28-Feb-2002
Title: Death & the Phoenix
Author: Ebonydove
Pairings: 1x2, 3+4
Warnings: Language, Duo-torture, sap, yaoi, some slight OOC, maybe some
spoilers.
Disclaimers: At this point I would love to keep them in my back pocket for
use at a whim, but I still don't own them. Drats.
"01 to 03, status of 02?"
He had been waiting for that. With a deep breath he gave the only information he could. "Unclear. Not responsive." All he heard was static as it crackled over the comm and the roar of Quatre's shuttle as it maneuvered to where he and Duo were floating in the dead cold of space.
A few moments after answering Heero's query, Trowa saw Quatre's shuttle as it came screaming fast around a chunk of floating rock in their direction. He tightened his grip on Duo's suit as the shuttle zoned in on their coordinates and slowed on approach. The hatch door hissed open showing Quatre in an astro suit and tethered to the inside railing of the shuttle.
Trowa hit his thrusters to guide them to where Quatre was waiting for them. He could tell even from the distance how worried Quatre was. There really was no need for him to get dressed into a suit, unless he had thought the worst that he would need to help get Duo aboard the craft. They floated at a snail's pace to the door. Trowa stretched out his hand to grab onto Quatre's and let him pull them inside.
Quatre punched in a few numbers to the keypad on the door and the hatch hissed shut, allowing Trowa to remove his blast shield. Once Trowa had his removed, he slowly removed Duo's, careful not to pull on his hair as he slid it of his head. Quatre spared a brief glance to Duo before racing back to the cockpit to make a hasty exit from the base and the surrounding Orion belt to head directly to Sally.
The blood had stopped running from Duo's mouth and nose was crusted on his face. Trowa brushed some errand strands of hair away from his eyes and lifted the lids checking his pupils. Duo's eyes had rolled back in his head and were barely visible. His breathing was shallow and raspy, and Trowa feared moving him from his spot on the floor of the shuttle. "Quatre, how long?" He bellowed to the front of the shuttle.
"Sixteen minutes to reach Peacemillion at the L2-0769 colony where we will meet up with the others. Heero's already on route and Wufei is cleaning up." Quatre answered from the cockpit. "How is he?"
"Bad, Quatre. I can't make heads or tails of his symptoms. I don't know how to treat this. He's got a raging fever too." Trowa moved to a small compartment and retrieved a blanket and the first aid kit. He doubted very much that it would contain anything that could help Duo, but at least he could clean him up a bit before Heero saw him.
As he went to kneel back down next to Duo, his foot hit the metal case that was strapped to Duo's suit and quickly detached it. It was locked tight, and he looked around the shuttle's cabin for something he could break it open with. "I wish you were awake Duo, I could really use your skills right about now." He mumbled as he set the case back down and covered Duo with the blanket. He then set about wiping the crusted blood from Duo's nose and mouth and checked his eyes again. They had come down slightly and were twitching up and down, the tell tail signs of a seizure beginning. "Damn it." He growled as he braced himself for the shaking that would start at any moment. "Quatre! I think he's going to seize!"
"I can't go any faster, Trowa! I can't!" Quatre yelled back his voice breaking with anxiety.
"I know, it's all right love, you're doing fine." Trowa settled himself on the floor next to Duo and waited for any sign of a seizure, his eyes darting from Duo's stricken face, to the black case, to the front where Quatre was piloting. There was little else he could do.
"Trowa, Heero's going to intersect with us in sixty seconds, he'll repel to our shuttle and abandon his in space!" Quatre yelled from the cockpit frantically.
"Tell him that's not the correct course of action to take. We can't slow down enough to give him a clear shot at the shuttle."
"He said he's done it before with Wing, and it was going a lot faster than we are now. Besides he's not responding to my hails! Secure Duo in the cabin and open the hatch door!"
Trowa picked Duo up as gently as he could in his haste and set him in a chair in the body of the shuttle and strapped him in. Then he threw the blanket around him. He rushed to the door and punched the code just in time to hear the thud of Heero landing outside of it. Trowa pulled him in with nothing more than a quick intake of air before the door hissed open. He was almost pulled out into space by the change of pressure, but Heero shoved him backwards and punched in the code to shut the door.
Trowa sprawled on his back and gasped for air as the door slid shut, glaring at Heero for all he was worth. "You... are the... craziest guy... I've ever... known."
Heero grabbed his arm and helped him up. "Sorry for the short notice and the lack of air. Where is he?"
Trowa nodded to the cabin and they made their way to where Duo was slumped in the chair. Heero and Trowa unbuckled him and lay him back down on the floor in a prone position and recovered him back up with the coarse blanket. "He looked like he might have a seizure right before Quatre told me you were shuttle hopping."
"Did he?"
"He may have while I was monkey-fucking with the door to let you in, but I don't think so." Trowa shot him another mock glare before checking his pupils. They looked normal, narrowing in the bright light of the shuttle's cabin. "His eyes are better. He's just out cold. I think he took a hit from the explosion in the base when he was trying to reactivate the GCM. He had some blood coming from his mouth and nose, but I couldn't tell if it was from his lungs or an internal injury." Heero listened to Trowa's report but his eyes were glued to Duo. He ran his fingers along his arm and checked his pulse and fever. He was still burning up, much worse than the night before. "I'm going up front to help Quatre. He's about hysterical about Duo. Stay here and see what you can do. We're almost to Peacemillion." Trowa stood and disappeared into the front of the shuttle leaving Heero with Duo.
"Duo love? Can you hear me?" Heero brushed his lips over Duo's and stroked his fingers against Duo's cheek. "If you were awake, you'd yell at me for being destructive, I know. Jumping from a moving shuttle is even more dangerous than base-jumping out of that hospital. But back then I did it because I wanted it all to end. I thought my mission was complete, but not this time, Duo. This time I just wanted to get to you. So don't be angry, love." He took a great shuttering breath and tucked the blanket a bit more snug around Duo's body. "Open your eyes love. I'm scared. Don't you dare leave yet. You promised. Please Duo, please stay." Heero lay down next to Duo on the cold metal floor and gently placed his hand over Duo's heart feeling the soft, steady thumping as it beat in his chest.
End Part 14
(:./ebony/death14)
