27-Sep-2001
Title: Chasing the Crown, an Extended Family Fic
ExFam Authors:
RavynFyre - ravynfyre@hotmail.com
von - sablexo1@yahoo.com
bonnejeanne - bonnejeanne@yahoo.com
*Special Guest Writer! Nixie the Pixie!*
Nixers - Nixerchan@aol.com
Category: yaoi, AU
Rating: NC-17 for now, that will change
Pairings: 1+2+5, 3+4
Spoilers: Series, Endless Waltz, Mission: Arcadia
Disclaimer: Gundam Wing characters and universe are the property of the copyright owners.
Kenny, Duan, Wufan, Tryan, Carter, Jack and the Ripper, and everything relating to Rip & Jack's universe are ours. No money being made here.
Feedback: Any and all comments, feedback, critiques welcome, be they short or long.
Please feel free to direct feedback to any or all of the authors!
WARNINGS: AU (Alternate Universe), Original Characters, LEMON in some sections. Kiddie-Angst.
WARNING THIS SECTION: Angst, Suspense
The scream of an overworked engine preceded the sleek black craft by mere seconds, the rapid thumping of the blades breaking the whine of the turbine as Duo skimmed low over the terrain. Finding a nearby, but out of the way corner of the tarmac, Duo wheeled the helicopter around and set it down as gentle as a feather drifting to the earth. Pausing only long enough to kill the engine, Duo hopped out, hiding the keys inside the cockpit where Wufei could find them should he beat them back. Spotting Heero near the bulk of Wing Zero, he jogged over.
"Howard here yet?" Duo asked, halting beside his lover and leaning against the wall beside Heero close enough that their arms pressed against one another.
Heero registered the touch as comfort. He nodded. "The transport just arrived and Cowgirl Lucretia went to meet it," he said, looking into violet eyes.
"Cowgirl Lucretia?" Duo asked with a single quirked brow. He snorted softly before shaking his head. "I'm not even going to ask. How 'bout our ride upstairs?"
"Noin mentioned something about shuttles. I'm assuming that we're waiting on them at the moment," Heero replied.
The braided pilot nodded, watching Heero closely. "This was too well organized, ya know? There's more going on than just the kids," Duo observed. "Why do I have the sinking feeling that the Earth is about to get fucked?"
Heero traced the planes of his lover's face with his eyes. "Because you're smart," he said.
Duo twisted, peering down over his shoulder with a wicked expression. "Did you hear that? He's talking about you again," he said, straining as if he was trying to see his back waistband.
Cocking his head as if he were listening to something, Duo turned back to Heero and gave him a lopsided smirk. "My ass says it'll get back to you on that smart thing."
"I wasn't talking about your ass," Heero said. "I don't consider it in those terms. I have other words for that part of you." Tilting his head, Heero said, "Don't you want to go make sure no one's touching your mobile suit?"
"If Howard just got here, then no one's touching my mobile suit. I'd rather stay here for a sec and get my head on straight," Duo replied, smirk fading as he leaned in and brushed his lips over Heero's briefly. "Before I go try to get it blown off."
Heero took a deep breath and nodded. Glancing around the hangar, he looked back up at Duo. "Follow me," he said, turning and heading down an empty hallway.
With a curious look, Duo trailed after Heero, tossing the massive white Gundam standing silently nearby a searching look before it vanished around a corner. He curbed his impulse to skip, or jog, or do anything but walk sedately, stuffing the nervous energy that had suffused him all the way back at Noventa Field back inside before too much could leak out. Some inner caution kept nagging at him; he'd probably need all that nervous tension later.
Heero moved quickly, finding what he was looking for, an abandoned office. He stepped inside and pulled Duo in with him. Closing the door and locking it, Heero pushed the braided pilot against the nearest wall and kissed him deeply. He pressed himself against Duo's body as he took Duo's mouth hungrily and passionately.
A strangled moan hissed from Duo's occupied lips, his eyes slipping closed against the ferocity of Heero's assault. Nimble hands rose, slipping around Heero's neck, pulling the Japanese pilot tight against him. Accepting the invasion of Heero's tongue for a moment, Duo concentrated simply on the thunder of his heart in his ears, and the firm press of his lover's body against his own. Then his nervous energy was back, and he found himself surging forward a bit, fighting for his own measure of dominance.
Sliding his arms around Duo's body, Heero held him tightly. Breaking the kiss, he looked into the violet eyes and heart-shaped face before him. "I've never in my life said words like these to anyone," he began, breathing hard. "If I have a heart at all, Duo, it belongs to you. No matter where I am, I keep you with me and know I'm with you," he said, then kissed Duo deeply once again.
Finally breaking apart for air, Duo rested his head against Heero's shoulder, his hands tracing abstract patterns over his lover's back as he panted quickly. "I never wanted to have to depend on anyone ever again after the church," he whispered softly. "Needing things only sets you up to have them taken away. I always thought it was better to go it alone, then I couldn't lose anyone again. I was wrong. God, I was wrong. You..." his voice drifted off as he nuzzled Heero's throat, a suspicious moisture dampening his lover's flesh. "Ai shiteru, Heero Yuy."
Heero's eyes closed tightly as he held Duo closely. He slid his hand behind Duo's neck, stroking the warm flesh there, gently. "I... Omae o korosu," Heero said, softly.
Duo lifted his head, seizing Heero's lips with the speed and hunger of a starving alley cat. Fingers digging into his lover's shirt, he crushed Heero to him, a low growl rumbling deep in his chest. Breaking away again after a long moment, he met Heero's gaze with a flash of amethyst fire. "They fucked with the wrong guys," he declared in a menacing purr.
One perfect eyebrow arched as Heero looked back with equal intensity. "Hai," he growled as a feral smile etched itself on his lips. "Let's make them pay," he said.
"With interest," Duo agreed gravely.
This time Heero smiled like a shark, showing teeth. Suddenly, his cobalt blue eyes drifted downward to Duo's lips. Leaning forward, he kissed his lover tenderly, allowing the kiss to deepen naturally. A short time later, he moved back. "Let's do this and when we get back... " he said, ending on a silent promise.
Duo's lips curved up into a feral smirk, eyes narrowed with wicked amusement. "Can I tape it for later enjoyment, too?" he asked in a husky whisper.
Heero pressed his hips forward, rubbing himself against Duo. "This one's on me," he said. "And yes, there will be tape... and a few other surprises. I'll show you the ropes," Heero added, tracing Duo's lower lip with his thumb.
The braided youth's eyes fluttered open once again, and the smirk slowly returned, though with a more anticipatory light. Darting his tongue out, he caught the tip of Heero's tongue quickly, before nodding his assent. "Deal," he murmured in reply. Closing his eyes, he felt all of his nervous, and other, tension coalesce and channel itself, once again bending to his will.
Tightening his arms briefly around his lover, he sighed and slowly extricated himself, twining his fingers with Heero's. "Howard's probably looking for us," Duo said. "And I'd best double check HellsBane."
"Hai," Heero replied, and moved them towards the door and out of the office again.
As they moved back in the direction of the main hangar area, they heard voices.
"N-no, I'm ok," a clear voice said, the hesitance leaving it to be replaced with wonder. "But how could... how could Zero have come back?"
"Magic!" Tryan's voice answered.
"Damned good magic," Trowa's voice added.
"Or an ex-aristocrat with tons of money and a redemption complex," Duo called as they exited the hallway into the echoing hollow of the hanger.
"Duo!" Tryan said, hearing the braided pilot before seeing him. He scrambled down quickly and ran to Duo, executing a somersault that aimed his body towards Duo's chest.
Expecting something like that, the braided pilot caught the acrobatic boy in his arms, pulling Tryan up against him for a tight hug. "Not too shabby, huh?" he asked, nodding towards the white Gundam. "Mine's cooler, though," he continued, his tone conspiratorial.
Tryan winked at Duo in confidence, then hugged his neck. "It's big and impressive though," he said. Then, "Hey Duo, I'm a Maganac! Rashid and Master Quatre said so. The guys are all a part of the Corps too! When they get back, we're going to the desert to ride horses real fast!"
Duo smiled at the boy, letting his gaze drift to Trowa and Quatre as they walked up, a wave of silent thanks in the violet depths for what they had done for Tryan. "A Maganac, huh? Sounds like a blast. Did Master Quatre," Duo said, tossing the other pair a wink, "get you your own fez yet?"
"Not yet, but they're working on it," Tryan answered. "You look better. That's good. Hi Heero."
"So do you, kiddo," Duo replied as he turned to offer the child to his partner.
"Hi," Heero said, then took Tryan in his arms. "So now that you've become a Maganac, I suppose that Gundam over there is not of interest."
Quatre smiled slightly at the comment and walked over to place a hand on the metal skin of the Gundam. He looked up at it with an odd expression and then turned back to the others.
"You forget, Heero," he said softly. "I built Wing Zero, at least... the first time." He sighed. "Though it didn't turn out to be such a good thing, in my hands. I wonder what you meant by 'ex-aristocrat', though..." he added, glancing at Duo curiously.
Duo shrugged slightly, shoving his hands in his pockets as he joined Quatre. "Hell if I know if he'll go back to that, now that he gets to be alive again," he replied, craning his head to stare absently up at the Gundam. "Depends on what he decides'll be best for Mei. Since he's got a daughter and all to consider now." Duo slid a sideways glance at the blond pilot, a faint smile hovering around the corners of his mouth.
Quatre's eyes widened and he darted a look at Trowa, to see if he was loosing his mind or if the green-eyed pilot might be following the same line of supposition.
"Well, well," Trowa said, acknowledging his lover with a look of his own. "Surprise, surprise."
Carrying Tryan, Heero walked over to Quatre. "Those were extenuating circumstances," he said. "I mean before with the other suit."
The blond Arabian pilot looked at Heero solemnly. "There are no extenuating circumstances, Heero. Not for taking people's lives. But..." he glanced up at the white furled wings and then smiled. "I'm glad to see it back. You taught me not to be afraid of Zero. Not to be afraid of myself. Now I think it was a test. I failed once. It was a bad failure, but tests can always be taken again. It seems we're about to face another one. But like you said before, we'll do it together." He turned to face both Duo and Heero together. "Sandrock is gone, but my friends are here. They've outfitted a mobile suit for Trowa and one for me, and they are coming with us. The Maganacs will guard your back."
Duo smiled, pulling his hands out of his pockets to stretch upwards with a couple of soft pops from his spine. "Then our back will be safe," he observed confidently.
"Hn," Heero remarked, then glanced up at the winged suit. "How would you like to see the best first, Tryan? Then, you can move on to Death..." he added, looking pointedly at Duo.
"HellsBane," Duo corrected, eyeing his lover warningly, though there was a flash of amusement in his eyes.
"Right, HellsBane," Heero said.
Tryan thought about it a minute, then nodded. "Okay Heero," he said. "Promise I won't touch anything."
"Sure you will," Heero countered, moving to the lift. "I insist."
Duo shook his head, smiling at the pair. "I should go hunt down Howard. I'll be with HellsBane when you're finished playing with that overgrown turkey," he called, waving.
"No need to hunt, kid," a voice called from where the large doors were opening. The tarp-wrapped mecha was concealed, but clearly a giant as it was brought inside to prep for the trip into space.
Tryan watched with large green eyes as he and Heero ascended to the cockpit of Wing Zero II. He took in as much as possible of the design, but something inside prevented him from enjoying the experience fully. At the hatch, Heero let him down and he moved further inside the craft, looking at the controls.
"Give me a second and we'll try a few things," Heero said, visually checking his craft. It was a holdover from his training.
Tryan nodded, thoughtfully, then looked up at Heero. "I feel a little strange," he said.
Heero turned to the little boy, lifting him onto his lap as he sat down in the pilot's seat. "That's to be expected," he said, brushing Tryan's hair back away from his eyes, briefly. "What's wrong?"
Tryan took a deep breath and settled in Heero's lap. "I'm worried about the guys," he began. "And Mei, too. I also feel a little weird being here... right here. I was thinking maybe Kenny shoulda been the first one... not me."
Heero took a deep breath and let it out slowly. He pulled Tryan against his chest for a long hug, then settled him where he could see the boy's face. "Look it's okay for you to be here first, Tryan. This is a big surprise for me too. I thought Wing Zero was gone forever. Someone put it back together and gave it to me to pilot. That's why I'm here in the first place. Now, as far as you're being here and not Kenny, try not to worry about that too much. I'll make sure he gets his turn too. Everyone will," he said.
As Heero was speaking, the cockpit began to glow with a golden light. Heero heard a high-pitched sound as if Zero were fixing on a target, but nothing appeared in the screens or displays.
"Hn," Heero remarked, touching the controls to close the hatch.
"What's goin' on?" Tryan asked.
"I don't know yet, but let's find out," Heero said, calling up the sensor displays.
/Target out of range./
On the floor of the hangar, Quatre and Trowa had walked over, following Duo, to look over the machine that was being uncovered - HellsBane. Eyes running over the mecha with experienced comprehension, Quatre nodded approvingly. "Mm... Are you missing a main weapon, Duo?" he asked a touch hesitantly.
Duo's mouth cracked into a smirk as he crossed his arms over his chest and let his gaze wander over the black Gundanium. "Nope. Got it covered. Courtesy of Arcadia," he replied.
Quatre's eyebrows lifted but he nodded. Then his head turned sharply back towards the white-winged Gundam behind them. A moment later, he gasped, and one hand reached up to press against the left side of his chest. Teal eyes widened and unfocused as the Arabian seemed to lose touch with his surroundings.
"Quatre?" Duo queried apprehensively as he reached out to the other pilot. "What's up?"
Behind them, Zero's hatch closed.
Trowa noticed Wing Zero's hatch closing as he appeared at Quatre's side. Reaching out, he took Quatre's arm, but said nothing.
Quatre blinked several times, his fingers closing around the closest thing they could reach - Duo's hand. After a moment or two he took a deep breath and seemed to come back to himself. Still distracted, he tried to process the information and emotions that had suddenly overwhelmed him with amazing strength.
"Carter," he managed to say between deep breaths. "Something's happened... happening... They're far... so far, but Allah, he's strong," he said, with a slight tremble, quickly mastered.
Restlessness flooded back through Duo once more, edged with sudden desperation. Something was happening, and they were still stuck on the ground! Not releasing Quatre's hand, Duo clenched his jaw, peering out the large doors for their promised transports. 'I don't know if you can hear me, kiddo, but we're coming for you. We'll bust you out. You stay safe!' Duo shouted within his mind. "Hey Howard, heard anything about our transports, yet?" he called out.
Quatre gave Duo's hand a squeeze and then released it, straightening slightly as he got control over his breathing. "Heard and understood, Duo," he said softly.
From the front of the hangar, Howard trotted over with a smartly-uniformed young woman at his side. The uniform wasn't one Duo recognized, and was actually a bit on the stylish side.
Duo blinked in quiet astonishment as he shot a quick glance at Quatre. "He *is* strong," the braided pilot murmured absently before turning his attention back to the mobile suit designer and the young woman. "Sorry, man. Just... antsy," Duo said apologetically.
"Understandable," Howard replied. "And here's your transport captain."
The young woman, who had wheat-blond hair and sea-blue eyes made a gesture that was half-salute, half greeting.
"Ari Fenris, Mr. Maxwell," she said. "We're on the pad outside and ready for you and Mr. Yuy. The Maganac Corps are already loading on our sister ship."
"Excellent," Duo replied with a mixture of anticipation and relief. He turned towards Wing Zero II and cupped a hand near his mouth, "Yo! Yuy! Time to load up!" he shouted with typical Maxwell exuberance.
The eyes of Wing Zero glowed in reply.
Trowa tilted Quatre's chin up, emerald eyes scanning his lover's face. "How are you?" he asked, urgently.
"Fine," Quatre said firmly. "Let's go." He glanced up at Wing Zero for a moment. "Um... Tryan?"
"I'm on it," Trowa said, heading back towards the great machine.
As Trowa slipped off, Duo reached out, resting a hand gently on Quatre's arm. "Thanks, Quatre," he said quietly, his expression quiet and thoughtful. "For everything. Take care of yourself up there... Okay?"
Quatre nodded. "You'd better do the same, Duo," he said simply.
Offering a quick lopsided smile, Duo nodded, then scurried up into HellsBane for a quick systems check before loading.
The cockpit hatch opened once more and Heero stepped outside in his flight suit. He held Tryan in his arms. "We'll be back with the guys and Mei as soon as we can," he said.
Tryan hugged Heero's neck tightly and kissed his cheek for good measure. "Okay, Heero. Don't get dead," he said.
"Roger that," Heero replied as they touched the ground. He looked up at Trowa, through the mass of wild hair at his forehead. "Keep my kid safe," he said.
"Will do," Trowa responded, meeting Heero's eyes for a moment. "Stay safe yourself," he said.
"Hn," Heero remarked with a nod. He met Tryan's eyes with a softer look, then moved to claim the cockpit of Zero once again.
Bringing everything online, he took one last glance around then said softly, "Ok Zero, Operation Rescue Underway. Mission Accepted."
Satisfied with the readings he was getting from all systems, Duo hopped out of his Gundam, jogging over to Trowa and Tryan. "Our ride's here, kiddo. We're gonna go get your brothers and Mei," he said, holding out his arms for a hug.
Tryan flew into Duo's arms, hugging the braided pilot tightly. "You be okay, too, Duo," he said.
"Promise," Duo replied gravely, taking a deep breath to center himself once more before shifting the boy back to Trowa. "And when we all get back, we'll see if we can talk Miss Relena into letting us take over one of her suites again and have a giant sleep-over with everyone, okay?"
Tryan nodded. His heart was beating very fast. "Sure, Duo," he said. "Just come back, ok?"
"Nothing, I mean *nothing* could keep me away," the braided pilot replied firmly. Duo shifted his gaze to Trowa. "Same for you and Quatre."
Trowa nodded, then moved forward and gave Duo a hug. "I won't tell you to be careful, because I know you. Just go and take care of it," he said.
With a sharp nod and a smirk, Duo turned and jogged back to his patiently waiting Gundam. "See ya topside!" he called before ducking into his cockpit once more.
"You come with me," Trowa said to Tryan. "I'm going to need your assistance with what we're going to do. Haven't gotten all of the details ironed out yet. Can you improvise?"
"I worked in a circus. We improvise all the time," Tryan said, following the older boy.
Trowa chuckled.
As he completed his initial systems check of his mobile suit, a small flash on one of Tallgeese's consoles alerted Zechs that a message was waiting for him. As he opened it, a seemingly random assortment of characters flashed upon his screen, hearkening him back to days before Oz, and a code shared between childhood friends. Translating it was little more than an exercise in memory.
/Detected traces of concealed MS on the back side of MO2, and through the debris field in the upper atmosphere. Expect heavy resistance. It looks like a major mobilization. We are not stopping to engage or be detected and should make moonfall in 4 hours./
/Be safe. We have promises to keep./
Closing out the small screen, Zechs leaned back in the small enclosure afforded by Tallgeese's cockpit, now lifeless save for the faint hum of the built in computer and the more noisy churn of the foreign equipment systematically checking files and built in procedures.
The contents of the message caused a double pause, first out of the thought that Marcus had accumulated the manpower and pilots... already, and with the fiasco at the airport. He was in the White Fang before, then the Preventers, what group now. It was impossible to think he was alone on this.
'Who knows, maybe he has charisma out the ears when he's not being an ass,' he reprimanded himself lightly watching the icon of the check in progress. 'Considering how accurate assumptions have been for me to date...'
The author of the message was another one. Now in the outskirts of the storm again, he'd more time to think. It shouldn't have been as much of a shock... maybe. It could have been argued that he should have never survived, where he was on the Libra.
Still, outside of Treize's presence it was taking a while to adjust, and little things were still on the edge of jarring that, when physically beside him, just seemed natural. Like, how "how it should have been" decided to kick in after a few years of "how it is."
64% complete. Still not a blip, but that was as expected. Pushing aside one of the small panels and wiring of the diagnostics, he left the cockpit for the long trip down, satisfied to let it finish on its own and not wanting to be alone with his thoughts for too long.
He had the feeling he'd resort to something useless, like rereading Treize's message a few too many times just to pass the interval. Before he could argue with himself over "useless", he pushed open a side door to the hangar, nodding briefly to the guard posted there.
"...I don't care if it takes twice as long, this is the only way to be sure there aren't any submerged commands in the system, so if you want to get dead for the wrong reasons, *don't* do it the way I'm showing you," Noin's voice was audible from the next hangar, where a number of Taurus suits were parked. "Now, do you think you've got it? Fine, then get to work, this isn't a drill, people..."
The blond Preventer entered the hangar just in time to see the pilot getting dressed down whip off a sharp salute and practically scramble back to his mech. Waving to catch her attention, he moved quickly to hearing distance. "Received an update, there'll be heavy resistance between here and the destination, primarily in the shadow of the moon, upper atmosphere."
Noin moved quickly to meet him and nodded, eyes widening only slightly. "This didn't come from Une's office, did it?"
Zechs shook his head, eyes finding some interest in the repairs on a Taurus behind her as he answered, "There's already one group enroute, maybe another."
The dark-haired agent frown thoughtfully and he could almost see her doing a mental tabulation. "One on route... huh. I'm guessing Wufei Chang, perhaps?" As she spoke, she took Zechs' arm and drew him to the door of the hangar and then to an opening in the door of the next one over. Not going in, but standing where he could see what was inside, she said, "I'd insist that you wait until we can join you, but it seems you already have some rather capable assistance."
Beyond the opening in the next hangar, he could see a familiar shape being loaded onto a transport shuttle. The white-winged form of Wing Zero looked new and untouched for a suit that had been flown to pieces over the Barton compound.
Looking from the restored Gundam, transport and back to Noin, the insignia on the side of the large shuttle had just a passing familiarity but no immediate recognition. It certainly wasn't Preventers. "Civilian?"
Noin nodded. "Apparently Miss Relena has some helpful friends, a company called Gemini Ltd has sent... all the transports we will need, and what puzzles me is how they knew our requirements - taking into account the unexpected additions like that big boy, and the other one," she pointed to the bulk of a second Gundam suit being loaded, this one resembling DeathScythe but different enough to be another suit, "Not to mention the contingent of Maganacs that showed up, although Quatre Winner has provided shuttles for those. And the ships... I've inspected one. They're faster and newer than anything we've got. Anything I've seen, actually."
'Wing I can understand, but I KNOW DeathScythe was set on self destruct... First showing up with family, then Gundams, I'm wondering more and more what they've been doing with their off hours lately,' Zechs thought. After that the Maganacs were of little surprise, but the name of the company... "Figures he'd be involved now."
Noin tilted her head curiously. "He? Hmmm... Not just a friend of Miss Relena's then? I'm surprised you're so calm about Wing Zero being here. I was floored. Asked Heero, but all he and Duo would say was something about someone having time and resources and a redemption complex... I didn't get it."
"Not entirely sure *what* he is exactly," the blond Preventer said, then as she continued gave a vague smile at the description and a nod at the machines beyond. "I suppose it's been a good week for resurrection."
Shaking her head, Noin gave Zechs a little poke. "You're holding out on me again. Since we're in a hurry to save the kids, or the Earth, or humanity, or whatever, I'll let it pass for now, but when you get back, there will be answers..."
Holding up his hands in surrender, Zechs nodded, "After this, everything. Promise." Glancing back towards the loading, he changed the subject. "Was our benefactor kind enough to send an extra or is it still up to the speed of technicians back at one of the home ports?"
Noin answered by pointing to a shuttle setting down next to the hangar Tallgeese was in. "That one is all yours."
He nodded. "How soon will this group be operational?"
Noin scowled. "An hour, maybe three. I wish I could have done better but apparently Marcus had a virus downloaded into the operating system of all the Preventer suits. It was activated when the communications system crashed. We're having to reload all the systems. We'll be there... but unless you want to wait... I can tell you that those kids aren't waiting. They'll be off the pad before we can get you loaded, or I don't know my Gundam pilots..."
"I can't wait an hour either," he apologized, glancing back again to his own Gundam.
"I know," Noin said in a softer voice. "It just... tears me up to think of a bunch of children being kidnapped... what the hell is he thinking? Trying to blackmail the Gundam pilots? It's unbelievable." In a more normal tone she added, "Just be careful, and leave some for us."
"I already suspect I'm in for an earful when we're both planetside again. Heavens forbid I make it worse by taking all your fun," he said, tone taking an impish undercast. "I'll leave a doll or two..."
Noin gave him a humorously sour look and then jerked her head. "Let's get you loaded before I think better of it."
Once the two Gundams were loaded into the first shuttle, which was named the Rikki Tikki Tavi, there was a slight delay before the ship took off.
"Mr's Yuy and Maxwell," Captain Ari Fenris sent back to the cockpits of Wing Zero and HellsBane. "I just received a message that is encrypted in some code I don't have a key for. It's addressed to 01 and 02..."
"Send it through," Heero signaled back.
"Yessir," the shuttle pilot answered smartly, and sent the message in its encoded form to both Gundams.
The encryption was familiar to both of them from the Earth-Colony war. It had been used only by themselves and their mentors.
Decoded, it was a message from Wufei, sent from space.
/Detected traces of concealed MS on the back side of MO2, and through the debris field in the upper atmosphere. Expect heavy resistance. It looks like a major mobilization. We are not stopping to engage or be detected and should make moonfall in 4 hours. 05/
Duo paused shrugging into his own flight suit long enough to bite back a harsh curse. "I knew this was too well organized," he muttered to himself. "Looks like someone wants to play, koibito."
"Hai," Heero replied, checking his sensors again.
"You boys ready to jump?" the shuttle pilot inquired after giving them time to receive the message.
"More than," Duo replied, settling in and strapping himself down once more. "Can you bounce that message over to your sister ship, care of 03 and 04, before we do? Looks like we may be heading right into a combat zone."
"You want it, you got it, mi amigo," Ari Fenris replied. Then, "Combat... um, righteo, cap, this isn't a fighting ship, we're not... what am I saying? I'm loading Gundams... I guess we *are* armed this time. Hokey dokey, hold onto your jock straps, boys..."
The jets fired and the shuttle leapt up into the sky, her sister ship just behind her. As the Gundam pilots were pressed down into their seats by the hand of gravity, they could faintly hear the sound of a rebel yell from the shuttle captain.
Zechs could feel the shuttle's engines building thrust for its leap into the sky. The comm beeped and then the voice of his shuttle pilot came through.
"We're ready for liftoff, sir, everything nominal back there?" the voice was young, confident, and female.
Zechs didn't look up from the process of getting into the flightsuit when the comm had come to life. "Clear and secure. Proceed when ready," at the last he absently looped an arm through a safety restraint in the room. "There are indications that there will be an immediate combat situation, possibly before we clear gravity. I'm going to need to deploy as soon as we clear the mesosphere. You'll need to make preparations for an immediate planetfall if possible."
"Immediate combat?" the pilot repeated, then, "Yes, sir!" The tone was crisp, with a touch of a military snap. "I'll open the cargo bay as soon as we're clear. Sir? What about decoy maneuvers, to make sure you have a chance to target the hostiles?"
"Do you have experience in those maneuvers, pilot...?" Zechs asked.
"Schbeiker, Hilde Schbeiker, sir, and yes, I had some combat experience in the Eve war," the shuttle pilot answered in a confident tone. "In fact some of it was evading... er, your mobile dolls, escaping the Libra, sir." There was a barely stifled touch of humor in the comment.
Zechs cleared his throat slightly, suppressing the urge to wince. "Quite a resume," he replied. "Very well, but I request that your first priority is to keep the risk to yourself a minimal as possible given the situation."
"Understood, sir," the young colonist answered. "And sir? Um, I volunteered to be your pilot."
Glancing at the wall speaker with a little surprise, it was a moment before he replied, "I'm honored."
In the cockpit, Hilde blushed slightly. Clearing her throat, she said, "Liftoff in five... four... three... two... one!" and hit the thrust initiation button.
Kenny walked beside the white-coated scientist with mechanical steps. Part of him recorded everything he saw, as well as every word the old man spoke, while another part tuned it out completely.
"What do you know about mobile suits, Kenny?" the old man asked.
"A mobile suit is an advanced weapons system, operated by a pilot," Kenny replied automatically.
"Have you ever seen a mobile suit, Kenny?"
/This is another guy.../ Duan's words.
"Hai," Kenny said, using the Japanese affirmative unconsciously. It earned him a quick look from Dr. J.
"Good. I'm going to show you some specifications for a mobile suit here on the console. Do you think you can understand them?"
"Hai."
The scientist smiled. "Let's see..."
/These are the specifications for the mobile suits, Kenny. Memorize them./
'Am I going to pilot one?'
/In time. These suits were built for an adult pilot. But modifications could be made... if you do well. Learn quickly. And obey./
'Ma...'
/This is Code 1 information, Kenny. Your mother is not cleared for Code 1. Do not compromise the information. Do you know what would happen to your mother if she were to learn something she is not cleared for?/
'Yes! I won't...'
/Good. Now use the simulator. Your time on the drills is too slow. I want at least a 16% improvement by the end of this session.../
The memories flickered in and out, like a program on a vidscreen in his head that Kenny didn't pay attention to. He watched readout after readout of information, absorbing it. When Dr. J began to test him, he displayed advanced comprehension of what the weapon could do.
Then J showed him information about the cockpit system. It was read and filed in his memory, but when asked questions about how it worked, he looked at the scientist blankly. "I don't understand it," he said. "Do I have to?"
J studied the boy. "No," he said. "No you don't have to. I believe it will work just fine."
Kenny felt his perceptions becoming sharper as he continued to tune out more and more non-essential systems. There was only one anomaly. In the back of his mind, was a tiny golden spark of presence, a tenuous yet tensile connection to something warm. Kenny did not understand what Carter had done or how he had done it, he only knew that the spark *was* Carter. Somehow the little psychic had made a connection to Kenny's mind. He didn't hear Carter's thoughts, and was barely aware of the presence, but it remained within him.
Remembering the uncanny way the old man on his own world had had of being able to discern his thoughts, Kenny ignored the spark and focused.
After a time, Dr. J said, "It is time to introduce you to Cobra."
There were security precautions. One of these, Kenny didn't like. He had to be blind-folded. Dr. J did not want the boy to know where he was being taken on the station. It was a simple and necessary precaution considering that the boy, as docile as he might now appear, was certainly cooperating under duress. But the moment Dr. J attempted to place the blindfold on him, he reacted, and his movement was so instinctive and unconscious, the scientist didn't bother with persuasion. He simply injected Kenny with a sedative he'd prepared in advance.
Duan moved back away from the wall. He looked down for a moment and frowned to himself. As he looked back up, he grinned. "Fan, the panel to open this up is right here. The problem is we don't have a key. The good news is, the material is not as thick here. On three, kick here," he said, pointing to a place on the wall.
Wufan moved into position, targeting the area as Duan counted. At three, he angled his body, kicking out with a force that belied his stature and created a substantial dent in the wall.
Duan moved quickly, attempting to insert his hand in the opening. He knew which wire to pull to release the door, but it depended entirely on his being able to get his hand inside.
Working carefully, he pushed his hand through the crevice. After a moment, he frowned again and cursed. "Crap!" he said, as he tried to shove his hand inside.
"What is it?" Wufan asked.
"Hole's too small," Duan replied, watching as Wufan geared up to take another strike at the wall. Duan shook his head, then reached out and took Mei's hand. Without preamble, he slipped into the opening and grinned again. "Perfect," he said, looking into the blue eyes of Mei.
"Perfect?" she questioned, attention riveted to Duan.
"Right," he replied. "Now there should be two wires in there. I need you to reach the top one and pull it down as hard as you can. That'll disable the mechanism. Can you do that?"
Mei nodded, her eyes unfocusing as she concentrated on what her fingers were telling her. Biting her lower lip, she strained to reach just a little bit farther, an unconscious smile flitting across her face as she finally found what felt like the upper wire. Glancing back at Duan, she gave it as sharp a tug as she could.
Moments later, Duan smiled again as he heard a familiar hissing sound, like the expulsion of air. "Perfect!" he called out. "Hydraulics," he explained. "They left that system in just in case someone got locked into a room and had to escape. Good goin' Mei!"
Mei smiled sheepishly in response, shuffling back out of the way.
As she moved back, Wufan gave her a tight hug. "You're super," he said, with admiration plain in his voice.
"Thanks," she said quietly, returning the hug before glancing over to check on Carter.
As she did so, Mei saw Duan move to the blond little boy and put a hand on his shoulder. "Time to go Carter," Duan said, urgently.
Carter nodded and got to his feet. His gaze was a little unfocused but he moved quickly enough. As he stepped forward he took a couple of deep breaths, trying to sharpen his attention on his surroundings.
"I don't know where Kenny is," he said softly. "They drugged him. I'll try and get a fix when he wakes up."
"Good," Duan said, taking in the information. "So, what we gotta do is prepare for the guys. Give them some cover to get on the base. It'll probably be a good idea if we could find a way to communicate with them too, but we can work that out as we're finding some undercover places and setting traps. Anybody have other suggestions, before we leave?"
"Munitions," Wufan said, then looked down at Mei. "Umm, I never asked you before, but do you know anything about weapons?"
Mei had nodded as Wufan began speaking, pausing to listen to his question. "I'm okay with a pistol," she replied, "Grandfather thought it would be 'proper' for me to learn. I could probably figure out something a little bigger if you give me a few minutes, though."
"We'll have all the time we need, if I have my say," Duan said. "When we leave here, we're gonna head for the maintenance quarters. We can use that as a base of operations. We can then spread out and find the munitions and extra explosives and gear we need. Sound like a plan?"
"Rough, but workable," Wufan answered, then looked to Mei for her opinion.
Mei nodded her agreement. "Rough's not so bad. 'Plans rarely survive the first engagement with the enemy'," she quoted with a small grin for Duan. "But, umm.... 'extra explosives'?"
Duan smiled fully. He liked this girl. "Good points," he said, then looked at Wufan. "Fan show her," he said.
Wufan nodded, then removed leather belt from his jeans. Turning it over he showed the underside to Mei. "This, this and this is C-4... plastic explosive material. I've got some caps and detonators sewn inside the waistband of my jeans as well... in case of emergencies. There's also extra fuse and matches in my socks. You can never be too careful," he said.
After her initial blink of surprise, Mei simply nodded slowly, her expression a little bland. "I think this qualifies as an emergency," she said, turning to Duan. "Lead on MacDuff."
Duan moved quickly to the door, taking Carter by the hand with him. Carefully, he pushed it back and peered out. "Apparently, no one thinks we're important enough to warrant a detail," Duan said, then sighed, shaking his hand at the woeful lack of discipline. So far, he wasn't too impressed with these guys. Sure, they could beat up girls and pull guns, but they just didn't have the insane lust for detail he was used to at the base. Duan grinned as he slipped out of the door.
"Sometimes it pays to be 'just a kid'," Mei observed as she followed.
"True," Wufan remarked closing the door carefully.
"Well, the ten plagues are back in town," Duan said, softly, guiding the group down the corridors of the moonbase.
Barely missing contact with several small groups of men, Duan moved towards the maintenance quarters. He noticed that his ideas were correct. The closer they got to where he'd indicated, the less people they encountered. By the time they'd reached the maintenance worker quarters, the group realized that they were in an abandoned wing of the base.
"In here," Duan said, quietly, finding an empty room.
After all were inside, he then activated the lock on the door.
"Phase two down," he said, sitting Carter down on one of the bunks.
"That doctor guy," Mei said, unable to contain her curiosity any longer, "He's like Une and Lev, isn't he?"
"No," Duan said, hearing the word come out a little sharper than he'd intended. "He's not like them at all," he said, a little sadness mixed into his tone.
"No, not *like* them," she said, shaking her head at her own poor phrasing, "I mean... There was one where you're from, too?"
"Yes," Wufan said, "He was a monster. He treated the kids like that guy did Kenny... like an experiment,"
Duan sat down on the bunk heavily. He remembered that night in Arcadia when Kenny had broken down completely and revealed his secret. Through heartache and anguish, Kenny had revealed being the subject of tests and examinations by the Doctor J they knew. There was talk of injections and enhancements that left his friend forever altered and emotionally scarred.
"We gotta kill him," Duan said, remembering Duo's words. "Kill him, blow him up and then piss on his dead ashes."
Mei held out her hand towards Duan, expression solemn as she watched the flurry of emotions pass over the braided boy's face. "Promise," she agreed in a tone that was less a statement than an oath.
Duan took a deep breath. He took Mei's hand, then stood up and hugged her tightly. "Thanks Mei," he said, leaning against her for some extra comfort.
She returned his hug just as tightly, patting his back with her free hand in a comforting manner as he leaned against her. "No problem. And don't think I won't help with that pissing part just because I'm a girl," she replied, allowing a touch of teasing humor to creep into her voice and a smirk to settle on her lips.
Duan giggled over Mei's shoulder. "Ok," he said, feeling better somehow. She was soft and smelled good, like Miss Relena.
Wufan shook his head. He reached into his shirt to retrieve his notebook, then realized that he'd left it back at Noventa Field. "Hn," he remarked a little testily,
Tossing a look over her shoulder at the monosyllabic grunt, Mei glanced at Wufan. "What's wrong, 'Fan?"
"My notebook," Wufan said, with a small frown. "I was in a such a hurry, I left it. Oh well. We'll make do."
Duan moved back and reached into his thick hair. "Here Wufan," he said, tossing the Chinese boy a pen. "You can write on the walls or the floor. No one's gonna yell at you."
Mei shook her head, fishing in her pocket for a moment before withdrawing a piece of paper that looked as if it had been unfolded and refolded many times, as if it were consulted often. With a slightly sheepish look, she passed it to Wufan. "You can use the... the back of this. That way you can keep it with you," she said in a rush.
Wufan looked down at the piece of paper that he had given Mei in the garden at Sank. On the front of it was the symbol of Yin and Yang. Looking back up at Mei, he smiled shyly, feeling his face suddenly warm. "Thank you," he said. "I'll try and not use too much of it and I promise to make you another one when we get back."
"S'okay," Mei mumbled, glancing down at her toes briefly before clearing her throat with a small cough. "So. What should we set up to break first?" she asked Duan, ignoring the flush that was slowly fading from her cheeks.
"Traps first," Duan said, coming over. "Big boom booms later."
Wufan sat on the floor, inviting them to join him. "Ok, let's do a little sketch of the place so we who don't have your kind of memory will know where they're going," he said.
"Hai," Duan said, leaning down to begin the planning stage.
Together the children made their plans.
After sketching out the area, Duan, Mei and Wufan set to work constructing the first of the explosive devices they were going to use. It didn't take Mei long at all to perfect the process and soon, the small C-4 devices were laid out in neat rows.
"Ok, Mei you take this area and I'll do this one. Four devices. Here, there, there and there. Then, we both come back and Fan and I will go out and all of us try not to get caught," Duan said, taking his four and heading for the door.
Mei nodded, absorbing her orders quickly and gathering up her own payload before halting Duan with a wave of her hand. "Should we try and hit the armory on our way back, before they figure out that we're gone and tighten up security?" she asked, glancing at their rough map one last time before joining him.
"Let's do a couple of runs, then hit the armory," Duan replied. "We can take the rest out, after we've been armed."
Mei nodded quickly, both in reply and to signal her readiness. "'All for one'," she quoted with a quick wink to Wufan.
"'And one for all'," Wufan said, "You guys be careful."
Duan smiled. "Let's go!" he said, and slipped out of the door.
"Promise," Mei mouthed silently before following in Duan's wake.
TBC
End of Part 53
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