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2022-08-07
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2023-01-05
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Relying on Others Isn't a Sign of Weakness

Summary:

If there's something Tieria Erde hates more than anything it's seeing himself as a burden on his comrades. But as they continue their mission in 2312, Tieria finds himself in more and more situations where he needs to rely heavily on his comrades much to his chagrin. The rest of the Ptolemaios Crew, however, is more than happy to let Tieria lean on them for as long as he needs to while doing everything in their power to let him know he will never be a burden on them.

Notes:

This fic is pretty much a series of small headcanons that I've strung together in the most angsty way I could without killing or maiming any of the characters.

(See the end of the work for more notes.)

Chapter 1: Migraine Relief

Chapter Text

After a stressful and almost sleepless night desperately searching for a missing comrade, Lyle Dylandy or Lockon Stratos, was looking forward to returning to the Ptolemaios and getting some much needed sleep. However as he approached the ship, their strategist contacted him.

“Lockon, I know you’ve been out all night but we need you to do one more thing for us.”

“What is it?”

“We need you to go and make sure Tieria’s alright,” Sumeragi stated, “The Seravee hasn’t moved in quite some time and Tieria isn’t responding to our messages.”

“Seriously?” Lockon whined, “I get the feeling that guy doesn’t like me very much.”

“I know and I’m sorry,” Sumeragi responded, “But you’re the only one with a functional Gundam right now. And it’s just not like Tieria to ignore our calls.”

“Alright,” Lockon sighed, “Where is he?”

“Here are the coordinates,” Sumeragi said as she sent a memo to his Gundam’s display, “He’s not far, it shouldn’t take you too long.”

“Alright.”

“Thanks.”

Lockon sighed as the transmission ended, “Man, how do I get stuck with the “check up on the “older” guys” job? Shouldn’t it be the other way around.”

“Babysitter. Babysitter.” The Haro unit in his cockpit chirped.

“Shut up. Hey when we find Tieria, could you come with me?”

“Sure, sure.”


Lockon was quite relived when he found the Seravee right where Sumeragi said it would be and he could see Tieria standing not far from the cliffs his Gundam was standing against, “At least I won’t have to go searching for him.

He landed next to the Seravee and climbed out of his Gundam with Haro tucked under his arm, “Oi Tieria!” He called out as he approached the shorter Meister.

“Tieria! Tieria!” Haro chanted as he leapt out of Lockon’s arms and on to the rocky ground.

“Why did they look like me…?” Tieria mumbled vacantly.

“Tieria?” Lockon asked when he found Tieria glassy-eyed and staring into the distance, “Hey, you okay?” He placed his hand on the smaller man’s shoulder and waved his other hand in front of his face, “You awake? Oi, earth to Tieria!”

“Earth to Tieria, earth to Tieria.”

Lockon sighed as he raised his hand. He would have preferred to not have to do what he was about to do, but he didn’t think he had any other choice, “I’m sorry about this,” He said just before carefully slapping Tieria in the face.


Tieria had been only vaguely aware of the person who had been trying to get his attention for several minutes until the sharp sudden pain of being slapped in the face snapped him back to reality.

“Unnecessary! Unnecessary!” the Orange Haro unit chanted.

“I didn’t have a choice!” Lockon snapped back.

“You…” Tieria mumbled as he suddenly became painfully aware of the pounding headache he now had.

“Hey, sorry about that,” Lockon said, “You were just staring off and weren’t responding. Are you okay?”

Before Tieria could respond, the pain in his head hit a blinding pitch, an intense feeling of nausea bubbled up in the pit of his stomach and he broke into a cold sweat. He quickly pushed the taller man aside, stumbled over to a small bush, fell to his knees and vomited.

“Oh boy…guess you’re not okay.”

“Tieria’s sick. Tieria’s sick!”

“Yeah, no shit.” Lockon commented as he crouched behind Tieria and rubbed his back. “Are you done for now?” He asked once Tieria had finished. Tieria nodded slightly as he coughed and panted, “Besides the obvious, what’s wrong?”

“My head…is pounding…” Tieria mumbled.

“Okay,” Lockon said as he helped Tieria rest against a large boulder, “Haro stay here and make sure he’s okay, I’m gonna call the others.”

“Okay, okay.”

“Sumeragi,” Lockon called into his communicator as he walked towards his Gundam to get Tieria something to drink.

“Lockon, what is it?” Sumeragi responded a few moments later, “Did you find Tieria?”

“Yeah. Hey, do the Gundams have an autopilot or something?”

“Yeah, why? What’s wrong?”

“Tieria’s really sick,” Lockon responded.

“What!?” Sumeragi exclaimed, “What’s wrong with him?”

“He threw up and said his head is pounding,” Lockon responded as he grabbed a bottle of water, “I’m not sure if he’s feverish or not but the poor guy looks awful.”

“He must have a migraine again,” Sumeragi responded after a deep sigh, “Okay, we can remotely pilot the Seravee. Just let us know when you two are ready to go.”

“Alright.”

Lockon walked back over to where Tieria was sitting, “Feeling any better?” He asked as he sat next to Tieria and offered him the water bottle. Tieria shook his head slightly, “Hey, I’m sorry I slapped you. I just didn’t know how to get you to snap out of the trance you were in.”

“It’s okay.” Tieria muttered softly after taking a small sip of water.

“No it’s not,” Lockon said, “If I had known you were feeling as sick as you are, I would have done something else to get your attention. Do you want some painkillers for your headache?” He asked holding up a small bottle of pills.

“I can’t take painkillers.”

“What, can’t swallow pills or something?”

“Intolerant to pain relievers, intolerant to pain relievers.” Haro chirped, “They make him sick, they make him sick.”

“That…must suck,” Lockon commented. He looked over at Tieria and sighed. The purple-haired Meister looked miserable and completely and utterly exhausted. “Do you want to head back to the ship so you can rest? Sumeragi already said someone would remotely pilot the Seravee for you.”

“Yeah…” Tieria muttered as he opened his eyes.

Lockon stood up, “Here, let me help you,” he said as he slowly helped Tieria to his feet. Once Tieria was standing, Lockon watched as his pale face somehow paled further and he swayed dangerously on his feet, “Whoa hey,” He exclaimed softly as he carefully steadied and supported Tieria, “You’re not going pass out on me, are you?”

“No…” Tieria mumbled through clenched teeth as the pain in his head flared up again and he tightly shut his eyes.

“Try to relax a bit,” Lockon said, “Clenching your eyes and jaw like that isn’t going to do your headache any favors it’s only gonna make it worse.” He paused, “Hey, this is gonna sound weird but, can you tolerate caffeine?”

“Yeah…”

“If you’re feeling up to it when we get back to the ship you should try drinking something caffeinated,” Lockon said as he slowly led Tieria over to where their Gundams were standing, “It can help with the pain, even if you can’t take pain relievers.  My brother used to deal with migraines when we were kids and caffeine always helped him more than painkillers did.”

Tieria’s eyes snapped open, “Your brother…”

“Yeah, Neil dealt with fairly frequent migraines when he was a teenager,” Lockon said, “Granted he was one of the lucky bastards who outgrew it by the time he reached adulthood. Most people aren’t that lucky.” He paused as they reached the Gundams, “Do you want help or can you manage?”

“I can manage,” Tieria said softly as he slowly pulled away from Lockon.

“Haro, go with him to make sure he’s okay.”

“No, keep Haro with you,” Tieria muttered, “In case we get ambushed.”

“Alright,” Lockon said, “I’ll let Sumeragi know we’re ready to go. But I’m going to leave the communication line between our Gundams open, okay?” Tieria nodded before the Seravee’s cockpit closed. He then headed to his own Gundam, “Sumeragi, we’re ready to go.”

“How’s he doing?”

“I think it’s safe to say he’s still feeling pretty awful,” Lockon said, “I think he almost passed out when he stood up and it’s clear he’s in a lot of pain.”

“Okay.”

“Should I lead or should I follow the Seravee?” Lockon asked as he closed the cockpit of his Gundam.

“Follow,” Sumeragi said, “If you two get ambushed, you’ll have to defend the Seravee. Seravee’s weapons can’t be controlled remotely.”

“Hopefully it won’t come to that,” Lockon said as he watched the Seravee take off, “I get the feeling that Tieria already doesn’t like me much.”

Sumeragi sighed, “That’s just how he is,” She said, “I’ll see you in roughly three hundred.”


Once he docked the Cherudim, Lockon made his way over to Tieria’s Gundam where Sumeragi and a white-haired young woman in an A-Laws flight suit were already waiting while Allelujah was helping Tieria out of his Gundam.

“Should we take him to his room or the medical room?” Allelujah asked, “He seems really sick.”

“My room please…” Tieria mumbled. The loud, brightly lit hangar was making him feel significantly worse and it was taking nearly everything he had to stop himself from vomiting on Allelujah.

“Okay,” Allelujah responded, “What’s wrong?”

“Migraine…”

“Alright, let’s get you to your room,” Allelujah said.


A few minutes after the small group got to Tieria’s room, Allelujah exited the dark room.

“He threw up again but said he just wants to try sleeping it off,” Allelujah said, “He said he’ll let you know how he’s feeling later on.”

“Thanks Allelujah,” Sumeragi responded.

“Did something happen to him after Fallen Angels?” Allelujah asked, “I didn’t think he dealt with migraines.”

“He sustained a serious head injury during that battle and dealt with horrible migraines for a while afterwards,” Sumeragi said, “It’s been a while since he’s had one. I’m just hoping it’s not as bad as the last time he had one…he was bedridden for nearly a week.”

“That wouldn’t be good,” Allelujah winced, “What are we going to do if that does happen?”

“We’re just going to have to figure that out if it comes to it,” Sumeragi said, “You’ve all had a long night, why don’t you get some rest.” She turned to Lyle after Allelujah and Marie walked off, “Thank you Lockon for finding Allelujah and helping Tieria.”

“Hey no problem,” Lyle responded, “But it was actually a member of the regular forces who gave me Allelujah’s location.”

“Still, thank you.”

“Hey, would it be wrong of me to ask for the lock code for Tieria’s room?” Lyle asked, “I want to check up on him later.”

Sumeragi sighed, “It’s your birthdate,” she responded, “And if he asks just say that Haro opened his door for you. I not sure how he would take to me giving his room code to you without his knowledge.”

My birthdate?” Lyle responded, “As in zero three zero three?”

“Yeah,” Sumeragi said, “It’s not my place to explain why.”

“I just find it a little strange,” Lyle said, “Why wouldn’t he use his own birthdate?”

“Tieria doesn’t have a known birthdate,” Sumeragi said, “He has a fake one but his real birthdate is unknown to everyone including him.”

“That’s weird.” Lyle commented, “But whatever. Thanks.”

“Get some sleep Lockon.”


Several hours later Lyle stood in front of Tieria’s room with a small bowl of ice water, “Haro could you open the door for me?” He said, “But before you do, is there any way you could turn the lights out here off?”

“Roger, roger!” Haro said as the lights in the hall dimmed to their night-mode.  He then opened the door to Tieria’s room.

Lyle cautiously entered the dark room. As he expected, Tieria’s room was bare save for a helmet with a shattered visor, “Why would he keep an old broken helmet?” As he closer, he noticed that the helmet wasn’t purple, it was green. The same shade of green as his new flight suit and he came to a horrifying realization, “That…must have been my brother’s…Why did Tieria keep it? What did my brother mean to Tieria…?”

He found that Tieria appeared to be sleeping but he still looked pale and sweaty. He carefully placed his hand to Tieria’s forehead and frowned, “Haro, could you check his temperature, he feels a little warm.”

“Slight fever, thirty-seven point eight. Slight fever, thirty-seven point eight.”

“Poor guy,” Lyle mused quietly as he dipped a washcloth into the ice water he brought, “No wonder he almost passed out earlier. I wonder if he’s been feeling sick all day…” He carefully placed the cold compress to Tieria’s forehead and to his dismay, Tieria’s eyes opened, “I’m sorry, did I wake you?”

“No,” Tieria mumbled, “I was in too much pain to get any sleep. What are you doing here?”

“Ms. Sumeragi wanted someone to check up on you,” Lyle lied, “And I volunteered. Haro opened the door for me.  I’m sorry I came in here without your permission.”

“It’s okay,” Tieria responded quietly.

“Are you feeling any better?”

“No.”

“I figured,” Lyle said, “You’re running a slight fever. Do you want me to get you anything to eat or drink?”

“Just something to drink…I’m not feeling well enough to eat anything.”

“Okay,” Lyle said, “I’ll bring you some tea.”

“That will be fine. The lock code for my door is your birthdate.”

“Okay. Thanks.”


Sumeragi, Allelujah, and a silver-haired young woman were in kitchen when Lyle walked in.

“Good afternoon,” Allelujah greeted, “I’m guessing you’re here to get something to eat?”

“Not at the moment,” Lockon said, “I was going to make some tea for Tieria.”

“How’s he feeling?”

“He said he’s not feeling any better,” Lyle responded, “He also has a slight fever.”

“You’re kidding,” Sumeragi gasped.

“Unfortunately Haro confirmed it.”

“Shit…” Sumeragi muttered, “How high is it?”

“It’s only about thirty-seven point eight according to Haro,” Lyle said as he rummaged through one of the cabinets.

“Hopefully it’s just a stress fever and not an actual illness…I take it he didn’t want anything to eat.”

“No, he said he was feeling too sick to eat anything.”

“I guess I was wrong then,” The sliver-haired young woman said.

“What do you mean Marie?” Allelujah asked.

“Earlier I thought that maybe the purple-haired man was experiencing some kind of quantum brainwave interference.” Marie said.

“What?” Sumeragi and Allelujah exclaimed.

“While he isn’t like Allelujah and I, there’s no doubt that he has quantum brainwaves.”

“Now that you mention it, four years ago Hallelujah did mention that Tieria has quantum brainwaves,” Allelujah said, “But why did you think it was quantum brainwave interference?”

“They felt very agitated to me,” Marie responded, “And if you’re not used to encountering someone who has similar brainwaves to you or something that interferes with your quantum brainwaves it can leave you with a pretty severe headache.”

“But Tieria and I were never bothered by the other’s quantum brainwaves,” Allelujah said, “I didn’t even realize he had them until Hallelujah told me.”

“Tieria’s quantum brainwaves are different than ours,” Marie said, “So there’s no risk of interference.”

“I don’t mean to interrupt but does Tieria have any dietary restrictions?” Lyle asked, “I don’t want to make him sicker than he already is.”

“He can’t have milk,” Sumeragi responded, “So make his tea black.”

“Okay, thanks.” Lyle said as he started preparing a cup of tea.

“But if Tieria was dealing with Quantum brainwave interference what caused it?” Allelujah asked.

“Just before I got his attention he muttered something along the lines of “why did they look like me?”” Lyle said, “So maybe he encountered someone while looking for Allelujah.”

“I’ll have someone check the Seravee’s mission recorder,” Sumeragi said, “Tell Tieria that I’ll be there to check up on him in a little while.”

“Alright,” Lyle said as he picked up the mug.


Lockon sighed as Tieria visibly flinched in pain when the door to his room opened.

“Sorry Tieria,” He said as he walked up to the bed, “I brought you some of the most caffeinated tea I could find in the kitchen.

“Thanks,” Tieria muttered as he slowly sat up and took the mug from Lyle.

“Hey,” Lyle said after a little while, “Did something happen while we were looking for Allelujah? When I first walked up to you, you said “why did he look like me?” So I was wondering if something happened?”

“Can we talk about it later?” Tieria asked after finishing his tea.

“Okay,” Lyle said, “Since you’re finished with your tea, would you be okay with me giving you a bit of a head massage? I know a few pressure-point massages that can help alleviate migraine pain. But I can understand if you don’t want one.”

“Go ahead,” Tieria muttered as he rested against his bed.

“Can I see your hands first?” Lyle asked. Tieria silently complied and Lyle gently squeezed between the thumb and index finger on both of Tieria’s hands, “Did either of those hurt?”

“Not really.”

“Alright,” Lyle said as he gently applied pressure to the temples of Tieria’s forehead causing him to wince, “Which side hurt more?”

“Left.”

“Okay,” Lyle said as he gently massaged the left side of Tieria’s forehead in small circles for about two minutes, “How’s that? Any better?”

“A little.”

“Could you turn on to your stomach?” Lyle asked. Once again Tieria complied and Lyle gently applied pressure to the vertebrae in Tieria’s neck, “Did any of those hurt more than the others?”

“The second one.”

Lyle then gently massaged Tieria’s neck in small circles for a few minutes, “Dear God you’re so tense,” He said as he moved down Tieria’s neck and shoulders, “I know you’re in a lot of pain but you need to relax. You’re only making things worse for yourself tensing up like that. Come on Tieria, I need you to relax a little for your sake…There you go.”

“I was more comfortable on my back.” Tieria said softly after about ten minutes.

“Okay,” Lyle said as Tieria rolled back on to his back, “Are you feeling any better?”

“A little I guess.”

“That’s good,” Lyle said, “Do you want me to continue?”

“You can if you want.” Tieria muttered. He couldn’t deny that everything the other man had done had helped to alleviate the pain significantly.

“Alright, just try to relax as best you can.” Lyle said as he continued to gently massage Tieria’s head, “That means unclenching your jaw Tieria.”

“I don’t…dislike you,” Tieria said softly after about twenty minutes or so, “It’s just…”

“Hard to see the face of a fallen friend on the body of another man?” Lyle responded, “I can imagine and I can’t imagine the pain and anguish you must feel when you see my face.”

Tieria sighed as tears stung the corners of his eyes.

“Take your time getting used to me. And if you decide that you would rather keep your distance for your own sake, I completely understand.”

“Thank you.” Tieria whispered as a tear rolled down his cheek.

Lyle sighed softly once he realized that Tieria was crying, “You…loved my brother, didn’t you?” He thought as he continued to gently massage Tieria’s head, “I’m sorry if I upset you.”


Lyle wasn’t sure how long he had been massaging Tieria’s head when he realized just how hungry he was getting.

“Hey Tieria…” He called softly, “Tieria?” When Tieria didn’t respond Lyle stood up and carefully placed a cold compress to his still slightly warm forehead. “Good, he’s asleep.” He mused softly when Tieria didn’t stir.

He then turned to Haro, “Stay in here and make sure he’s okay,” He instructed, “Call me if he needs anything. If he happens to ask, tell him I went to get something to eat.”

The small robot silently blinked its eyes in affirmation.

“Thanks Haro.”


Lyle was making himself something to eat when Sumeragi walked into the kitchen.

“There you are,” Sumeragi greeted, “Where have you been?”

“I was in Tieria’s room trying to help him feel better.” Lyle said, “Just about everyone in my family dealt with migraines so I know a few ways to alleviate the pain that don’t involve painkillers.”

“Hopefully they work for Tieria,” Sumeragi said softly, “He’s highly intolerant to most forms of pain medication. Even children’s over-the-counter pain medication makes him extremely sick, so there’s not much we can do to help him when this happens.” She paused, “Is he feeling any better?”

“I’m not sure,” Lyle responded, “He was asleep when I left. I left Haro in his room to monitor him.”

“Okay, we’ll just let him sleep then. That’s probably what he needs right now.”   

“Hey…is the broken helmet in Tieria’s room something I should ask about or…?”

Sumeragi sighed, “That’s something you would need to take up with Tieria,” She said, “It’s not my place to explain why he has that.”

“It…belonged to my brother, didn’t it?”

“Yes. But Tieria might not want to talk about it so you might not get an answer. And I ask that you respect Tieria’s wishes on the matter, if he doesn’t want to talk about, don’t go ask another crew member about it.”

Lyle sighed, “Alright I’ll trying asking him about it when he’s feeling better. But at least I know he doesn’t hate me.”

“What do you mean?”

“Tieria told me “I don’t dislike you” just before he fell asleep.”

“Coming from Tieria, that means a lot,” Sumeragi said.


Several hours later, a still fairly pale tired-looking Tieria walked into the dining room while the rest of the crew was finishing dinner.

“Tieria,” Sumeragi exclaimed softly, “How are you feeling?”

“A little better,” Tieria responded quietly, “But still not great.”

“Why didn’t you stay in your room then?” Sumeragi asked, “You should have called one of us if you wanted something to eat.”

“I needed to take a bit of a walk,” Tieria answered as he sat down at the table.

“I’m guessing the caffeine and head massage really helped,” Lyle said, “You look a lot better.”

“It helped,” Tieria replied, “Thank you.”

“No problem,” Lyle said as he left the room.

“At least now we’ll know what to do if you get another migraine,” Sumeragi said, “Are you hungry at all?”

“A little,” Tieria said.

“Alright. Feldt would you mind making Tieria some rice?”

“Not at all,” The pink haired girl responded as she stood up, “I’m glad you’re feeling better Tieria.”

“Thanks.”

Sumeragi scoffed, “I never thought I would ever see that pink sweater again,” She commented as she gestured the pink cardigan Tieria was wearing over a white tee-shirt.

“I’m sorry,” Tieria said softly, “I just…didn’t feel like changing into my uniform.”

“Don’t be sorry,” Sumeragi said, “You’re not feeling well. I can imagine that sweater is much more comfortable than your usual uniform and you’re not “working” today so there’s nothing wrong with you dressing comfortably.”  

Tieria nodded.

“The young woman Allelujah brought with him after we rescued him said something interesting,” Sumeragi said.

“Young woman Allelujah brought with him?” Tieria asked.

“She’s the super soldier we fought against several times four years ago, Soma Peries,” Sumeragi explained, “You fought against her once that time you were forced to reveal the Nadleeh.”

“She defected from the A-Laws?” Tieria asked.

“In a way yes,” Sumeragi responded, “According to Allelujah, Sergei Smirnov was going to inform the A-Laws that she was killed in action. Turns out, like Allelujah she has a second, more gentle personality. She doesn’t seem to pose much of a threat so for Allelujah’s sake I’ve allowed her to stay with us.”  

Tieria nodded as Feldt placed a small bowl of rice and a glass of water in front of him, “Thank you Feldt,” He said, “What did she say?”

“She said she thought you were experiencing some kind of quantum brainwave interference,” Sumeragi said, “She mentioned that you have quantum brainwaves and they seemed agitated to her. Did something happen while you were looking for Allelujah?”

Tieria sighed, “I encountered someone who was able to speak to me telepathically through quantum brainwaves,” he muttered, “I have no idea who they were or what they wanted with me…but they looked just like me.”

“Were they in a mobile suit?”

“No,” Tieria responded, “They were just there on that island. There weren’t any traces of a mobile suit or some kind of ship but then again…I felt so ill after the encounter I wasn’t in much of a condition to pursue them.”

“That’s understandable,” Sumeragi said, “Marie mentioned just how sick quantum brainwave interference can make someone feel. She seems pretty knowledgeable about how quantum brainwaves work so maybe you could talk to her about what happened.”

Tieria nodded as he finished his dinner.

“Lockon said you had a bit of a fever earlier,” Sumeragi said as she placed her hand to Tieria’s forehead, “You don’t feel warm to me but I still want you to rest as much as you can for the rest of the day and tomorrow as well.”

“Alright,” Tieria said, “In that case I’m going to turn in for the night.”

“That sounds like a good idea,” Sumeragi said, “I’m giving you tomorrow off regardless of how you’re feeling. The rest of the crew already knows and they’ve divided your assigned work up amongst themselves.”

“You didn’t have to do that.”

“Yes, I did,” Sumeragi said, “You don’t handle stress well at all and the last thing we need is for you to be sidelined for an extended period of time. Things aren’t like they were four years ago, we don’t know when the A-Laws are going to ambush us. Take tomorrow off as a mental health day, I think you desperately need it.”

“What will happen if we get ambushed?”

“You’ll be put on stand-by but won’t receive orders to sortie unless it’s absolutely necessary.”

Tieria sighed, “Alright,” He muttered.

“Try to get some sleep Tieria, you look like you need it.”

Tieria nodded as he walked from the room. When he got to his quarters, he found Lyle standing near his door.

“Hey…” Lyle greeted tentatively, “Could…could I ask you something?”

“What is it?”

Lyle sighed as he quickly studied Tieria’s still pale face, “Actually never mind…I can wait.”

“It’s about your brother isn’t it?”

Lyle sighed again, “Yeah…”

Tieria nodded and opened his door, “What did you want to know?”

“I wanted to know…what he meant to you,” Lyle said as he followed Tieria into his room, “It’s obvious that the two of you were fairly close.”

Tieria sighed, “Your brother was badly injured saving my life…” He muttered as he sat on his bed, “Our old Gundams had been cut off from the Quantum-Processing unit that was once the backbone of our organization and while Sumeragi had a backup operating system at the ready…Because I had been so insistent on staying connected to that Quantum Processing unit, the backup system didn’t install on my old Gundam. The enemy forces noticed and took the opportunity to strike me down. Your brother…shielded my Gundam from the attack with his and…he lost his right eye as a result.”

“I’m gonna guess and say that, that injury played a part in his death,” Lyle said.

“It did,” Tieria mumbled, “He refused medical treatment for his injury and went into battle blind in his right eye, and he…never came back. I’m sorry…for being partly to blame for your brother’s death.”

“You have nothing to apologize for,” Lyle said as he placed his hand on Tieria’s shoulder.

“But…if I hadn’t blocked the new system from installing on my Gundam, he would have never…”

“You shouldn’t blame yourself,” Lyle said interrupting Tieria, “Knowing my brother he definitely saved your life of his own volition. Did my brother ever blame you for what happened?”

“No…he didn’t,” Tieria muttered, “After it happened, he was more concerned about my well-being than his own…”

“Then why are you blaming yourself for what happened?” Lyle asked, “It’s not like you asked Neil to take an attack meant for you he did it of his own free will. So stop blaming yourself for what happened.”

Tieria nodded, “Thanks…” He muttered.

“How about you try to get some sleep,” Lyle said, “I can imagine you’re still not feeling all that great.” Tieria silently nodded, “Don’t hesitate to call me if you need anything during the night.”  

Chapter 2: Dehydration

Notes:

(See the end of the chapter for notes.)

Chapter Text

The following day Tieria found himself standing in one of the observation rooms. He was supposed to be helping Ian and Feldt with a software update for the Gundams but Ian had locked him out of the hangar’s computer room at Sumeragi’s request.

“No. Sumeragi has you on rest orders today. So go rest.” Ian told him before locking him out of the computer room.

Tieria sighed. He couldn’t say he didn’t need the day off. His head still ached with a constant dull throb, his mind felt like it was in a fog, and he was still feeling slightly nauseous from the day before.  And he just wasn’t feeling well in general.

He thought about the person he had encountered the day before. Just who were they? What did they mean when they said that they were always connected to him? What did they mean when they told him he was denying his reason for existing? Every time he thought about the person he had met while on that island his head swam with confusion. He had been sent to Celestial Being directly from Veda, so why did that person say that that wasn’t his purpose in life.

“If what that person said is true…” He muttered to the dark ocean in front of him, “Then…then does that mean I shouldn’t be fighting to eradicate war with my Gundam…? That I’ll have to choose to…”

“Don’t go forcing yourself into a certain mold like that.” A hauntingly familiar voice called out to him. Tieria turned around expecting to see Lyle Dylandi standing in the doorway but instead he was greeted by a transparent, incorporeal imagine of the late Neil Dylandi, “Don’t get hung up on the details. Just do it. Just do you believe is right…And bust your guts over it. I mean after all…Old man Aeolia entrusted us the Gundams right?”

“Lockon…” Tieria muttered as he continued to stand there staring at the door in shock.


“I’m sorry for dragging you all over the place, Marie,” Allelujah said as the two wandered around the Ptolemaios, “But Sumeragi wanted me to find Tieria for her. He’s not responding to her calls again and he isn’t in his room.”

“No, it’s okay,” Marie responded, “I need to learn the layout of the ship anyway. Mister Erde isn’t far, he’s in a room just down this hallway.”

“You can tell?” Allelujah asked.

“I can feel his quantum brainwaves,” Marie said as she walked up to a door, “He’s right through here.  This isn’t a washroom or anything like that is it?”

“No, this is one of the observation rooms,” Allelujah responded, “I should have known Tieria would be here.” He opened the door to find a pale and wide-eyed Tieria just staring at the door, “There you are Tieria. Sumeragi was…Tieria, are you okay?”

“I…I just…”

Marie eyes widened as she felt Tieria’s consciousness wavering dangerously, “Allelujah! He’s going to faint!” She exclaimed just as Tieria’s garnet eyes slid shut and his legs crumpled under his weight.

“Tieria!” Allelujah exclaimed as he rushed forward to catch the now unconscious Meister before he could bash his head on the floor.

“What’s wrong with him?” Marie asked as Allelujah carefully picked Tieria up and gently laid him on the bench in the room.

“I don’t know,” Allelujah said as he removed Tieria’s glasses from his face, took his jacket off and unzipped his shirt a bit, “There’s a washroom right across the hall, could you go get a cold cloth for his head?”

“Okay.”

A few moments later Marie returned, “Is he feverish again?”

“His body temperature is lower than mine is so it’s hard for me to tell.”

“Should we take him to the medical room?”

“Let’s wait for him to regain consciousness,” Allelujah responded as he placed the cold compress to Tieria’s forehead, “He doesn’t like going to the medical room. I think I know why he fainted, I don’t think he’s eaten much in the past two days.”

The two super soldiers sat in silence for a few minutes before Tieria finally stirred.

“Tieria,” Allelujah called quietly, “Are you okay?”

“What happened…?” Tieria mumbled groggily. His head was pounding again and he felt incredibly weak and shaky.

“You fainted,” Allelujah answered, “You were lucky Marie and I found you just before it happened. Are you okay?”

“I…I saw Lockon’s ghost…” Tieria mumbled, “He…he spoke to me…”

“Lockon’s ghost?” Marie asked, “But isn’t he…”

“I’ll explain things to you later.” Allelujah whispered in Marie’s ear cutting her off.

“Okay.”

“Tieria, I think I’m going to take you to the medical room just to be safe,” Allelujah said, “You seem really sick, and I’m worried about you.”

“Alright…” Tieria muttered as Allelujah helped him sit up.

“Do you want me to carry you or do you think you can walk?”

“I think I can walk…”

“Okay, I’ll help you,” Allelujah said as he slowly helped Tieria to his feet and supported him, “Marie could you grab his jacket and glasses?”

“Sure. Do you want me to help you?”

“I don’t think that will be necessary.”


“What’s wrong with him?” Marie asked once the medical computer displayed Tieria’s vitals.

Allelujah sighed. According to the computer, aside from being almost severely dehydrated and feverish as a result, Tieria was in relatively good health. “I was right,” he said, “He passed out from dehydration. Tieria, when was the last time you ate anything?”

“I had some rice last night,” he responded, “But I didn’t end up keeping it down.”

“You’re almost severely dehydrated,” Allelujah said, “And if you don’t mind, I think I’m going to start you on the computer’s recommended treatment course. It should only take about two hours and it should help you feel better especially if you’re not feeling well enough to eat anything.”

“Alright…” Tieria muttered, “I suppose you’re going to inform Sumeragi about this.”

“Tieria, I have to,” Allelujah said, “She was the one who sent me to find you. She was worried that you hadn’t eaten anything today. I’m going to page her now.”

A few minutes later a very frantic Sumeragi entered the medical room, “Allelujah what happened!? What’s wrong with Tieria!?”

“He fainted not too long ago and is severely dehydrated,” Allelujah responded, “I was going to start treatment but I wanted to get your input first.”

Sumeragi sighed as she looked over Tieria’s vitals and the treatment options, “Do the recommended treatment course,” She said, “Is he still awake?”

“I think so. I haven’t started his treatment yet.”

“Tieria,” Sumeragi called, “Why didn’t you tell me you weren’t feeling well enough to eat anything? I would have put you on an IV. You know how you get, even with treatment there’s almost no chance you won’t end up with a worse fever later on.”

“I’m sorry…” Tieria mumbled.

“What’s done is done,” Sumeragi said, “We’re going to treat you for the dehydration here, then once it’s over I want you on bed rest in your room for the remainder of the day. That way, hopefully you won’t still be sick tomorrow. Does that sound okay to you?”

“It’s fine.”  

“Allelujah, you can start the treatment now.”

“Alright,” Allelujah said, “Feel better Tieria.”

Sumeragi sighed once Tieria’s treatment started, “So much for thinking he wouldn’t keep doing this once we started back up,” She said.

“What do you mean?” Allelujah asked.

“Tieria would do this at least once a month while you and Setsuna were still missing,” Sumeragi answered, “Hopefully this is just a one-time thing and it doesn’t keep happening. Well you two are free to go, I’m going to oversee his treatment.”

“Alright.”

“Thank you for finding him.”

“No problem.”

“Allelujah,” Marie called once they had left the medical room, “What did you mean when you said you would explain things to me later?”

Allelujah sighed, “The current Lockon Stratos is not the same person from five years ago,” He explained softly, “The original Lockon…was killed in action just before Fallen Angels.”

“I’m so sorry,” Marie said softly.

“It wasn’t your fault,” Allelujah said, “But Tieria is especially sensitive about what happened to the original Lockon.”

“So that’s why you stopped me…”

“Yeah, Tieria’s already feeling sick enough as it is, we didn’t need to make him feel even worse.”

“I’ll keep that in mind, I don’t want to upset him.” Marie said softly, “Because he’s been sick, he’s the only one I haven’t had a chance to talk to yet. I don’t know how he’ll react to me being here, I’m pretty sure I fought him once before. He piloted the Gundam with all the red cords hanging from its head right? I remember feeling quantum brainwaves from the pilot of that Gundam.”

“Yeah, that was one of Tieria’s old Gundams.”

“Before I forget to ask, does anyone else here speak Russian? I still have trouble with English from time to time.”

“Tieria’s fluent in Russian,” Allelujah responded.

“Really?”

“Yeah, believe it or not he’s fluent in Russian and at least five other languages besides English,” Allelujah said, “None of us know exactly how many languages Tieria can speak, he wouldn’t tell us.”

“That’s amazing but I suppose it makes sense, given the nature of your work.”


Sumeragi sighed as she monitored Tieria’s condition. His treatment would end in just five minutes and while he was no longer dangerously dehydrated, he was still feverish.

“While I can’t say I miss the way he was five years ago, he was one of the only crew members I didn’t have to worry about back then,” Sumeragi thought, “It’ll put us in a difficult spot if he keeps stressing himself out to the point of illness like this.”

She highlighted Tieria’s elevated body temperature hoping that the capsule could provide an additional treatment option, “No treatment option available…” She read aloud, “That must mean we’re out of the specially formulated fever reducers we used to have for him. Which means they either expired because he didn’t need them, or they used them because he did…I’m praying it’s the former…Hopefully he’ll be able to sleep it off.”

A few minutes later the capsule’s computer beeped indicating the end of the treatment course and the medical capsule slid open.

“Tieria,” Sumeragi called softly as the purple haired Meister stirred and opened his eyes, “How are you feeling?”

“Better,” Tieria responded as he slowly sat up. He still felt slightly feverish but he was no longer feeling weak and shaky and the headache and nausea were gone.

“You’re still a little feverish so I want you on bed rest for the remainder of the day,” Sumeragi said, “If we get ambushed you will not be put on stand-by nor will you receive orders to sortie.”

“I understand.”

A few minutes later Tieria entered the main room.

“You look better than you did earlier,” Sumeragi said, “Hopefully you’ll be able to sleep the fever off. We seem to be out of the fever reducers we had for you.”

“The ones we had expired and we haven’t had a chance to restock them,” Tieria responded, “I haven’t needed them since before you ran off two years ago.”

“That’s a relief to hear,” Sumeragi said, “You should head back to your room and rest, you look tired and you’re still not one hundred percent yet.”

“Alright.”

“Do you want me to escort you to you room just in case or…” Before Sumeragi could finish her question, Allelujah and Marie entered the medical room, “Allelujah, Marie, what are you two doing here?”

“We wanted to see how Tieria was doing,” Allelujah said, “You look a lot better than you did earlier, how are you feeling?”

“Tired,” Tieria responded, “But better than I did earlier. I should be fine by tomorrow.”

“Let’s hope so,” Sumeragi said, “Go back to your room and rest. I’ll bring you a little something to eat later on okay? Allelujah, would you mind escorting Tieria back to his room, just in case? I’m going to go see if I can wrestle a Haro away from Ian.”

“Alright and good luck with that,” Allelujah said.

“Thank you for earlier,” Tieria said while the three of them walked back to the residence hall, “I’m sorry if I caused you any trouble.”

“Don’t worry about it,” Allelujah said, “Marie was the one who figured out where you were using quantum brainwaves. I’m just glad we were able to find you before you passed out.”

Tieria looked at the young woman, “You could tell where I was using quantum brainwaves?”

“Yes,” Marie replied, “While you’re not the same as Allelujah and I, I am able to detect your quantum brainwaves, Mister Erde.”

“You can call me Tieria if you want,” Tieria said, “From the sounds of it, you’ll be one of our comrades from now on, so there’s no need to be formal.”

“Thank you. I’m…sorry if I upset you earlier.”

“You didn’t upset me earlier.”

“I’m glad,” Marie said, “Allelujah told me that you can speak Russian. I’m still having some trouble learning English if you wouldn’t mind…do you think you could help me with it?”

“I wouldn’t mind,” Tieria responded in flawless Russian, “I’ve helped a lot of the non-native English speakers here learn the language. Just let me know what you’re having trouble with and I’ll help you. But I don’t think you’ll need much help, your English is already quite good.”

“Thank you.”

“Try to get some rest Tieria,” Allelujah said once they reached Tieria’s room, “Call me if you need anything.”

“Alright.”

“Don’t take this the wrong way but, I wasn’t expecting everyone to be so nice…”

“We’ve all been through a lot together,” Allelujah said, “But for a lot of us, this is as close as we’ll get to having an actual family.  Granted four years ago, Tieria wasn’t anywhere near as nice as he is now. He was…kind of an asshole back then. Just don’t tell him I said that about him.”

“I see,” Marie said, “It’s nice to be in an environment where everyone gets along…It wasn’t like that in the A-Laws. Soma found the lack of camaraderie in the A-Laws disheartening and demoralizing. And even if she wouldn’t admit it, she desperately missed how tight knit everyone in the Chobu Special Forces team was.”

“Hopefully she’ll like how tight knit everyone here is.”

“I’m sure she will.”


A few hours later Allelujah hit the page button outside of Tieria’s room and moments later the door opened. Tieria had messaged him a little while earlier asking if he would mind making him a little something to eat. When he entered the room he found Tieria sitting on his bed resting against the wall while reading a book.

“I brought you something light to eat like you asked.” Allelujah said as he approached the bed.

“Thanks,” Tieria said as he put the book down.

“How are you feeling?” Allelujah asked as he handed Tieria the tray.

“I slept for a little bit so I’m a little less tired than I did earlier, but I’m still exhausted.”

“How’s your temperature?”

“I still have a low-grade fever,” Tieria said, “But it’s come down about three-tenths of a degree from earlier.”

“Considering it’s getting later in the day, that’s a good sign,” Allelujah said, “Hopefully you’ll be fine tomorrow.”

“I should be fine tomorrow,” Tieria said, “I don’t feel anywhere near as awful as I usually do when I’m feverish like this. I’m more-or-less just incredibly tired and uncomfortably warm.”

“That’s good,” Allelujah responded, “Hey Tieria…could you go on about what you said right after you regained consciousness earlier? When you said you saw Lockon’s ghost?”

Tieria sighed, “I don’t know what it was,” he said softly, “But…I saw him…and told me exactly what I needed to hear at that time…I just have no idea what it was…I don’t know if it was a hallucination because of how dehydrated I was at the time or if it truly was his ghost…but it felt so real.”

“You could always check the camera footage,” Allelujah suggested.

“I did,” Tieria responded, “For whatever reason all of the cameras in that observation room went completely offline from just before I heard his voice to just after his image dissipated. There isn’t even any audio. I even checked the audio from the camera right outside the observation room and the only thing it picked up was the conversation you and Marie were having.”

“Now that’s weird,” Allelujah said, “What do you think it was?”

“Part of me believes it was his ghost but...it would be impossible to prove.”

“I didn’t think you believed in stuff like that.”

“I didn’t but…it’s happened a few too many times for me to believe I was merely hallucinating every time.”

“You better not let Mileina know about it or she’ll start conducting paranormal investigations like the ones they do in those shows she’s always watching,” Allelujah said, “And knowing her she’d go all out.”

“I know, she’d have a field day with that,” Tieria said with a small smile and slight scoff. He then handed the empty meal tray back to Allelujah, “Thank you.”

“No problem,” Allelujah responded, “Hopefully you’re able to keep it down.”

“Sumeragi brought me a small snack earlier and I kept it down,” Tieria said, “And I was actually hungry when I paged you.”

“That’s good. Let me know if you want anything else later on.”

“I will,” Tieria said, “Just…keep what we talked about between the two of us okay?”

“Alright.  I hope you sleep well tonight and feel better.”

“Thanks.”

Notes:

I headcanon that Marie can detect Tieria's quantum brainwaves. I also headcanon that Lockon's ghost lingers around the Ptolemaios and shows himself to the crew members when they need it the most.

As someone who has passed out from dehydration, if you're dehydrated enough you will end up feverish.

Chapter 3: Broken Bones

Notes:

If there are a ton of typos in this chapter I apologize, I had Covid when I wrote it (I'm fine, it was a very mild case and I'm fully recovered.

(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)

Chapter Text

As he exited his Gundam, Lyle watched Tieria throw his helmet at one of the hangar’s metal walls so hard it shattered the helmet’s glass visor.

“What the hell did you do, Tieria!?” Ian exclaimed upon seeing the condition the Seravee was in.

“Now not Ian!” Tieria barked as he limped over to his now broken helmet, cleared the glass into a trash compactor chute then slowly walked out of the hangar.

“How are you the only one who hasn’t completely trashed their machine yet? You’re the new guy!” Ian asked as Lockon approached him

“Beginner’s luck?” Lyle responded shrugging a bit.

“Hopefully it’s more than just luck,” Ian said, “Whatever you do, don’t follow their examples of trashing their Gundams every battle.”

“I’ll try not to.” 

“Good.” Ian said.

“Hey uh, was that…normal for him?” Lockon asked.

“There’s a reason we put a trash compactor chute right in front of his Gundams’ dock and ordered him more helmets than the rest of you would ever need,” Ian said, “He did that sort of thing a lot four years ago.”

“Wow, he doesn’t exactly strike me as the type to throw and break things out of anger.”

“That’s because you’ve only met the calm, mellowed-out Tieria,” Ian said, “The rest of us have had to deal with a much more short-tempered and extremely rage-prone Tieria. Consider yourself lucky, four years ago Tieria wouldn’t have let a newbie like you anywhere near a Gundam, let alone pilot one.”  

“I see…”

 “But enough small talk, I need you to go make sure Tieria’s alright. I think he may have sustained some kind of injury.”

“What makes you say that?”

“The kid screamed fuck so loud when he stepped out of his Gundam it wouldn’t surprise me if the whole ship heard it,” Ian said, “He’s also not walking right.”

“Alright, I’m on it.”


Lyle wasn’t too far from the hangar when he found Tieria kneeling on the ground massaging his ankle.

“Everything okay?”

“I’m fine,” Tieria responded, “I just rolled my ankle in those damn heels.”

“Do you want me to help you to the medical room?”

“No. It’s not that bad.” Tieria as he stood up and gingerly walked into the briefing room.

“If you say so,” Lyle said, “Just what was that Gundam? Did the guy piloting it really kill my brother?”

“It’s exactly like I said,” Tieria responded, “Ali-Al Saachez, the man piloting that Gundam took Lockon’s life.”

“Ali-Al Saachez? I want to hear all the details.” Lyle said. As soon as he did he noticed the slight look of pain that had been present on Tieria’s face deepened.

“Once your brother found out that Saachez had been responsible for the death of your parents and little sister, he decided to do whatever he could to avenge their deaths,” Setsuna explained, “At the cost of his own life.”

“I see,” Lyle said with a laugh, “So to avenge the death of our family, my brother when up against that Al-Saachez.”

“Why are you laughing?” Tieria asked.

“Placing revenge before reforming the world, that sounds like my brother all right.”

“Do you have a problem with that?” Tieria asked in a dangerously low tone.

“Not at all,” Lyle said, “I respect him for it. Our family members were killed over ten years ago. I don’t see the point in brooding over what happened.”

“Even if the one responsible was right in front of you?” Setsuna asked.

“What’s that supposed to mean Setsuna?”

“I was a member of the KPSA, the terrorist organization that took your family from you.”

“Setsuna!” Tieria exclaimed. He remembered how four years ago that revelation had caused the original Lockon to pull a gun on the youngest.

“You didn’t have to tell him that!” Allelujah said.

“He needs to know,” Setsuna said, “If I had just stopped my comrade from bombing that shopping centre back then. Lockon, or should I say, Neil Dylandy, would have never become a Gundam Meister.”

“Setsuna…” Allelujah gasped.

“Even if you had stopped them at that time, the terrorism would have still continued,” Lyle said, “It’s a stream of events that was inevitable.”

“Yes but…”

“It’s all in the past now,” Lyle explained, “There’s not point in dwelling on what happened. We’re not fighting for what happened in the past, we’re fighting for the future.”  

“Fighting for the future…?” Tieria thought before turning and walking from the room without another word.

“Did I say something wrong?” Lockon asked once the door slid shut.

Allelujah and Setsuna both sighed, “That’s just the way he is,” Setsuna said, “You get used to it after a while.”

“Tieria’s probably conflicted about what you told him and is trying to work it out for himself,” Allelujah said, “Don’t worry about it too much.”

“Alright,” Lockon said, “Oh before I forget there’s a good chance that Tieria’s injured. He’s limping pretty badly and he said something about rolling his ankle but he refused to go to the medical room.”

“I’ll check on him in a little bit,” Setsuna said, “There was something I wanted to ask him.”


Tieria grimaced in pain as he stood in one of the observation rooms. His injured ankle was barely able to support any weight and it was only a matter of time before the others found out about it. The events of the past several days left his mind reeling. He hated being this conflicted about whether the choices he had made up to this point were the correct choices. He hated being this conflicted about his feelings. And he especially hated how much he had been forced to rely on the help of his comrades in the past few days.

“Tieria.” Setsuna’s voice called from behind him, “You still haven’t filed a mission report with Sumeragi yet.”

“I’m…still trying to organize my thoughts.” Tieria responded.

“What were you saying earlier about the finding the twistedness in the world?” Setsuna asked, “What was that all about?”

“I…” Tieria started as his mind started reeling again, “I just…”

Before he could continue one of the alarms went off. “The E-sensor is detecting several enemy mobile armours,” Feldt’s voice called over the announcement system, “I need all personnel to their battle stations to prepare for an atmospheric exit!”

“We’ll discuss this later,” Tieria stated as he took a few steps forward then sank to his knees as his injured ankle gave out from under him, “Ugh…shit!”

“What’s wrong?” Setsuna demanded as he helped Tieria stand.

“I rolled my ankle in those heels,” He responded, “We can deal with it later. It’s not like the Seravee is in any condition to sortie at the moment.”

“Alright,” Setsuna said as he helped Tieria walk to the hangars, “But once we’re back in space and out of danger I’m going to take you to the medical room to get your ankle checked out.”

Tieria sighed, “Alright…” He muttered.

“I’m sorry Tieria,” Setsuna said, “We need to make sure you don’t have a significant injury.”

“I understand.”


Once the Ptolemaios was back in space and the A-Laws had been dealt with, the rest of the Meisters were startled when Tieria screamed out in pain upon exiting his Gundam.

“Tieria!” Allelujah exclaimed, “What’s wrong!”

“My ankle…” Tieria muttered as he clutched his injured leg. The pain was significantly worse than it had been before they exited earth’s atmosphere.

“We’re going to the medical room,” Setsuna said as he carefully grabbed Tieria by the shoulder, “Lockon, could you help me?”

“Alright,” Lockon said.

“Allelujah, will you let Sumeragi know that we’re taking Tieria to the medical room?”

“Okay.”


Tieria sighed as he sat on the edge of one of the medical room beds. Once again he was being forced to rely on his comrades and he was less than thrilled about it. He gasped in pain as Lockon and Setsuna carefully removed his flight suit’s right boot.

“I don’t like how swollen and bruised that is,” Setsuna said, “Point then flex your ankle.” Tieria gasped a bit as he pointed his foot and then cried out again as he attempted to flex it, “Your ankle is probably broken. This wasn’t caused by just rolling your ankle. Tieria, how did you actually sustain this injury?”

Tieria sighed, “I…jumped out of a second-floor window…” He muttered.

“Holy fuck!” Lockon exclaimed, “Tell us you at least took the heels off first.”

“I didn’t have time.” Tieria answered.

“You jumped out of a second-floor window in HEELS!?” Lockon gasped.

“Someone was pointing a gun at me and they had already shot my gun out of my hand,” Tieria said, “I couldn’t risk actually getting shot.”

“You had your gun shot out of your hand?” Setsuna asked.

“It’s fine,” Tieria said.

“Take the top of your flight suit off,” Setsuna commanded.

Tieria sighed as he did what he was told, revealing the numerous shallow cuts he has sustained from the broken window, “I already took care of the cuts,” Tieria said, “None of them required stitching.”

“Your right wrist is swollen,” Setsuna pointed out.

“It’s fine,” Tieria said as Setsuna carefully grabbed his right wrist and gently started manipulating it, “It barely huraagh fuck!” He hissed as a sharp pain shot up his right arm.

“Setsuna, Lockon, Tieria,” Sumeragi said as she entered the medical room, “What’s the situation?”

“We haven’t run any medical scans yet but I’m suspecting a possible minor fracture in his right wrist and a more severe break in his right ankle based on the preliminary examination,” Setsuna responded, “All of the cuts on his arms seem to be superficial.”

“Alright,” Sumeragi said as she walked up to the bed to examine Tieria’s wrist and ankle for herself, “What the hell happened?” she gasped.

“I jumped out of a second-floor window after having my gun shot out of my hand,” Tieria responded.

“He didn’t take the heels off before he jumped,” Lockon added.

“It was what I had to do to avoid sustaining a gunshot wound,” Tieria said, “I had no idea if the person pointing the gun on me was actually going to shoot or if it was a bluff.”

Sumeragi nodded, “Setsuna, help him change into one of the medical gowns,” She said, “Lockon and I will wait outside.  Let us know when you’re done and I’ll start the medical scan.”

A few minutes later Setsuna’s face appeared in a small window, “We’re ready.”

“Alright,” Sumeragi said as she started the medical scan, “Well Setsuna you were right on both counts. One of the bones in his wrist is cracked and his ankle is fractured in two places. He has a complete, non-displaced transverse fracture in his right fibula and his right talus is cracked. And as you said the cuts on his arms are superficial and don’t require any further treatment.” She paused, “Treatment will take three and a half days.”

“That seems too quick for my body,” Tieria said, “Are you sure it would only take three and a half days?”

“That’s what the medical computer is telling me,” Sumeragi responded as she tapped at the keyboard, “If we were to disregard the treatment limitations we have to implement for your body, it would take less than two full days. But the computer is telling me that that option would make you extremely sick once the treatment concluded.”

“Tieria’s medical treatments have limitations?” Lockon asked.

“I’m extremely intolerant to nearly all forms of pain relievers, muscle relaxers, and general anesthesia. There are a few options I can tolerate but they’re either not as effective or too dangerous and risky to use for non-life-threatening injuries.” Tieria explained, “And for some reason, with me, the medical nanomachines our medical capsules use aren’t as effective so my medical treatments usually take about two times longer than they would for someone else.”

“That’s good to know,” Lockon said.

“Tieria, as much as I want to treat your injuries now, I’m going to hold off until we get to Lagrange three,” Sumeragi said, “If we get ambushed, even though the Seravee is too damaged to sortie, we’re still going to need your help at the helm as a gunner. Lockon, would you go to his room and grab his uniform for me?”

“Alright.”

“Is that okay with you Tieria?”

“It’s fine.”

“Is something wrong Tieria?” Setsuna asked after a few minutes.

“I…feel like I’ve been such a burden on everyone these past few days…” Tieria muttered, “Lyle…had to help me because I got a migraine mid-mission and was too sick to pilot back to the ship on my own…Then I fainted on Allelujah and Marie the following day because I hadn’t been able to eat anything without vomiting for almost a day and a half. And now this…I just hate how weak and pathetic I’ve been lately.”

“Tieria…” Sumeragi sighed.

“You aren’t being a burden on us.” Setsuna said, “We’re your comrades Tieria, we’re supposed to rely on each other. You’re one of the main reasons why our organization survived after Fallen Angels. You spent four years rebuilding our organization almost completely on your own. You made sure the rest of us had Gundams when we returned.  You made sure that all our needs were met once we stepped foot on this ship again. If anyone deserves to rely on the rest of us for a while, it’s you.”

“Thank you, Sestuna.” Tieria muttered.

“There’s not a single person here who would think of you as weak, Tieria.”

“I brought his uniform,” Lockon said as he reentered the medical room breaking the thick silence in the room.

“Thank you,” Sumeragi said as she opened one of the storage cabinets, “You can go bring it to him.”

“We’re all set,” Setsuna called a few minutes later.

“Thank you,” Sumeragi responded as she walked into the capsule room with a wrist brace and a walking cast, “I want you to wear these until we’re able to treat your injuries. I’m not going to bother giving you a set of crutches since we’re in space just try to stay off your leg as much as possible.”

“Alright.” Tieria responded as Sumeragi help him put the braces on.

“Don’t be hard on yourself for this,” Sumeragi said as she placed her hand on Tieria’s shoulder, “Like you said you did what you needed to do to avoid a more serious injury. You’ll never be a burden on us.”

“Thank you.”

“You three are free to do what you want for the rest of the day. Try to get some rest while you all can.”

 

Notes:

Listen, there's no way Tieria didn't sustain some kind of leg injury after jumping out of a second floor window in HEELS. There are at LEAST 3 more chapters in this one (because I can't help myself when it comes to writing wump fics especially when one of my favorite characters is the main character of the fic).

Chapter 4: Sick Day Part 1

Notes:

(See the end of the chapter for notes.)

Chapter Text

Sumeragi sighed as the crew stood in the bridge about a month after the break pillar incident. They were in northern Quebec awaiting a meetup with Katharon’s North American branch for supplies. “I know we’re meeting up with Katharon in four days but we need food now,” she said, “Tieria, Mileina, and Feldt I think it would make the most sense to have the three of you go to the nearest market to pick up enough food to last roughly four days.”

“Is that a good idea?” Allelujah asked, “Tieria and Feldt stand out because of their hair colors and Mileina is so young...”

“It actually makes perfect sense to send Feldt, Mileina, and I,” Tieria said, “No one is going to suspect Feldt and I of being members of an anti-federation organization because of how much our hair colors make us stand out. Not to mention no one is going to suspect a tiny fourteen year old girl of being a member of an anti-federation organization either. Most people assume that members of an organization like ours would want to blend in and be as inconspicuous as possible when out in public.”

“I guess that makes sense.”

“Wait, doesn’t Mister Erde get sick every time he has to go out in public?” Mileina asked.

“That hasn’t happened to me in almost ten years, I’ll be fine.” Tieria said.

“That’s a risk we’re going to have to take,” Sumeragi responded, “Lockon I want you to go with them.”

“Alright, but I don’t speak French.”

“I can speak French,” Tieria said.

“I want the four of you to be extremely careful,” Sumeragi said, “Don’t take longer than you need to.”

“Alright.”


Two days after their trip to the market, Tieria woke up feeling quite sick. He had a headache, his throat was raw and sore, and he was definitely running a fever. He had decided that for the sake of not alerting the others that he was ill as well trying to keep his illness from spreading, he would stay in his room as much as possible. Which he discovered was going to be a problem when Sumeragi called him while he was pretending to work on a mission report.

“Tieria,” Sumeragi called as a window with her video feed appeared on his computer screen while he was in the middle of coughing, “Are you alright?” she asked in a concerned voice.

“I’m fine,” Tieria responded, “I just choked on my drink a bit. Did you need me for something?”

“You’ve been kind of distant today,” Sumeragi said, “I just wanted to make sure you’re alright.”

“I have a lot of work to catch up on,” Tieria said as he coughed a bit more, “So I’ve been doing that that.”

Sumeragi sighed as Tieria continued to cough, “What are you working on?” Sumeragi asked, “You’re all up to date on mission reports and there aren’t any scheduled software updates for the Gundams.”

“I’m…” Tieria started before he was cut off by yet another coughing fit.

Sumeragi sighed again, “A little while ago I got a report from a Haro that had flagged your body temperature for being abnormally high,” She said, “You’re sick, aren’t you Tieria?”

Tieria sighed, “Yeah…I seem to have a bit of a cold.” He responded. He had almost completely forgotten that the Haro units were programmed to monitor the vitals of the Meisters and the rest of the crew and would send reports to Sumeragi if someone’s vitals weren’t within their normal ranges.

“How high is your fever?”

“Thirty-eight point one,” Tieria responded, “I’m not feeling that bad right now. I’m more-or-less just really tired.”

“I’m guessing that’s why you’ve been distant today.”

“Yeah, I don’t want to risk spreading this to anyone else,” Tieria said.

“I mean if you were exposed to something, then so were Feldt, Mileina, and Lockon,” Sumeragi said, “So is it that, or did you not want me to find out you’re sick?”

Tieria sighed, “I…didn’t want you to find out…” He said softly, “I don’t want to be held out of battles in the event we get ambushed.”

Sumeragi sighed, “We’ve talked about this Tieria,” She said, “How about this, I won’t hold you out of battles but I won’t have you sortie right away.”

“That’s fine.”

“Have you at least eaten today?”

“Yeah,” Tieria responded, “I had breakfast and lunch. Saji can confirm that I ate lunch.”

“Do you need anything?”

“No, I’m all set for now.”

“Alright, I’ll let you rest.”


Sumeragi sighed as she reentered the bridge

“What’s wrong?” Feldt asked.

“Well, Mileina, you were right,” Sumeragi said, “Tieria’s sick with a cold.”

“Yes! Mister Aeon owes me twenty bucks now!” Mileina exclaimed, “I mean, aww it sucks that Mister Erde isn’t feeling well.”

“Should I make him some tea?” Feldt asked, “I bought a bunch of different types of tea the other day.”

“Maybe in a little bit.” Sumeragi said as she turned towards Mileina, “Did you and Lasse really bet on whether Tieria was going to come down with something?”

“Yup,” Mileina responded.

“Unfortunately…” Lasse muttered.

“I also bet with Mister Stratos,” Mileina continued, “And he owes me fifty bucks.”

“Mileina…stop taking advantage of Lockon’s inexperience.”

“But he’s the only one who will bet against me.”

“Because he’s the only one who doesn’t know any better.” Sumeragi said as she looked at the document Tieria had been working on, “Feldt what was Tieria working on anyway? It doesn’t make much sense to me.”

“He’s essentially working on code for a program that would make the Haros talk backwards,” Feldt said as she looked over the code.

“What the hell!?” Lasse exclaimed, “Tieria’s working on a program that will make the Haros talk backwards? He must be sick, that’s so not something he would normally do.”

“It’s terrifying how good Tieria is at coding…this program is flawless,” Feldt said, “And he’s not even done with it yet.”

“PLEASE let Mister Erde complete and run the program,” Mileina said, “I want to see what my dad’s reaction would be.”


Shortly after Sumeragi called him, a sharp pain shot through Tieria’s head which caused the mild headache he had been dealing with all day to worsen. He decided to see if taking a nap would help to alleviate the pain in his head a bit and he was just about to fall asleep when the ship’s E-sensor alarm sounded.

“We’re detecting twelve enemy mobile suits including two Innovator units quickly approaching our location!” Feldt’s voice called over the announcement system, “I need all crew members to report to their battle stations!”

Tieria groaned as he slowly sat up and replaced his glasses.

“Tieria, how are you feeling?” Sumeragi called through his communicator.

“About the same as earlier,” He responded as he started to change into his flight suit.

“I suppose there will be no convincing you to forego heading out.”

“Not with twelve mobile suits and two Innovator units out there.”

“I understand,” Sumeragi said, “Just please, don’t overdo it. If you start feeling worse during battle, I want you to fall back.”

“Alright.”

“Take your time getting ready. I’ll let the others know you’ll be launching a little while after them.”


“Where’s that Bastard Tieria Erde?” Hilling called through a communication channel she had opened with Lockon’s Gundam, “I’ve got quite the score to settle with him!”

“That’s none of your fucking business.”

“Does he think he can just kill one of us then wimp out of battles so he doesn’t have to face the consequences of his actions like a goddamn coward?”

That’s rich coming from someone who uses a fucking escape pod when the battles get too tough for them,” Lockon called, “You might want to watch who you’re calling a coward there.”

We can’t let anything happen to ourselves. Out existence is crucial to the plan.”

“And yet it’s pretty fucking obvious you’re going to try to kill Tieria the first opportunity you get.”

He’s already been deemed useless to the plan and therefore expendable. So where the fuck is he?”

“Like hell I’ll tell you where he is!” Lockon screamed.  “We gotta take care of this so Tieria doesn’t have to sortie while he isn’t feeling well…because this bitch is gonna go after him with a vengeance.”

“Lockon, Setsuna, Allelujah, Soma, I’m giving Tieria permission to launch.” Sumeragi called several minutes later after neither side managed to make much headway, “I want the four of you to keep a close eye on him, he isn’t feeling well. If you see him having trouble at any point, back him up in any way you can.”

“Roger that.” Lockon responded. “Damn so much for thinking we could take care of this without his help.”


The minute Tieria joined the battle the two Innovator units made a beeline for him.

“There you are you bastard!” Hilling screamed through the communication channel, “I was wondering when you’d show your sorry face. We’re here to take our revenge for Bring’s death!”

Tieria grimaced as the two began to quickly overwhelm him, “That bastard…got what he deserved!” He called out before starting to cough.

“Ooh, you don’t sound so good,” Hilling called, “Did you actually catch a cold like the pathetic reject you are!?”

“You need to remember he’s an old model,” Revive quipped, “Unlike the rest of us, he doesn’t have the modifications Ribbons made to our bodies that made us even stronger.”

“Heh, no wonder he was sent off to be death fodder and then abandoned by Veda,” Hilling exclaimed as she kicked the Seravee in the chest, “Ribbons doesn’t have any use for an obsolete, so-called Innovator who can get knocked out of commission by a simple cold! The rest of us would never even DREAM about being such a burden on our comrades!”

“Shit…” Tieria thought. Even if he was in full form he would be having trouble in his current situation. It wasn’t even like he could call one of the others for help. Setsuna was currently battling four units, while Soma and Allelujah, and Lockon each had three enemies of their own. The best he could do in his current condition was go on the defensive and hope someone would be able to help him before he got completely overwhelmed.

“You’re really not making this worth our time or effort,” Hilling called, “Time to end it!”

“Tieria, behind you!” Lockon called.

Tieria turned in time to see Revive’s Gadessa readying its mega-launcher.  He was barely able to evade the beam that the Gadessa fired at him and returned with volley from Seravee’s four cannons and two Bazookas. He was thankfully able to do enough damage to cause Revive to eject from the Gadessa just before it exploded.

“Shit!” He heard the other Innovator yell as he retreated from battle.

Before Tieria could do anything else, the strain involved in taking out Revive triggered a severe coughing fit. He quickly tried to take a drink from the water bottle he had with him. But in his haste he choked on the water, exacerbating the coughing fit significantly. “Dammit…”

“I’ve got you now!” He heard Hilling scream, “You’re too sick to fight back! As unsatisfying of a victory this is going to be I can’t turn down the perfect opportunity to get my revenge for Bring’s death!”

“Shit…” Tieria thought as he looked up in time to see Hilling’s Garazzo approaching him with the beam claw poised to strike him through the centre. He was still coughing too hard to properly pilot his Gundam, never mind defend an attack that he knew would likely pierce the GN-Field he had brought up. The only thing he could think of doing to survive his current situation was activating Seraphim and using the unmanned Seravee as a shield. But that would likely severely damage if not destroy the stronger half of his Gundam tandem which was something he absolutely couldn’t risk doing.

“Tieria, what’s wrong?” He heard Lockon scream through the communication channel.

Tieria then watched in horror as the Cherudim threw itself in front of the Seravee in a terrifyingly familiar way. “Tieria!”

No.

His breath caught up in his chest as the memories of the events from four years ago flooded his mind and began to overwhelm him.

No. Not again.

He wanted to scream and tell the other Meister to move, but he couldn’t make a sound. He wanted to shove the other Gundam out of the way, but his body wouldn’t respond to his commands.

Please. Not again.

He couldn’t move. He couldn’t breathe. He was about to relive his worst memory.

And he was powerless to stop it.

“I won’t let you kill him you bastard!” Lockon screamed through the communication line.

“Well then I’m just gonna have to kill the both of you!”

Please…Not…Again…

Tieria never saw what happened next. The Seravee crashed to the snowy ground as its pilot lost consciousness.

Notes:

This small plot line will have at least three chapters. I just can't help myself when it comes to writing sick fics.

Notes:

So what did you think? I don't know what it is with me and writing deep heart-to-hearts between Lyle and Tieria. There will be at least 2 more chapters after this one.