Hi there
My sincere apologies for the chapter being so very late and yes, Alternatives will be late as well. Again sorry, but real life is biting and while late the chapters will be coming.
Any mistakes in this chapter are solely my idiocy in deciding to tinker with the chapter a bit before I posted it up. Hope you enjoy.
Karina
Bishi Pile Challenge:
Major challenge response: Information, Organisation, Determination, Curiosity
Minor challenge response: Shadows, Contest
Word count: 2,627
Series: Friends 2: Friends and Enemies
Author: Karina
Pairings: Zechs + Duo, Trowa x Quatre
Ratings: M 15+ [In Australia] Rated in the event of bad language and violence.
Disclaimer: I don't own Gundam Wing or the characters.
Warnings: No apology given for Aussie spelling, but fair warning given.
Many thanks to Katie and ShenLong Deb for betaing this fic and to Dragon Dagger for allowing herself to be used as something of a sounding board to keep me on the right path. Thank you ladies.
Character Challenge: Heero, Trowa and Une
Chapter 10
Heero glared into the darkness of the night, his attention focused on the lights of the small convoy made up of the nondescript van and two dark coloured, possibly green, sedans. All were generic models with nothing distinctive that might possibly mark them from a similar vehicle; and not one of the three vehicles had registration plates or stickers on the windscreen. The van had tucked into the centre position before it had left the terminal precinct and the tail lights of the three vehicles were lost in the darkness of the night too quickly.
For the lights to have been lost so abruptly they had to have shut off the lights once they drove clear of the perimeter of the airfield and, unless Une had a scout out there in the darkness, it would be hard to determine the direction the small convoy took. It was a potential problem, but one that was certainly not insurmountable.
He would just need to be mildly inventive to track them. A satellite link would assist in revealing them, all he needed to do was find a satellite that passed overhead at the right time and hack into it.
First he needed to make up his mind about what it was he intended to do, both immediately after returning to base and in his future. Relena and the future he might have with her or… ? Or indeed. He had spent years trying to fit in with the world around him, doing his utmost to become 'ordinary' and could he, in all honesty, say he had felt 'ordinary' during this time? What was ordinary anyway? He had spent years trying to act something he still did not understand.
Had he ever felt like 'one of the boys'?
One of the Gundam Boys, yes. He felt comfortable enough in their company, but with others, even Preventer agents assigned to Relena's security detail, did he ever feel like he was accounted as one of 'them'? He knew he would never be like the kid who lived down the road, not even like that mythological 'kid' made good as an adult. He certainly was not a kid now, not a teenager at all. He was a young man who was, despite the years since the war, still listed as dangerous and to be approached with caution.
Did they think he was an idiot, a trusting fool to not check their supposedly confidential files? Of course he checked. Their security was pathetic, worse than the Preventers database that he browsed every other day. When you lived on the edge of tolerance information was the primary key to staying alive and he made it his business to know what was happening around him.
He wanted to live. He wanted a life beyond being someone's attack dog. He wanted… something. He wasn't even sure what it was, just that he wanted it.
He looked into confidential files and he caught, amongst other things, whispers; rumours of clandestine operations. Not once had he guessed that Marquise was a part of the whispered existence, but never confirmed, Black Ops organisation. Preventer had a Special Operations Unit, sometimes he took part in their operations, and Chang and Barton were a core part of the unit. But this other group, they were little more than a whisper in intelligence circles. It made sense, the man was downright dangerous and knowing what he did now, that Marquise had been modified in a similar fashion to his own physical alternations… Yes, it made sense, but he still would not have expected it.
The man was Relena's brother. If the Prince of Sanc was active with a Black Ops group the repercussions of discovery would tremble the world as they knew it. Accusations could be made against the world government and Sanc would be in the thick of it. He was the Prince of Sanc after all, even though Relena still insisted on believing in a one nation world. Bloodlines mattered in this day and age no less than in the past. Reality said it was never going to be as simple as claiming something did not exist.
Marquise had, on his return from Mars or some time prior to it, made a decision; stepping back from his relationship with Lucrezia Noin, Preventers and Relena in the process. Why? Heero had little doubt it was the man attempting to protect them, though the ladies would not appreciate that protection or understand it. Noin was a professional herself and certainly would not appreciate the act, she did not like to be considered weak, and Relena simply would not understand, but Heero did.
In good conscience could he step back from the normal life he had hoped for, step away from and give up on getting closer to Relena in a totally unprofessional and intensely personal manner? Could he do that now he had come so far?
Did he want to do it?
Was it even his place to consider stepping over the clearly drawn line on his right hand side and immerse himself in Marquise's mess? Or should he stop hesitating and take that step that would place him over the line on his left hand side and put him squarely into the 'normal' and 'every day category' of life? The life he was less than comfortable with and yet yearned for.
If he did so, if he made the call and chose to interfere with whatever Marquise was involved in, then he could not turn back. He had to know and understand his own personal reasons before he took the fateful step.
To protect the peace? That was an easy excuse, far too easy. To protect Relena's interests? That too was an easy excuse for him to use and he could do better.
Was it just because he could not leave it alone?
That… had an uncomfortable ring of truth about it.
—-
Trowa scanned the darkness, seeking some sign of the little cavalcade driving away from the terminal and he had to applaud their caution. Such a simple act as turning off the lights of the vehicles could slow down any possible pursuit. They had made it hard, harder certainly, but not impossible to track their course. Professionals, as one would expect of a Black Ops group.
He made a mental note of the time he lost track of the lights, it would aid in tracking down the agents when he had the time and opportunity. It was not, technically, his business, and he really wanted nothing to do with the matter, but other people would make it his business. Because he knew that somewhere along the line he would be dragged into the mess and he intended to get some idea of what was going down, whether Une wanted Preventers to be involved or not.
She would not, of course. Une had a reputation for moments of insanity, but she was hardly insane and she intended Preventers to stand as Khushrenada's monument. She would do anything to preserve the peace he had died for and getting the organisation involved in Marquise's madness would not be on her agenda.
It would not be Une who meddled and, much as he might like to entertain the notion of not interfering, he could not ignore the simple fact that Maxwell had become involved. Duo Maxwell had actually been interested in Marquise and Maxwell had never been able to keep his nose out of anything that could remotely be considered a curiosity.
Trowa was curious, yes, he admitted that. He would like to know more about the group Marquise worked for, but not at the cost of the life he had put such painstaking effort into crafting. There would always be intelligence groups working against each other; it was what made the world go around, the constant give and take, the push and pull, the sneaking behind the scenes. Information was the key to success in their civilisation and sometimes one had to get down and dirty to gain information.
It was not the existence of this group that would get him involved in Marquise's business but Maxwell and his infernal curiosity. Whatever had happened up on that mountain between Maxwell and Marquise before his group had arrived, had made an impression on Duo. He knew the man well enough to know the braided menace would not be able to leave well enough alone and, purely because Maxwell was involved, Quatre would get involved when he found out Maxwell was up to mischief.
His blonde lover had his own brand of curiosity and would not be able to keep his shapely little nose out of the mess. It was just how Quatre was. If there was the slightest chance of Duo getting involved, or any of their select group of friends for that matter, then Quatre would involve himself. While Trowa loved the man there were some days he could simply walk away, pulling his hair out by the roots and screaming his frustration.
And mischief? Ugh, what was he thinking? He could not really call what Maxwell excelled at 'mischief', not when this instance had the potential to bring about fatalities and a potentially viable threat to the peace. Anything that involved Marquise could not be straight forward and simple, that had to be some fundamental law of the universe.
The man had layers of deception, deceit and camouflage that obscured the truth of whatever he turned his hand to.
It was inevitable that Quatre, given the slightest whiff of this mess, would become fascinated and be determined to unravel the mystery.
Despite all advice to the contrary, if Maxwell delayed long enough to ask for advice, Duo would get involved. It seemed inevitable given his curious nature and somewhat unusual sense of ethics, and that meant Quatre would feel the need to step in. The resulting avalanche would be unstoppable. When Quatre became involved another keystone on the mountain slope would be dislodged and Trowa, likely the others too, would be swept into the scree cascading down the mountain slope of consequence.
He would find himself with no choice but to take action, first in an attempt to head off the pair and inevitably to help rescue them when they jumped fearlessly into the fire.
Honestly, was Marquise worth it? And Bradford. Now that arsehole might be worth the trouble to put himself in the way of a good rumble. There was a nasty piece of work if ever he saw one, and if there were others like him… Well. Maybe it might be worth a look.
He was spoiling for a good fight.
Ah, a bit of honesty. He could not lay all of the blame if he chanced to became involved at Duo's feet. The fact was he was already curious, mildly so, but curious none-the-less, spoke volumes. And from the intense expression on Yuy's face he was not the only one who would not say 'no' to the chance to test the skills they had rarely had occasion to use since the war.
Preventers had people to do much of the work they had needed to perform in the past. They were given the missions with most of the details intact and accurate, and there was little need to meddle with carefully thought out mission parameters. Going after this group would be like going back in time to a period when they were largely on their own.
Besides, he was sure he was not the only one who would want to test the abilities of Bradford.
Ah, he was back to Bradford again? So was this going to be more about getting the chance to try himself against Bradford than because Marquise was involved? It was like his inability to leave a new big cat at the circus alone. He had to look, he had to prod, he had to test the bounds of tolerance and assure himself of his own superiority, his own mastery. But with a big cat it was, in essence, to make himself a part of an accepted pride hierarchy; with Bradford it would be more lion against lion, testing strengths for territory and mates.
He was not at all adverse to the idea of taking on the arrogant prick who clearly thought he was better than all of them combined. Cold brown eyes. The eyes of a dispassionate killer. An intelligent killer though, not a brute. Bradford would kill coldly and cleanly and he would enjoy the kill, but he would not be a brute out for the thrill of blood, guts and gore. That one would be coldly clinical, efficient to the extreme and not afraid to test his limits. Much like one of the big cats.
No, more like a wolf, though wolves hunted in packs… and there were bound to be others like him in the Black Ops group. So why was Marquise a part of them? The picture just did not fit.
Bradford. He would remember the name and the face and if Yuy did not already have the idea, then he would investigate that particular man. There would be a service record for him somewhere, presumably buried under a mountain of security classifications, but since when had that stopped them? They would find his record and they would track the bastard and they just might go head to head with him.
"Barton, you ride with me."
His eyes snapped to Yuy who was looking carefully blank. That coldly snapped out command was unexpected. Trowa hesitated, eyes flicking to Une and then to each of his comrades in turn. Two plain Preventer cars were parked just beyond the fence they were approaching, the figures of two Preventer agents' darker shadows standing near them. Guards, he realised. Une took the threat from the Black Ops group seriously and did not feel secure even now.
Ambush? Did she suspect there would be trouble on their return to Preventers? How many agents had she assigned to this mission? He had the feeling the terminal and its immediate surrounds was rather more crowded than he had initially assumed. A quick glance over his shoulder revealed two dark figures entering the helicopter they were well clear of now. The machine would be serviced, all indication of the use it had been put to, and who had been on-board, would be removed and then the machine would be returned to its hanger.
Efficient as always.
Une motioned to the lead vehicle. "Yuy, Chang. Car alpha. There is a set safe route on the GPS. Straight to headquarters for debriefing and be aware there will be two escort vehicles maintaining a parallel course."
Why was he singled out to accompany Une?
Heero did not so much as blink as he made for the lead car, though Wu Fei's nostrils flared as he followed. Chang was Trowa's assigned partner while Heero concentrated on his assignment of maintaining Relena Darlian's security detail. Chang was not exactly pleased to have his partner singled out and separated from him before debriefing, and Trowa could not say that he was particularly thrilled with the distinction either.
Une led the way to the beta vehicle and as Trowa settled in the rear seat beside Une the driver activated the privacy screen separating the front from the back, giving Une a secure area. Slipping on his seatbelt Trowa watched the woman as the car rolled smoothly forward and followed the designated alpha vehicle.
A mobile phone fell into his lap and he glanced at Une, finding her coldly calculating eyes on him.
"Ring that meddlesome blonde of yours and convince him to get his nose out of matters that do not concern him."
/Oh, shit./
End
Karina Robertson 2011