DISCLAIMER: With the exception of Sette Devion, Kumi Yuy and a few other original characters, the Gundam Wing characters are not mine...But they're SO much fun to work with!
Gundam Wing: The Second Chapter
Episode 26: Blackout
by SkyLark
with help from: Snodin, Star Soldier, Sam, Stormy, Silver Star, Beekay Ruby and GREETER 600
Sally was working on several reports in her office as she looked to some medical tests that had been taken on several pilots. The braided Preventer cleaned her desk of some of the papers after making several notes into her book. The phone on her desk gave a small ring as she sorted the last few records. Picking up the receiver, she said, "This is Water." The voice on the other end replied in a concerned voice, "I think that you might want to come down to the lab right away." Recognizing the voice to be one of the young woman that worked with her in the medical branch of the ship, Sally rose from her seat and nodded, "I'll be right down."
After quickly making her way into the lab, the young woman who called Sally ran to her, holding a single paper in her hand. Water looked to her worried glance and asked, "What's wrong, Jessica?" The medical aid answered as she held up the paper in her hand, "I knew that you would want to see this right away." Sally took the report into her hand and read it carefully.
The more she read, the more Sally's eyes widened. "Oh my God," she whispered to herself. Her red-haired assistant nodded, "I know...Should his majesty be informed?" Water covered her mouth, still in shock at the result of the test that had been taken. Finally, after a pause, she looked up from the paper and nodded back, Of course. I'll tell him right away. Thank you for getting me right away." Jessica nodded, "No problem."
Holding onto the paper, Sally made her way out of the room and quickly ran down the hall. When she reached the control room, she located Brian Weatherall, who was speaking with several Preventers. Sally cleared her throat when she was close to the king and his eyes looked up to hers. The Preventer licked her lips and held tightly to the paper in her right hand. "I am sorry, Brain, but I need to speak to you right away." Brian nodded and replied, "Sure thing, Sally."
Sally and Brian excused themselves as they left the control room. Walking into a small, empty room, Sally closed the door behind them. Brian eyed her with a bit of concern. He had noticed the paper in her hand as they walked down the hall. There wasn't any question that it was a medical report. "What's wrong, Sally?" he asked once they were secluded. Sally wasn't sure how to answer right away. Her hesitance made the little concern the king had increase a great deal.
Brian took Sally's free hand and smiled to her, "Whatever it is, you know that it'll be alright. Just tell me what's wrong." Sally nodded and took a deep breath. Finally able to get past the shock, the young woman smiled warmly, "You're going to be a father in eight months." The red-haired hind's green eyes widened in shock as a small gasp left him. "R-Relena's pregnant?" he whispered, still taken back by what he had been told. Sally smiled as she nodded, "Almost a month now. The advanced test was just completed. Congratulations."
A loud laugh left Brian as he wrapped his arms tightly around Sally, who returned the embrace. When the hug broke, Brian asked, "How are we going to tell Relena?" Sally shook her head, "I don't know. But I'm sure that she'll figure it out before long." The father-to-be sighed, "I wish that I could be there when she finds out."
Water nodded and frowned, "That's why I was hesitant to tell you...I know it'll be a while before you'll get to see each other again." Brian smiled warmly, "Thank you for your concern. I appreciate that you did tell me now." The young man chuckled, "Relena and I will be able to enjoy this once she returns. And we are going to have a large family together, after all." The Preventer managed to find her own smile again and told Brian, "I'm glad that I could help. Congratulations, again, Brian." The king hugged her again and replied, "Thank you."
Sally left the room to give Brian a moment alone. The young man sighed deeply as he walked to the window that looked to the distant Earth. watching the far away sphere, he whispered, "We're going to be parents, sweetheart." A wide smile crossed his lips just at the thought of that.
* * * * * *
The Gundam pilots lounging in the safe house on Earth had just finished dinner together. It was their third week on the planet and since it was the middle of the winter, it was getting dark early. It was pitch black outside and the temperature had reached zero degrees. The wind wasn;t helping any with the situation outdoors. Fortunately, the generator of the cabin was still forking for the pilots to have electricity and the furnace was giving enough heat for all of them to be comfortable.
Wufei and Quatre were doing the dishes while the girls sat at the dinner table and spoke amongst each other. Sette was sitting with her feat against the table as she leaned back in her seat with her hands folded behind her head. She sighed deeply in content, "You know, I can't remember having a nice dinner like this in a long time." Zes chuckled, "I'm glad you liked it."
Wufei went on to wash a glass as he looked out the small window of the kitchen. He couldn't see anything on account of the darkness outside. He thought aloud as he placed the glass aside, "If we had better equipment, we would have been able to survey the area longer. But we'd be lucky to see our hands in front of our faces out there." Quatre nodded smiled, "It could be a lot worse. At least we have a working generator." No sooner had the Arabian said this than the lights throughout the house began to flicker and dim.
The pilots looked with wide eyes to each other and all around the house as the lights went on and off. Finally, with one last spurt of light, everything went out. The pilots froze where they were, unable to see anything an inch past them. A match was lit and used to burn several candles. Placing the burning candles into some candelabras, Sette chuckled, " 'Yall are so lucky I'm five steps ahead of you aaaall the time." The pilots around her went on to help her remove several unused candles that she had found, placing them in candelabras.
Before long, there was enough candlelight burning for them to see in the living room and kitchen to get around safely. Wufei looked to Quatre and growled deeply, "And you tell me that I need to keep quiet more often." The blonde pilot chuckled nervously and cleared his throat. Wufei continued to glare at his friend. Quatre sighed and shrugged, "All right, so that was a dumb thing to say." Satisfied with that remark, the Chinese pilot gave a nod and went back to finishing the dishes in the dim, flicker coming from the room next to them.
Novem rose with a candelabra that had three burning candles in it. "I better go see if there's any way I can fix the generator." Wufei turned to her as he left the kitchen, drying his hands. He took hold of another candelabra as he replied, "I'll help." The two pilots left the room and headed for the basement as their friends remained in the living room, surrounded by the light from the candles on the table before them.
Delapan folded her hands on the table and rested her head there as she sighed, "Well, this sucks." Quatre shrugged, "It could be worse. We might-" Before he could finish his sentence, the girls all shouted, "No!" and "Stop!" as they shook their heads. Zes went as far as to cover the Arabian's mouth with her hand, since she was right next to him. Sette chuckled, "Sweetheart, it's nothing personal. We just don't want our luck to run out again." The blonde pilot's covered mouth smiled as he nodded. Relena removed her hand and said quietly, "I just hope Dorothy and Wufei will be able to fix whatever happened downstairs."
In the basement, Novem and Wufei made their way to the generator, guided by the light that the handles they held produced. The old machine before them was in bad shape and the two pilots groaned as they looked to it. "Damn," Wufei hissed as he walked close enough to remove some of the thick spider webs on the generator. Novem walked to the other side of the machine and opened a hatch to look at the wires inside.
"It's a lot worse than I thought it would be," she sighed deeply. Trying to move some of the old wires around, a large spark shot up as she shouted in shock. Wufei placed his candelabra on the ground and ran to his friend. "Are you alright?" he asked as he looked to her hand. Novem chuckled and nodded, "Yea. Just a little surprised, that's all." Seeing that her hand managed survived without being burnt, Wufei sighed in relief and nodded as he returned to where he was working.
The Chinese pilot carefully inspected the inside of the generator as he held the candle in front of him. "We won't be able to fix this tonight," he finally stated. Novem looked to some of the windows in the basement and suggested, "If we get up early enough, we'll be able to fix this in a few hours. The sun will be able to break through the windows down here so it'll be easier to work." Wufei nodded, "Yea. We might as well just leave this alone until then." The pilots left the generator and carefully walked up the old, creaky stairs again with their candles.
The pilots at the living room table stood and rejoined their friends, carrying their candelabras with them as well. "How does it look?" Quatre asked. Wufei shook his head, "For what we could see, it's pretty bad." Novem continued, "We can fix it. But it'll be next to impossible to work on it when it's this dark." Sette questioned, "How long would it take to fix?" The Chinese pilot answered, "A few hours, we'll get up early and work on it right away."
Relena shrugged, "Well, it's only one night. We can deal with candles." Delapan nodded, "Yea. Besides, this is the most exciting thing to happen since we got here." Sette yawned and stretched with her free hand, "It's getting late anyway. It's not a big deal. I think we can go a few hours without artificial light." The pilots agreed and went on to retire to their rooms upstairs, since there wasn't anything that they would be able to accomplish tonight, in the pitch dark.
* * * * * *
Sera Makato was piloting the ship as her son slept in the seat beside her. Heero had been taking out bases left and right the last few weeks. And the Preventer knew that the young pilot was not sleeping well at night. Most times, he woke of screaming and calling out Duo's name in fear. Sera had made a chart of all of the sites they had to hit before reaching colony X63. There had been twenty-three bases in total that they needed to destroy. Twenty-two of those sites were crossed off on the chart that was taped above her monitor.
Looking to the paper with a frown, the young woman whispered in a deep sigh, "Only one more attack and we'll be splitting off...Probably for good." She turned to see Heero sleeping and her eyes softened at how peaceful he looked. As is he could feel that he was being watched, the Wing pilot stirred a bit as he took a deep breath. Stretching a bit, a small moan left the Japanese pilot. His eyes opened and locked onto the brown pair that were focused on him.
Sera smiled warmly, "Ohayo." Heero nodded, "Ohayo." Looking to the chart that his comrade had been looking to, the Wing pilot sighed in content, "One more." Seeing that her son was looking forward to attacking the last base before his mission, Makato was saddened. She smiled, masking her pain as she turned back to look to the screen ahead of her and she stated, "You seem anxious." Heero nodded, "The sooner I can finally leave for X63, the sooner I'll get to be with Duo, Kumi and the others again."
The wing pilot asked, "How long until we reach the last base?" His mother answered, "About two days." The wing pilot nodded and sat up in his seat. Sera looked to him and sad quietly, "I've never asked how you and Duo met." Heero couldn't help but laugh. His comrade looked to him with uncertainty. Her son chuckled as his laughter calmed, "He shot me...twice." Makato's eyes widened as she gasped, "What!?!" The Wing pilot chuckled still and shook his head, "Long story." Sera laughed and replied, "I'm sure it is."
There was a silence between the pilots after their laughter passed. Heero sighed deeply as he turned to look to the woman he did not realize was his mother. "When I say that I'm anxious to move on, I didn't mean to upset you." Sera bit her lip and replied, "It's alright. I know that it wasn't meant to be taken personal." The Wing pilot nodded and looked ahead, trying to make up for upsetting his comrade. Years prior to this, he wouldn't have felt as though he needed to concern himself with anyone else's emotions. Time had changed, thanks to his braided lover. So, he chose to do what his partner would do at a time like this...start a conversation.
"Do you have a family?" Heero asked out of nowhere. Sera caught her breath and turned to face the pilot. "Hai," she nodded after a pause. "I have a son." Heero gave an almost shocked look and Makato continued, "His father, my husband, dies years ago." Heero's shocked look turned to one of understanding and sadness. He said quietly and sincerely as he lowered his head, "I'm sorry." Sera smiled warmly to her son, "It's alright. He was a wonderful man, regardless of what others might think. I was lucky to know him as long as I did."
The Wing pilot asked as he returned his gaze to his mother, "How old is your son?" Makato replied, "Twenty-two...you're age." the Preventer frowned sadly and looked ahead to her screen. She sighed deeply, "I haven't been a very good mother to him. It's been so long since I saw him that he might not know who I was if he saw me again." Heero chuckled and shook his head, "I doubt that's possible." Sera forced a smile and turned back to the pilot as she shrugged, "Well, I would understand if he didn't know me."
There was another pause of silence between them. Heero said quietly, "I am glad that I got to meet you. I understand why Commander Wilcox holds you as one of his best pilots." Sera smiled warmly and barely managed to whisper, "Thank you." She cleared her throat and said with a bit more volume, "It's been a pleasure working with you, as well, Heero."
Heero smiled back and turned to look through the window ahead of his seat. It took all the strength in her for Sera to keep herself from tearing up. She turned back and focused on her piloting again. She was going to do whatever it took to keep her sanity these next few days... Before she would have to say 'good bye' to her son again.
* * * * * *
It was going on close to midnight and the Gundam pilots had been sleeping soundly in their pitch black safe house for some time now. In her room, Delapan rolled onto her side in her sleep. The wind was blowing pretty strong outside and the dead limbs of the trees beside the house were whipping the roof of the cabin. The howl of the wind and the cracking of the branches hitting the roof were the only sounds in the cabin and for miles. A large gust of shrieking wind caused a thick, yet frail, branch to fall onto the tiles over the home. Delapan awake with a start on account of the terrifying thud over her.
Looking around her room, her eyes adjusted to the darkness. With a good look around the area, Catherine sighed deeply, "Take it easy, girl." At this, she lied back onto her mattress, pulling the thick comforter to her neck. Closing her eyes, Delapan sighed deeply with a small, relieved smile on her lips. She rolled onto her side that put her back to the door as she finally relaxed again.
The doorknob to her room turned without a click and the door opened very slowly and without any noise. When the door closed again, this time with a tiny creak, Delapan's eyes shot wide open as the pilot remained frozen in her spot.
Certain that there really was something in her room now, Catherine frantically tried to think of what to do. Finally, she spun quickly and jumped from her bed, landing just a few inches from the mattress. Her long, deep green nightgown was all that moved in her room. There was nothing around. With wide eyes, Catherine continued to look around. The young pilot's breathing was heavy as she continued to scan the pitch room.
After a moment and several paces around the wide area, Catherine was still not satisfied. She quickly went to the door and froze just before actually reaching it as her green eyes widened. "The bed," she whispered hoarsely to herself. The moment she said these words, the dark figure snuck out from beneath the mattress and sprang upon the unprepared redhead. A loud screech left her just as two large, strong hands covered her mouth quicker than she could blink.
Delapan struggled as she tried to free her pinned arms from the tall, muscular man holding her tightly. Catherine did manage to bite down on one hand as she worked herself loose for a moment, a very brief one at that. The intruder chocked back a cry of pain as his hold over the pilot's mouth was lost. Catherine screamed as loudly as she could, "EVERYONE, THERE'S SOMEONE IN THE HOUSE!" The pilot was lifted as the man behind her growled and held the pilot over his head. The young woman shouted and was thrown into the wall across the room, falling unconscious.
Wufei sprang from his room, holding a candelabra with a single burning candle in his left and while his right held onto a pistol. Being the closest to Catherine's room, it was only natural that he would be the one who would hear her cry. "Delapan?" he called into the dark hall, making his way to her room, at the end of the hall. Taking a few quick steps, gun ready, Wufei noticed something move in the darkness ahead of him. He couldn't make it out, but he heard the movement and swore there was something in the shadows.
Without asking, the Chinese pilot's dark eyes narrowed and his teeth clenched as he shot three times in the direction where the movement originated. The shots were returned with a single shot that ripped through Wufei's right shoulder. The Gundam pilot fell to the wooden floor with a loud cry of pain as he grabbed onto his wounded shoulder with his left hand. The gun he had was kicked far down the hall and the candle was blown out as it fell with him. Now enveloped in pitch darkness again, Wufei heard a deep chuckle as a large hand picked up the fallen candelabra and lit the wax again with a match.
The large, bearded and rugged man bent down to have a closer look at the fallen pilot. The glow of the candle highlighted the ridged features of the man's face and he licked his thick lips. He chuckled darkly, "You kids are worth a hell of a lot more dead than you are alive now, boy." Wufei's eyes widened for a moment before narrowing again as he lied on his right side. He spat squarely in the man's face. The old man growled deeply and loudly after wiping his face clean. Aiming his own gun at the pilot's forehead, he hissed, "You little son of a bitch-" He stopped mid threat as a bullet ripped through his own forehead.
The tall, built man fell forward onto the Chinese pilot, who looked to the corpse in shock and choked back a gasp. Forcing the body off of him with his left arm, the dark-eyed pilot was initially at a loss of what to do. Again, the candle was out and Wufei looked frantically around the hall, trying in vein to see who saved him. A small whisper came, "Wufei. Hang on." Two hands wrapped around his shoulders and helped him sit up. "Quatre?" Wufei asked in a startled whisper.
The Arabian nodded, but whispered back as he warned, "Shhh. I don't think we're alone yet." Taking a match from his pocket, Quatre lit the long, fallen candle again. Seeing the blood seeping from his friend's wound, he cringed inwardly and said quietly, "Here." The young pilot took off his first of two sweaters that he wore to bed that night and tore at the fabric to make a bandage that helped stop the blood. Wufei couldn't help but wince and take in a hissed breath as the pain shot throughout his body while Quatre worked on his injury.
It wasn't long before the blonde pilot managed to finish nursing his friend and got them to their feet. As soon as they stood, Zes could be heard screaming far down another corridor of rooms opposite of where the pilots were now. They looked with shock and fear to each other as they took their candles and weapons, splitting up. The cabin, while modest inside, was very large and there was a lot of ground that the pilots needed to cover.
Relena was being pinned on her bed by a young man dressed in black as he straddled the young queen in her dark room, holding her shoulders down. Relena was struggling with everything she had under the attacker's weight. The young man chuckled deeply, "Oh come on. I won't hurt you too much, sweetheart." Relena growled deeply and managed to free her right leg. Once this part of her body was loose, the pilot kick the intruder right between his legs and into his groin as he let out a loud cry of pain and doubled over.
Zes jumped from her bed and pulled a gun from her dresser, barely able to see anything, but still able to make out the dark figure on her bed. Aiming the gin at them with steady hands, Relena growled and demanded, "Who are you?" The pained man chuckled through his agony as he turned to the queen. "You're not planning really using that thing are you?"
Zes removed the safety from the gun and her eyes narrowed further. "What makes you think I'm not?" The young woman opened fire and hit the attacked in the chest. Relena kept shooting and had it not been for the darkness around her, she would have hit. However, the man was quick in getting up from his spot and knocked the armed pilot to the ground with a swift blow to her right cheek. Relena fell hard onto her side as she gave a startled cry.
Novem was running down the hall with a candle in one hand and a gun ready in the other as she made her way to her best friend's room. Sette ran the same down the other end of the hall. When the pilots met in the middle, the tomboy heard some stirring coming from downstairs. Her eyes thinned and she gave a motion to the blonde pilot that she was going to see what was happening down there. With another silent motion of her head, Sette told Dorothy to check on their friend. Novem nodded and they split ways.
Dorothy kept her back close to the wall as she quietly approached Relena's room. Inside, The queen had gotten up and was wrestling with her wounded attacker. They were both growling and fighting as they fought for possession of the gun Zes had used. Novem was slowly opening the door when the sound of footsteps running right in her direction came to her too late. The pilot was kicked in the chest and fell to the ground as the force of the blow hurled her backwards. The candle she held was retrieved as a dark shadow of a figure picked it up.
It was yet another tall, middle-aged man. He sneered as he looked down to his startled victim. "Boo," was all he said just before he blew the candle out. Novem was grabbed by her long, blonde locks and forced onto her feet. The moment she had a chance, the pilot removed a gun hidden in the strong man's pants and shot him in the leg. Once this man was on the floor, shouting and cursing in agony, the Gundam pilot growled and aimed the gun to shoot him through the head. No sooner than she could breathe, two dark figures appeared from nowhere and grabbed Dorothy.
The young man who had been in Relena's room was walking past the door as she lied over his shoulder, unconscious after a heated struggle with the intruder. He looked to his fellow black-clad comrades as he stumbled to walk to them, holding the side of his chest where the bullet penetrated him. Dorothy was being beaten badly by the two men that came from the shadows and was soon left unconscious, as well. The beating stopped and the two pilots were lied beside each other.
The man with the wounded leg rose and limped on his right leg as he made his way to the others. The man with the chest wound fell to his knees as he groaned loudly and deeply in pain. The others looked down to him. "H-Help me," the wounded man begged as he looked up to his three friends. The man with the injured leg removed another gun from his belt and aimed it at his fallen comrade's head. The dying man's eyes widened and a bullet dislodged, flying through his skull. The sickening thud of the man's dead body was the only testimony to his death, since everything was so dark.
Downstairs, the tomboy was making her way into the living room, ready for anything as she tried to see past the candlelight that guided her through the house. There was someone down here, she was certain of that. Sette heard something crash behind her as she jumped and spun quickly, aiming her gun straight ahead of her. Looking to the furnace, several thick and heavy chunks of wood had fallen from their resting place as they lied across the floor. A large rat ran out of the fallen prices, squeaking loudly and causing the ex-princess to gasp loudly as she was startled yet again.
The rat disappeared as quickly as it had appeared and Sette chuckled deeply and nervously to herself. Her chuckle was matched by a much deeper one, just inches behind her. The tomboy froze, then turned quickly, shooting without being concerned about what she was firing at. After five rapid shots, the ex-princess realized that the dark figure had long since moved through the shadows again. After clenching her teeth and scanning the area again, gun still forward and straight, she shouted, "WHAT THE HELL DO YOU WANT?" There was no answer.
The pilot's eyes frantically searched all around and found nothing. Not one thing moved or changed. Able to maintain her fear, Sette slowly walked towards the small den that was adjacent to the living room. There was no door that present there, and so it would have been easy for anyone to sneak in unnoticed. Licking her dry lips, the pilot quickly shot into the room. Nothing.
The dark shadow came from behind and quickly and a thick arm wrapped around the tomboy's throat. The pilot felt the strain on her neck as she was lifted from the floor, unable to breathe. Trying desperately to get air again, the candle and gun were dropped from Sette's hands as they shot up to undo the hold on her. Left in utter darkness, the tomboy could feel herself slipping from consciousness as the man strangled harder. The pilot's body went limp and was dropped. She fell to the ground like a rag doll.
Quatre was now on the stairs and barely managed to see the man coming from the den when he fired upon him. The distance and darkness were working against the pilot's keen aim and none of the bullets made their target. The intruder who had knocked Sette out was chuckling deeply as he looked to the Arabian. Quatre's eyes narrowed and he fired again, only to realize that he had run out of bullets. Looking to the empty gun with wide eyes, the blonde pilot was soon overpowered by two more assailants who came from the top of the stairs. Quatre fought with them and after a good struggle that he managed to control, he was suddenly kicked down the long stairwell. The Gundam pilot hit the floor, unmoving.
Wufei heard his friend's cry as he fell down the stairs and shouted, "Quatre!?!!" Running to the stairs, the Chinese pilot was careful not to irritate his wounded shoulder as he made his way through the house. Flying down the steps to reach the living room, Wufei was panting with a raged look in his face and eyes. That look changed when his eyes fell upon the lifeless forms of his comrades as they were lined next to each other in the middle of the living room when he entered. There were eleven men, all dressed in black and rugged looking as they faced the pilot with nasty sneers.
Knowing that there was nothing he could do, Wufei's eyes closed in distress, then narrowed when they opened again. The Chinese pilot lowered his gun to the ground along with the candelabra he was holding. Once he stood straight again, he raised his hands. He looked to the men around the room to see just how many people there really were. Wufei counted eleven exactly. However, there was a twelfth, he came to realize too late. The back of a pistol was thrust into the back of his head. Everything was pitch again, this time, it wasn't because of the blackout.
* * * * * *
A half-hour later, Wufei felt himself waking again. His eyes twitched a bit before fully opening, a deep groan leaving him as well. Once he fully gained consciousness, his eyes went wide as they looked around him. he and the other pilots were tied by thick hopes that bound their feet and wrists as they were held in the basement of the safe house. His friends all looked to him and each other in concern and fear. The men responsible for their situation were all around them, still all in black but in plain sight as the room was lit by a great number of candles.
The man wounded in the leg from Novem's shot limped over to the line of helpless Gundam pilots and sneered, "Now that you're all awake, we can get started." The young queen hissed, "What is it you intend to do to us?" Their captor chuckled, "We're going to play a little game that involves all of you. But don't worry. You'll all get the same treatment before long." Folding his arms behind his back, the tall man sneered, "Let's see..." Quatre's eyes widened and he looked to Sette, who was tied beside him and giving the same frightened glance. The other Gundams were glaring to the older men surrounding them. The injured intruder paced before the tied young men and women as he eyed all of them carefully.
The trapped pilots continued to glare as they were unable to do anything else to threaten the rugged attacker. After walked from the top of the line, Catherine to the end, Wufei, the man walked back and forth a few times, slowly and played with a long blade the whole time. Finally, he looked to Sand Rock's pilot and bent at the waste to take a closer look at the Arabian. "You're a pretty choice to begin with," he smiled and took Quatre. Sette shouted, "NO! QUATRE!" Her fiance was thrown over the wounded man's shoulder forcefully as his friends shouted.
Sette did whatever she could to try and get loose, but to no avail. The ropes were just too thick and there were too many adversaries to be able to take care of all of them. Even still, she struggled. The man with the blonde pilot over his shoulder kicked the ex-princess in the gut, knocking the wind out of her. Sette gagged and gasped for air after the forceful blow and couched violently. The man assured her, "Don't worry. You'll be next." Looking to his comrades, the apparent leader nodded to another, younger man that went on to follow him up the stairs.
The other pilots watched with heavy hearts as Quatre was taken from their site. Sette was fighting tears as she growled deeply and shouted to the other men, "YOU BASTARDS AREN'T GOING TO GET AWAY WITH THIS, I SWEAR IT!" The men around the candlelit basement chuckled and sneered at the threat as they kept a close watch over the pilots. Relena, Catherine and Dorothy all lowered their heads, too frightened and saddened as they tried not to imaging what grim fate awaited their friend who was taken from them.
Outside, a good half mile from the house, the two men drug Quatre by the wrists along the rough, dead ground. The pilot made no sound and kept his head down. He was forced onto his feet when there was nothing but forest around them. The younger of the attackers climbed a tree that lied not far to their right. There was a thick, wide limb a few feet over the young pilot's head. The injured man tossed a thick rope up to his partner, who took the cord and made it hang over the limb where he was. The older man forced Quatre to hold up his arms over his head and tightly knotted his arms and wrists that they couldn't move with the rope that was slung over the branch above.
Quatre was breathing heavily, making thick puffs of smoke when he exhaled into the bitter cold air. Still, he would not allow himself to give the assailants the pleasure of hearing his cry out or whimper. Instead, he stood tall and did not make any sound other than his chattering teeth and quick breathing. The man in the tree jumped from his spot and looked with amusement to the paralyzed victim that he and his friend gathered.
The older, wounded man took his thick blade from his pocket and walked slowly to the Arabian. The moon was no longer available to offer any light, hidden behind dark clouds that spanned the entire sky. Quatre's eyes adjusted to the darkness as the man stalked to him, chuckling deeply. The rugged man ran a hand through the blond hair of the pilot and said lustfully, "You are an awful pretty one. I think that I'll have some of my own personal fun before I get to business."
The Arabian's eyes widened in shock, but the pilot still would not make a sound. The younger attacker told his partner in anticipation, "I go after you." The other man didn't seem to pay his friend any mind as he was too focused on Quatre, arms raised over his head and unable to break free. His own breathing was becoming heavy as he looked forward to what he was planning to do with his new pet, puffs of smoke easier to be noticed as he breathed out. Bending down to have a closer look into his prey's eyes, the man licked his lips and whispered, "Life in these woods gets pretty lonely...Especially on cold nights like this." The Arabian closed his eyes and fought off the urge to shout.
The lust-filled man smiled, "You're good at keeping quiet, boy." Running the edge of his knife along the pilot's slender neck and down the front of his sweater, he said quietly, "But I'll make you cry out soon enough." At this, he ripped through Quatre's sweater as if it was nothing with his knife. Shirtless and terrified, Quatre kept his eyes shut and still refused to make any sound. There was no use in trying to free his suspended arms, since the knots were too tight and the rope far too thick. Freezing, the pilot did whatever it took to keep from showing any of the fear inside him from showing. The injured man's partner was licking his own, sneering lips at the sight of the pilot's exposed chest.
Quatre could feel the man lurking just over him again. Biting his lip, he heard the man chuckle, "Now comes the fun part." As the man went onto chuckle again, Quatre heard a familiar, monotone voice suddenly tell him in his mind, "Quatre, on my word, get down." The pilot's eyes shot wide opened as he hasped mentally, "What!?!" The man over him smiled, "Looks like I finally got your attention again." Quatre was gazing up to the man, clearly in shock and fear now. The voice came again and said, "I'd never steer you wrong, Quatre." The small pilot felt a smile crossing his lips, which became a sneer. The attacker's eyes widened at this and he growled, "What the fuck are you smiling at like that?"
The Arabian looked up at the man with the same smirk and shrugged, "Nothing." The injured man's eyes narrowed as he hissed quietly, "Alright, smart ass." Holding the knife just inches from the blonde's throat, the man growled deeply, "Looks like I'll just have to take you out like this." The man was about to lunge the blade into Quatre's throat, and was just a half an inch from plunging the point of it through the skin, when a bullet ripped through thick rope that held Quatre's arms up over his head.
The pilot heard the voice in his mind tell him, "Now." Not even with time to think, Quatre managed to pull out the remainder of the rope as he got himself to fall onto his bare chest, covering the back of his head. Everything happened so fast that the armed man continued to lunge in his attempt to stab the pilot, only to cut into the air before him. Without any time to react, the stunned, tall man's throat was ripped out by a second bullet from behind. Both shots from the gun echoed in the still night air through the woods. The man's lifeless body sagged onto the ground instantly.
The dead man's young partner spun behind him quickly, in shock. Another gunshot rang out from a second gun. The bullet lodged itself perfectly in the center of the young intruder's forehead, exiting the back. Quatre was just looking up from his cover on the ground when the second man fell dead not far before him. When the dead man collapsed, the Arabian made out the shadows of two people. They were both aiming their guns ahead of them, as they had been aimed to kill the intruders. The slender figures were not difficult to make out and Quatre gasped loudly.
The Arabian shouted in relief, "KUMI! TROWA!" The two Gundam pilots ran to their friend. The silver-haired pilot removed the black leather jacket that fell to her waist, covering her black clothes, and wrapped it around Quatre's bare shoulders. Trowa took the blade from the man who planned to use it on his partner and used it, himself, to free the ropes that bound the blonde's wrists and ankles together. Stunned and relieved beyond words, Quatre's right side sagged into Kumi as he sat up and allowed his tall friend to cut through the knots. The young woman wrapped an arm around his shoulders and rubbed his arm, trying to keep him warm.
When he was freed, Quatre was fit into the leather coat by his female friend and Trowa helped him up to his feet. Once he was on his feet, Quatre sighed deeply and threw his arms around the 'Perfect Soldier,' whispering, "I knew that you'd find us." A half-smile crossed Kumi's lips as she patted Quatre's back and chuckled deeply. "Good thing you have that Space Heart as a guide," she said in monotone to the pilot tightly holding her. Quatre broke the embrace only to hug Trowa tightly. The tall pilot smiled and returned the gesture.
As the other pilots were reuniting, the 'Perfect Soldier' looked to the dead bodies of the men who almost killed Quatre. The younger of the two men was wearing a gold chain with a round pendant of a saint on it. The silver-haired pilot removed the chain and held onto it in her right hand. Looking to Sand Rock's pilot, Kumi asked, "Where are the others." Quatre pointed in the direction of the safe house and answered, "The basement." Kumi reloaded her gun a she walked silently to the cabin.
Back in the basement, the pilots all lied silently. The men who trapped them were looking closely and remaining silent as they awaited the return of their comrades. A handful of them were talking amongst each other. One whispered, "I'm telling you we should just kill them now and be rid of them. It's the only way we can be safe. They are the Gubdam pilots, after all. There's no telling what they can do." A second growled quietly, "Stop being paranoid. They're not going anywhere like this." A third assured him with a nasty grin, "Just relax. We'll be rid of those pilots s-" The man's words stopped short when the sound of something clinking down the stairs caused everyone to jump.
Whatever was making the noise, it was clinking all the way to the basement floor. The eerie sound was enough the frighten even the tall, rugged men. Walking to the stairs with a candelabra, the youngest of the intruders (who wished to get rid of the pilots right away) watched something glisten as it concluded it's trip down the steps, clinking the whole time. When the shiny item stopped just past his feet, the young man's eye widened as he gasped sharply. It was a gold chain with a round pendant that had been tossed downstairs.
The other men quickly joined their friend and looked to the chain. The youngest whispered and shook his head, "Shit...Oh shit..." Another man looked with shock to the pendant. "It's Danny's necklace," he said aloud, frightened. The youngest man turned to the pilots and aimed his pistol at Novem's head as he shouted, "I told you we should have just killed them like this!" One of the other men there stopped him as they shot their terrified partner in the back, killing him instantly. The pilots looked to their captors with shocked faces as the dead body collapsed. Novem was only a little shaken after the close call.
The man who shout the hysterical intruder looked to the others with narrowed eyes and said, "Spread out. Three of us stay here and the rest, span the house. We'll find out what the hell's going on and kill whoever is playing games with us." The others nodded. He along with five others made their way up the stairs as four others remained in the basement.
The six men went on to take different parts of the house. One of them entered the den carefully, concealed in the darkness and silent as a cat when he moved. Aiming his gun forward, he scanned the room and left nothing unturned. After a very careful look through the whole room, he decided there was nothing to be found. As he made his way to the door, the intruder then noticed something that caused him to freeze in place as he looked up and to his right.
There were several statures on the top of the tall book cases that almost touched the high ceiling above him. It was then that he heard the safety clip of a gun being removed above and behind him. The man spun quickly, shocked and terrified as the last thing he saw was the threatening sneer across Trowa's lips from his spot on the bookcase, with the statues. The pilot took one shot and killed the man with a bullet through the heart.
In the basement, The three men looked up to the ceiling above them, along with the pilots, when they heard the gunshot and thud of a corpse. One of the men sneered, "They got them." Another item was then tossed down the stairs, making a loud crash as it bounced off the stairs. Looking to what had fallen in shock and disbelief, the men recognized the thick, silver high school ring of the man killed in the den.
The men turned to each other with wide eyes and pale faces. "They're hunting us now," one whispered with what little voice he managed to find. It was then that a gun was locked and loaded at the top of the stairs. Looking up, all the men could see was the end of a gun aimed and opening fire upon all of them.
Up on the top floor of the house, the same man who had attacked Catherine made their way to some of the bedrooms and began searching, gun ahead of him and all. In Catherine's room, he took an extensive look of everything, walking to the far side of the room when the door to the small space closed and locked once his back was to it. The sound of the door closing and locking startled the man, causing him to jump.
Running to the door, he tried desperately to get out. It was then that the man's eyes widened then closed as he realized his fatal mistake, as Delapan had...He didn't check under the bed. He turned just in time to see Kumi slipped from the haven under the mattress and they opened fire. Kumi shot first, before the intruder had a moment to shoot himself, as two bullets went into his chest.
In the basement, the Gundam pilots were freed from their ropes, with Quatre's help. They got to their feet and armed themselves and each took a candelabra as they walked up the stairs. As they climbed, they heard two more close shots ring out in the living room. When they ran there, they saw Trowa standing over two dead bodies, smoke rising from his gun as he kept it aimed at the bodies. Delapan's eyes widened and she ran to her brother, whispering, Trowa." They instantly embraced tightly and Trowa smiled as he hugged her, "I've missed you, too, Catherine." Catherine kissed Trowa's cheek and asked quietly, "Are you alright?" The tall pilot nodded, "I'm fine."
Wufei asked, "How many of them did you get?" His friend answered, "I got three of them on this floor. Kumi's upstairs and I heard her shoot one of them-" As soon as he said this, the sound of another gunshot and heavy thud came. Trowa continued, "Two of them. And the three downstairs that Quatre got makes nine." Quatre nodded, "The one they killed makes nine and the two outside makes eleven." Wufei stated with wide eyes, "There were twelve of them." Trowa's eyes widened in response, "Are you sure there were twelve?" The Chinese pilot nodded, "Yea." The pilots took off upstairs when they realized that Kumi was still up there with the last of the men.
Kumi was walking down one of the long halls of the upstairs when she heard the crash of glass in a bedroom not far from where she was lurking in the darkness. Her cobalt eyes narrowed as she tucked her gun back in her belt and ran to the locked bedroom door where the sound came from. The door was instantly kicked in by the pilot. Looking to the large window inside, there was nothing left of the glass but shattered fragments as the wind was blowing the curtains in.
The silver-haired pilot ran to the window and saw a man dressed in black running through the woods outside. Kumi jumped through the broken window and onto the wooden awning below. With another jump, the pilot was running after the man who had a good lead ahead of her. The two of them ran as fast as their feet allowed to carry them. Soon, the 'Perfect Soldier' was gaining and removed her gun. Even as she ran, Kumi shot the man's right knee out as he fell to the ground, screaming in pain and terror.
The intruder rolled onto his back and looked up to the black-clad pilot as she stalked slowly to him, gun as her side and narrowed eyes locked onto his wide, terrified pair. "No...please, don't," the man whispered and pleaded desperately as he whimpered. Kumi stood over him and looked to him silently for a moment, no expression on her face as always. The man continued to please in a breathless whisper.
The pilot aimed her gut his the man's forehead and pulled the trigger. The loud gunshot echoed throughout the silent woods, waking a flock of crows in the distance as they called into the wind that blew past the stoic soldier. The echoes of the crows died down along with the far echoes of the gunshot as she turned and silently walked back to the cabin.
Trowa and the other pilots were outside with candles when Kumi returned. The tall pilot ran to her and asked, "Are you okay?" The other pilot nodded, "Hai." Relena looked to her friends in relief and asked, "How did you manage to return to Earth so quickly?" Trowa turned to her as he answered, "It took a long time to complete our missions because we had to take out OZ bases and crafts on the way to our sites. When out missions were completed, we were free to fly straight back. You'd be surprised how quick the trip can be when flying straight for three weeks."
Sette all but shouted, "Who the hell were those guys?" Kumi stated in monotone, "Bounty hunters." The others all took this new in disbelief and amazement. Trowa continued, "We're being hunted here on the Earth for a pretty heavy reward for each of us." Relena whispered, "W-why?" The silver-haired pilot shrugged, "Most of the people of Earth are agreeing that we're the cause of this war. And there are a lot more hunters out there than the ones that found you tonight." Novem asked, "What are we supposed to do now?" Trowa replied, "We bury the bodies and move onto another safe house that Noin located as soon as possible." Wufei nodded, "I saw some shovels in the basement." At this, he went inside to get them.
* * * * * *
In he morning, the few rays of light that broke through the gray, heavy clouds found the Gundam pilots walking back from the site where they buried the bounty hunters. Walking back to the safe house, Sette asked, "So we're on the run again?" Trowa nodded, "We'll be fine once we get to the safe house that Noin's suggested." Novem looked to the cabin where she and her friends had been staying the last three weeks and said, "Anything has to be better than this. There's no telling how many people know we were staying here." Delapan questioned, "When do we leave?" Kumi answered, "Now preferably."
Wufei looked to his friend and asked, "What haven't you told us that makes you want to hightail it out of here now?" Trowa and Kumi looked to each other before answering. Finally, Trowa answered, "We've been tracking a bad snowstorm that's making its way in this direction. There's no telling when it'll start, but we know that it'll last a long time once it does." Quatre asked, "How far is the safe house from here?" Kumi informed them, "We should get there in a few days. The snow will make it more difficult if it comes before we reach it, since we're going on foot." Sette sighed deeply, "In other words, we better haul ass." The silver-haired pilot nodded, "If we hope to beat the storm.
The pilots all understood and ran into the cabin as Trowa and Kumi remained outside. The pilots looked back to the woods and waited. Not a moment passed and a few white flakes blew past the pair. Their eyes widened in disbelief and they slowly turned their heads to look to each other. When their eyes locked, heavier, thicker flakes were falling everywhere and they looked up. Kumi's eyes closed and she lowered her head, growling deeply, "K'so." Trowa shook his head and couldn't help but chuckle, "So much for that plan." In the skies above, the thick clouds released countless, heavy drifts of snow with no end in sight.
TBC
Gundam Wing: The Second Chapter
Episode 26: Blackout
by SkyLark
with help from: Snodin, Star Soldier, Sam, Stormy, Silver Star, Beekay Ruby and GREETER 600
Sally was working on several reports in her office as she looked to some medical tests that had been taken on several pilots. The braided Preventer cleaned her desk of some of the papers after making several notes into her book. The phone on her desk gave a small ring as she sorted the last few records. Picking up the receiver, she said, "This is Water." The voice on the other end replied in a concerned voice, "I think that you might want to come down to the lab right away." Recognizing the voice to be one of the young woman that worked with her in the medical branch of the ship, Sally rose from her seat and nodded, "I'll be right down."
After quickly making her way into the lab, the young woman who called Sally ran to her, holding a single paper in her hand. Water looked to her worried glance and asked, "What's wrong, Jessica?" The medical aid answered as she held up the paper in her hand, "I knew that you would want to see this right away." Sally took the report into her hand and read it carefully.
The more she read, the more Sally's eyes widened. "Oh my God," she whispered to herself. Her red-haired assistant nodded, "I know...Should his majesty be informed?" Water covered her mouth, still in shock at the result of the test that had been taken. Finally, after a pause, she looked up from the paper and nodded back, Of course. I'll tell him right away. Thank you for getting me right away." Jessica nodded, "No problem."
Holding onto the paper, Sally made her way out of the room and quickly ran down the hall. When she reached the control room, she located Brian Weatherall, who was speaking with several Preventers. Sally cleared her throat when she was close to the king and his eyes looked up to hers. The Preventer licked her lips and held tightly to the paper in her right hand. "I am sorry, Brain, but I need to speak to you right away." Brian nodded and replied, "Sure thing, Sally."
Sally and Brian excused themselves as they left the control room. Walking into a small, empty room, Sally closed the door behind them. Brian eyed her with a bit of concern. He had noticed the paper in her hand as they walked down the hall. There wasn't any question that it was a medical report. "What's wrong, Sally?" he asked once they were secluded. Sally wasn't sure how to answer right away. Her hesitance made the little concern the king had increase a great deal.
Brian took Sally's free hand and smiled to her, "Whatever it is, you know that it'll be alright. Just tell me what's wrong." Sally nodded and took a deep breath. Finally able to get past the shock, the young woman smiled warmly, "You're going to be a father in eight months." The red-haired hind's green eyes widened in shock as a small gasp left him. "R-Relena's pregnant?" he whispered, still taken back by what he had been told. Sally smiled as she nodded, "Almost a month now. The advanced test was just completed. Congratulations."
A loud laugh left Brian as he wrapped his arms tightly around Sally, who returned the embrace. When the hug broke, Brian asked, "How are we going to tell Relena?" Sally shook her head, "I don't know. But I'm sure that she'll figure it out before long." The father-to-be sighed, "I wish that I could be there when she finds out."
Water nodded and frowned, "That's why I was hesitant to tell you...I know it'll be a while before you'll get to see each other again." Brian smiled warmly, "Thank you for your concern. I appreciate that you did tell me now." The young man chuckled, "Relena and I will be able to enjoy this once she returns. And we are going to have a large family together, after all." The Preventer managed to find her own smile again and told Brian, "I'm glad that I could help. Congratulations, again, Brian." The king hugged her again and replied, "Thank you."
Sally left the room to give Brian a moment alone. The young man sighed deeply as he walked to the window that looked to the distant Earth. watching the far away sphere, he whispered, "We're going to be parents, sweetheart." A wide smile crossed his lips just at the thought of that.
* * * * * *
The Gundam pilots lounging in the safe house on Earth had just finished dinner together. It was their third week on the planet and since it was the middle of the winter, it was getting dark early. It was pitch black outside and the temperature had reached zero degrees. The wind wasn;t helping any with the situation outdoors. Fortunately, the generator of the cabin was still forking for the pilots to have electricity and the furnace was giving enough heat for all of them to be comfortable.
Wufei and Quatre were doing the dishes while the girls sat at the dinner table and spoke amongst each other. Sette was sitting with her feat against the table as she leaned back in her seat with her hands folded behind her head. She sighed deeply in content, "You know, I can't remember having a nice dinner like this in a long time." Zes chuckled, "I'm glad you liked it."
Wufei went on to wash a glass as he looked out the small window of the kitchen. He couldn't see anything on account of the darkness outside. He thought aloud as he placed the glass aside, "If we had better equipment, we would have been able to survey the area longer. But we'd be lucky to see our hands in front of our faces out there." Quatre nodded smiled, "It could be a lot worse. At least we have a working generator." No sooner had the Arabian said this than the lights throughout the house began to flicker and dim.
The pilots looked with wide eyes to each other and all around the house as the lights went on and off. Finally, with one last spurt of light, everything went out. The pilots froze where they were, unable to see anything an inch past them. A match was lit and used to burn several candles. Placing the burning candles into some candelabras, Sette chuckled, " 'Yall are so lucky I'm five steps ahead of you aaaall the time." The pilots around her went on to help her remove several unused candles that she had found, placing them in candelabras.
Before long, there was enough candlelight burning for them to see in the living room and kitchen to get around safely. Wufei looked to Quatre and growled deeply, "And you tell me that I need to keep quiet more often." The blonde pilot chuckled nervously and cleared his throat. Wufei continued to glare at his friend. Quatre sighed and shrugged, "All right, so that was a dumb thing to say." Satisfied with that remark, the Chinese pilot gave a nod and went back to finishing the dishes in the dim, flicker coming from the room next to them.
Novem rose with a candelabra that had three burning candles in it. "I better go see if there's any way I can fix the generator." Wufei turned to her as he left the kitchen, drying his hands. He took hold of another candelabra as he replied, "I'll help." The two pilots left the room and headed for the basement as their friends remained in the living room, surrounded by the light from the candles on the table before them.
Delapan folded her hands on the table and rested her head there as she sighed, "Well, this sucks." Quatre shrugged, "It could be worse. We might-" Before he could finish his sentence, the girls all shouted, "No!" and "Stop!" as they shook their heads. Zes went as far as to cover the Arabian's mouth with her hand, since she was right next to him. Sette chuckled, "Sweetheart, it's nothing personal. We just don't want our luck to run out again." The blonde pilot's covered mouth smiled as he nodded. Relena removed her hand and said quietly, "I just hope Dorothy and Wufei will be able to fix whatever happened downstairs."
In the basement, Novem and Wufei made their way to the generator, guided by the light that the handles they held produced. The old machine before them was in bad shape and the two pilots groaned as they looked to it. "Damn," Wufei hissed as he walked close enough to remove some of the thick spider webs on the generator. Novem walked to the other side of the machine and opened a hatch to look at the wires inside.
"It's a lot worse than I thought it would be," she sighed deeply. Trying to move some of the old wires around, a large spark shot up as she shouted in shock. Wufei placed his candelabra on the ground and ran to his friend. "Are you alright?" he asked as he looked to her hand. Novem chuckled and nodded, "Yea. Just a little surprised, that's all." Seeing that her hand managed survived without being burnt, Wufei sighed in relief and nodded as he returned to where he was working.
The Chinese pilot carefully inspected the inside of the generator as he held the candle in front of him. "We won't be able to fix this tonight," he finally stated. Novem looked to some of the windows in the basement and suggested, "If we get up early enough, we'll be able to fix this in a few hours. The sun will be able to break through the windows down here so it'll be easier to work." Wufei nodded, "Yea. We might as well just leave this alone until then." The pilots left the generator and carefully walked up the old, creaky stairs again with their candles.
The pilots at the living room table stood and rejoined their friends, carrying their candelabras with them as well. "How does it look?" Quatre asked. Wufei shook his head, "For what we could see, it's pretty bad." Novem continued, "We can fix it. But it'll be next to impossible to work on it when it's this dark." Sette questioned, "How long would it take to fix?" The Chinese pilot answered, "A few hours, we'll get up early and work on it right away."
Relena shrugged, "Well, it's only one night. We can deal with candles." Delapan nodded, "Yea. Besides, this is the most exciting thing to happen since we got here." Sette yawned and stretched with her free hand, "It's getting late anyway. It's not a big deal. I think we can go a few hours without artificial light." The pilots agreed and went on to retire to their rooms upstairs, since there wasn't anything that they would be able to accomplish tonight, in the pitch dark.
* * * * * *
Sera Makato was piloting the ship as her son slept in the seat beside her. Heero had been taking out bases left and right the last few weeks. And the Preventer knew that the young pilot was not sleeping well at night. Most times, he woke of screaming and calling out Duo's name in fear. Sera had made a chart of all of the sites they had to hit before reaching colony X63. There had been twenty-three bases in total that they needed to destroy. Twenty-two of those sites were crossed off on the chart that was taped above her monitor.
Looking to the paper with a frown, the young woman whispered in a deep sigh, "Only one more attack and we'll be splitting off...Probably for good." She turned to see Heero sleeping and her eyes softened at how peaceful he looked. As is he could feel that he was being watched, the Wing pilot stirred a bit as he took a deep breath. Stretching a bit, a small moan left the Japanese pilot. His eyes opened and locked onto the brown pair that were focused on him.
Sera smiled warmly, "Ohayo." Heero nodded, "Ohayo." Looking to the chart that his comrade had been looking to, the Wing pilot sighed in content, "One more." Seeing that her son was looking forward to attacking the last base before his mission, Makato was saddened. She smiled, masking her pain as she turned back to look to the screen ahead of her and she stated, "You seem anxious." Heero nodded, "The sooner I can finally leave for X63, the sooner I'll get to be with Duo, Kumi and the others again."
The wing pilot asked, "How long until we reach the last base?" His mother answered, "About two days." The wing pilot nodded and sat up in his seat. Sera looked to him and sad quietly, "I've never asked how you and Duo met." Heero couldn't help but laugh. His comrade looked to him with uncertainty. Her son chuckled as his laughter calmed, "He shot me...twice." Makato's eyes widened as she gasped, "What!?!" The Wing pilot chuckled still and shook his head, "Long story." Sera laughed and replied, "I'm sure it is."
There was a silence between the pilots after their laughter passed. Heero sighed deeply as he turned to look to the woman he did not realize was his mother. "When I say that I'm anxious to move on, I didn't mean to upset you." Sera bit her lip and replied, "It's alright. I know that it wasn't meant to be taken personal." The Wing pilot nodded and looked ahead, trying to make up for upsetting his comrade. Years prior to this, he wouldn't have felt as though he needed to concern himself with anyone else's emotions. Time had changed, thanks to his braided lover. So, he chose to do what his partner would do at a time like this...start a conversation.
"Do you have a family?" Heero asked out of nowhere. Sera caught her breath and turned to face the pilot. "Hai," she nodded after a pause. "I have a son." Heero gave an almost shocked look and Makato continued, "His father, my husband, dies years ago." Heero's shocked look turned to one of understanding and sadness. He said quietly and sincerely as he lowered his head, "I'm sorry." Sera smiled warmly to her son, "It's alright. He was a wonderful man, regardless of what others might think. I was lucky to know him as long as I did."
The Wing pilot asked as he returned his gaze to his mother, "How old is your son?" Makato replied, "Twenty-two...you're age." the Preventer frowned sadly and looked ahead to her screen. She sighed deeply, "I haven't been a very good mother to him. It's been so long since I saw him that he might not know who I was if he saw me again." Heero chuckled and shook his head, "I doubt that's possible." Sera forced a smile and turned back to the pilot as she shrugged, "Well, I would understand if he didn't know me."
There was another pause of silence between them. Heero said quietly, "I am glad that I got to meet you. I understand why Commander Wilcox holds you as one of his best pilots." Sera smiled warmly and barely managed to whisper, "Thank you." She cleared her throat and said with a bit more volume, "It's been a pleasure working with you, as well, Heero."
Heero smiled back and turned to look through the window ahead of his seat. It took all the strength in her for Sera to keep herself from tearing up. She turned back and focused on her piloting again. She was going to do whatever it took to keep her sanity these next few days... Before she would have to say 'good bye' to her son again.
* * * * * *
It was going on close to midnight and the Gundam pilots had been sleeping soundly in their pitch black safe house for some time now. In her room, Delapan rolled onto her side in her sleep. The wind was blowing pretty strong outside and the dead limbs of the trees beside the house were whipping the roof of the cabin. The howl of the wind and the cracking of the branches hitting the roof were the only sounds in the cabin and for miles. A large gust of shrieking wind caused a thick, yet frail, branch to fall onto the tiles over the home. Delapan awake with a start on account of the terrifying thud over her.
Looking around her room, her eyes adjusted to the darkness. With a good look around the area, Catherine sighed deeply, "Take it easy, girl." At this, she lied back onto her mattress, pulling the thick comforter to her neck. Closing her eyes, Delapan sighed deeply with a small, relieved smile on her lips. She rolled onto her side that put her back to the door as she finally relaxed again.
The doorknob to her room turned without a click and the door opened very slowly and without any noise. When the door closed again, this time with a tiny creak, Delapan's eyes shot wide open as the pilot remained frozen in her spot.
Certain that there really was something in her room now, Catherine frantically tried to think of what to do. Finally, she spun quickly and jumped from her bed, landing just a few inches from the mattress. Her long, deep green nightgown was all that moved in her room. There was nothing around. With wide eyes, Catherine continued to look around. The young pilot's breathing was heavy as she continued to scan the pitch room.
After a moment and several paces around the wide area, Catherine was still not satisfied. She quickly went to the door and froze just before actually reaching it as her green eyes widened. "The bed," she whispered hoarsely to herself. The moment she said these words, the dark figure snuck out from beneath the mattress and sprang upon the unprepared redhead. A loud screech left her just as two large, strong hands covered her mouth quicker than she could blink.
Delapan struggled as she tried to free her pinned arms from the tall, muscular man holding her tightly. Catherine did manage to bite down on one hand as she worked herself loose for a moment, a very brief one at that. The intruder chocked back a cry of pain as his hold over the pilot's mouth was lost. Catherine screamed as loudly as she could, "EVERYONE, THERE'S SOMEONE IN THE HOUSE!" The pilot was lifted as the man behind her growled and held the pilot over his head. The young woman shouted and was thrown into the wall across the room, falling unconscious.
Wufei sprang from his room, holding a candelabra with a single burning candle in his left and while his right held onto a pistol. Being the closest to Catherine's room, it was only natural that he would be the one who would hear her cry. "Delapan?" he called into the dark hall, making his way to her room, at the end of the hall. Taking a few quick steps, gun ready, Wufei noticed something move in the darkness ahead of him. He couldn't make it out, but he heard the movement and swore there was something in the shadows.
Without asking, the Chinese pilot's dark eyes narrowed and his teeth clenched as he shot three times in the direction where the movement originated. The shots were returned with a single shot that ripped through Wufei's right shoulder. The Gundam pilot fell to the wooden floor with a loud cry of pain as he grabbed onto his wounded shoulder with his left hand. The gun he had was kicked far down the hall and the candle was blown out as it fell with him. Now enveloped in pitch darkness again, Wufei heard a deep chuckle as a large hand picked up the fallen candelabra and lit the wax again with a match.
The large, bearded and rugged man bent down to have a closer look at the fallen pilot. The glow of the candle highlighted the ridged features of the man's face and he licked his thick lips. He chuckled darkly, "You kids are worth a hell of a lot more dead than you are alive now, boy." Wufei's eyes widened for a moment before narrowing again as he lied on his right side. He spat squarely in the man's face. The old man growled deeply and loudly after wiping his face clean. Aiming his own gun at the pilot's forehead, he hissed, "You little son of a bitch-" He stopped mid threat as a bullet ripped through his own forehead.
The tall, built man fell forward onto the Chinese pilot, who looked to the corpse in shock and choked back a gasp. Forcing the body off of him with his left arm, the dark-eyed pilot was initially at a loss of what to do. Again, the candle was out and Wufei looked frantically around the hall, trying in vein to see who saved him. A small whisper came, "Wufei. Hang on." Two hands wrapped around his shoulders and helped him sit up. "Quatre?" Wufei asked in a startled whisper.
The Arabian nodded, but whispered back as he warned, "Shhh. I don't think we're alone yet." Taking a match from his pocket, Quatre lit the long, fallen candle again. Seeing the blood seeping from his friend's wound, he cringed inwardly and said quietly, "Here." The young pilot took off his first of two sweaters that he wore to bed that night and tore at the fabric to make a bandage that helped stop the blood. Wufei couldn't help but wince and take in a hissed breath as the pain shot throughout his body while Quatre worked on his injury.
It wasn't long before the blonde pilot managed to finish nursing his friend and got them to their feet. As soon as they stood, Zes could be heard screaming far down another corridor of rooms opposite of where the pilots were now. They looked with shock and fear to each other as they took their candles and weapons, splitting up. The cabin, while modest inside, was very large and there was a lot of ground that the pilots needed to cover.
Relena was being pinned on her bed by a young man dressed in black as he straddled the young queen in her dark room, holding her shoulders down. Relena was struggling with everything she had under the attacker's weight. The young man chuckled deeply, "Oh come on. I won't hurt you too much, sweetheart." Relena growled deeply and managed to free her right leg. Once this part of her body was loose, the pilot kick the intruder right between his legs and into his groin as he let out a loud cry of pain and doubled over.
Zes jumped from her bed and pulled a gun from her dresser, barely able to see anything, but still able to make out the dark figure on her bed. Aiming the gin at them with steady hands, Relena growled and demanded, "Who are you?" The pained man chuckled through his agony as he turned to the queen. "You're not planning really using that thing are you?"
Zes removed the safety from the gun and her eyes narrowed further. "What makes you think I'm not?" The young woman opened fire and hit the attacked in the chest. Relena kept shooting and had it not been for the darkness around her, she would have hit. However, the man was quick in getting up from his spot and knocked the armed pilot to the ground with a swift blow to her right cheek. Relena fell hard onto her side as she gave a startled cry.
Novem was running down the hall with a candle in one hand and a gun ready in the other as she made her way to her best friend's room. Sette ran the same down the other end of the hall. When the pilots met in the middle, the tomboy heard some stirring coming from downstairs. Her eyes thinned and she gave a motion to the blonde pilot that she was going to see what was happening down there. With another silent motion of her head, Sette told Dorothy to check on their friend. Novem nodded and they split ways.
Dorothy kept her back close to the wall as she quietly approached Relena's room. Inside, The queen had gotten up and was wrestling with her wounded attacker. They were both growling and fighting as they fought for possession of the gun Zes had used. Novem was slowly opening the door when the sound of footsteps running right in her direction came to her too late. The pilot was kicked in the chest and fell to the ground as the force of the blow hurled her backwards. The candle she held was retrieved as a dark shadow of a figure picked it up.
It was yet another tall, middle-aged man. He sneered as he looked down to his startled victim. "Boo," was all he said just before he blew the candle out. Novem was grabbed by her long, blonde locks and forced onto her feet. The moment she had a chance, the pilot removed a gun hidden in the strong man's pants and shot him in the leg. Once this man was on the floor, shouting and cursing in agony, the Gundam pilot growled and aimed the gun to shoot him through the head. No sooner than she could breathe, two dark figures appeared from nowhere and grabbed Dorothy.
The young man who had been in Relena's room was walking past the door as she lied over his shoulder, unconscious after a heated struggle with the intruder. He looked to his fellow black-clad comrades as he stumbled to walk to them, holding the side of his chest where the bullet penetrated him. Dorothy was being beaten badly by the two men that came from the shadows and was soon left unconscious, as well. The beating stopped and the two pilots were lied beside each other.
The man with the wounded leg rose and limped on his right leg as he made his way to the others. The man with the chest wound fell to his knees as he groaned loudly and deeply in pain. The others looked down to him. "H-Help me," the wounded man begged as he looked up to his three friends. The man with the injured leg removed another gun from his belt and aimed it at his fallen comrade's head. The dying man's eyes widened and a bullet dislodged, flying through his skull. The sickening thud of the man's dead body was the only testimony to his death, since everything was so dark.
Downstairs, the tomboy was making her way into the living room, ready for anything as she tried to see past the candlelight that guided her through the house. There was someone down here, she was certain of that. Sette heard something crash behind her as she jumped and spun quickly, aiming her gun straight ahead of her. Looking to the furnace, several thick and heavy chunks of wood had fallen from their resting place as they lied across the floor. A large rat ran out of the fallen prices, squeaking loudly and causing the ex-princess to gasp loudly as she was startled yet again.
The rat disappeared as quickly as it had appeared and Sette chuckled deeply and nervously to herself. Her chuckle was matched by a much deeper one, just inches behind her. The tomboy froze, then turned quickly, shooting without being concerned about what she was firing at. After five rapid shots, the ex-princess realized that the dark figure had long since moved through the shadows again. After clenching her teeth and scanning the area again, gun still forward and straight, she shouted, "WHAT THE HELL DO YOU WANT?" There was no answer.
The pilot's eyes frantically searched all around and found nothing. Not one thing moved or changed. Able to maintain her fear, Sette slowly walked towards the small den that was adjacent to the living room. There was no door that present there, and so it would have been easy for anyone to sneak in unnoticed. Licking her dry lips, the pilot quickly shot into the room. Nothing.
The dark shadow came from behind and quickly and a thick arm wrapped around the tomboy's throat. The pilot felt the strain on her neck as she was lifted from the floor, unable to breathe. Trying desperately to get air again, the candle and gun were dropped from Sette's hands as they shot up to undo the hold on her. Left in utter darkness, the tomboy could feel herself slipping from consciousness as the man strangled harder. The pilot's body went limp and was dropped. She fell to the ground like a rag doll.
Quatre was now on the stairs and barely managed to see the man coming from the den when he fired upon him. The distance and darkness were working against the pilot's keen aim and none of the bullets made their target. The intruder who had knocked Sette out was chuckling deeply as he looked to the Arabian. Quatre's eyes narrowed and he fired again, only to realize that he had run out of bullets. Looking to the empty gun with wide eyes, the blonde pilot was soon overpowered by two more assailants who came from the top of the stairs. Quatre fought with them and after a good struggle that he managed to control, he was suddenly kicked down the long stairwell. The Gundam pilot hit the floor, unmoving.
Wufei heard his friend's cry as he fell down the stairs and shouted, "Quatre!?!!" Running to the stairs, the Chinese pilot was careful not to irritate his wounded shoulder as he made his way through the house. Flying down the steps to reach the living room, Wufei was panting with a raged look in his face and eyes. That look changed when his eyes fell upon the lifeless forms of his comrades as they were lined next to each other in the middle of the living room when he entered. There were eleven men, all dressed in black and rugged looking as they faced the pilot with nasty sneers.
Knowing that there was nothing he could do, Wufei's eyes closed in distress, then narrowed when they opened again. The Chinese pilot lowered his gun to the ground along with the candelabra he was holding. Once he stood straight again, he raised his hands. He looked to the men around the room to see just how many people there really were. Wufei counted eleven exactly. However, there was a twelfth, he came to realize too late. The back of a pistol was thrust into the back of his head. Everything was pitch again, this time, it wasn't because of the blackout.
* * * * * *
A half-hour later, Wufei felt himself waking again. His eyes twitched a bit before fully opening, a deep groan leaving him as well. Once he fully gained consciousness, his eyes went wide as they looked around him. he and the other pilots were tied by thick hopes that bound their feet and wrists as they were held in the basement of the safe house. His friends all looked to him and each other in concern and fear. The men responsible for their situation were all around them, still all in black but in plain sight as the room was lit by a great number of candles.
The man wounded in the leg from Novem's shot limped over to the line of helpless Gundam pilots and sneered, "Now that you're all awake, we can get started." The young queen hissed, "What is it you intend to do to us?" Their captor chuckled, "We're going to play a little game that involves all of you. But don't worry. You'll all get the same treatment before long." Folding his arms behind his back, the tall man sneered, "Let's see..." Quatre's eyes widened and he looked to Sette, who was tied beside him and giving the same frightened glance. The other Gundams were glaring to the older men surrounding them. The injured intruder paced before the tied young men and women as he eyed all of them carefully.
The trapped pilots continued to glare as they were unable to do anything else to threaten the rugged attacker. After walked from the top of the line, Catherine to the end, Wufei, the man walked back and forth a few times, slowly and played with a long blade the whole time. Finally, he looked to Sand Rock's pilot and bent at the waste to take a closer look at the Arabian. "You're a pretty choice to begin with," he smiled and took Quatre. Sette shouted, "NO! QUATRE!" Her fiance was thrown over the wounded man's shoulder forcefully as his friends shouted.
Sette did whatever she could to try and get loose, but to no avail. The ropes were just too thick and there were too many adversaries to be able to take care of all of them. Even still, she struggled. The man with the blonde pilot over his shoulder kicked the ex-princess in the gut, knocking the wind out of her. Sette gagged and gasped for air after the forceful blow and couched violently. The man assured her, "Don't worry. You'll be next." Looking to his comrades, the apparent leader nodded to another, younger man that went on to follow him up the stairs.
The other pilots watched with heavy hearts as Quatre was taken from their site. Sette was fighting tears as she growled deeply and shouted to the other men, "YOU BASTARDS AREN'T GOING TO GET AWAY WITH THIS, I SWEAR IT!" The men around the candlelit basement chuckled and sneered at the threat as they kept a close watch over the pilots. Relena, Catherine and Dorothy all lowered their heads, too frightened and saddened as they tried not to imaging what grim fate awaited their friend who was taken from them.
Outside, a good half mile from the house, the two men drug Quatre by the wrists along the rough, dead ground. The pilot made no sound and kept his head down. He was forced onto his feet when there was nothing but forest around them. The younger of the attackers climbed a tree that lied not far to their right. There was a thick, wide limb a few feet over the young pilot's head. The injured man tossed a thick rope up to his partner, who took the cord and made it hang over the limb where he was. The older man forced Quatre to hold up his arms over his head and tightly knotted his arms and wrists that they couldn't move with the rope that was slung over the branch above.
Quatre was breathing heavily, making thick puffs of smoke when he exhaled into the bitter cold air. Still, he would not allow himself to give the assailants the pleasure of hearing his cry out or whimper. Instead, he stood tall and did not make any sound other than his chattering teeth and quick breathing. The man in the tree jumped from his spot and looked with amusement to the paralyzed victim that he and his friend gathered.
The older, wounded man took his thick blade from his pocket and walked slowly to the Arabian. The moon was no longer available to offer any light, hidden behind dark clouds that spanned the entire sky. Quatre's eyes adjusted to the darkness as the man stalked to him, chuckling deeply. The rugged man ran a hand through the blond hair of the pilot and said lustfully, "You are an awful pretty one. I think that I'll have some of my own personal fun before I get to business."
The Arabian's eyes widened in shock, but the pilot still would not make a sound. The younger attacker told his partner in anticipation, "I go after you." The other man didn't seem to pay his friend any mind as he was too focused on Quatre, arms raised over his head and unable to break free. His own breathing was becoming heavy as he looked forward to what he was planning to do with his new pet, puffs of smoke easier to be noticed as he breathed out. Bending down to have a closer look into his prey's eyes, the man licked his lips and whispered, "Life in these woods gets pretty lonely...Especially on cold nights like this." The Arabian closed his eyes and fought off the urge to shout.
The lust-filled man smiled, "You're good at keeping quiet, boy." Running the edge of his knife along the pilot's slender neck and down the front of his sweater, he said quietly, "But I'll make you cry out soon enough." At this, he ripped through Quatre's sweater as if it was nothing with his knife. Shirtless and terrified, Quatre kept his eyes shut and still refused to make any sound. There was no use in trying to free his suspended arms, since the knots were too tight and the rope far too thick. Freezing, the pilot did whatever it took to keep from showing any of the fear inside him from showing. The injured man's partner was licking his own, sneering lips at the sight of the pilot's exposed chest.
Quatre could feel the man lurking just over him again. Biting his lip, he heard the man chuckle, "Now comes the fun part." As the man went onto chuckle again, Quatre heard a familiar, monotone voice suddenly tell him in his mind, "Quatre, on my word, get down." The pilot's eyes shot wide opened as he hasped mentally, "What!?!" The man over him smiled, "Looks like I finally got your attention again." Quatre was gazing up to the man, clearly in shock and fear now. The voice came again and said, "I'd never steer you wrong, Quatre." The small pilot felt a smile crossing his lips, which became a sneer. The attacker's eyes widened at this and he growled, "What the fuck are you smiling at like that?"
The Arabian looked up at the man with the same smirk and shrugged, "Nothing." The injured man's eyes narrowed as he hissed quietly, "Alright, smart ass." Holding the knife just inches from the blonde's throat, the man growled deeply, "Looks like I'll just have to take you out like this." The man was about to lunge the blade into Quatre's throat, and was just a half an inch from plunging the point of it through the skin, when a bullet ripped through thick rope that held Quatre's arms up over his head.
The pilot heard the voice in his mind tell him, "Now." Not even with time to think, Quatre managed to pull out the remainder of the rope as he got himself to fall onto his bare chest, covering the back of his head. Everything happened so fast that the armed man continued to lunge in his attempt to stab the pilot, only to cut into the air before him. Without any time to react, the stunned, tall man's throat was ripped out by a second bullet from behind. Both shots from the gun echoed in the still night air through the woods. The man's lifeless body sagged onto the ground instantly.
The dead man's young partner spun behind him quickly, in shock. Another gunshot rang out from a second gun. The bullet lodged itself perfectly in the center of the young intruder's forehead, exiting the back. Quatre was just looking up from his cover on the ground when the second man fell dead not far before him. When the dead man collapsed, the Arabian made out the shadows of two people. They were both aiming their guns ahead of them, as they had been aimed to kill the intruders. The slender figures were not difficult to make out and Quatre gasped loudly.
The Arabian shouted in relief, "KUMI! TROWA!" The two Gundam pilots ran to their friend. The silver-haired pilot removed the black leather jacket that fell to her waist, covering her black clothes, and wrapped it around Quatre's bare shoulders. Trowa took the blade from the man who planned to use it on his partner and used it, himself, to free the ropes that bound the blonde's wrists and ankles together. Stunned and relieved beyond words, Quatre's right side sagged into Kumi as he sat up and allowed his tall friend to cut through the knots. The young woman wrapped an arm around his shoulders and rubbed his arm, trying to keep him warm.
When he was freed, Quatre was fit into the leather coat by his female friend and Trowa helped him up to his feet. Once he was on his feet, Quatre sighed deeply and threw his arms around the 'Perfect Soldier,' whispering, "I knew that you'd find us." A half-smile crossed Kumi's lips as she patted Quatre's back and chuckled deeply. "Good thing you have that Space Heart as a guide," she said in monotone to the pilot tightly holding her. Quatre broke the embrace only to hug Trowa tightly. The tall pilot smiled and returned the gesture.
As the other pilots were reuniting, the 'Perfect Soldier' looked to the dead bodies of the men who almost killed Quatre. The younger of the two men was wearing a gold chain with a round pendant of a saint on it. The silver-haired pilot removed the chain and held onto it in her right hand. Looking to Sand Rock's pilot, Kumi asked, "Where are the others." Quatre pointed in the direction of the safe house and answered, "The basement." Kumi reloaded her gun a she walked silently to the cabin.
Back in the basement, the pilots all lied silently. The men who trapped them were looking closely and remaining silent as they awaited the return of their comrades. A handful of them were talking amongst each other. One whispered, "I'm telling you we should just kill them now and be rid of them. It's the only way we can be safe. They are the Gubdam pilots, after all. There's no telling what they can do." A second growled quietly, "Stop being paranoid. They're not going anywhere like this." A third assured him with a nasty grin, "Just relax. We'll be rid of those pilots s-" The man's words stopped short when the sound of something clinking down the stairs caused everyone to jump.
Whatever was making the noise, it was clinking all the way to the basement floor. The eerie sound was enough the frighten even the tall, rugged men. Walking to the stairs with a candelabra, the youngest of the intruders (who wished to get rid of the pilots right away) watched something glisten as it concluded it's trip down the steps, clinking the whole time. When the shiny item stopped just past his feet, the young man's eye widened as he gasped sharply. It was a gold chain with a round pendant that had been tossed downstairs.
The other men quickly joined their friend and looked to the chain. The youngest whispered and shook his head, "Shit...Oh shit..." Another man looked with shock to the pendant. "It's Danny's necklace," he said aloud, frightened. The youngest man turned to the pilots and aimed his pistol at Novem's head as he shouted, "I told you we should have just killed them like this!" One of the other men there stopped him as they shot their terrified partner in the back, killing him instantly. The pilots looked to their captors with shocked faces as the dead body collapsed. Novem was only a little shaken after the close call.
The man who shout the hysterical intruder looked to the others with narrowed eyes and said, "Spread out. Three of us stay here and the rest, span the house. We'll find out what the hell's going on and kill whoever is playing games with us." The others nodded. He along with five others made their way up the stairs as four others remained in the basement.
The six men went on to take different parts of the house. One of them entered the den carefully, concealed in the darkness and silent as a cat when he moved. Aiming his gun forward, he scanned the room and left nothing unturned. After a very careful look through the whole room, he decided there was nothing to be found. As he made his way to the door, the intruder then noticed something that caused him to freeze in place as he looked up and to his right.
There were several statures on the top of the tall book cases that almost touched the high ceiling above him. It was then that he heard the safety clip of a gun being removed above and behind him. The man spun quickly, shocked and terrified as the last thing he saw was the threatening sneer across Trowa's lips from his spot on the bookcase, with the statues. The pilot took one shot and killed the man with a bullet through the heart.
In the basement, The three men looked up to the ceiling above them, along with the pilots, when they heard the gunshot and thud of a corpse. One of the men sneered, "They got them." Another item was then tossed down the stairs, making a loud crash as it bounced off the stairs. Looking to what had fallen in shock and disbelief, the men recognized the thick, silver high school ring of the man killed in the den.
The men turned to each other with wide eyes and pale faces. "They're hunting us now," one whispered with what little voice he managed to find. It was then that a gun was locked and loaded at the top of the stairs. Looking up, all the men could see was the end of a gun aimed and opening fire upon all of them.
Up on the top floor of the house, the same man who had attacked Catherine made their way to some of the bedrooms and began searching, gun ahead of him and all. In Catherine's room, he took an extensive look of everything, walking to the far side of the room when the door to the small space closed and locked once his back was to it. The sound of the door closing and locking startled the man, causing him to jump.
Running to the door, he tried desperately to get out. It was then that the man's eyes widened then closed as he realized his fatal mistake, as Delapan had...He didn't check under the bed. He turned just in time to see Kumi slipped from the haven under the mattress and they opened fire. Kumi shot first, before the intruder had a moment to shoot himself, as two bullets went into his chest.
In the basement, the Gundam pilots were freed from their ropes, with Quatre's help. They got to their feet and armed themselves and each took a candelabra as they walked up the stairs. As they climbed, they heard two more close shots ring out in the living room. When they ran there, they saw Trowa standing over two dead bodies, smoke rising from his gun as he kept it aimed at the bodies. Delapan's eyes widened and she ran to her brother, whispering, Trowa." They instantly embraced tightly and Trowa smiled as he hugged her, "I've missed you, too, Catherine." Catherine kissed Trowa's cheek and asked quietly, "Are you alright?" The tall pilot nodded, "I'm fine."
Wufei asked, "How many of them did you get?" His friend answered, "I got three of them on this floor. Kumi's upstairs and I heard her shoot one of them-" As soon as he said this, the sound of another gunshot and heavy thud came. Trowa continued, "Two of them. And the three downstairs that Quatre got makes nine." Quatre nodded, "The one they killed makes nine and the two outside makes eleven." Wufei stated with wide eyes, "There were twelve of them." Trowa's eyes widened in response, "Are you sure there were twelve?" The Chinese pilot nodded, "Yea." The pilots took off upstairs when they realized that Kumi was still up there with the last of the men.
Kumi was walking down one of the long halls of the upstairs when she heard the crash of glass in a bedroom not far from where she was lurking in the darkness. Her cobalt eyes narrowed as she tucked her gun back in her belt and ran to the locked bedroom door where the sound came from. The door was instantly kicked in by the pilot. Looking to the large window inside, there was nothing left of the glass but shattered fragments as the wind was blowing the curtains in.
The silver-haired pilot ran to the window and saw a man dressed in black running through the woods outside. Kumi jumped through the broken window and onto the wooden awning below. With another jump, the pilot was running after the man who had a good lead ahead of her. The two of them ran as fast as their feet allowed to carry them. Soon, the 'Perfect Soldier' was gaining and removed her gun. Even as she ran, Kumi shot the man's right knee out as he fell to the ground, screaming in pain and terror.
The intruder rolled onto his back and looked up to the black-clad pilot as she stalked slowly to him, gun as her side and narrowed eyes locked onto his wide, terrified pair. "No...please, don't," the man whispered and pleaded desperately as he whimpered. Kumi stood over him and looked to him silently for a moment, no expression on her face as always. The man continued to please in a breathless whisper.
The pilot aimed her gut his the man's forehead and pulled the trigger. The loud gunshot echoed throughout the silent woods, waking a flock of crows in the distance as they called into the wind that blew past the stoic soldier. The echoes of the crows died down along with the far echoes of the gunshot as she turned and silently walked back to the cabin.
Trowa and the other pilots were outside with candles when Kumi returned. The tall pilot ran to her and asked, "Are you okay?" The other pilot nodded, "Hai." Relena looked to her friends in relief and asked, "How did you manage to return to Earth so quickly?" Trowa turned to her as he answered, "It took a long time to complete our missions because we had to take out OZ bases and crafts on the way to our sites. When out missions were completed, we were free to fly straight back. You'd be surprised how quick the trip can be when flying straight for three weeks."
Sette all but shouted, "Who the hell were those guys?" Kumi stated in monotone, "Bounty hunters." The others all took this new in disbelief and amazement. Trowa continued, "We're being hunted here on the Earth for a pretty heavy reward for each of us." Relena whispered, "W-why?" The silver-haired pilot shrugged, "Most of the people of Earth are agreeing that we're the cause of this war. And there are a lot more hunters out there than the ones that found you tonight." Novem asked, "What are we supposed to do now?" Trowa replied, "We bury the bodies and move onto another safe house that Noin located as soon as possible." Wufei nodded, "I saw some shovels in the basement." At this, he went inside to get them.
* * * * * *
In he morning, the few rays of light that broke through the gray, heavy clouds found the Gundam pilots walking back from the site where they buried the bounty hunters. Walking back to the safe house, Sette asked, "So we're on the run again?" Trowa nodded, "We'll be fine once we get to the safe house that Noin's suggested." Novem looked to the cabin where she and her friends had been staying the last three weeks and said, "Anything has to be better than this. There's no telling how many people know we were staying here." Delapan questioned, "When do we leave?" Kumi answered, "Now preferably."
Wufei looked to his friend and asked, "What haven't you told us that makes you want to hightail it out of here now?" Trowa and Kumi looked to each other before answering. Finally, Trowa answered, "We've been tracking a bad snowstorm that's making its way in this direction. There's no telling when it'll start, but we know that it'll last a long time once it does." Quatre asked, "How far is the safe house from here?" Kumi informed them, "We should get there in a few days. The snow will make it more difficult if it comes before we reach it, since we're going on foot." Sette sighed deeply, "In other words, we better haul ass." The silver-haired pilot nodded, "If we hope to beat the storm.
The pilots all understood and ran into the cabin as Trowa and Kumi remained outside. The pilots looked back to the woods and waited. Not a moment passed and a few white flakes blew past the pair. Their eyes widened in disbelief and they slowly turned their heads to look to each other. When their eyes locked, heavier, thicker flakes were falling everywhere and they looked up. Kumi's eyes closed and she lowered her head, growling deeply, "K'so." Trowa shook his head and couldn't help but chuckle, "So much for that plan." In the skies above, the thick clouds released countless, heavy drifts of snow with no end in sight.
TBC