A story about why Rashid protects Quatre so dearly. The daughter and granddaughter of Rashid and the son of Auda are my chara's, the others belong to the original creators of Gundam Wing.

Cruel desert

It was a hospital, they had to defend, the only hospital in the middle of the desert. Though it was a poor hospital, every man, woman and child around in the desert came to that hospital for medical care. They came for medication, for surgery, for care. Even their heroes went there, the Maquanac Corps.

The Maquanac Corps existed off forty men with mobile suits and a small young pilot with a Gundam. They had seen their youngest hero, and the eldest doctor was proud to have him as a patient. He had blond, blue eyes, possibly descendent of the Berbers.

It was a good day, for someone…

From a dune several kilometers away an OZ soldier gazed through binoculars to the hospital. It was two stories up and had two large wings with several rooms. Probably there would be a room for x-rays and an operating room. 'Good enough blow the joint.' The man spoke to his followers. Immediately several Mobile Suits zeroed in for the kill. The hospital was defenseless, the people who were inside sick and tired, wounded and old, in one word: defenseless.

The soldier grinned; 'This will teach those rebels not to mess around with the OZ organization.' Sand and dust covered their trails and soon covered them up as well.

Inside people didn't know about what was about to happen. All they saw in the distance was a large sandstorm approaching. Doctors ordered their patients to come inside, nurses ordered others to shut windows and doors. Camels were brought inside to protect them against the sand and dust and travelers sought shelter from the storm.

The storm came, suddenly, and people prepared themselves for a long time without power. The lights went out and all of a sudden, it was as dark as night.

A baby cried and a mother hushed it with her soothing voice and the comfort of her breast.

A child took the hand of an old woman, 'Don't be afraid, this will be over soon.' The young boy said to the wrinkled old lady, 'I can tell.'

Camels made their usual noises and walked around to find something eatable, their handlers scolded and praised the animals, in the hope that they would do as their owners told them to do.

Some doctors and nurses still worked, others without duties waited through the storm and served their guests food and water.

A sharp cry was heard from a woman who gave birth to her child. Then she begun to sob and all of a sudden she cried again.

Inside the woman lay with the baby inside her body. There was no husband. She had fled him. Faye Kurama was once a proud woman, but now she was a weak thing, who couldn't keep her cries in. The baby wouldn't come out; it was stuck in the birth canal. The doctors urged her to push the baby out, but when the building begun trembling under the weight of the attacks, they weren't so encouraging anymore. Faye trembled and felt how bad her body wanted to get the child out.

Her mind told her to wait and flee but she was tired, tired of labor, tired of pain, tired of the contractions. Though she had endured more pain then this, she was willing to give in. Once she was a beautiful woman, now she was a weak thing called human woman without self esteem and dignity. Her black long hairs were plastered to her body with sweat and she was hungry by now. For hours she wasn't able to hold in food, every contraction had driven the food out of her stomach for all these hours.

The most she wanted was her father. The one man she had ever loved in her entire life. While some of the people inside the small room left, the doctor stood with her, encouraging her with words she had forgotten. Blurred by pain, tears, hunger and weakness she gave in to her tired body. She laid down her head on the softness of the pillow and rested. Her breath became more stable as well as her heartbeat. Every noise was shut out, banned from her ears. The light was banned from her eyes and she drifted away into a sleep she longed for for years.

Madly the doctor stared at her, 'Don't you dare to give in now!' He took her by the shoulders and shook her firmly, 'You fled your husband, and you fled your past just to save yourself and your baby! Don't you dare to give in now?'

Faye opened her eyes weakly, the doctor's eyes were furious, he shouted something to her, but she didn't hear it anymore. A soft smile came to her lips and she raised her hand, appearantly she tried to touch the face of someone dear but failed half way. The doctor shook her again, but her head fell back, her arms became limp and all life vanished from her dying body.

No matter how many times he spoke to her and smashed her chest with his fists, her heart wouldn't start pumping again. For a couple of minutes he gazed at her dead body. The man bit away a tear; she knew she wouldn't make it, so she came here to save her baby… her baby… the nurse who staid with him gave him a scalpel.

'You have to save the baby,' she whispered.

He nodded, 'the baby… yes… the baby…' Carefully but fast he cut his way into her lower abdomen, through the muscles and through the muscled wall of the uterus to the baby. The only thing he saw were the little legs and its feet. It didn't even fight anymore; it had turned blue. With clamps he held the gap in place and reached for the baby.

Immediately outside the once lively body of his now dead mother, the baby started muttering and screaming. With care the doctor cut the umbilical cord.

'A little girl.' The nurse whispered, 'Look Faye, a little girl! You have a daughter.' The dead woman didn't made a sound, but the nurse felt a sudden warmth near her. Maybe her spirit was still inside the room and maybe she admired her baby?

When the doctor had sucked out the slime out of the nose and mouth of the little girl, she started kicking and screaming, angry as she was because the man had taken her out of the warm body of her mother.

The nurse smiled but turned sad the next moment, 'who will take care for her?'

The doctor shook his head, 'I don't know…' he whispered.

Without warning the building shuddered like there was an earthquake going on. No one ever experienced earthquakes and panic grew. There was a crack in the ceiling, and walls trembled. Again, the building shrieked and shuddered with loud noise, doors rambled and broke, and the old building gave way to the damagers. People started to scream; animals panicked and wanted to run away from the noise and danger, children cried and the child who tried to comfort the old lady, was comforted by the old lady now.

'Come outside,' she whispered, 'silently.' Both fled the coming scene. Outside, the sand storm had gone by, and the sun shone brightly in the sky. Somehow the sun was blocked by something and the old woman gave a sharp cry when a giant foot came down on her.

Purple, that was all they saw, purple things, moving around. Some recognized them as mobile suits, but what to do against something 16 meters tall and a human being only 1,70 meters tall? Nothing could be done. Slowly the enemies started to crush the building.

Quatre saw it from a distance; Sand Rock gave him the images, 'How dare they, a hospital!' Normally he was peaceful, but now all he wanted to do was to take Sand Rock and smash it right into the Leos.

'What's even worse,' Auda said to his master Quatre, 'according to our spies, Rashid's daughter is in there.'

With only one glimpse on the face of Rashid, Quatre knew enough. Rashid wasn't about to take orders anymore.

'Go find your daughter.' Quatre said, 'save her from their destruction.' He knew all to well that Rashid guarded over him as a father since Quatre's own father died. Rashid did everything for his adopted sun and Quatre knew he would do more than everything for his daughter. But he never knew Rashid had a daughter.

Rashid zeroed in for the kill and took down a Leo with one shot. Quatre followed right behind him and smashed the Sand Rock into a Leo, which fell due to the weight of the Gundam. Then he smashed the heat rods into another one. Auda, Abdul and Ahmed couldn't stop firing at the Leos. The other Maquanacs went on to the military camp. Explosions and fire was seen from a distance. The Maquanac Corps had charged without warning, and destroyed the Leos within seconds. The battle was over as quickly as it had begun. OZ would try no more; the Maquanac Corps ruled the desert!

Outside lay devastation, inside people were scared. Who were those people? What would they do? Than, a cheer, a smile and many thanks and welcomes as the doors opened. The building wasn't a hospital anymore; it had turned into a shelter for people from the war. they welcomed the Maguanacs and celebrated victory with them.

Rashid had no eye for the people. All he knew was that his daughter was in there.

Master Quatre had given him permission to save his daughter, 'Do you need permission to see your daughter?' the young man asked the taller older one. Rashid knew he didn't need permission. He wanted to come and go as he pleases.

Right now all he wanted was his daughter, 'Faye Kurama?' he said in a loud tone of voice, 'Is here Faye Kurama?' People left, fled to the light of the day and welcomed the other Maquanacs as they came back from destruction of the military camp.

One nurse stayed behind, 'Faye Kurama is over here…' she pointed to a closed door, but Rashid was already gone.

Good thing the door is open. He would have flattened it on his path to her. Quatre thought by himself, 'He is quite protective over her, isn't he?'

Auda, usual the one who loved fun, games and girls, answered, 'When we left for outer space to save our brothers, he was forced to leave his daughter behind. Already she was quite beautiful and lovely, and we all longed or pretended to long for her hand and heart. Most of the guys are married. Some other men from villages around our settlement admired her as well. When we came back, she was gone and the settlement was destroyed. We knew she was taken away by force, but since the men kept moving, no one was able to locate her. Rashid never smiled again. He vowed himself that he would find her, and so he has.'

Quatre was dumbstruck, 'How dared that man! A woman is supposed to be treated as princes, not an object you can steal?! Even the Koran and the Imam of our village preaches that!'

Auda bowed his head, 'Some men still live life like we're back into the late nineties of the twentieth century. That they can abuse women and children and treat them as property, not as human beings.'

Auda moved to the small room, 'there's no chatter.' He said with a worried expression on his face, 'wonder what happened.'

Rashid knew the door was shut for a reason. His heart told him. When he opened the barricade, he saw a woman in a bed that resembled his daughter Faye. Black long hair, dark brown eyes; she had a creamy skin. But her face was battered; black and blue. She seemed as if she was beaten up by someone. Rashid didn't heard the cries that came from a small baby, nor the friendly though pushing questions of the doctor to leave the room of his now dead patient. Slowly he walked over the dead woman and touched her still warm face. Slowly he took her into his arms and pushed her against his chest.

Auda and Quatre entered with respect, for a moment they didn't dare to ask the doctor what had happened. 'She died in labor.' The man answered their unsaid question, 'suddenly she gave in and died.' His eyes were glued onto his patient and the man who cried in silence, 'did they relate in some way?'

Auda nodded, 'her name is Faye Kurama, daughter to Rashid Kurama, Captain of the Maquanac Corps.' He was aware of the nurse cradling the small baby in her arms, but he wanted Rashid to move, he wanted the grandfather of the baby to move and pick up the baby.

Fifteen years later, in the same desert, on the same Earth…

The white horse run through the desert carrying his mistress; a small woman named Evangeline Kurama.

Evangeline loved the speed, the dunes, the desert. For years she was raised in what she had called captivity, and right now, on her fifteenth birthday, she was as free as a bird. Kalahari, the white stallion she had for her seventh birthday, run for miles with Evangeline on his back, just for her.

'There goes your granddaughter Rashid,' Quatre smiled teasing.

Laughing Rashid turned to his master, 'She will come back! I asked Kalahari to bring her back and I know that the horse will bring her back.'

'Kalahari? After the Kalahari Desert?' Quatre asked and he got a nod as an answer, Kalahari had brought his mistress back. the horse stopped and bowed his head gently to sniff Quatre's hands. He was always on the look out for sugar cubes and apples.

Leaping into Rashid's arms the woman in white clothes smiled and chirped like a bird, 'That was fun grandfather! Can I do that again? I love it!' Than she hugged him, 'I love you grandfather.'

'I love you too, little bird.' When he put her back on her feet she walked over the Master Quatre, 'Thank you for the presents Master Quatre.' And she gave him a hug, 'I love you my uncle.'

Auda smiled, they were older and taller, wiser and waser and stuff, he always said. But Evangeline had become like her mother, beautiful and admired by the entire community. He could also see a part of Rashid in her, for Faye had always followed Rashid, but his granddaughter wanted freedom.

There was only one difference, there were forty-two men who would watch over her and guard her like she was their shining diamond.

Owari

R&R please