Encounter

(Yi Zui was only posting one chapter today. She needed some rest.)

The Archangel's first meeting with Dawn Desert ended in such a baffling way that neither side even had time to introduce themselves. The entire encounter was filled with inexplicable delight, and the wariness both sides held toward each other completely melted away.

Guided by the people of Dawn Desert, the Archangel drove into a great canyon deep in the desert. The canyon was long and broad, practically a natural harbor in the desert. Even a large warship like the Archangel could enter it without any restrictions.

As they proceeded, Xiao Ran looked at the steep cliffs on both sides and found it strange. Such a naturally concealed location should have been worth investigating even if ZAFT did not value its geography. With Dawn Desert nowhere to be found across the desert, ZAFT should have thought to scout this place, perhaps even deduced Dawn Desert's approximate location.

Yet that was precisely what made it strange. Dawn Desert had not only established a base here, but expanded it and built numerous bunkers along the way. They had been living freely in this base without ever suffering an attack from the ZAFT forces. It was hard to believe. The only explanation was that Andrew Waltfeld simply did not take Dawn Desert seriously. He did not see them as enemies, and perhaps had never intended to wipe out these militiamen of Dawn Desert.

And here Dawn Desert was treating Andrew Waltfeld as a necessary enemy. In the end, the other side had never considered them worth a thought, while they had treated themselves like a prize dish. Xiao Ran felt like he was losing his mind.

After the Archangel was parked, Xiao Ran, Mwu, Mu, and Bargyll went to the base's command room. As they walked through the deep bunkers, military supplies belonging to both ZAFT and the Earth Force were piled along both sides. The sheer abundance of supplies surprised Mwu and the other two. They could not understand how such a small resistance force in the heart of the desert had acquired so much military equipment.

Among the four of them, only Xiao Ran guessed that Orb might have been providing these supplies from behind the scenes. After all, Cagalli, Orb's princess, was staying here. Uzummi, the Lion of Orb and Cagalli's father, could not possibly have sent only Kisaka to protect her without offering any support.

In the command room, Seibu, Dawn Desert's leader, was speaking with Mwu and the others. Mu kept glancing at Cagalli standing nearby, then suddenly raised a question completely unrelated to their discussion. "Could you introduce that girl?"

Seibu took a sip of coffee and frowned at Mu in displeasure, but answered out of courtesy anyway. "She is our goddess of victory."

"A goddess of victory?" Mu was slightly surprised. After looking once more at Cagalli's back, he continued, "Could you tell me her name?"

"What are you trying to do?" Seibu put down his cup and stared directly at Mu with a frown.

Seeing how displeased the other man was, Mu gave an awkward laugh. "Nothing. I just thought it would be improper not to know a goddess's name."

"Mm." Seibu spread out a map and said after a moment of thought, "Cagalli Yula."

"Oh." Mu considered the name, but it did not seem particularly special. He glanced at Cagalli again, then turned back and focused on the map Seibu had spread out.

As Xiao Ran watched them turn their attention to the map and discuss how to leave the region, he found himself unable to immerse himself in it like they did. Instead, he carefully studied Cagalli, comparing her features with Kira's.

After observing her for several minutes, Xiao Ran discovered that apart from their different hair colors, Cagalli and Kira had far too many similarities. Their eye colors were nearly identical, and their face shapes were extremely alike. From the mouth to the chin, Cagalli's features were softer because she was a woman, but otherwise there was barely any difference. Her nose was somewhat higher than Kira's, though Xiao Ran did not know whether she had inherited that from her father or mother. Her eyes were also just a little smaller than Kira's.

If one did not know their true relationship, it would indeed have been difficult to connect those similarities. After all, the differences between men and women were not small. But knowing they were siblings, Xiao Ran could see countless resemblances. He could point out many identical features on their faces at any time.

Watching Cagalli's retreating figure after she left upon hearing most of the conversation between Mwu's group and Seibu, Xiao Ran could not help murmuring, "They really do look alike."

"Look alike how?" Mwu, standing beside Xiao Ran, heard him clearly and turned to him in confusion.

"Hmm?" Xiao Ran came back to himself and realized that everyone who had been discussing matters was now looking at him. He touched his nose and smiled. "Nothing. I just realized that Kira and Cagalli really look alike."

"Now that you mention it, I realize they really do look alike." Mu rubbed his head in sudden realization. "I was wondering why that girl looked so familiar, and it turns out she resembles Kira. No wonder I kept thinking about it and wanting to figure it out."

Mwu thought about what Kira looked like, then compared him with the Cagalli she had just seen. She nodded in surprise. "They really do. I never noticed before."

Bargyll rested her chin on one hand, her elbow supported by the other, and nodded in agreement. "I think they look alike too."

Seibu stared blankly at the three people, who had been led by Xiao Ran into completely forgetting the important matter at hand. Still, he had to admit that Cagalli really did seem to look remarkably like the pilot of that Strike Gundam.

Xiao Ran smiled and said half-jokingly, half-seriously, "Maybe they really are brother and sister. What do you think?"

Everyone took Xiao Ran's words as a joke. No one believed that he was actually telling the truth. Seeing the disbelief and amusement on their faces, Xiao Ran did not explain himself. He was not interested in listening to their question-and-answer discussion either. Shaking his head, he borrowed a car from Seibu, asked for the location of the nearest town, and left Dawn Desert after changing into casual clothes.

Xiao Ran had been staying aboard the Archangel this whole time and had long since grown bored and stifled. Now that he was on Earth, he naturally wanted to wander around and take in the sights. In his original world, Xiao Ran had never once traveled abroad, nor had he ever visited a desert. Knowing that nothing would happen for a while and that it would be safe, he could not resist relaxing. He eagerly ran out while he had the chance. This could count as both entering a desert and going abroad in one trip.

When he arrived in town, the desert-style architecture and distinctive clothing dazzled Xiao Ran's eyes. He was in an excellent mood and completely immersed himself in the relaxed atmosphere, where he did not need to worry about, fear, or think about anything. He walked, stopped, looked around, and wandered through the streets until evening came before he knew it. Only when his stomach growled twice did he reluctantly snap out of it.

He was about to buy something to eat and return to the Archangel, but when he reached into his pocket, Xiao Ran froze. He had completely overlooked the fact that he did not even have a cent on him. Since the day he arrived at Heliopolis, he had never spent any money. Even when taking a car in Heliopolis, he had shared a ride with students to school, and those self-driving taxis had been free.

All of a sudden, Xiao Ran seemed to understand why those bald men had taken hostages and demanded a spaceship. Perhaps it was for the same reason—they had no money to buy tickets.

"So this is how a single penny can drive a hero to death?" Xiao Ran rubbed his already ravenous stomach helplessly. After sighing for those pitiful fellows, he turned around and faced away from the fragrant food stalls. But when he looked up, someone who felt incredibly familiar appeared before him. Startled, he blurted out, "Rau Le Creuset? What are you doing here?"