Horrors of the Alliance Chapter 2

SURPRISE!

So, it's been a while. Over a year now, right? Well, I'm sorry for the wait, and I sincerely hope that the next one isn't nearly as long.

Note, for the sake of readability, I've abandoned the previous 'Wall of text' style, in favor of my more recent style. Hopefully, it'll make it easier to keep track of what's going on.

Disclaimer: I don't own Gundam Seed or Hunger games.

"The earth and the Plants will see eye to eye." Athrun said to his best friend, handing him the robot bird that he'd made. "There will be no war. You'll join me in the Plants, right, Kira?"

Kira nodded, "Yeah, we'll be leaving next month. I'll see you again, right Athrun?"

Kira awoke as he always did, with his bird pecking at his face. "Knock it off birdie, I'm up already." Stretching, he knew what today was. The reaping.

He made a quick breakfast of eggs and bacon for four people, and just after he put it on the plates, his neighbor walked in, and sat down, "Thanks, Kira." She said smiling.

Kira smiled back, "No problem, Lacus."

Lacus Clyne. Only daughter of the former Supreme Council Chairman Siegel Clyne, she was well loved until her father was forced to sign that stupid surrender. Now everyone else has abandoned her, leaving her on the streets after her father was killed by blue cosmos. Thankfully, his parents wouldn't hold that against her and took her in, getting her an apartment next to theirs' and even helping her get a job. She still joins them for breakfast, and sings beautifully whenever she's happy.

"Should we wake your parents?" Lacus asked after taking a sip of tea.

Kira shook his head. "They already left, but they asked me to make some for them to eat after the reaping." He said, putting the dishes in the fridge.

After breakfast, they met Kira's friends Yzak, and Dearka on the way to the reaping. They didn't really have much of a chance of being chosen. Each of them only had one entry, but if they did, Yzak and Dearka wouldn't have any problem stay alive or even winning. Even Lacus only has two, one for entering and she was forced to take one while she was on the streets. Kira, on the other hand had ten.

Feeding a family of three isn't easy, and since his parents aren't Coordinators, they can't apply for benefits, so it's basically up to Kira to take care of them all. And the earth forces were especially stingy about giving them food, out of loathing that his parents chose to make him a coordinator. What should have been a year's worth of food was really closer to a month, if that.

"Kira!" Yzak yelled.

Kira, who'd been spacing out, jumped and turned to his friend. "What's wrong?"

Dearka sighed and Yzak just looked mad, "I asked what you'd do if you get picked. It isn't some great secret that you've got more than all of us put together."

Lacus gasped at this, "I didn't know that! Kira, why didn't you tell me?! Why didn't you tell your parents! They think you've only got one entry!"

Dearka started shaking his head, and Yzak exploded, "What the hell! Why are Dearka and I the only one that know? Why the hell didn't you at least tell your parents?! Are you an idiot?!"

Kira just sighed, "Someone had to. They can't get jobs here, and mine doesn't pay nearly enough for all of us. There wasn't anything else I could do."

Yzak grabbed him by the shirt and threw him down. "Then why the hell didn't you ask us! At least Dearka and I could actually fight! Why didn't you say that you needed help?"

Dearka placed a hand on his friend's shoulder, "He's got a point, Kira. If you needed help, you could have asked us. We'd have put in a few for you. Hell, we might have just for the fun of it."

Kira got up and shrugged, "It's not like I have a realistic chance of being picked anyway. Besides I can't just ask you guys to risk your life to help me."

This time Dearka punched him, though not as hard as Yzak, "Of course you can. Yzak's right, you are an idiot."

They all arrived at the Council chambers and split into the various lines. Since they were all the same age, Yzak, Dearka, and Kira went to the fifteen year old line. After they'd signed in, the three waited until the ceremony began.

When the music played, Kira finally started to worry about what would happen if he was picked. "Yzak, Dearka, if I get picked…"

Yzak cut him off, "Yeah, yeah, we get it. Don't tell your parents."

Dearka suppressed a chuckle, "You're easy to read, Kira."

Gilbert Durandel, Maius Councilor, walked to the podium. "Welcome, my fellow coordinators, to the reaping ceremony," he said as he cast a glance at the man on stage with him, "And may the odds be ever in your favor. Two of you, one young man and one young woman, will have the opportunity to prove your strength and cunning against Children from the other colony groups forever cementing your name in history as among the greatest to ever live. Here to choose the lucky participants, is the Director of the National Defense Industry Association," he said with obvious loathing, "Muruta Azrael."

The man, slightly shorter than Councilor Durandel, with short blond hair, began clapping, "Thank you for that very warm welcome, Councilor. It is a pleasure to be here, on Maius five, to choose the children who will be competing to bring glory to this colony. We'll begin with the young man." He walked to the large ball, and put his hand into the ball. It shot out and he read aloud, "Kira Yamato!"

Time froze. Yzak and Dearka turned to him, he could see Lacus fighting back tears, and somewhere in the stands he heard a scream, undoubtedly from his mother.

Up on stage, Azrael was clapping, "Mr. Kira Yamato? Where are you?"

Kira slowly began walking towards the stage. He got on stage, and shook the hand of Azrael, who again clapped, "Kira Yamato, everyone!"

Almost no one clapped, and those that did were quickly silenced by either Yzak or Dearka. "Now, are there any volunteers? Any who wishes to take Mr. Yamato's place?"

Kira saw both Dearka and Yzak, trying to fight their way to the front. He started shaking his head. Just when they made it to the front, and were about to speak up, Kira yelled, "Stop!"

They both froze up, only for a second, but it was enough. "Ladies and Gentlemen, Kira Yamato is the tribute from the Maius Colony group."

After they'd gotten over the shock, Both of them started protesting, demanding to be the tribute, but Azrael made up his mind, and simply walked over to the other ball and again read off the name, "Meer Campbell!"

Over in the Seventeen year old area, a young woman with long brown hair walk up to the stage, and again Azrael, asked for volunteers.

This time however there wasn't movement, so he went on more quickly, "Then let's give a round of applause for Kira Yamato and Meer Campbell. Our Tributes!" This time there was no applause, whether because they saw how sick the whole idea was, or because they were afraid of Yzak and Dearka, not one person cheered.

Kira and Meer went into the council chambers. Meer was lead through the first door, while Kira waited across the hall. If he remembered correctly, this was the part where the tribute would get a final meeting with members of his family and friends. After fifteen minutes of waiting, the doors opened, and both his parents raced into the room, hugging him tightly.

"Sorry, mom." He said sadly, "It's just the luck of the draw."

"Kira, stop." His father said firmly, "We've known since the beginning that you've been taking supplies from the earth forces." At the stunned looked, he nodded, "There was no way you could've afforded to take care of us all on your own. We knew that. We'd intended to confront you about it after today, but..."

"I'm sorry." He sighed, "But I had to do something."

"We know." He nodded back, "Just please, promise us that you'll be coming back."

After a long moment, Kira answered, "I'll do my best."

"That's all we can hope for." His mother said tearfully as his father embraced them both. They stayed that way until the guards removed them.

His next visitor was a very tearful Lacus.

"Oh, Kira!' she cried, throwing her arms around him.

"Look after my parents." He asks as she pulls him in tighter.

"I will. Just please, come back." She cried into his chest.

All too soon, it was time for here to leave as well. Before she did, she handed him a small necklace with a miniature version of her mechanical friend Haro, "You're allowed to take a token with you. Please take this." She smiled despite her tears.

"I will." He smiled back, placing the necklace around his neck. She turned and walks away, but not before saying, "Never forget that we're rooting for you."

Less than a minute after the door closes, it flies open and he finds himself pinned against the wall.

"What the hell was that about!?" Yzak roared, driving his arm into Kira's throat

"You already know." He answered weakly, getting his second punch of the day for his troubles.

"Don't you dare give me that bullshit!" he shouted, slamming Kira back against the wall. Dearka simply standing behind him with the exact same expression on his face.

"What the hell we you thinking?" Dearka asked angrily, "You really want to die that badly?"

"No." he sighed, "But you two are the only ones I can trust." After a moment, he said, "Please, take care of my parents and Lacus."

Yzak finally let go, "Idiot! We'd have done that anyway."

After a second, Dearka chuckled, "Since you stole this opportunity from us, you better not get yourself killed." Glancing at the necklace, he smirked, "Guess Lacus gave you a token?"

"Yeah." He smiled, "I'll do my best to make it back."

"Good." Yzak glared, "Because the beating you just got is nothing compared to what you'll get when you get back."

When they both left, he mentally prepared himself. This was it. Kill or be killed. Just like when Yzak and Dearka tried to get him to join the military academy. In hindsight, he probably should have.

"Mr. Yamato?" the guard outside his door said, "It's time to leave."

"Alright." He said, standing up, "Let's get this over with."

He followed the man through the corridors of the council chambers, where they were met by another guard and Meer, who looked like she'd just stopped crying. He could fully understand that. It was taking most of his courage to not start, even knowing he likely wouldn't return.

At the entrance to the spaceport, a man with short lavender hair smiled brightly at them, as if he weren't about to condemn them to oblivion, "Welcome, valiant tributes. I am Yuna Roma Seiran, and I shall be your representative for the hunger games." The door opened behind him and he gestured them aboard, "Shall we? We've got a lot to discuss and I'm sure you'll want to watch the feeds from the other plants, to see your competition."

Aboard the ship, they were rather surprised to find a banquet fit for a king. Yuna smiled happily as he introduced the other two people present, "Kira, Meer, this is Colonel Kisaka, and Chief Erica Simmons. They'll be acting as your advisors for the games."

"A pleasure." Kisaka bowed.

"I wish it wasn't under these circumstances, but…" Erica sighed, extending her hand to the two of them.

"Likewise." Kira nodded after shaking. Meer doing the same.

"Excellent." Yuno smiled brightly, "I will leave the explanations to you."

"After we arrive, you'll each be prepared by your stylists, in this case, Miss Simmons. be your stylist,for the entrance ceremony in Onigoro tonight." Kisaka said pleasantly as he pours them each a cup of tea.

"What's the point of the ceremony?" Meer asked him.

"It gives you a chance to make a good first impression on the nobles of the earth alliance." Simmons smiled, "These nobles will have the option of spend their money to send you supplies, which can help keep you alive once you're inside. The supplies could be anything from a pocket knife to a state of the art mobile suit, depending on the amount donated, and how your advisor distributes it."

"So, the better we look, the better the impression we make, so we get better supplies?" Kira asked, and she nodded.

"In a nutshell, yes."

"After the entrance ceremony, you will be taken to a luxurious hotel, where you will spend your nights until the games. The next four days will be spent undergoing whatever training you wish from our tutors, in an effort to ensure you are both prepared." Kisaka continued, "What you choose to learn is up to you. All the tutors will aid you with whatever they can, and if you need any other tuition, simply ask the assistant, and we will make every effort to assist you."

"On the fifth day, you'll have a private exhibition with the top brass of the alliance, demonstrating whatever skills you wish. They will then evaluate your performance, and release it as a general estimation of your skills for the public and other competitors. Again, a higher score will aid in acquiring sponsors, so it would be best to give it your all."

"Couldn't it be an advantage to hide your real skill?" Kira asked while Meer nodded beside him. Both advisors look at him like he's insane, "I just mean that if the other competitors gets to know it as well, wouldn't intentionally getting a low score let you catch them off guard?"

"I hadn't thought of it that way…"Kisaka said thoughtfully, "But it is true. Someone who scored a three would be completely overlooked in the grand scheme of things, so he might make it to the very end before someone finally considered going after him, and if he were hiding it, he'd have the element of surprise."

"It might be something to look into, Kira." Erica grinned, "You certainly don't look like a very powerful fighter, so no one would doubt a low score."

Nodding, he looked back at Kisaka, "What's next?"

"After that, you'll be meeting with Kisaka while Miss Campbell will be meeting with Miss Simmons to plan for your interviews with me." Yuna smiled, "You don't have to worry. I won't bite. We just feel that the sponsors and your families watching at the plants might want to know about you."

"And after that…" Kira sighed, "One more night of rest before the competition."

"That's about right." Yuna said happily, "Shall we adjourn to the next room to find your competition?"

The next room was set with a large screen TV and a stack of DVDs. "Each of these was recorded at the same time as your names were called." Yuna said, putting in the first.

Kira couldn't help but be surprised that the vast majority of the competitors were well off. You would think they would be poor, like him, and were forced to takes supplies. Instead, there were military officers, nobles, and the like. It wasn't until the fifth disc that Kira gasped. Nicol Amalfi was chosen, but the volunteer that took his place was…

"Athrun…"

"What was that?" Kisaka asked, pausing the DVD.

"That's my best friend." He answered, "Athrun Zala."

"Today is not your lucky day." Erica Simmons said sadly.

"Maybe…." Kira muttered, "But if I know Athrun half as well I think I do, he might be willing to team up."

"I would hope so." Kisaka said, fast forwarding to the details, "Top of his class in the military academy, son of Patrick Zala… He'll be tough to beat. His father has more than enough money to fund whatever supplies he'll need. And he's got the training to put them to use."

"We'll have to convince him to team up." Meer nodded, "Right? With him around, we might have a chance."

"More than a chance. Even when we were little, he was tough. Now, he'll be even better."

"Let's move on." Yuna said impatiently, "You'll want to get as much information as possible now. You can plan afterwards."

"Right." Kira nodded, and the video resumes. Athrun's partner was a minor noble Lunamaria Hawke. Oddly, she reacted the same way as Athrun did when someone in the audience tried to volunteer, knocking her out with one blow before continuing to the stage.

"Pretty violent, aren't they?" Yuna said sadly, popping in the next DVD.

Quintilius was a train wreck though. The male tribute was a boy named Shiin Asuka, and the female was his sister, Mayu. Even over the video, you could hear the utter anguish in their parent's voices as they screamed, both their children on the stage.

Sextilius continued the trend of nobles, with the tributes Kazehana Adij and Prayer Reverie. Next was September with Hiene Westenfluss and Setona Winters. October had Rey Za Burel and Mina Sahaku. November was Vino Dupre and Sara Lerux. Yolan Kent and Abi Windsor were the final tributes from December.

"It looks like Junius is the colony to beat." Kisaka noted, "Both of their tributes are soldiers in training, and between them, they have the money for anything they'll need."

"I wouldn't rule out the rest of them." Erica replied, "Even in the technology department of ORB, I've heard the names Rusty Mackenzie and Hiene Westenfluss. Both are exceptionally skilled soldiers, with experience in the war prior to the plants' surrender."

"So what it amounts to is that we're pretty much screwed." Kira sighed.

"Well, that's up to you." Yuna added, "I mean, you might not have their training, but I don't think you're the kind to take a defeat lying down. The trainers you'll be working with are some of the best in the world, and with your intellect, I'm sure you'll last for a while."

"I notice that you didn't say I'd win." Kira replied, "But you're not wrong. And if we can team up with Athrun, we might just have a chance of pulling this off."

"Well, that concludes the basics." Yuna said, rising to his feet, "I'll leave this to you, Chief Simmons."

"Right." Both of them said while he left the room.

Muruta Azrael smiled, sipping his wine as he watched the replays of the reaping.

"How is it?" Yuna asked him, walking back into the room from the tributes' area.

"Well, almost everyone I wanted picked was." He replied, "It wouldn't do to have so many wealthy coordinators left in the Plants. The only surprise was Athrun Zala. I was hoping to save him for next year. But he volunteered, so I can't really complain."

"Did they really think that the drawings were random?" Yuna asked, sitting across from the Leader of Blue Cosmos.

"A couple were." he admitted, "That's one reason I picked here. It's boring if I know what's going to happen."

"Well, I hope you aren't getting your hopes up." Yuna shrugged, "Those two are complete amateurs. They'll be dead before the first days' over."

"That's fine." Azrael smirked, "Honestly, I know exactly who is going to win."

"Care to share?"

"Where's the fun in that?" He asked back with a wide grin, "Don't you want to be surprised, Yuna?"

So, I know there's not many of you reading (less than a hundred after one year) But reviews would be very welcome. And who knows, it might even make it harder for me to ignore the story? So, go ahead and review. And now, a mandatory word from my Beta...

KamiHandanShinryu: like I would let you forget this story it has so much potential and I won't let you waste it.