proves you are not standing with ZAFT either."
Cagalli turned back toward the Chairman's daughter from PLANT and demanded an answer.
"Evidence? Then let us start with Heliopolis. This colony is hiding a newly developed battleship and new mobile suits, jointly developed by the Earth Alliance and Orb. ZAFT has already obtained intelligence on it and is preparing a military operation against Heliopolis."
This was not just Lacus pulling information from the anime's plot.
It had now been confirmed as real intelligence.
The reason she had publicly announced that she would be performing here was precisely to disrupt ZAFT's plan.
Because with her here, they would have to hesitate.
That way, Heliopolis might be able to avoid ending up like it did in the anime, where the colony ultimately broke apart and was destroyed.
It might seem similar to Junius Seven being destroyed in Bloody Valentine, but in the original story, most of the people had time to escape aboard evacuation craft before the colony fully disintegrated, so it was not quite as catastrophic.
But this was reality now.
Things might not follow the plot exactly. Another massacre on the scale of Bloody Valentine could very well happen here.
"So? Where's the proof?"
Words alone were not enough to make Cagalli believe her.
But inwardly, she was already deeply shaken.
Lacus did not answer immediately. Instead, she reactivated the round robot.
"Haro, play File A."
"Okay, okay~"
A holographic screen was projected into the air, filled with photographs that looked like surveillance shots. In them were a warship and mobile suit frames Cagalli had never seen before.
More importantly, she recognized part of the scenery in the photos.
Her eyes immediately snapped toward a certain direction.
So the warship was being built there?
You have got to be kidding me.
Her father, that liar, had actually betrayed Orb's ideals.
And then, at that very moment,
Boom!
In the deep stillness of the night, when most people were asleep, the explosion rang out like thunder.
And the source of that thunder was exactly where Cagalli had been looking.
Fire had erupted there.
And faintly, from that same direction, it seemed like gunfire could be heard as well.
(End of Chapter)
[Get +30 Extra Chapters On — P@tr3on "Zaelum"]
[Every 300 Power Stones = 1 Bonus Chapter Drop]
[Thanks for Reading!]