The Crow: Dark Avenger
By Ashe
Disclaimer:
Gundam Wing and its characters are trademarked and copyright by Ban Dai. The Crow created by J.O. Barr. This is a work of fiction and is not intended to make money so do not distribute it with that purpose in mind!
Warning:
This story contains violence, bad language, shonen ai, and references to the supernatural. Do not read if your parents won't let you go to a PG-13 movie!
Dark Avenger
By Ashe
Chapter Eight "A Clown Cometh on Broken Wings"
After Colony 210, April
The crow circled high and far away from the fires burning in the Emerald Green encampment. Two of its prey had escaped the dark avenger this past night. He was to eliminate them after the fat man, but they weren't home. How disappointing. It spread wide its wings, looking for signs of civilization. A small town on the horizon caught its eye.
Checking in on its charge, the black bird saw him sneaking in the darkness to get to his motorcycle, Black Death. It banked away, heading for the town. Plenty of time to look for the pair, usually one followed the other, almost lovers, always friends. They'd be a lovely second course to the mayhem this day, Alex and Mueller.
With the wind up, the black messenger made its way to the town. Lampposts illuminated the foggy streets, rain pouring down once again. Perfect camouflage for the human it had brought back with it. Its dark eyes pierced through the darkness and after a fruitless search, the crow found Duo's new playmates sending images of the two to the twice-born Shinigami, bringer of death, destroyer of worlds.
***
Duo had gotten to Black Death and had begun loading it up with his latest goodies when the vision hit him. The bird was sending him information on Alex and Mueller. It had located them and there would never be a better time to get them.
Justice.Life.
Innocence.
Victory.
Death.
Shinigami nodded slightly, hurriedly packing the bike until he got to Heero's laptop, placing it carefully into the saddle-box on the side. He would have to be careful with this one. Heero had big plans for the laptop, and Duo would see them carried through. The crow had continued sending a live feed of imagery to him, but when he saw them dragging a body, that of Jessi, Duo knew it couldn't wait.
His thoughts inadvertently drifted to the little boy, Jessi's little boy being taken, beaten, murdered by Dorothy and those two monsters. Duo kept seeing the boy being slain, and then Wufei after. How many others had there been? Alex and Mueller stood out in his mind, holding up bloody instruments of death, laughing over the hundreds that had died in their hands.
Justice.
"No," Duo said, leaping onto the bike. "Not another drop of blood on their hands. I won't let that happen. There will be justice."
Black Death roared to life under Duo's hands and sped off to stop the monster's from killing again.
***
Dorothy paced furiously alongside the smoldering remains of the Mobile Suit Carrier. She clenched and unclenched her fists, the flames openly mocking her. The rain had taken care of much of the blaze but some of it refused to die out. The rain soaked her hair, matting it to her head, her flight suit repelling some, but not all of the incoming water. Yet another indignity she had to deal with today.
"General Catalonia," shouted Davis, running up and performing a salute to her commander.
Dorothy waved her off. Normally she'd revel in the attention that Davis had to offer, but she was not in the mood. "No time for formalities now Davis. What happened here, other than the obvious?"
Davis thought for a minute, as if choosing her next words carefully, then with a shrug of her shoulders went ahead as if she'd accepted she was about to go running onto a sword. "We found the good doctor crawling around and sobbing on the ground. He'd been beaten and cut up and I had him removed from the scene to the infirmary."
Dorothy leapt up. "Let's go. I have some questions for that fat bastard," Dorothy said, pulling out her sword from behind her back. She carried it in its sheath, but there was no doubt in anyone's mind she wasn't keeping it there. Davis gave her a bemused look. Dorothy simply smiled back. "I have a feeling I won't like his answers. His usefulness is at an end I think. Call it a dominatrix intuition, my pet. I'm going to take what he owes us out of his worthless hide."
Dorothy and her second-in-command strode into the small travelling infirmary, doctors and nurses scattering about, tending to the few wounded in the explosion. Davis directed her 'mistress' to a nearby room as she took up a guard position outside the door. General Catalonia waltzed in like a wet cat emerging from the bathtub. The nurse sensed her mood and fled the room. Dorothy was not amused. Dutch lay sleeping in the bed as she took a chair turned it backwards, sitting so her legs straddled either side of the back. Removing her sword from its sheath, she let it rest on the back of the chair and waited patiently for the "doctor" to wake up.
After about twenty minutes, he came to, jumping out of his skin when he saw Dorothy sitting in front of him. "Don't scare me like that! I've been through enough today, I don't need a heart attack on top of it!"
"Shut up Dutch," ordered Dorothy. "I want to know what caused the explosion. They tell me you were in there. Well over half of my forces are gone, including most of the new Serpent Mobile Suits. I want answers fat boy."
She emphasized her statement by poking him with her sword. He squirmed a bit, eyeing the sharp blade edging even closer to something vital.
"It was some weirdo freak painted up like a dead clown. He got inside the hangar and I thought I could take him. He wasn't that tall, average build with this long dark hair. And he had a bird with him, a big black fucking thing that tried to take a dump on me."
"A bird?" Dorothy snorted. "A boy and his bird."
"He told me to tell you guys that death was coming for you, whatever the hell that means. And he rode off with Yuy's laptop. He set the explosion up, using thruster fuel and some kind of exploding shell."
"Oh?" asked Dorothy, not taking her eyes off him for a second. "Can you continue your work without the laptop? I thought you made back-ups."
Dutch nodded his head. "I did, but they relied on Yuy's encryption codes. We need the laptop. It has the plans for the Serpents on it as well as the upgrade I had planned. They won't be able to really outmaneuver the White Taurus suits without the upgrade. The Royal Guard would maintain the speed edge on you at least. There was information on the Gundams there as well."
"You incompetent fool!" shouted Dorothy, whipping her chair across the room as she stood up. "Do you realize what you've done? Now Relena will have an edge over us!" She butted him in the face with the handle of the sword, putting his head into the wall hard.
"Not only are you clumsy and stupid, but you are a fool Dutch Hopple! Your weakness disgusts me. I won't have it in my army any longer!"
Dorothy stabbed downward with her sword, twisting it into the fat man's belly. Pulling upwards with ease she cut him open up to his ribcage, leaving the sword standing as a monument amongst the gore. He whimpered a bit, gurgling blood from his mouth. Davis came in all smiles when she heard Dorothy's shout. She wanted to see the show and was disappointed to already find him dying.
He spat up some blood, hitting Dorothy's cheek in the process. She reached over and grabbed Davis' firearm, putting two bullets in his side. He gurgled some more, almost in defiance of Dorothy's attempt to kill him.
"Oh for fuck's sake die!" she yelled, her icy cold demeanor broken in a fit of rage as she fired the gun twice more. The body stopped twitching finally, and Dutch lay dead, his message sinking slowly into the general's mind.
"I take it that Dutch outlived his usefulness?" Davis asked, her understatement meant to lighten the mood.
"Throw it out with the trash," Dorothy said, handing over the sidearm. She went and retrieved the sword, wiping it clean on the bed sheets. "Be on the lookout for some guy painted like a dead clown with a big black bird. I want him eliminated from the equation. I will not have anything screwing this up for us."
***
Relena headed down the dark steps to the hangar below the somewhat deserted manor. Many ghosts haunted those halls, not all of them entirely dead. So she had the ghosts, her thoughts and her small flashlight to keep her company. Noin and Sally Po hadn't thought it was a good idea for her to be off alone, but she assured them she'd be fine. Everything was fine. She hadn't told them Quatre had disappeared, just that she needed some time alone with her thoughts, which hadn't been far from the truth. She needed a few minutes alone with Deathscythe. It was the only thing she had left of their relationship, all three of them. Wing had been unsalvageable, but Deathscythe had been mostly intact. Duo had always been the glue that held the three of them together, even if she had always been an outsider, Duo always tried to include her when he could, not out of pity she had hoped, but they had loved as well. Duo didn't seem to remember her though, only as a friend, or a rival.
She hoped that she might be able to talk to Duo through Deathscythe. She didn't know how, but she needed to let Duo know she still cared, even if he didn't remember. Dorothy would pay a high price indeed. But why wasn't Duo back to help them? It didn't make any sense. Deathscythe would know what to do. Relena stopped, realized what she was thinking and shook her head. Here she was giving the Gundam sentience again. It was a machine. It needed a pilot. It was not alive. So why was she so compelled to talk to it, to share her thoughts and feelings with it? Being so open to something that would just listen and not judge her was the easy explanation. There was something much larger at work here. She resumed her descent down the stairs. She really needed to talk with the Gundam.
Voices from down below broke Relena from her thoughts. Was Quatre down there? At first she quickened her pace, then fear got the better of her and made her stop and think. What if it was one of Dorothy's monsters, or a raider? She pulled her sidearm, the one Noin had insisted she wear after she had taken the course on firearm safety and operation. Hitting the target was much easier now after some training. Une and Noin teased her quite a bit concerning that stray shot that very nearly hit a pillar almost 16 years ago. Relena was never amused by it, but she had used it to learn. She never missed anymore.
Slowly, Relena inched her way out of the small alcove, weapon drawn at the ready. A familiar voice made her nearly drop the custom designed weapon.
"Just take the eye sensor and put it over there. We'll do a test run on it later."
It was Howard! Holstering her gun, Relena ran out and glomped the unsuspecting Howard who almost fell to the floor. He very quickly regained his composure when he saw who it was.
"Howard," she cried, snuggling up to the man who had acted as her grandfather so many years ago. He returned the hug, holding the woman in his arms tightly. It had been nearly 5 years since the two had seen each other.
"Hello Relena," he said, holding her at arm's reach. "And how have you been?"
"Don't you mean where? You're the one who disappeared, although it looks to me like you've kept busy," said Relena, a touch of sarcasm in her voice. "How long has it been since you at least e-mailed me? 6, no 7 months!"
"I'm sorry child," he said sincerely. "My work is important."
Relena suddenly realized he had his full crew here. Why was he here? What were they working on the Gundam grave for? "What are you doing?" she managed to blurt out, among the many questions running through her mind.
"Following instructions. Quatre is having me reconstruct Sandrock. I'm using what was left here as starting materials. Can't manufacture Gundanium on Earth but you can mold it, and anything we can't mold can be replaced with Titanium and Titanium casing. It worked for the Tallgeese, it should still be applicable here."
"Howard, this is me you're talking to. You know I never understood any of the technical…wait, you saw Quatre?" she asked, looking around, seeing only Howard's technicians. She was hoping for a Maguanac, anything that would signify Quatre's return. She was worried about him and it showed.
"He's left. Said he had some things to take care of. I'd tell you more, but Quatre swore me to secrecy."
"And here I thought you'd given up that cloak and dagger game with me." Relena sighed and headed towards Deathscythe.
"What are you up to, young lady?" asked Howard. "I thought you'd want to talk."
She turned to him. "I will talk to you later Howard, right now I need to commune with the dead."
***
Duo had found Alex and Mueller easily. He had stashed Black Death in the same alleyway as before, then simply followed the crow to the old superstructure of a high-rise. Some of it had been rebuilt to use as a watchtower during the Oz revolution nearly 15 years before, and then it was abandoned. It had caught fire several times due to vandals and only recently a movement to make it into a monument had been started. Construction equipment littered the ground, the grant money out for now. It hadn't been a small task but the small town had been confident that it could rebuild it on its meager funds. Here it sat. A monument to the last 15 years of hardship. Duo entered the rusty doors, knowing for certain that this would be Alex and Mueller's' tomb.
Justice.Innocence.
Life.
Victory.
Death.
The interior of the forgotten tower was as nasty as the outside, its roof was still intact, but that was the only thing. Holes had been broken along the sides and permeated the floors leading upwards. Not a good place to die in at all. Duo would save Jessi. His life would not end here.
Innocence.Life.
The floor Alex and Mueller had chosen was the only intact or relatively intact one in the whole building. Being the most important part of the tower, the top had been reinforced to withstand more, the only real blemish smoke damage and a rounded hole in the middle of the floor. A single blood trail marred the entrance, leading into the room. It was small, but could be fatal if not treated. Jessi was not the bleeding type. The crow flew into the large room, seeking out Shinigami's new victims. In an unused, slightly soiled corner, Mueller kicked at the prone body of Jessi on the floor. Alex stood to the other side, his blonde hair matted down from the rain egged Mueller to kick him harder.
Duo could see it all through the eyes of his familiar. His vision flashed and he knew he was seeing an exaggerated vision of the past, but it fueled him even more. Alex and Mueller laughing on a battlefield, they stand over the broken bodies of Wufei and Quatre, each holding the head of the Gundam they had claimed. Wufei had thought Jessi had been involved, he hadn't realized it was Alex and Mueller. Duo knew this was right and just. Quatre's heart reached out to Duo as well, his warmth and love warming him, encouraging him to the revenge and steps he'd need to take.
Justice.Life.
He walked calmly and with purpose towards the unsuspecting murderers. His only weapon was Heero's pistol that he had used at the suit hangar, but he knew it wouldn't be necessary. These two deserved the beating they were about to receive, and he didn't want to waste two perfectly good bullets.
"Gentlemen," Duo called out across the room. "The game you're playing at seems quite unfair as you're holding all the cards. I think you need another player. Allow Shinigami to cut the deck!"
Duo swung at Mueller's head, his first jab missed the second snapping Mueller's head back, two teeth flying from his mouth. Mueller slumped to the floor next to Jessi's unconscious body, blood flowing from his nose and mouth.
Alex leapt into it with several repeating kicks to Duo's side, knocking him to the floor. Alex stood gloating as he took out his survival knife. He didn't know who this painted freak was, be he'd give him a smile to remember, forever.
As he leaned over Duo, Shinigami swept his legs out, knocking Alex onto his back. Duo leapt up onto his feet in one swift motion. Striding over to Alex, he shot out his hands, grabbing Alex's collar. Duo hefted him up, spun around and slammed him against a wall.
"Hiya pretty boy!" spat Duo, shaking Alex so his head bounced roughly off the wooden planks. "I don't suppose you remember this face, do you?"
"Let me go you insane freak!" shouted Alex, struggling to free himself from Duo's deadly grip.
"You don't do you?" Duo almost sounded amused. He held Alex up with one hand; using a strength he never had before and pulled his braid around with his free hand. Alex's face paled as he realized who this 'freak' was.
"No. You're dead! All of you were dead! We killed you! Dorothy said you were dead!"
"Aww," teased Duo. "I guess you've strayed too far from the Emerald City, eh scarecrow?" He tossed Alex away. His body hit a nearby pillar with a sickening thud, music to Duo's vengeful ears. Two cracked ribs and a broken arm. Duo smiled. "The fun ahs just begun!"
Shinigami turned to the corner where Jessi lay only to find his other target, Mueller, had fled. He began looking around for the fish-bowl haired murderer, when he was hit from behind, forcing him over the edge of the gaping maw of the floor. Through the darkness, Duo could see the ground rushing up at him. Even though he could heal himself, he knew this one would be painful and take some time, during which Alex and Mueller would kill Jessi and escape. He had screwed up big time.
Justice.Victory!
White light enveloped Duo, covering him in a warmth he had only known once before, Heero's arms. The onrushing ground was gone; nothing was there anymore. It didn't matter to him. Nothing mattered here. This was where Heero was. Duo saw the angel of light before him, his outstretched hand reaching for Duo's own. Duo accepted the gesture, Heero's blinding light covering him like a blanket, the warmth rushing over him yet again. He never wanted to leave here again. Heero smiled, spreading wide his white angelic wings. They flared behind him much like they had on his Gundam. How had he known? Tears welled in Duo's eyes.
"Heero," Duo cried. Heero quieted Duo with a finger to his lips. Warm, beautiful feelings and memories flowed through Duo. He saw their first kiss as a couple, a random day at the beach, their spacewalk in orbit over Mars, their wedding day and Heero's gentle sway on the dance floor. Shinigami smiled.
"I have a gift for you Duo," said Heero, hi lips never moving. The light began to fade.
"No!" shouted Duo. "Not yet! I don't want to go!"
"There is a time and place for your return, koi, but it is not yet here. Take my gift and fly for me, dark avenger."
Heero faded out, the light going with him. Duo was back in the building, it's gross decayed interior surrounding him once again. A gentle, recurring wind was passing over him, almost like a breeze. He looked to see where the source was and found two large, bat-like wings holding him aloft over the pit. Not twisted or ugly, these shivered in the light, catching it all, yet still hiding in the darkness. Perfect for his role here.
Victory.Life.
Death.
Innocence.
Justice.
Tears flowed down Duo's cheeks as he launched himself upwards. Heero had given him such a beautiful gift, one he would use well! He flew upwards, gaining speed towards the opening and his revenge.
Mueller had held Alex up in a cradle fashion as they made their way to the door. Alex limped along, his ribs aching with each step, arm hanging limply at his side. Duo had under-estimated Alex's lifespan. Mueller recognized signs of internal bleeding. Alex would need medical attention very soon indeed. The crow at patiently in a window, knowing that neither man would leave. It was their time to go. Neither man saw the bird, or heard the wind rushing form Duo's wings as he emerged from the hole in the floor. He was quick to propel himself forward and toward the two men attempting escape.
Duo slammed Mueller aside, snatching the whimpering Alex from him. Mueller went to attack the dark clown freak, but could only stare in astonishment as he watched Duo fly away from him, carrying his partner to the very pit he had tried to send Duo to hell in. Duo's wings caught the light well, glittering in the light filtering through the boards there. They seemed to cast an irresistible spell that he could not look away from, but like so many other thins were gone just as quickly. A muffled cry from below broke Mueller from his dumbstruck state and he rushed over to try and assist Alex. His confidence in his abilities were soon broken once again as the winged man flew up from the pit, like a demon emerging from the fiery pits of hell. Duo landed gracefully on the floor, pulling himself down to one knee as he folded the wings in close to his back. He looked up, the fire in his eyes forcing Mueller to take a few steps back from their sheer intensity. He stood up and began pacing himself around Mueller.
"You stay away from me," Mueller sputtered, drawing a blade. "I'm warning you." He waved his weapon at Duo to emphasize his point.
Duo put his arms behind him, softly laughing to himself and pacing around Mueller as if it was a stroll through the park. "You both seem to love your knives, don't you? I taught your friend a rather quick lesson as to why he shouldn't play with then. I guess I'll have to teach you that very same lesson. Do you remember me, Mueller? Alex did."
"You shut up, you fucking freak!" Mueller shouted, losing his cool as he kept the knife between himself and the avenging angel. Duo simply continued his stroll.
"Mueller, of all the people. And I thought you kept a running tally. At least that's what you bragged to Wufei."
Mental images flashed between the two men, Nataku lying nearly powerless, Wufei attempting to retaliate. Alex and Mueller in their Mobile Suits gloating, taunting; their suits' fists hammering away at the weakened Gundanium armor. Wufei shuddered around the inside, head bleeding, dying as the cockpit caved in on him, his beloved Nataku betraying him; dying without pride, without honor, without justice.
Justice.
Realization dawned on Mueller as if he'd been hit in the face with a brick. The violet eyes, the hair, the well-worn black outfit befitting a priest and the black wings of Shinigami reborn. "Duo Maxwell! You're Duo Maxwell! But Dorothy killed you! You're dead!"
"Yeah, I get that a lot." Duo moved lightning quick, his hands flying out in a classic martial arts maneuver, knocking Mueller backwards as the wind escaped from his chest. He hadn't even seen Duo move. Duo didn't have moves like this. Mueller had seen the file, read it, studied it. The only Gundam pilot with any real martial arts training had been Wufei. Even then he had learned it later in life, but he had been damn good while he was in the Preventers, before Dorothy rose up with her little band. It was almost like Duo was channeling Wufei somehow. This terrified him even more.
Mueller concentrated hard, following Duo's moves the best he could, sliding behind pillars, blocking kicks. He managed a few times to strike out with his knife, but it did no good. Shinigami was just too quick. Duo's answer to the slashes was a series of punches and kicks that served to remind him he had gotten to close. Finally, Mueller made contact, slicing open Duo's abdomen. Duo looked down in shock as a small trickle of blood flowed from the open wound. He was about to celebrate when Shinigami laughed heartily, the laugh of a man unafraid of death. The gash that would have put another man down for good had begun to seal itself, pulling closing, healing. Duo let out a small cheer, the looked up at his would-be assailant. Holding up his right hand, he waved his index finger indicating that Mueller shouldn't have done that. A dark look descended upon Duo's face.
Justice.
Duo whipped up the trenchcoat he had dropped on the floor when he had entered the room, twisting it around like a whip. He shot it out at Mueller, the trench wrapping around his arm. Duo yanked sharply, a loud snapping noise emitting form Mueller's now broken arm. He screamed out, dropping his blade to the floor. Mueller knew he had lost all chance of getting out by force, he'd need to think his way out of this one, just like Noin had taught him.
Duo smiled. "Would you like to join your friend, Mueller? There will be much justice this day my friend." He spread wide his wings, looking very much like the Gundam he had piloted. He launched himself up into the air, the higher ceiling affording him a lot of room to move. Not having released Mueller's arm from his coat, he was yanked into the air along with Duo, screaming as his arm became even more crooked, the splintered bones grinding against each other, threatening to tear out of his skin. Duo dropped suddenly, falling into the open floor, Mueller trailing behind, his screams fading into the darkness of the pit.
He stopped two floors down, planting Mueller on a ledge with no means of escape other than a swan dive. Duo began pulling the concealed blades from Mueller's person, each good quality and designed for throwing, much like Alex's.
"What are you going to do?" asked Mueller, tears of pain streaming from his face. Duo had released his mangled arm, which hung limply at his side.
"I'm going to finish the job Zechs didn't all those years ago. I would ask how you made it out of your mobile suits, but I don't care. I'm going to give you the sentence you deserve, monster," spat Duo, his wings flapping calmly in the darkness, keeping him aloft. Mueller expected him to grow fangs and drink his blood, and yet he sensed an opening here.
"You're the monster Maxwell!" yelled Mueller, gently holding his broken arm.
"I'm the monster you should have been Mueller! Sent up from hell to eliminate murderous bastards like you," Duo said, toying with the knives he had confiscated. "Give my regards to the real Shinigami when you meet him. I'm simply his messenger." The first knife left Duo's hand, pinning Mueller's left arm up to the boards; the second knife pinned his leg. Mueller cried out for it to stop, but Duo threw two more. Mueller was being held up by the blades in a mock imitation of Christ, Duo's little gift to crucifixion. Mueller struggled against the knives that were buried so deep in wood and flesh trying to free himself.
"It's a long drop to hell, Mueller. Glad to see you're so anxious to get there. So much like you're friend." Duo flew to the side, giving Mueller a view of Alex's body hanging limply from rotting boards, also hung like Mueller by his own blades. But Alex was dead already, a symbol carved into his head, the Preventer symbol.
"Alex! Oh god! Alex No!" cried Mueller. "You sick fuck! I don't deserve this!"
"Oh really?" Duo got up in Mueller's face. "Tell that to the families you murdered, to the innocent, to the weak you destroyed in a nameless cause simply because you got your rocks off doing it! How many are there Mueller? How many?" Duo flitted back, eyeing Mueller with a sullen expression. "You aren't a god-fearing man, are you Mueller? I don't suppose you are. Then you don't fear me, do you? Death?"
"Alex talked me into it, I swear!" Mueller pleaded for his life. "He did it. He corrupted my soul!"
Duo shook his head. He knew the lies, the deceit, the murder and chaos this man promoted. He saw Mueller standing over fields of victims that had died at his hands. And now Mueller sought to blame it on his best friend and co-conspirator. Duo could only laugh as he threw the knife that ended Mueller's life, his skull stuck against the wall. Duo's laughter turned to tears, as pain burned his very soul. Was he a monster as Mueller had claimed? Was he as bad as these two hanging dead by his hands? Duo wiped them from his eyes. No time for these questions now.
Shinigami flew over to Mueller, removing the last knife he had thrown, carving an identical Preventer symbol in his forehead. Duo wiped the knife clean, staring at his reflection in this knife, this murderer's knife, hoping to see himself reflected in it, a true reflection. But there was none. He saw only his face, the one he had lived with for so many years. There was no truth here. Duo dropped the knife, watching it fall down the shaft and sink into the soft earth below.
"Victims," Duo muttered. "Aren't we all?"
***
Dorothy walked around the camp. The fire had finally been extinguishes, along with most of her advantage. Only six of the Serpent Mobile Suits had survived the blast and the blaze. That was a very serious problem. Even if her Aries were more advanced, they were still no real match for a skilled pilot in a Taurus suit. Serpents had better armor, more speed, everything they needed to take down the defensive Sank Kingdom, and then the world. It had almost succeeded before when that Marimeia bitch had tried it. Dorothy had told her it was too soon to act when she left, but she would hear none of it. And so Dorothy had left.
The thought of Relena cowering before her made her smile, but it faded quickly as she thought of the clown from hell that had severely hampered her hostile takeover bid. Some freak with long hair out for revenge. It had an air of familiarity to it, but who would want revenge now? She had so many years of broken promises and dead bodies. Why now? She thought of her enemies. Over the years she had had many, but there were no surviving ones other than in the Sank Kingdom. She found a chair nearby and sat with her thoughts.
Alex and Mueller were supposed to keep in touch with her, and now those two had gone AWOL. Not like them at all. Dorothy caught sight of Davis and waved her over.
"Yes, general?" asked her 2nd lieutenant.
"Alex and Mueller have been gone for to long, and that freak that Dutch was babbling about is still out there somewhere. I've tried raising them on the comm, but they're not responding which is not like them."
"Understood. I shall keep an eye open. I take it you know where they ran off to?"
"Ten miles from here. Little town in the middle of nowhere. They were going to take care of Christo's old friend, Jessi. They'll have found an abandoned building. They like their little games, but be careful. I need you here by my side in the coming battle, Davis."
She nodded, giving Dorothy a casual salute as she made her way to the transportation department. Davis would find them for Dorothy, and would return she was sure of it. Then she could finally show up that bastard Christo and have Dorothy for herself. She would be returning for sure.
***
An ornithopter lay on its side in the desert, footsteps being covered by the small sandstorm that was brewing. It had run out of fuel towards the end of its flight and had made a less that graceful landing in the dune. Ten hours before its pilot had been arranging to have Sandrock rebuilt.
Following the path he knew by heart, compass and sky, Quatre Rebarba Winner pulled the cloak he wore tighter about him. It was only another fifteen miles to the Maguanac base, but it was going to be a hard trek for the Arabian man. Quatre adjusted his goggles, resealing them against his face, locking the blinding sand out from his blue eyes.
Once again, people depended on him. Duo had a mission, a reason to be here, a purpose to fulfill. Quatre had one as well, but it was muddled and needed refinement in order to be more noble. Relena could help him with that, he knew. But he needed a small army to help take Dorothy and her troops on, one the Sank Kingdom could afford to lose if it came down to that. Quatre smiled as he remembered the forty men of the noble Maguanac Core. He had ordered them away when things had gotten bad for the Sank Kingdom a year ago. He knew they'd be needed at home to defend their families and Quatre had thought the Gundams would have been enough to take on Dorothy. How wrong he had been in his assumptions.
So lost in his thoughts, Quatre didn't notice the men surrounding him through the storm, arming weapons, all locked on him. Several surprised him, leaping up from the sand before him, weapons drawn.
"You are not welcome here stranger," said the taller one, his voice commanding much authority. "Go back to your craft and call for help. You will find only death in any other direction of this desert."
"It is good to see you again as well, Rashid," said Quatre smiling, pulling back on the hood of his cloak.
"Master Quatre!" Rashid rushed up lifting Quatre off the ground, the other Maguanacs celebrating as well. Yes, the future was looking brighter indeed.
TO BE CONTINUED…
