This has a lot of explanations at the end of the rest of the basic plot and the reasoning behind the name of the Orbs. It's a pretty interesting story, now that I think of it. I like this story a lot, even to read myself again and again. And even though I have to in order to double-check things, I am drawn into the story itself and find it to be even better a story than before.
I'll explain the significance of my names next chapter. Yes, they actually have a significance. Isn't that interesting?

Disclaimer: I don't own it. I don't own Gundam Wing. But I wish I owned Duo! I love that braided baka and I hate what I do to him next chapter. Um...did I say that aloud? Well, you can't possibly find out yet that I-

I'm shutting up now.

Orbs of Emerald

Chapter 9: A Legend

***

It was a month later. We hadn't made much progress in teaching Heero how to be a kid again, or be one in general if he never had been. But my training was still going well. At least, that's what Duo and Quatre told me. Wufei refused to say anything on the subject whenever I prompted him.

It was time for our second report from Trowa. I was getting my computer skills a working as I coded and routed the message.

"The line is secure, Trowa, whenever you're ready," Quatre said, "manning" the talk station.

"They've found one of the Orbs," Trowa said. "It was in a cave on Mars. The celebration is still going on. I'll have to return soon as to not attract attention."
"Have you been able to gather any information on the Orbs?" Quatre asked.

"A lot. It was an old legend that said if you caught both Orbs together, their holder would be able to have an infinite number of granted wishes, similar to that of the old Arabian folk tale, the magic lamp thing. It also gives the power to rule over this world, controlling the fates, destiny, and chance. If the wrong person gets their hands on it, the ultimate power of choice will be eradicated from the system."

"Then we're not dealing with any ordinary gems, now are we?" Duo growled. "This mission is going to be a major headache."
"You said it," Quatre agreed. "So, what do we do?"

"Take the time to plan. I don't think the X Force will be able to locate the second gem for a while with its description," Trowa said. "So, how is the training going?"
"Training has ceased," Wufei answered. "Jeminie Kinde is now a full-fledged soldier among us. And no weaker than any man alive." He smiled at me as I looked at him in utter shock. "We will begin planning our strategy. We will contact you in two days to report on our status."
"Good luck, Wufei. Trowa out."

"You didn't tell me the training was complete," I said to Wufei with my hands on my hips.
"I was planning on a surprise. We will celebrate tonight," Wufei said stiffly. "The four of us have been preparing for this for quite some time now."

"The four of you?" I cocked an eyebrow. "You mean Heero and you have helped? Why? You probably didn't get a celebration for the completion of your training."
"We did, actually," Duo smirked. "And they were spectacular!"

"What Duo means to say is we didn't," Quatre said, chuckling. "But you completed your training in record time. No one has ever completed a training like that for one person in only two months' time."

Well...basically...it was a party. A party that did not just include my four trainers, either. They invited other people there as well. I hadn't expected other people to come. People that I'd never in a million years thought I'd meet.

Lady Une, the commander of the Preventers. Miss Noin, Mr. Miliardo, Sally, Hilde, people who had become quite famous with the sudden abrupt peace. Even Trowa's sister, Catherine, came, though her brother was absent. I was utterly torn between being star-struck and embarrassed that the four boys had invited them.

"You actually let him talk you into coming here?" asked Mr. Miliardo.

"I'm glad he talked me into it," I said, shrugging as a blush graced my cheeks. "Duo is pretty persuasive when he wants to be. But I would have been dead by now anyway. He's a good person, Mr. Miliardo."
"Please, Zechs," he said. "It was a pleasure meeting such a fine young woman."
"Thank you," I nodded my head slightly in a bow to be polite. "I just hope we can stop the X Force before they do anything drastic."

"As we all hope," said Miss Noin as she joined us. "I hope he isn't being a bother to you."
"Not at all, Miss Noin," I smiled. "A perfect gentleman, as all good soldiers should be."

"Well, I hate to say this, but I'm going to steal him for a short dance," Miss Noin said and winked at me.

"Sure. Go on ahead," I smiled. "There aren't many times you can these days."

So I was left to my own devices. I sank into the shadows, watching Miss Noin and Zechs dancing, as well as Lady Une and Quatre. Catherine had convinced a very-nervous Wufei to dance with her as well. Duo had found a partner as well in Sally. Miss Hilde was off to the side, watching carefully, a jovial smile on her face. She walked toward me a few seconds later.
"You should be proud, Jem," she said. "You've accomplished many things in a very short period of time."
"I am."
"I'm sorry about your brother," she said. "He was one of the finest soldiers I saw leave that day. I had to watch when they were killed many times to try and distinguish the cause of the explosion. He passed by the camera very close."
"He did not look scared. Did he, Miss Hilde?"

"No. Like any good soldier, he was calm and ready. He died with honor. That is all one can expect from a soldier," she knelt down to my eye-level, which was about four inches below herself. "I understand what it's like to lose someone like that. I lost my own family in the war as well."
"Have you defeated their shadows?" I asked, closing my eyes in an attempt to stop tears. They would not come if I concentrated enough. I recalled all of my training. They did not fall. I kept my eyes closed to allow them to dry first.

"Shadows?" Miss Hilde seemed surprised. "What do you mean?"

"Never mind," I shook my head. "It is nothing. Nothing of importance." She nodded slowly and righted herself.

"I'm sorry, but I must go," she said. "Take care, Jeminie Kinde."
"Back at ya," I said, my voice holding the same cold, dreary monotone that Heero's did. Speaking of Heero...where was he? The Perfect Soldier was no where to be seen. I took a quick glance around before turning to leave. The others were occupied. I needed some time to think about all of this.

Wearing my pale blue evening gown, I walked out into the forest, searching for a place I could sit down by myself where the others wouldn't find me. I walked aimlessly, just thinking over and over again about the Orbs of Emerald and their awesome, terrible powers.

"What if someone ambitious got their paws on them?" I thought aloud. "It could mean the end for us all. Whoever had the gems would probably make all the trained soldiers become part of a master army or something."

I soon found myself walking along the beach. My movements were purely instinct as I soon found myself among a large area of rocks that suddenly ended at the water's edge. I found a flat one near the dome that was at the end of the small ocean and sat down, staring up at the stars. I used to love looking at them. So bright and beautiful and so far away.

Each were so far out of my reach. I knew I would never be able to catch up to one, even if my life were lengthened a million years. Another star fell, reminding me of the wish I'd made.

"Please, stars," I whispered. "Let me find my destiny."

"I see you had the same idea," said a voice, breaking into my thoughts.
"Heero!" I shouted in surprise, standing up quickly. In doing so, I stepped on the short train of my evening gown and tripped backwards. He leapt forward, lightning-fast, and caught my arm, righting me.

"You should be more careful," he berated me.

"I know...I'm sorry," I looked down sheepishly. "Thanks."

"Don't let it happen again," Heero said. "I won't always be there to rescue you."
"Sure," I shrugged and sat down again. He joined me, the size of the rock forcing him a little closer than should have been comfortable. But it wasn't unpleasant. It was...soothing. His very presence was calming. But why? He said himself he wouldn't always be here to rescue me. Why would I feel safer when he's around?

"You were thinking about the gems, weren't you?" he accused of me, staring out at the stars instead of looking at me.

"Yeah," I admitted, nodding. "I mean, what if someone like that Mariemeia chick got their hands on it?"

"Mariemeia was not selfish. It was Dekim. He was the one who started Operation Meteor." Well, this was news to me.

"What do you mean? What was Operation Meteor?"

"What?" He sounded shocked, but only a little. I suppose that much emotion in his tone meant he was shocked beyond belief. He regained control, then continued. "I thought perhaps...but I suppose not."
"Thought what?"
"I had thought that Duo or Quatre had told you what our original mission was about. I guess I was wrong," he glanced at me, then back out at the stars. His eyes closed, as though he were remembering something from long, long ago.

"Our original mission, the reason we were trained to pilot the Gundams, was Operation: Meteor. It was simple: We go down to earth disguised as meteors and wage guerilla tactics against the Earth Unified Nations. However, we were each 'freed' in one way or another to fight with our hearts, not with our missions. I still followed my orders if they were not too extreme."
"So...that was why...that's the whole reason you..." I couldn't bring myself to say it.

"Dekim Barton created the entire thing as a setup to conquer the Earth," Heero looked at me darkly. I knew he was mad about it. "He was training the true Trowa Barton's niece, Mariemeia, to rule it as soon as it was conquered. However, two scientists shot and killed the original. Our Trowa, the one we know, took on his name for security reasons. Had it not been for that, Operation Meteor would have been a success."

"You guys didn't have names?" I asked, narrowing my eyes.

"Our names are our code-names. We were never really given names," Heero shrugged. "I never really knew my mother or father. I don't know if I had any siblings."
"So you could quite possibly be related to any one of the people you've killed and you wouldn't even know it," I said softly. "I'm sorry, Heero."
"Why?"

"I know it seems better not to have known your family," I said quietly, closing my eyes quickly to shield tears. "But if I had never known Jonathon, never known my father, I would never have been able to live in this world. My father may have hated me, but he was still blood. My brother may have killed himself without meaning or honor, but he was still my brother. And I live now knowing that he rests in peace."

"Releena said the same thing." Heero seemed to be in a daze. He was staring off into space at nothing in particular and his voice had that faraway feel to it. Like he was living in a dream.

"Releena?" I asked.

"She said that too. When we thought Zechs died," Heero still spoke in the same tone. "She said that. She said that she lived now knowing that he rests in peace."

"Blood is a hard thing to argue with," I said, shrugging. "Even though my mother died when I was young, I still loved her." I paused before asking a very deep question that I knew would rub salt into a wound, but I had to know. "What was she like? Releena, I mean."
He gave a sudden start and nearly fell into the ocean. The same reaction I'd had when he'd asked about Jon. Strange...and yet comforting. Why was his every move so reassuring? I righted him carefully.

"I suppose she wouldn't mind," he said softly. I gave a small start. That was almost the same thing I'd said...

"She was calm and graceful, everything Wufei thinks a woman should be. She had soft blue (?) eyes and kind of blond hair. A few shades lighter than yours. She wore it long," he closed his eyes. "She was stubborn. Especially when it came to matters of peace. She finally understood the meaning of the fight in the end of the battle with Mariemeia. Releena was willing to give up her life for everything if it would bring this world to peace. But her death has only wrought more war." His eyes darkened and his teeth clenched.

"Don't worry, Heero," I placed my hand over his tense fist calmingly. "We'll carry out her legacy and win the peace and freedom back. We'll bring peace back to the Earth Sphere, or we'll die trying."
"More likely the latter," he chuckled bitterly. It wasn't the happy laugh I loved to hear from him. It was a cold, sad, utterly-defeated laugh of a hollowed soul, one who needed to have their spirit replaced.

"More likely or not, Heero," I said calmly. "We'll do it. All of us together." He suddenly changed the subject again.

"Did we ever tell you which Gundams we piloted?"

"No, why would it matter?"

"It matters," Heero said, a no-questions tone to his voice.

"Why?" I asked. "Were they alive to you?"

"They were. They were our friends and allies as well," Heero sighed. "Zero..."
"ZERO?!!!!" I shouted. "YOU piloted WING ZERO??!!!! The one with the crazy system that feeds your brain statistics?!"

"True."

"Well, no wonder you're so monotonous," I said, feeling exasperated. "With all that data being put into your brain, there was no room for emotions to show!"

"I suppose."
"I know Duo piloted Deathsythe," I said thoughtfully, calming myself down after the initial shock. After all, Heero had believed Zero to be his friend. I hoped he thought of me in the same way, at least as much as he thought of Duo. "I can't believe it, looking back. That kid back there used to be Shinigami. I mean, talk about your over-the-head nicknames."
"He was most certainly the Shinigami in that suit," Heero said, using his without-a-doubt voice again. "Trowa piloted Heavyarms."
"Heavyarms? Mister Frozen-Stiff Silent One with that many weapons all at once? No wonder the kid doesn't say much more than you do!"
"You would be silent too, if you had as many memories erased as he had," Heero said in defense of his friend.

"Yeah, and look at you, Trigger-Happy."

He ignored me. "Wufei piloted Shenlong. He preferred to call it Nataku, though." (AN-Can someone tell me the significance behind why Chang called his suit Nataku? Or tell me what it means? Thanks.)

"Why?"

"Search me," he shrugged. "And Quatre piloted Sandrock."
"Now that I can understand," I said, nodding. "I mean, Quatre seems to me to be a very level-headed person who can stand a little heat."
"What about me?"

"You are far from being level-headed," I said darkly. "Until you can crack a joke, or at least smile at one correctly, I can hardly believe you're human."
"You already said I was acting human."
"Yeah. When you pulled a prank in revenge for my little prank," I said, smirking evilly. "That was being human. Using a monotone while you're talking with your friends, that's not human."
"Neither is a broken leg healing in under two hours," Heero shot back.

Bad move. Extremely bad move.
"What did you say?" I growled at him. "Look, I can't control how quickly my body metabolizes and heals itself, all right? Don't say I'm inhuman because my body heals a lot faster than normal."
"Then don't say I'm inhuman because I don't laugh at jokes," he muttered back. Stubborn little baka, wasn't he?

"You can control that. I can't," I snarled again. "Look, Heero, things are going to get shaken up pretty soon, and we'll be dealing with things that could wipe out this entire dimension." I took a deep, steadying breath and continued quietly, knowing that it would be of greater impact.

"I don't wanna have any regrets if this whole thing destroys the universe. Promise me, my friend, that you will be careful. Our lives are just as precious, no, more precious, than those stupid Orbs are."
"Only if you promise the same," he replied.

"A promise it is, then," I smiled. "Thank you, Heero."

"What for?"

"For being my friend."

***

"So," Wufei sighed as he leaned on the table to regard us. Heero and I had said nothing more after that, only walking back to find the others waiting for us. We weren't scolded or anything, just got weird looks. Nobody asked where we'd been. After cleaning up, we had all went to bed. Even Duo, against his normally-talkative nature, had been silent. "What do we do?"

"I don't know," Quatre sighed. "We could go searching for the gem ourselves and let Trowa handle things in the X Force's base. According to his email, there are more soldiers and bases than we previously expected."

"What are our priorities?" I asked, working this out logically. Like a math problem. If you start out with finding what you know already, you could end up at the solution. Pure and simple Algebra.

"Well," Duo said, thinking aloud. "We need to keep the gems separated at all costs right now."
"Did we ever get the full legend from Trowa?" I asked.

"Yes," Heero answered. "His email."

"What does it say?"

"You want me to read it aloud?" Quatre seemed surprised as he looked up from his laptop, where he had been reviewing the total information that Trowa had sent us through his research.

"Yeah. If it helps."

"Okay..."

When the Earth was new and only the most basic life-forms existed between all dimensions, there was a portal known to all as the Dimensional Gates. It was guarded by the great goddess, Hawatari, who let creatures roam freely. Then, a dark day came.

The worlds were all plunged into the deepest darkness, the beginnings of man frightened and alone. The Supreme Ruler over the Spirit Realm, Kai, gave each dimension a center of light, which his underlings were told to guard. There was a curse upon the lights.

In the dimension known simply as Z, they were seven seemingly-normal stones, which, if gathered together, granted a single wish before disappearing again. These were not guarded by gods, rather it was several young men and women who guarded their Earth with all their light and power.

Most dimensions had such stones, all of which held the power to grant wishes. However, it was given unto this, our dimension, the gems to end all gems. Hawatari was given them, a goddess whose heart was pure and mind was steady.

She called the simply gems, never giving them a proper name. They were guarded by her own self constantly at the Gates, never leaving her sights. For these, the most powerful of all the gems and stones given to each dimension, could give a second power, as well as infinite wishes. This second power was the power to control the fates, destiny, and chance, as well as prevent things from happening through the choices of others.

However, it was prophesized that the gems would leave Hawatari's hands and fall to Earth. If they find an evil's hand, as would be expected of man, this world would belong solely to him, without any resistance. However, if it should fall into a righteous person's hands, however unlikely it may be, they would turn into a god as well. It would be their choice, then, what would become of this our world and the Dimensional Gates.

"We're screwed," Duo said the instant Quatre finished. "All out. We're screwed! How can we fight something like that?! Huh? Tell me!"
"Duo, calm down," I said softly. "Hey, Quatre, were there any other writings about this goddess, Hawatari? Like what else she controls?"

"Yeah. I won't go into it, but according to Japanese legends, she was said to also control the fates. She could also take human form. Some writings suggest she could have placed the gems within a Keeper, but they say it is highly unlikely she would do such a thing."
"Why not? Sounds like the best place they could be to me," Duo countered off-handedly.
"Not really. You see, Hawatari is sort of connected to these gems, now called the Orbs of Emerald. And if the Keeper's emotions were unstable, then the gem would gradually be destroyed by the pressure," Quatre looked grim.

"But wouldn't that be a good thing?" Duo asked, leaning back in his kitchen chair. "I mean, come on, if the Orbs are destroyed, won't we just have nothing else to worry about?"

"Believe me, you'd have plenty to worry about," Quatre replied, scrolling again. "Only you wouldn't be around to worry about it any more. If the gems disappear, so does our dimension. Poof! Disappeared without a trace, taking every last soul, dead or alive, with it. Lost forever."

"So not only do we have to keep them apart," I said in conclusion. "We have to keep them from being destroyed."

"That's the basic idea," Quatre nodded.

"Okay, we're back where we started from," Wufei scowled. "What do we do now?"

"Split up," Heero answered simply.

"Huh?" Wufei.

"Could you possibly elaborate?" Quatre.

"What do you mean?" Duo.

"It's perfect!" Me.

"Huh?"

Now all eyes were looking between me at one end of the table and Heero at the other end. All were confused except for myself and Heero.
"Don't you get it?" I sounded exasperated, even to myself. "If we split up, one group can search out the remaining Orb, and the other can infiltrate the X Force with Trowa. It's the perfect plan! Nothing can go wrong."
"Famous last words," Duo muttered. "Okay, now that we've got a rough plan, who goes where with who?"

"Well, we need a good fighter on both teams," I said slowly. "So Wufei, you go with one and I'll go with the other."
"You should infiltrate," Wufei agreed. "Winner, you come with me."

"Yes," Quatre nodded in agreement. "And Heero and Duo can go with Jem."
"Good idea," Duo said. "One question; how do we infiltrate the base? Everyone knows what we look like!"

"Point observed," I said, laughing superiorly. I'd already come up with a solution to this.

"What's so funny about that?" Duo asked. "We're sunk if we can't get in!"

"Oh, you didn't think I would allow you to go as you are, did you?" I asked, smiling. "I've the perfect plan."
"What is it?" Heero asked.

An evil smile crossed my face.

"Um...Heero?" Duo said. "I've seen some scary things in my life. But her with that grin on her face by far surpasses anything I've seen yet."
"She is frightening when she gets that smile," Quatre agreed. "I feel sorry for you guys. Come on, Wufei, let's start our search."

"Aw, come on, guys," I said, still grinning. "Where's your adventurous spirits?"
"Back in my room, hiding under the bed," Duo answered, taking off like a shot. "And I'm going to join it!"

"Maxwell!" I shouted. "Get back here!" He complied instantly and was at attention before me in nanoseconds.

"Maxwell?" Heero muttered in a whisper. "I think we're in trouble."
"You said it."

Both watched grimly as Jem placed a small briefcase in front of each of them.

***

AN-Okay, so there is a good cliffhanger in this story, even though you only have to wait as long as your browser does to load the remainder of it.

Okay, now the meanings of the names in here.

Rei-Cold, cruel indifference.

Nani- What? A question.

Hawatari- Walking the edge of the blade.

Nakami-Interior being

Jonathon-Umm...that's my cousin's name, I promised I'd use him in my story. He is such a sweetheart, too!

Jeminie-Uh...I made up the name, it's actually a acronym for Jenny Emerald Matte at first, then Mini-Me, um...it's kinda confusing how my mind works. And the Yuy part of my penname does not represent Heero at all, it's Your Universal Yume. I just didn't want to be called Jeminie Yud, that sounds too weird. Oh, yume is Jap for dream and Matte is Jap for wait. I have three favorite colors, Blue, Green, and Aqua, and I had to choose one for the middle of Jenny Matte because JM did not quite sound right...and you don't wanna read my rants, so move on ahead to the next chapter.