Thicker Than Blood

Disclaimer: I own very little in this world, and sadly, Gundam W is not among my meager posessions

A/N: Irish to English dictionary & pronunciation

Cara (karu) = friend

Dearthiar (jrihyaar) = brother

Slan agat = good-bye

Prologue

From the outside, the building seemed no different than any of the other steel and concrete creations that made up colony K3-0200. Perhaps the only marked difference between this building and the others was a sign that read 'New Hope Center for Mental Health and Rehabilitation.' Inside, the building was as immaculate as anyone would expect a hospital to be. And sterile. It was the scent of this sterility that set the man in room 203 on edge. He had long ago gotten used to the smell of disinfectant that was the trademark of any hospital, but tonight, it seemed to have wanted its presence known. Perhaps it was the universe's way of reminding him of where he was and drudging up memories of why. A small smile played at his lips as he gazed out of the small window in his room.

"Once a prisoner, always a prisoner," he said to himself. A few peaceful moments of silence passed and he felt an odd wave of calm spread throughout his body. His constantly fidgeting hands were for once still as his raging mind slowed itself into one calming thought. "But at journey's end do we find peace and sweet release."

"A poet's soul never dies, does it?"

The patient didn't bother to turn to his new visitor. Instead he continued to stare out his window at the sleeping colony. "Sorrow knows no end, and so the poet continues on." He glanced back at his visitor for a brief moment before resuming his watch. "Either I miscalculated, or you're a little late, mein Freund. Although I must say, I am pleased that you could make it."

"My time is short."

The patient nodded and faced his visitor for the first time, a sad smile on his otherwise handsome features. "How long has it been? Five years?"

"Almost eight."

"Eight? Hmm, another miscalculation. My mind is far from what it once was. But still…I remember enough. Too much."

Sadness deeper than any man could measure entered dark hazel eyes. The visitor had seen this before in three others as well as himself. Eyes that were barely into their mid-twenties held the experience of two lifetimes. They were young, yet old. Strong yet tired. Alive, yet…dead. A shared pain leapt across the space between the shadowed figures and a bond once lost was rekindled if only for a bittersweet moment.

"Cara…dearthair…time is not on our side."

The patient nodded in understanding, but held up a halting hand when his visitor moved. "What of our youngest? You and he are the last of us…don't let him also be the end of us."

"I won't. He will be what we couldn't."

The patient nodded, a content smile touching the corners of his lips. "I know he will."

"Have you…seen anything else?"

The patient shook his dark head and gripped the pendant around his neck. "No. I have seen until this moment. There have been other images, but nothing is clear. It rests in your hands now, mein Bruder. But I know you will do what you can."

Once again the patient turned to his window and gazed outside. He imagined the cool night breeze on his face and the faint rustling of leaves. His mind drifted to a memory that took place far earlier in a more pleasant time. The thin line between fantasy and reality blurred and he became convinced his vision was real and for the briefest of moments, he was happy.

"It's beautiful, isn't it?" he smiled.

"Yes," his visitor replied as he stepped closer, "It's Heaven."

The patient barely felt the nearly invisible needle stab into his skull just behind his ear. In the briefest of moments blood vessels ruptured and he toppled forward, the apparent victim of a brain aneurysm. The visitor gently caught the falling figure and placed him on his small bed, covering him with the thin blanket.

"Slan agat, dearthair. May gentle peace cradle you now and forever."

A/N: Review Away!