In the midst of the war between the straight (OMNI) and the coordinators (ZAFT), a coordinator fighter is sent to retrieve a mobile armor recently manufactured by the Earth Alliance in the straight colony of Heliopolis. Kira Yamato, the civilian sphere coordinator, attends the Heliopolis Technical College. Once ZAFT forcibly takes four of the five mobile armors, Kira stumbles upon the remaining one, the Strike, whereupon he is forced to pilot it to save his life and the lives of his friends. During the commotion, Kira also meets his childhood friend Asuran Zala, who ironically turns out to be a ZAFT soldier and one of the raiders operating in Heliopolis. Operating the Strike, Kira joins the Earth Alliance aboard a ship called the Archangel in hopes of protecting his friends, though he remains depressed at having to fight against a longtime friend and others once close to him.