Beyond the War
By TK Date A distinctive laugh rose into the rafters of a traditional English pub. Despite its volume the sound was hardly disregarded as a minor disturbance within the rowdy setting. Nonetheless the laughing one's companion was obviously nervous.
"Duo, you should calm down. I think you're disturbing some of the patrons…"
"Quatre, ish a pub. Everyone's drunk! Prolly the only sober one in this place ish you," the braided pilot smirked as he downed another mug of ale, "Ya should let yerself go a bit, ish fun."
For a second the drunk teen frowned and tried to stare at his mouth, not fully understanding how his speech had slurred. However, it was mere moments before the entire situation was seen as frighteningly hilarious to his inebriated consciousness. Slamming his fist down onto the counter Duo's cheeks began to flush a crimson color as he forgot that one needed to achieve a balance between laughing and breathing. With a few deep gasps that problem was dismissed as another swallow of ale found its way into his mouth.
Nonetheless, Quatre was not impressed. Granted his friend's behavior was no different from that of any other person within the pub, but it still made the Arabic boy uneasy. Drunks had a reputation for being moody and irritable. What if one of them found that Duo's laughter was irritating? Worse yet, what if all of them decided to have a sudden change of heart and ganged up on the two foreigners? Needless to say, he was nervous.
"I don't see why Trowa chose to meet us here," the blonde muttered.
"Tro prolly jus' wanted to 'ave some fun," Duo declared, giving Quatre a hearty, and hard, pat on the shoulder, "He'll show up soon. Enjoy yerself until then!"
Glancing warily at his friend while he sat up straight on the pub stool Quatre tried his best to show one of his characteristic smiles, "I'll pass, thanks. Somehow I doubt that…stuff…is good for you," he cast a look at the mug of brownish liquid in Duo's hand.
"Ish ale Quatre, ale," a lopsided grin spread across the braided pilot's face, "And ish very good fer you. S'just like that stuff…with the white fluff and the big seeds…you know what I'm talkin' about, ne?"
"I don't think you should be drinking anymore, Duo."
"Kashra…" he said, pronouncing the other pilot's name with an astounding lack of accuracy, "we're in a pub. If yer in a pub you gotta drink. Okay?"
"Though whether or not you have to drink in excess is questionable," a voice stated from behind Duo.
"Trowa!" relief showed in Quatre's wide indigo eyes.
"'Ey Trowa! Took ya long enough," Duo grinned and patted the brunet's shoulder, "But we had fun waitin' for ya, ne Kasre?"
"I'm sure you did," Trowa answered for Quatre, saving him the trouble, "We need to get down to business now."
In a moment all traces that the braided pilot had previously been sloshed were gone, "So what's the news?" he asked, his voice now understandable.
"Nothing," Trowa replied with a shake of his head adding emphasis, "We haven't got any leads on either Heero's whereabouts or who could have assassinated Lady Une."
"What do we do now then…?" Quatre asked, worry evident in his voice.
"I'm not sure," emerald eyes scanned their surroundings as Trowa answered, "I think the best thing to do now is just be patient. I've scheduled a flight to one of the colonies in the L2 area. Catherine's there with the rest of the circus. I figured it would be a good way for use to relax," he turned to his companions, "Are you coming?"
"Well…we are in a bit of trouble right now…but a vacation would probably be a good idea, what do you say Duo?"
Indigo eyes had narrowed slightly to examine the other brunet. 'Exactly what is he thinking? Howard probably wouldn't lie to me, that means Trowa's hiding something, I've just got to find out what.'
"Duo?" questioning cerulean eyes broke him out of his thoughts.
"Huh?"
"Do you want to come with Trowa and me to the colonies? Catherine's there with the circus."
"Oh, no thanks. I don't do space-travel less than thirty minutes after drinking," he flashed the two a grin, "You guys'll have to have to have fun without me."
"Well alright then Duo." Quatre smiled, "You should probably go and check up on Wufei and Sally while we're gone, maybe something will show up." The blonde turned to the former pilot of Heavyarms, "I'm going to stop by our hotel to pick up my stuff, I'll meet you at the spaceport." With that he left.
Trowa nodded to the other pilot and began to leave before Duo's hand caught his arm.
"Hey Trowa, there's something I wanted to talk to you about," he started slowly.
"What is it?"
"Heero," he stated simply. Hopefully the other pilot would take his hint and let something slip, though it was unlikely that Trowa would give away information that easily, "There was nothing showing that he'd been in the area you gave us."
With a slight nod the other pilot glanced at him, "Wufei and I are trying our hardest. However, it isn't exactly easy considering Heero's skill as a soldier. He kept himself hidden from OZ and Romafeller, there's nothing to say he can't hide himself from us if he wants to."
"But we were gundam pilots," Duo pointed out, "Who else would be better suited to find him, ne? I mean yeah Heero was the only one who could handle the ZERO system but that doesn't mean that he's better at covert ops than any of us."
"No, I don't think so," Trowa shook his head as he watched the movement of people on the street outside the pub's window, "Heero was trained more than any of us to excel at that sort of thing, and at a younger age. I was a mercenary when I was young, and we usually used hit and run tactics rather than doing things discreetly and sneaking around. There probably isn't any way I could find him unless I had some kind of a lead, but we don't have any of those."
"So you're saying it's hopeless," it was more of a statement than a question, especially with the defiance Duo allowed to slip into his voice.
"Not hopeless, just very unlikely that we'll find him unless he wants to be found," before a response could be spoken he moved towards the pub's door, "I need to go now, the shuttle leaves soon."
"Okay, have fun with Quatre at the circus!" With a smirk and a wave the other pilot turned back to his long forgotten mug of ale.
"I will," Trowa replied. Once he was outside he turned around and glanced at the figure of the other teen through the window, "And you should be cautious as to what you get into Duo Maxwell. Had I been Wufei, I wouldn't vouch for your safety. He doesn't think as I do when it comes to our mission."
It was dumb luck that led Duo to his discovery. He liked to call it the devil's luck, or Shinigami's rather, but still he had it nonetheless. A computer diskette had been left on the table by his mug at the pub. Some kind soul had thought enough to associate the small item with his personage and had left it with him in the hotel after he had passed out from one too many drinks.
However, it wasn't until sometime near noon that he managed to get over his first hangover and swear off drinking forever. Though by 1 AM he was downing a small shot of vodka while booting up his computer. The original owner of the disk was unknown, and despite Duo's attempts and uncovering the person's identity it was obvious after his first few attempts that this person wished to remain anonymous, and had taken every measure to make sure that he or she would get his or her wish. Nonetheless the braided teen was grateful for the information that his mysterious benefactor had bestowed upon him.
The information that was hidden within the disk was a detailed report upon an abandoned military base in the Tien Shan area of northeast China. Apparently the base wasn't as abandoned as the Preventers thought it was. There had been recent reports from the Chinese division that communications within the base were still active, and someone had managed to make certain piles of scrap disappear within thin air. However, none of the agents working within the area considered these disturbances all that important. In fact reports told that most of them were afraid that the spirits of dead soldiers were angered by the newfound peace.
By the time Duo was done with all the information on the disk, he speculated that the agents weren't too far off from the truth.
The open air market was a familiar setting for him. Crowds of people moved between the shops. Individuals would get what items they needed before vanishing into the masses only to emerge again at the sight of another shop that suited their fancy. Spaces upon the street only cleared when the familiar sound of an approaching ricksaw managed to make itself heard over the crowds. Thus, travel was made difficult for anyone who attempted to move against the predestined flow of the crowd.
However, things were relatively easy for those who sought to neither come nor go. Sitting at the edge of the street before an unoccupied stretch of wall Wufei was granted a clear view of the traffic of people. His ebony eyes were unfocused as he watched the crowds. The person he was searching for wasn't here, he wouldn't be here, but he was close. There was no way that his prey could escape him.
He knew where Heero was going, he knew what the plan was, and he had to stop it. Now he had more purpose than simply following the instructions of Master O, he had his own motivation guiding his actions. Unless he was able to justify the death of Heero Yuy he had no reasons why he shouldn't join his once comrade.
That was why now, instead of continuing his hunt for the other pilot, he was silently allowing himself to be flooded by the sounds of the land where his ancestors had come from. Granted, it would have been more comforting for him to find refuge within the place of his birth, but that ideal was impossible. Even so, none of the dojos within the area were suitable for the sort of meditation he sought to achieve. So he sat at the edge of the street, letting the market setting serve as a backdrop for his train of thought.
Unfortunately, the concentration that he sought to achieve was more difficult than he had anticipated it to be. Whenever he began to let his thoughts drift to the matter of his mission the words of one Dorothy Catalonia continued to echo within his mind. He hated the woman, hated how she had managed to contradict his ideals so easily and make it seem just. It simply should not have been possible, he knew what he was doing was the right thing to do. That was the reason why he had accepted his fate as a Gundam pilot, so that he could strive for the ideals of justice, and avenge the death who had perished in pursuit of justice.
For a fleeting moment his thoughts slipped away from Dorothy's words to those of another woman. He almost questioned how he had made the connection between the two but after a moment of thought it wasn't hard to see where their similarities were. Both Dorothy and Merian… no not Merian, Nataku. They both had been devoted to their own ideals, and had been willing to fight for them. However, Nataku was more so like this than Dorothy. Dorothy would never sacrifice herself within a battle, and even if she had to she would never do so with honor and nobility. Nataku did, and she had died that way. She died supporting her ideal justice, and she had died with strength.
"Nataku…" he whispered her name under his breath. Now, more than ever, he would need her guidance. He too would need to be strong in order to achieve justice. Her strength would aid him, her spirit would be with him.
Wufei let a small smile play upon his lips. For once the mission would not be as hard as he suspected it would be. Master O had probably predicted that Wufei would still hold Nataku's ideals of justice close to his heart. Of course, O was of the same clan, and knew how greatly Nataku's death had affected the young man.
Those reasons were most likely behind the man's choices. Knowing that the mission would involve a question of judgment he was right in selecting the Chinese youth, and Wufei was not about to let him down.
However, he first had to establish which of the paths that lay before him was just. Nataku's spirit would guide him, he knew that. At first it had seemed as if the only true way that the innocents would be protect was to assassinate those who sought to fight a war in times of peace. That protection of the innocents was very easily defined as justice. But now that doubt had been cast over the plans he previously had followed he was not so sure of that explanation.
Granted, there was justice for some within peace, but what of those others who could not find solace without a battle to fight? What of those whose one true calling was to be part of the battle, part of the war?
People like that were usually different form the general populace. They were the soldiers. However, that did not justify the destruction of their lives. Soldiers had every right to attain their ideal world, just as much of a right as the pacifists.
So was it just to favor one over the other? To support one lifestyle, while in turn bringing about the destruction of another?
That was not justice…but then again killing was not just either. Even if one sought to spend their life within a fight, and to die on the battlefield, it was not just to achieve that ideal at the expense of the lives of others. Every person had a right to live, even if it meant that life should be spent in agony, without truly achieving one's dreams.
'These will only be deaths of the soldiers, Mr. Chang'
Her words echoed in his mind. If what she said was true, then only the soldiers would die. There would be no sacrifice of the innocents, only of those who wanted to fight. But that was not so. Innocents did die within wars, that made them an injustice. Wars could not be just.
'No, that's not true. I was once a soldier, it would be wrong of me to say that the life I once lived was not under the ideals of justice. Fighting is just, there is such a thing as a just cause for a war. The question is, is there one now? Is the war that she wishes to bring about just?'
Shaking his head in frustration the young man sighed. His decision was turning out to be much harder than he anticipated it to be. There was no easy way to decide which choice was just, which one was right. He wasn't one to say whether or not people should live or die. Though he was also not one to say if a person should stop living in the way that gave them purpose, gave them meaning within the world. It was too hard for him alone to make the decision, he needed Nataku's guidance.
She had fought to defend their colony from an invading force. Her death was in a battle to preserve the way of life which she held dear. Even though she was no pacifist, she had not denied those ideals. She had simply not accepted them as the standard which would guide her life. Her life was one determined by justice, and she sought to preserve that fight for justice, even if it meant her death.
Heero wanted to preserve his way of life, he wanted to preserve the life that a soldier lived. That was the same as Nataku…
'Are their ideals both that similar?'
If that was true…then he knew what to do now.
'Nataku, I will honor you. You fought to defend what you saw as the right way to live, I will make sure that others do not have their lives destroyed in this time of peace.'
Determination shone in his ebony eyes. He would not betray his former comrade, he would not betray the life that a soldier lived. Now that his path was clear he set out into the crowds. There was only one way which justice could be achieved. That way itself was just also. It would be defined as justice is if the death of one meant life for so many more within the world.
He would make sure that those who would die within the pacifist world had a chance to life. He would make sure that the one who was to be sacrificed died with honor. That was his task.
By TK Date
AN: This chapter actually came out pretty fast. ^_^ Yaay. I give mucho Kudos to Ruby for Beta reading this for me, she's be great. And Snickers for helping me with plot ideas, big hugs to both of you. And also big kudos to anyone who gives me feeback ^_~
Part 4
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