DISCLAIMER: Gundam Wing and Outlaw Star belong to Sotsu, Sunrise, and Bandai. Any original characters that appear in this story are my creative property.
Story Notes:
Slightly OOC. Some strong language. Violence.


Journey of Destiny
By Waltz195


It is said that destiny is a never ending cycle of fate and chance,
Interconnected in space and time, Inescapable in its reach across the universe,
Therein lies a treasure, waiting for souls brave enough to discover its secrets,
Those who prove worthy will be rewarded with power beyond imagination...
If they survive.
The journey begins...

"Outer hull sustaining damage, shield power down twenty percent..."

"Damn those pirates!"

"Gene, four enemy ships closing in fast at six o'clock."

"Gilliam, can we launch the missiles?"

"No, Gene. At the speed we are traveling, the pressure would cause them to combust prematurely."

"Great! Just great! Jim, what's our weapons status?"

"You've got a buzz-saw and a blaster left, but the right grappler arm is a little banged up from that last attack. Go easy on it!"

"Ahhh!" A young woman cried out, her feline appearance radiating frustration. "I'm out of ammo!"

"So am I." Another woman replied, her expression deceptively calm.

"Shit!" The young man hissed. "This just keeps getting better and better! I shouldn't have paid any attention to that old man."

A rapid beeping ensued around the occupants of the bridge. "Target Ether-net speed accomplished. All engines output at maximum."

"Alright! Let's get this show on the road! But first, let's get rid of our guests. Prepare for combat!"

With that the crimson-colored grappler arms rose from the ships outer hull and blasted away at the enemy pirate ships closing in around them. One ship was hit directly and exploded into a raging sphere of fire. A second ship was impaled by the buzz-saw and shredded in two before exploding. The blaster arm fired away at the two remaining ships, all the while speeding into the charged currents of the Ether-stream.

"Target Ether-flow detected. Twenty seconds to enter its proximity for Ether-merge."

"Let's finish this!" The young man growled ferociously as he disposed of another pirate ship, neatly slicing it in half. A grim smile spread across his lips. "And then there was one."

The two grappler ships engaged in hand to hand combat, struggling against the force of their opponent's blows. The bright shifting force of the Ether-net flowed haphazardly around them.

"Man! I can't shake him!"

"Warning! Ether-net anomaly detected. External hull pressure increasing."

"What the heck!"

"Detecting gravity increase in the area of the Ether-net anomaly. Calculations conclude we cannot escape it."

"Gene! We're heading right towards it!"

"Everybody! Hold on!"

Time stood still for a heart-wrenching second as the strange force engulfed them, surrounding all with deafening silence. Suddenly, a high-pitched squeal could be heard and a blinding gold-white explosion rippled through the surrounding area.

It was a while later that the last few sparks disappeared. A sinister calm reigned, leaving nothing to the dark oblivion of space.


The year is After Colony 200...
Peace reigns over the people of Earth and the Colonies.
The Gundams and their pilots have had no need to resurface and fight again.
However, as the year draws to a close, a forgotten force will emerge.
A strange new threat and a life-changing adventure awaits them all...

"Hey, Wufei! How long 'til we dock?"

A young Chinese man narrowed his eyes in annoyance and glanced back at his braided companion.

"For the last time, Maxwell, we'll arrive at headquarters in an hour or so. Now, stop pestering me!"

Duo chuckled. "Man, you get really grumpy when Sally's not around! But, then again, why am I not surprised?"

Wufei glared at him before returning his attention to the shuttle's controls.

'Really!' he thought. 'How did I end up with this fool as my partner for this mission? Sally had better not get sick very often. If I have to put up with this again I'll...How did that woman get ill anyway? She's a doctor, isn't she? Hn...'

Duo sighed heavily and started munching on the candy bar in his hand. 'Going on missions with Wufei sure is boring...almost as boring as with Trowa or Heero, wherever he is. Those guys need to lighten up. I wish Hilde was here... Wonder how everybody's doing? It seems like that New Year's reunion happened a long time ago...'

A lapse of silence followed, as both former Gundam pilots became lost in their own thoughts. After a while, a light beeping sound indicated an incoming message as the shuttle's video screen came to life. A pair of laughing blue eyes greeted them, as the familiar face of Sally Po filled the monitor.

"Wufei, Duo!" she called, nodding to each in turn. "How's it going?"

"As well as it can be, considering who I have for company." Wufei grumbled as he stared at the screen. Behind him, Duo feigned a wounded look, receiving a smile from Sally.

"I take it the mission went well?" she asked, returning her attention to Wufei.

"We managed to calm down the protesters before it could turn into a full-scale riot." Wufei informed her. "The corporation's board and the employees have come to an agreement. Our report will be filed at headquarters when we arrive."

Sally nodded. "I'll take care of the follow-up then."

"I can tell you though," Duo stated. "At the rate the negotiations were going, I was about ready to toss them all out the nearest shuttle bay. A week's worth of yapping and whining! It was really getting on my nerves."

"Now you know how I feel." Wufei inputted dryly.

Sally gave a low chuckle. "I can't say I was sorry to miss it then."

"Which reminds me," Wufei commented, gazing at her intently. "How are you feeling?"

Sally was slightly taken aback. In all the years they had been partners, Wufei had rarely shown concern over her ability to take care of herself. They both knew each other to be self-sufficient and independent and had actually become close friends.

"I'm alright," she replied. "A stomach flu can't keep me down for long. I've fully recovered. Thanks for asking."

Wufei continued to gaze at her, his expression disbelieving. Sally sighed inwardly, but smiled. They were both stubborn as well.

Duo watched the exchange between the two Preventers and couldn't help but smile. 'Some people never change...' he thought, as Sally posed another question.

"So, how long before you dock?"

Wufei rolled his eyes, sending an annoyed glance at a grinning Duo. "We should get there in about an hour, hopefully before I lose my sanity."

"Sally," Duo asked. "Anything interesting happen while we were gone?"

Before she could respond, a violent explosion rent through the surrounding area of space, creating a shockwave that hit them dead on. The shuttle jerked and spun out of control, tossing the two pilots around its interior. They hung on for dear life, as the earth-shattering tremor passed.

When Wufei was at last able to regain the controls, silence presided around them, interrupted only by their heavy breathing and the slight crackle of static and electricity from the shuttle console.

"What the hell was that!" yelled a bewildered Duo, rising from the seat he had managed to grab onto.

"I have no idea..." Wufei answered, visibly shaken. He had a death grip on the shuttle's controls.

After taking a moment to collect themselves, they immediately went about running a systems check and tried to regain communications, while scanning the surrounding area for any activity. A crackle of static sounded and a pale-faced Sally reappeared on the video screen once again.

"Are you guys alright?" she asked, worry evident on her expressive face.

"Just a little banged up." Duo answered, rubbing a bruised shoulder. "An energy blast must have hit us or something."

"What happened to you?" Wufei questioned. He could see she was in a state similar to theirs.

"Same thing. It threw us off and set our systems on the fritz for a few minutes. Some sectors are down too." Sally gestured to the disorder behind her.

Preventer agents and civilian recruits were scurrying around, frantically calling orders to one another. Papers, chairs, and other office equipment were tilted on their sides or scattered around. It was a flurry of activity, all of them trying to put things into order after the unexpected event.

"That must've been a hell of a blast! We thought we were the only ones who got hit." Duo stated, shaking his head in disbelief.

"It must have had a large energy source, to reach so far." Wufei agreed.

"It looks that way." Sally confirmed grimly. "I suspect it hit some of the other colonies as well."

Sally was distracted for a moment as a young recruit handed her a printout. She briefly looked it over, her face slightly shocked before turning grim again. She turned back to them, a serious look in her eyes.

"It gets worse. It seems the shockwave affected all the colonies. It even downed communications with Earth for a while. Thankfully, most of the essential sectors are operational, only sustaining minimal damage." A beat of silence passed as they digested this new information.

"Sally," Wufei questioned quietly. "What is going on?"

"I don't know," she replied. "Une has sent a transmission to all Preventers bases. We are to regroup and brief our units on the current situation. We set out immediately to restore order before we go on any kind of investigative mission... I suggest you get over here as fast as you can."

"Roger that."

After a few more minutes of reconfiguring data and coordinates, Wufei and Duo buckled themselves into their seats and sped towards the L5 colony base.

The dim light of a desk lamp flickered momentarily, casting twitching shadows across the contents of a cluttered room before going out completely. A silent figure sat limply in a high-back chair, slowly gaining consciousness.

Eyelids fluttered open, gazing at the surrounding darkness with vague comprehension. A barely audible moan escaped her dry lips as the woman slowly rubbed a sore shoulder. For a moment she stared at nothing, letting all thought drift away.

Not too far off, another figure slowly picked himself up from a jumble of papers and books scattered across the floor. The single light in the room had long since gone out. Regaining balance with the help of a nearby desk, he also gazed into the shadows, searching the darkness for one coherent thought.

The two, though separated by distance, made silent communication.

They did not question the bond they shared or the origin of its existence, simply accepting it in that brief moment.

One thought reverberated in their minds.

"So, it begins again..."