In closing

I ask you, was it necessary to forge living weapons? For the protection of the colonies perhaps…but not simply to prove we were able to do so. Judge me if you must. What we have done to you five is inexcusable. I have watched with great interest and am proud of all you have accomplished. You surpassed the best projections of the program and civilization is better for it. I regret our meddling had left you with so many scars, seen and unseen. But it is your strength of character that defines you, and makes you who you are. Even from a distance, I have looked after each one of you. You have not been forgotten.

Let this then be your final mission

Live free my friends and dream of tomorrow.

Lieutenant Naught:

The Last Makar

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Heero's vision misted over as he read the final section aloud to the others. Then he set the book on the table so that they could read all the sections at their leisure. The time for secrets was passed. This was one thing that they would have to work through together. His voice turned husky as he finished, "Mission accepted." He said

And I smiled to my self, closed down the five neural connections on my pad and turned to leave confident that it would be so.

I suppose I was still lost in my own thoughts, or it may have been that I'd forgotten how successful our boys were in matters of stealth. They had me surrounded before I had taken ten steps from my hiding spot.

"Certainly you did not think we would let you simply walk away." 0-1 said in that quietly dangerous way of his.

I nodded slipping my service revolver from the holster at my side and handed it to him grip first. It fit so naturally in his hand…even in my last moments I felt a swell of pride. 0-1 at least could be relied on to give me the swift end I disserved. I took a deep breath and waited for the bullet, it did not come. I supposed I looked puzzled.

"This record is far from complete." 0-5 frowned sternly. "Did you not suspect we would have other questions?" I sighed in resignation, interrogation before execution; I supposed it was only fair after all we'd done…how we'd used them.

0-2 leaned over and took the data pad from under my arm. "Is this it?" he asked and I nodded. Surely all they needed to know was contained in there and more besides. A large portion was encrypted of course. But, if half what I had heard about the braided boy's ability was true; he should be able to break the safeguards with little difficulty.

"I remember you," 0-3 announced; he had been studying me intently. Of all of them, I suppose it was logical that he would. "You lied." He said, though there was no edge to his voice, for once I had difficulty reading his dark green eyes. "You said you were no one important, just a technician."

I frowned, what could he mean? I WAS only a technician. "I am Naught…" I began but he cut me off.

"I said I remember…I remember it was your bullet that shot the real Trowa Barton. It was you who permitted me, Nanashi to fly his place. Without Barton's heir to hold the reigns of the operation, our Masters gave us the freedom to fight for peace rather than retribution. You altered the course of operation meteor…before it even began." 0-3 explained.

"Your coordination made it possible the five of us could still function effectively as a unit. If you had not transmitted knowledge from one master to the next, there would have been nothing to…draw us together." 0-1 added thoughtfully. His dark eyes held emotion even if his voice did not. "We would have acted alone…and died alone.

"The other technicians are all dead." 0-4 said softly, "You said yourself you are the last of the Makar…you are the only parent we have."

"The only WHAT?" I exclaimed…I suppose my voice cracked from the sheer astonishment at the little blonde's pronouncement. I would have been what, 8 when they were born…maybe 10?

"We're orphans if you recall, even Q-boy here is an orphan now." 0-2 clarified with a twisted smile.

0-5 rubbed his chin in thought. "Technically we are still minors. Outside certain circles we encounter many who do not recognize we are capable of managing our own affairs. It causes difficulties at times. We are, as we are, because of your program…It makes sense that we would be your responsibility."

0-2 rocked from his heels to his toes grinning, hugging my data pad to his chest. His open face was easy to read. Clearly he thought it would be nice have an adult to care for him...an adult who understood what they had been through and knew when to get involved and when give them space. Finally he asked, "So gonna you take us for ice cream or what?"

I recalled what Professor G had said about the boy's ravenous appetite and smiled realizing this was just the beginning…

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Authors note:

Actually I hadn't planned on taking the story beyond this point. It was meant as an exercise to see if I understood the characters enough to write in this world. When I wrote this I had only seen episodes 1-14 and 16 on you tube before they were removed and I have seen Endless Watlz. Other "facts" I got from internet resources. I was quite surprised when this story was chosen as a Feature on FanLib. Due to continued interest I decided to continue this storyline Part two was originally entitled "Two Close to home" however it has since been renamed "Makar's Home: II" so it is more easily identified as part of the series. The third in the series has yet to be posted but will be entitled "Makar's Destiny."

I hope you enjoyed my first attempt. A huge thank you goes to Wingzero, Apelilly, Sora the Taske and Dragona 2007 who took the time to review. Your encouragement is MUCH appreciated. Feedback really makes my week!!! More please ;)

My other Gundam Wing Stories include "Victoria's pride" a sketch story about Zechs and Noin during their time in the academy together. With a minor connection to some elements that will appear in "Makar's destiny."

And "All Roads Lead to Rome" is a historically valid AU where the characters we know and love are slaves in ancient Rome: having been posted exactly 31 days this story has received over 6,000 hits (WOW!) thank you everyone for the support!

Yours sincerely, Vigilanti Windwraith,