Superior

"Platinum. Gear up," Crystalia commanded. "You start tonight with Sapphire. Blue Ruby and Red Emerald will leave after you."

"Tonight." That soon. It'll be okay. He'll be ready, if he gets it. It was cutting it close. "Our first real mission."

"It's been a long time. Just look how big Zara got," Blue Ruby agreed. "They will be super offguard. We'll get it done, Crystalia. Except for . . . how are we going to get Relena?"

"You aren't going after her. Another team will take care of the others at the same time," Crystalia insisted.

Yes, getting Relena past Heero Yuy wouldn't be easy. "Bring them straight to the zero systems," Dorothy insisted to them. "Don't fool around, just straight to the systems! Or you'll mess up our only chance at this."

"We would never mess it up-"

"Pray that you don't!" Dorothy didn't let up. "This is our last chance at victory. This is no time to muddle ourselves in anything." She came toward Blue Ruby and Red Emerald. "All of you did a disapproving job before because you have no experience in war. I, on the other hand, worked in sych with the Romefeller foundation, was there at the coronation of Queen Relena Peacecraft, and rode side by side with Milliardo Peacecraft! I refuse to disappoint." She spun her hair around just right when she saw Superior. She saluted. "Ma'am!"

Superior. Dorothy couldn't tease. Dorothy couldn't smile. She had to be rough and commanding in front of her. As long as she was, Superior would trust her. Especially as the only one with real war experience. The only gems there had limited experience.

There was Blue Ruby. She was exposed to the zero system nearly every day on training mode, plus she had bitterness in her heart that only increased her anger. There was nothing good in life to her. She hated everything, even life now. She swore to end her own life, after she made the 'unfeelable pilot' feel what she felt.

Red Emerald. She was willing to kill anyone it took to hurt Quatre. Dorothy's very presence irritated her, and she had been the one just watching her die less than peacefully, but she wasn't allowed to go against anyone else in Revenge of the Lost. So?

Everything that Dorothy could do to annoy her, she typically stressed it more on her. She only had three goes in the zero system, but Red Emerald's body didn't take the stress at all of it. She was cracked and unfixable. Death would be better for her.

Sapphire hung in the back. She never said or did much to Dorothy. She was supposed to have been with Revenge of the Lost, left, and got forced to come back when RTL was found out. If she was found, a long prison sentence would await her.

Dorothy didn't even converse with her. She honestly shouldn't be there, and the closer she got, the more she wished she could just break her free. It was easy to tell from her heart, from her actions, and from her words. She was a part of Revenge of the Lost when it was more okay. She was scared to leave, but stayed out of that fear. She found the courage to leave after doing something redeeming to her spirit.

Dorothy didn't know what Sapphire did, but it was something that made her presence feel lighter, though the throat of life in prison was wrapped around her neck.

Ken and Bubblegum Diamond just left.

Superior had been pretty much in the zero system whenever they weren't working. Superior had her favorite, her Lady Zero. Eat. Sleep. Lady Zero seemed alive to her, she couldn't tell the difference anymore.

Dorothy didn't trick Superior, only impressed her. She never let her see her weak or charitable, always working and disciplining. It impressed Superior enough that she actually got something that no one had actually gotten so far. The way she had wanted to end Miss Relena.

After she found out, Dorothy couldn't help but whisper a small thank you to Crystalia. Heero Yuy would have most definitely ended himself, but so would the whole of the world. It was a move that would have caused the same end to Revenge of the Lost. A power move that no one would have been able to escape, but would have stayed within the history books just as strong.

Blue Gemmy pulled on Dorothy's pants to get attention. "Leftovers?"

Normally, Dorothy could have given her some grapes, but Superior was watching. Rough was the only way to handle it. "You will eat at supper, and be grateful that we even have any food left. Everyone gets a fair share for their age, do not try to take the equality out of it." Her look and words made Blue Gemmy back away from her.

Blue Gemmy was ten. Her mother had committed suicide before she was caught and left her to the will of the group. Completely innocent, she didn't even know the name of the pilot her mother had hated.

Something in Crystalia, kept Support of the Loss' intentions still active. Something growing ever stronger. Day by day.

"This one, this one!"

Aquamarine. She had used the zero system when it was unrefined and being 'tweaked'. She had no plans in the revenge either. She didn't even remember who the pilots were. Her real name. What happened. "This one!" She tried to stick the blue piece next to the grass. "No, it goes. It goes." She pulled on Crystalia's arm. "It goes!"

"Red Emerald is very good with puzzles," Dorothy said. "Red Emerald, go help Aquamarine with her mission."

"I hate you," Red Emerald glared at her as she went over to the puzzle. "Turn it." She turned it slightly. "Turn it more."

"Red Emerald," Dorothy scolded her. "Give her some solid directions, you need solid directions to be successful in everything that you do. You can't just tell a fellow RTL member 'shoot around this area' or 'go over to the right some'. Be accurate!"

"She doesn't understand accuracy!" Red Emerald yelled straight back at her.

"Do not yell back unless it's worth yelling back for. I gave you specific instructions, I didn't keep it vague. Help her find it accurately!" Dorothy commanded.

"Keep turning it slowly until I say stop," Red Emerald tried again. Aquamarine kept turning it slowly. "Stop."

"I would say good job, but I can't say that for every minor thing you get right, when you get so much wrong," Dorothy told her.

"I knew it. See?" Aquamarine held up her 12 piece puzzle. "Squirrel eating apple. Good for me."

"Acorn," Red Emerald corrected her as she slid her another puzzle. "Do that one."

"Fifteen pieces will be too difficult," Dorothy warned her. "Check the stack for another 12 piece, Red Emerald. Do I really have to guide you in such a trivial fact again? How will you fair trying to track down the others if you can't handle giving somene a twelve piece puzzle!" She slapped her hands down on a table. "Work within a person's strengths, overextending them is even worse that underextending them." Dorothy was flashy for Superior, while also being condescending to Red Emerald. A double win. "Plus, just saying Acorn to her was no explanation. Do better, Red Emerald."

Ooh, Red Emerald was red in the face at her. Yet, she had to be good too around Superior. She would not hesitate to kill anyone. "The acorn is less red than an apple, Aquamarine. The squirrel was eating an acorn. Squirrels are more likely to eat acorns in real life than apples." She moved over another twelve piece. "This is a duck on water."

"No duck on water," Aquamarine groaned. "I've done that too much."

Ah, another moment to leave her life in a miserable hell again? Don't mind if I do. "No duck on water!" Dorothy commanded. "She has done that too many times, there is less enrichment. Give her the giraffe reaching for a leaf." Ooh? Crystalia was leaving the area. Superior must have given her orders again.

"I can't find the giraffe reaching for a leaf," Red Emerald said.

"That one will give her a decent challenge. Find it," Dorothy commanded. Superior was currently busy getting in her own gundam. That gundam can only predict what your future could be by the actions you take. You'll never see what's happening before it's too late.

Dorothy started to head toward Crystalia. Crystalia looked back toward her. "Have you seen the giraffe reaching for a leaf puzzle?"

Crystalia just ignored her and crawled into her gundam. Dorothy gave it a few seconds before she went over by the control. Crank this here first quickly. Just in time, Superior stepped in. She went over to the settings and cranked it to hardcore. "Superior."

Superior went over to her. "She won't appreciate you doing that."

"We must all run our best to defeat our enemy," Dorothy insisted. "She can't just be on whiny trainee's level. She is one of our top leaders."

"Right. What she doesn't know, doesn't hurt," Superior agreed. "Did those two children make it back yet?"

"They were grounded a little longer, so I made them some food to counteract that lost time differentiation," Dorothy told her.

"Good. We might need to do something about Blue Gemmy and Aquamarine. Once the others come, there won't be any need for them." She glared at the gundam Crystalia was in. "That nagging part of her I just can't get pulled away, keeps them eating and sheltered on our limited budget."

You can't say anything, you decorate yourself in fancy dresses like you are going to a party while I and the others wear rags. You are the one eating into that fund, which isn't even small. It's massively big, you are just buying the bare minimum you- Dorothy saluted her as she looked at her again. "Ma'am. I must make sure to attend to my own duties now."

Yes, an important one. Her Amira and Zara would be stirring more soon. It's almost time. I hate this. I really do. It was hard to do this, but she couldn't risk any more than she had to. Amira curled up her hands beneath her chin, a sign she was going to go to sleep soon. She looked cute in her little dress. It was something Dorothy wanted on her that day. She rarely let her wear it since she didn't want it to get ragged. It fit her so well now though, and today was the day of freedom, or . . . well, she wouldn't ever recognize them again.

So, either way. That dress would be on today. It was important.

She vaguely remembered a gift she was fanning herself with. Somewhere hot. The dress must have been in that box because she always had it. Another reason that the pilot she was with, would be the right choice.

He bought his daughter a dress. Right? Yes. It came from somewhere. It was most likely him. Zara held his arms out and bounced his feet in his little onesie. "Zara." It is just so close to time. She picked him up and sang him a gentle lullabye as she picked up her already drowsy daughter with her other arm. They would go to sleep better together after a brief walk around the facility.